Property sales slow, but home hunters still buying

(Industry watchers say mass market homes are still doing well. Image courtesy of Thinkstock.)

In May, private home sales excluding executive condominiums came up to 1,702 units; but the June figure would be as much as 10 per cent lower, according to real estate agency OrangeTee.

Suburban and city fringe projects, in particular, are sought after. The newly launched Cradels, a freehold condominium located near Novena MRT station, sold 65 of its 125 units costing about $1,500 per sq ft (psf) just last Saturday. A one-bedroom unit of nearly 500 sq ft starts from about $600,000.

Another project, Tong Eng Group%E2%80%99s Tropika East, sold 59 of its 105 units since its launch on June 9. Of the 59, 14 were sold in the past few weeks. There, three-bedroom units start from about $1.3 million.

Sea Esta, the Pasir Ris property by Hoi Hup Sunway with 376 units, sold about 250 units since its preview on June 10. At the 99-year leasehold condominium, a one-bedroom apartment with an area of at least 517 sq ft starts from $488,000, and a three-bedroom home of at least 904 sq ft from $760,000.

Over in Punggol, Qinjian Realty managed to move more than 250 of the 410 units at its River Isles project, which launched on June 2.

Far East Organization, on the other hand, only managed to sell 27 units over the past week, with Seahill and Seastrand as top performers.

Notably, the luxury sector has also maintained its position. 1919, a project by Aurum Land at Mount Sophia, sold out all 75 of its units since launching in June 9. Each unit cost at least $1.12 million, which works out to $2,000 to $2,200 psf.

OrangeTee%E2%80%99s research and consultancy head Mr Tan Kok Keong expressed surprise at the 1919 sales, in light of the general slump seen in the luxury segment.

“Mass market sales have been quite good because the pricing is in line with neighbouring launches in those areas [%E2%80%A6] a factor for good sales,” he told The Straits Times. Nonetheless, he expects June%E2%80%99s overall sales to dip by 5 per cent to 10 per cent from last month because of the remarkable lack of big launches.

In addition, ripples from Europe%E2%80%99s debt crisis and a stuttering stock market are other factors affecting buyers%E2%80%99 decisions, explained Chesterton Suntec International research head Mr Colin Tan. “It is slow, but still moving [...] there is still underlying core demand that continues to absorb the supply that is being pushed out,” he noted to The Straits Times.