Development charges rise sharply for commercial & industrial sectors

Development charges, which have to be paid when a property site is developed into more valuable projects, have increased sharply for selected sectors. 

The steepest increases, which take effect today, are for the commercial and industrial sectors. 

However, the charges for residential non-landed sites remain flat. 

The government announced in its latest revision today, that four sectors in the industrial segment will see increases of between 14 and 26 per cent. 

For the commercial sector, the average increase is 24 per cent. 

The highest increase was 39 per cent in Yishun, Sembawang, Woodlands, Choa Chu Kang and Jurong West. 

Mr Desmond Sim, Associate Director of CBRE Research, told MediaCorp the sharp increase could be due to the prospective development of the North Coast Innovation Corridor - a new cluster that promises to help Singapore become a global commercial hub.

On the other hand, the levy for landed homes will increase by an average of four per cent in some areas. 

The largest increase - of 15 per cent - is seen mostly in areas in the East. 

Mr Sim added the relatively lower increase in the residential segment could be due to the government's wait-and-see approach, following the introduction of measures to cool the residential property market.