WITH thousands of new flats on their books for disposal, developers are carefully assessing market conditions to decide when best to enter the sales market in the Year of the Pig. Many development sales have been put back from last year due to weak buying sentiment or the difficulties in securing pre-sale consent from the Government, and are now expected to be offered on the market soon. Property analysts expect developers to be conservative when setting prices for batches of units released early in the new year, with the hope of reinjecting life back into the sluggish market. The upcoming sale of New World Development Co's 190 flats at Crestmont Villa in Discovery Bay is likely to be the first major residential offering after the Lunar New Year and may kick off a series of residential sales. The units, measuring from about 1,200 to 1,700 sq ft, will be offered for sale in middle of this month. HKR International is also planning to launch the sale of its La Costa development in Discovery Bay, which comprises 319 residential units, within the next few weeks. Kornville residential units in Quarry Bay, being developed by Hang Lung Development Co, will be put on sale at the end of this month or early next. Kornville comprises two blocks with a total of 502 flats, measuring from 553 to 777 sq ft, which are scheduled for completion in the fourth quarter of the year. Wheelock Properties is expected to release a new batch of flats at Parc Oasis in Yau Yat Chuen for sale next month. The new phase comprises eight towers, from blocks 26 to 33, for a total of 387 units. Some agents said the selling price of the new units would be about $6,500 per square foot, lower than the previous sale. Sun Hung Kai Properties is also looking at plans to offer for pre-sale units at Royal Ascot in Sha Tin and Palm Springs in Yuen Long. Royal Ascot is being built in two phases and will provide 2,400 units in 10 blocks. The new phase in Palm Springs comprises about 200 units. New World wants consent to sell 230 units in 23 six-storey housing blocks at the Phase 4C development of Discovery Bay. Other major residential projects which are likely to come on to the market over the next few months include the remaining units in the last few blocks of Laguna City, South Horizons and Bayshore Towers, and a new phase of Kingswood Villas - all being built by Cheung Kong (Holdings). These four projects will provide about 6,000 units. Sino Land Co is also expected to sell new batches of units at Classical Gardens, Avon Park and Serenity Park in the short term. These will add more than 1,000 homes to the market. In the middle of the year, Wheelock may release for sale a new residential project in Ho Man Tin, which has 213 flats. Other ventures from Wheelock and Sino Land, and from Henderson Land Development Co, will be for sale this year.