HDB resale transactions up nearly 30% in Q2 as prices dip slightly

SINGAPORE — Singapore's resale public housing market has emerged out of its stupor, with the number of homes exchanging hands rising 29.8 per cent in the second quarter of this year.

The prices of resale flats also dipped slightly, falling 0.2 per cent in the three months ending June, the Housing and Development Board (HDB) said on Friday (Jul 26), confirming flash estimates announced at the start of this month.

The resale price index - which provides information on the general price movements in the resale public housing market - fell from 131.0 to 130.8.

Resale prices for HDB flats have been on the decline in the last three quarters. Prices declined by 0.1 per cent in the third quarter and 0.2 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2018. In the first quarter of this year, prices fell by 0.3 per cent.

Between April and June this year, the number of resale flats sold rose by more than 1,400, rising from 4,835 in the first quarter to 6,275.

On a year-on-year basis, resale transactions rose 5.6 per cent in the second quarter.

For its next sales exercise in August, HDB will offer about 3,300 Build-to-Order (BTO) flats in Punggol and Tampines. Another 4,500 BTO flats in Ang Mo Kio, Tampines and Tengah will be launched in November.

There will also be a concurrent Re-Offer of Balance Flats exercise and Sale of Balance Flats exercise in August and November respectively.

HDB RENTAL MARKET

The number of rental transactions for HDB flats rose by 4.8 per cent from 11,775 in the first three months of the year to 12,335 in the second quarter.

On a year-on-year basis, rental transactions were up 2.6 per cent.

As of Jun 30, there were 58,528 HDB flats rented out, an increase of 1.3 per cent from the previous quarter. For more stories like this, visit cna.asia.