HDB resale market going strong
Deals of $700,000 and above are still being done this year, after ‘record deals’ of more than $700,000 first surfaced during last year’s boom.
Volume is still healthy as home seekers continue to check out resale flats.
Demand for HDB resale flats comes mostly from newly formed families and new permanent residents (PRs).
Last year, there were about 78,000 new citizens and PRs. So they may be buying HDB flats which they may not have been eligible to buy previously.
High-priced transactions have been registered in a few estates such as Marine Parade, Queenstown and Bukit Merah. For instance, a $750,000 deal for a 10-year-old, high-floor 124sqm unit in Holland Close in Oueenstown was recorded in June.
However, increasingly, potential buyers are feeling the pinch of rising costs and negotiating harder for a smaller Cash Over Valuation amount, particularly for non-prime flats.
For suburban locations, asking levels for COV amounts have come down.
The resale index rose because of higher valuations, which are made based on historical data.
Going forward, HDB resale prices look set to rise, but likely by a smaller margin.
Expect an overall price rise of 10 to 15 per cent, including an 8.2 per cent rise in the first half of this year.
Last year, HDB resale prices rose by 17.5 per cent.