Private home prices in Singapore are still inching higher — albeit at the slowest pace in five quarters — even after the government imposed additional property curbs to avoid the risk of a sharp correction that could be destabilizing to the city-state’s economy.
An index tracking private residential prices increased 0.5 percent in the three months that ended on Sunday, compared with a 3.4 percent advance in the June quarter, according to a flash estimate from the Urban Redevelopment Authority yesterday.
That added to a 9.1 percent gain in the year through June.
Photo: Reuters
Apartment prices in prime districts rose 1.2 percent last quarter compared with a 0.9 percent gain in three month through June 30, the data showed.
Unit prices in suburban areas added 0.1 percent after climbing 3 percent in the previous quarter, according to the data.
Prices near prime areas slid 0.8 percent after gaining 5.6 percent in the June quarter, the data showed.
Singapore in July took renewed steps to cool its property market after a steep rise in home prices in the first six months of the year.
The rush of transactions was fueled by aggressive land bids from developers and so-called en bloc transactions, in which a group of owners band together to sell entire apartment buildings.
Under the new rules, individuals taking out their first housing loan face stricter borrowing limits, meaning they have to stump up more cash upfront.
For foreign purchasers of residential property, the additional buyer’s stamp duty was increased to 20 percent from 15 percent.
For Singaporeans, the extra charges only apply from their second home purchase.
As developer stocks sink, investors are turning toward businesses that hold the real-estate assets rather than the ones that sell them.
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