The sluggish performance of the luxury residential market in Singapore has led many investors to adopt a 'wait-and-see' attitude towards buying new properties. But the opportunity to pick up a bargain, combined with developers offering excellent value for money on new developments, has begun to reinvigorate investor interest in the city.
Average prices for Singapore property are down by about 21 per cent since their peak in June last year, with a quarterly decline of 13.8 per cent in the first quarter of this year, compared with a 6.1 per cent decline in the final quarter of last year.
The collapse in global trade has also not helped the situation in Singapore, with GDP figures released last month showing an 11.5 per cent fall compared with the same period last year.
There is, however, some cause for optimism in the property sector, with promising sales results from some developers. According to a CB Richard Ellis report, the residential sector recently turned in its best performance in six quarters. The report states that new home take-ups of about 2,200 units is the highest since 2007.
'We are near the bottom of the downturn,' says Darien Bradshaw, regional director, international properties at Colliers. 'Developers are now offering attractively priced products at great locations. Now is the ideal time to pick up attractive bargains.'
These developers include City Developments, which has seen encouraging responses from private views at some of its developments, and an increase in interest from buyers.
'While the high-end residential property market has been sluggish, the success of a few new launches in the first quarter of this year, targeted at the mid and mass markets, have generated renewed interest with increased visitors to show flats and increased take up rates,' says Chia Ngiang Hong, group general manager at City Developments. 'The well-received launches are an indication that buyer sentiment is improving.'
