Buyer & Seller Must Know

Starting at the beginning of this year, we keep hearing about how well the economy of Singapore is doing, as it began to recover and follow a positive trend since the last part of 2017. But, for the moment, the households of Singapore are only seeing the numbers, as there are no palpable effects of this economic improvements just yet. Still, the statistics are showing that we are doing better than in 2016. So, according to a report made public by the Department of Statistics, a medium sized household had its income increased by 2% every month starting with 2016. Thus, if this income was around $8,846 in 2016, it reached $9,023 in the year that just passed.

But, of course, the numbers are a bit better than what is actually happens in reality. So, the increase was only 1.5% because we had to think about the inflation as well and cut it from the increase the authorities are bragging about. Still, having in mind that the economy surprised everyone with its improvements that exceeded all expectations, an increase of 3.5% is expected to be recorded during the remainder of the year. Even so, some state that the income of the average household increased by 2.6% in reality, in spite of an economy that was not showing signs of improvement at the moment. According to experts, this happened because of two main reasons.

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While it is not believed that the rise in the value of Buyer Stamp’s Duty will affect the current recovery of the property market in Singapore in any way, this change may affect the prices of future projects. The much higher prices of land, which falls in the expenses supported by developers, is another factor that can lead to a price rise as well, according to specialists. According to Mr. Augustine Tan, who is the president of Redas, or Real Estate Developers’ Association of Singapore, the sudden increase in this particular stamp duty will not impair the recovery of the market in this sector, although it may cause a certain degree of friction. Home buyers are still reacting to prices in a very sensitive manner, but they will still do their best to obtain the desired property.

Mr. Tan spread the good news at a lunch during the Spring Festival, an event that is celebrated every year by Redas. Having no less than 620 guests, there were plenty of people to hear the news and share them with the rest. As Mr. Tan said, the recovery of the market is just in its beginnings, but the feelings are positive about it and it is expected to the trend to continue in the same manner. Although there are circumstances that are difficult to predict, the economic growth recorded in Singapore in recent times, which is more than expected, gives everyone hope that that the positive trends will remain the same in the following years.

But, in spite of all these increased, the property prices in Singapore are still affordable, if we are to compare them with what you can find in larger cities like London or Shanghai. While it takes 14 or 15 years to afford a property in Beijing or Shanghai, and 8 and a half years to afford one in London, it takes only 4 or 5 years to be able to afford one in Singapore. So, the situation is by far a grim one. It is also worth mentioning that the rise in buyer’s stamp duty applies only in the case of properties that cost more than $1 million. For the properties that have a selling price of $1 million or less, the stamp duty will remain in the 1 to 3% area, as it did so far.

Let us not forget that property prices were on a constant drop in the past years, falling 3.7% in 2015 and 3.1% in 2016. Last year the first raise was recorded, of 1.1%, in the past 3 years, so we are still far from having to face large prices. Desmond Lee, who is the Second Minister for National Development said that even though he is confident in the market growth Singapore is enjoying at the moment, the number of properties that will be available for sale will likely double or go beyond this threshold in the near future. At the end of 2017 alone there were no less than 17,000 unsold properties, so we tend to believe Mr. Lee. Mr. Tan added the fact that there may be more than 34,400 private residences available on the market between 2018 and 2019, a number that is generated by the sales of land sites that have not received planning approval just yet. But he also said that the limited land availability in Singapore will lead to the development of properties with mix uses, if the country and its developers wish to maintain the economic growth and meet the demand.

http://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/prices-at-new-projects-may-rise-due-to-hike-in-duty

Upcoming new launch condos in Singapore

• Shunfu Condo
• Woodleigh Condo
• Rivercove Residences

Upcoming new launches that are freehold

• Harbour View Gardens
• The Verandah Residences

The job market in Singapore could be seriously refreshed by new investments in the offshore engineering and marine sectors. Besides bringing an additional $5.8 billion to the local budget, these investments will also generate approximately 1,500 new positions on the job market until 2025. A team formed out of the representatives of several agencies and managed by the Economic Development Board came out with a plan involving roads that are meant to refresh these two sectors of Singapore’s industry. Also, a few days ago, a map that presented the transformations that were going to take place in these industries was released by S. Iswaran, who is the current Minister for Trade and Industry.

The Economic Development Board, or EDB, mentioned, in a public statement, the fact that the offshore engineering and marine sectors went through three very difficult years. Also, the significant decrease in the price of oil that took place in 2014 did nothing but aggravate the situation. Even so, these two sectors are still very important for the economy of Singapore, offering jobs to 23,000 locals and bringing $3.6 billion to the GDP of the country. The Government couldn’t just stand and do nothing while this part of the industry was being challenged, so it came up with measures meant to offer support to the business owners in these sectors during the years of hardship. Thus, two different schemes were used, the Internationalization Finance Scheme and Spring Singapore’s Bridging Loan. These schemes provided loans to approximately 100 different companies, or more, which summed up the amount of $700 million. The majority of the companies that applied for such a loan were the small and medium ones.

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Collective sales have been quite the hit recently in Singapore. But as you can imagine, even these won’t be able to run away from glitches. Tampines Court is one of the collective sales that actually had to deal with this sort of problems. Those technical glitches mired the entire sale. The firm is engaged with the LTA as it tries to create a new link to the Pan Island Expressway. The company has to make the road improvements, otherwise they will not be able to increase the number of units.

And yes, this is the most important thing for any type of sales person at the end of the day. But it seems that the Tampines Court sale was delayed mostly because the developer is still trying to get the planning permission approval from the URA. These things are extremely important at this time, and they may end up having a major significance in the very near future.

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Recently, more precisely on the 6th of February, the Housing Board started its first sale program of 2018, putting out for sale no less than 3,664 BTO apartments in four different towns. But this is only the tip of the iceberg, as it is expected for a total of 17,000 BTO apartments to be released throughout the entire year. Also, the batch that is going to inaugurate this large project will include flats will be constructed in a way that will offer them the open-kitchen feature, but only where this detail is possible from an architectural point of view. And, according to the Housing Board, or HDB, the type of the units will start from two-room flats and go up to five-room flats, so that they will answer to the requirements of every home buyer.

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Singapore stocks started declining on February 20th after taxes were raised on home purchases over $1 million. This was just after the housing market began to recover from a 4-year low.

During early trading, the City Developments and the UOL Group fell more than 2%. They were the largest declines on the Straits Times Index. CapitaLand, the largest developer in Singapore, dropped for the first time in one week.

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Yesterday, the Cairnhill and Riviera point were 2 properties in District 9 that were sold via En Bloc Sales. The Cairnhill was sold for $362 million while the Riviera Point went for $72 million.

The Cairnhill Road development was bought by Low Keng Huat, a property developer listed in Singapore, while the Macly Group, another Singapore property developer bought the Riviera Point development at Kim Yam Road.

The Cairnhill Mansions is situated on approx. 43,103 square feet of land area and the structure is an storied building of 18 blocks of 61 apartments. Its selling price amounts to $ 2,311 per sq. ft. per plot ratio (psf ppr). Read more

The urban redevelopment authority is looking for public feedback on the changes that it has made to the rules for non-residential developers. This change was made to protect the interests of those who buy incomplete industrial and commercial properties.

The benefit of such a program is three-fold. It will increase transparency, improve industry standards, and help buyers make better decisions.

The industry experts see this innovation as binding the rules for both non-residential and residential developers. This rule accords various classes of buyers the same protection under the law.

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There has been a noted surge in the sales of private homes sold by developers in last month. The sales figure in January 2017 was 382. However, the records show that 522 private homes were sold in the last month. The records also show that there has been a significant increase (21%) in the sales of private homes in comparison to December as well. In December, 431 unitswere sold. This is said to be highest numbers achieved since January 2014. 572 units were sold during that month.

On the other hand, the sales of executive condominium (EC) has witnessed a decrease if we compare it to last year’s record. In January 2017, 184 EC units were sold. However, during January 2018, 100 EC units were sold. The number was also same in December 2017.

Surveys were conducted by Urban Redevelopment Authority – URA of licensed housing developers to gather the above-mentioned figures.

The surge in sales of private homes was termed as “healthy”. It is said to be a positive indicator since no new EC or private housing projects were launched during the last month.

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It was announced on the 19th February 2018 in the Singapore Budget 2018 that the Buyer’s Stamp Duty (BSD) for residential property of more than S$1million in Singapore will be increased from 3% to 4% with effect from 20th of February 2018. This was revealed by Mr Heng Swee Keat, the Minster of Finance.

The increased in the Buyer’s Stamp Duty will affect property buyer who bought a residential unit of more than a million dollars  on 20th of Feb 2018 or onwards. However if the property purchased is below $1 million dollars, the Buyer’s Stamp Duty remained unchanged at 3%.

Below is a table for the Stamp Duty’s rate

Buyer's Stamp Duty (BSD)

The Additional Buyer Stamp Duty is not affected and will remain the same.

Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty (ABSD)

In recent news, Hoi Hup Realty and Sunway Developments, a joint partnership, made a large investment in the Brookvale Park development. According to the Hoi Hup Sunway partnership, the two-storey bungalow and private residential development located at Sunset Way provides a unique opportunity for a new condominium residential product. The reason being is that this 999-year leasehold on the land is in a central lush setting, not far from many educational institutions and the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve.

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Outram Park’s iconic Pearl Bank Apartments have been sold in a $728 million deal. The buyer, CapitaLand, was proud to announce its first residential land acquisition in Singapore since it last purchased a sales site that belonged to the government. The acquisition was in Bukit Timah, and CapitaLand is currently developing the Victoria Park Villas at the location.

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This wonderful 12,500 square feet public park will be another step to make the area greener and a more active people-friendly environment. The project is a part of the $1.82 billion dollar development that was formerly the Golden Shoe Carpark located on Market Street. The public park is just one part of the re-development of this area. There will be new cycle paths added along the streets which connect to the Central Area Cycling Network.

The redevelopment of the old carpark, located at 88 Market Street, into a $1.82 billion dollar unified effort conducted by CapitaLand, CapitaLand Commercial Trust, and Mitsubishi Estate.

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Oxley Holdings became one of the major candidates for purchasing a 99-year-old

plot owned by Huang Shi Zong Hui Singapore in the Geylang region. There were more than 80 parties interested in this, but it seems that Oxley is the one that’s going to get it in the end. They actually purchased this for $13 million, and the plan is to make it in a mixed use development that will be named Sixteen35 residences.

This will be focused on harnessing the 22500 square feet premises. Here you can find a cultural and heritage exhibition room, a multi purpose hall, an office and meeting rooms, even a library is there as well. Oxley will basically get the apartment units for sale.

The premises will have new communal facilities, a car park in the basement and they will also include a swimming pool too. The purpose took into account all the potential in the region and the current market prices.

The vision is to make this a more appealing place and one that will subsequently pay off immensely in the long term. The clan wanted to make this place a lot more appealing and interesting, but there were no real funds. The new premises for the clan will be ready in 2021.

Is this a good investment for Oxley? Absolutely, it does manage to stand out quite a lot and it brings in front some rather unique benefits. The best part about it is that it enables the company to complete more investments in the region.

And yes, this is a place with tons of potential, which may be put to good use by Oxley. The simple fact that there were so many bidders needs to say a lot about this place and the premises as a whole. It just stands out, and it basically brings in front the type of benefits that you can rarely find anywhere else at this time.

The best thing about Oxley is that it did manage to acquire the unit. The overall price may be a bit high, but the results as a whole are more than interesting. It definitely pays off for them, as such a location does have tons of potential. It all comes down to Oxley to use this potential properly, but the results can indeed be huge. It’s a great opportunity for them to have, and one that’s always going to pay off quite a lot if it’s used rightfully!

Find out more from link below

http://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/oxley-beats-80-others-to-buy-clans-plot-in-geylang

New launch condos that are nearby

• Sims Urban Oasis

Freehold new launches that are close by

• Carpmael Thirty-Eight
• Rezi 35
• Kallang Riverside

Upcoming new condos in other parts of Singapore

• The Tapestry @ Tampines
• Woodleigh Condo
• Shunfu Condo
• Margaret Ville

City Development Limited is the highest bidder for the two housing sites at a state tender that just recently closed.  The land parcelat Handy Road went for $212 million while the other one at West Coast Vale went for or $472 million.  That equates to about $1,722 per square foot per plot ratio or psf ppr for Handy Road and $800 psf per plot ratio for the residential plot of land in West Coast Vale.

CDL is planning on developing 3 residential towers consisting of 8 to 10 stories high and approximately 200 residential units that comes with basement parking lot for the Handy Road site. They are also planning on turning the conservation structure into the development’s clubhouse for the residents.

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