HDB to Launch More Than 9,500 BTO Flats in November. Private Home Sales Jumped 68.4% in Oct and The Reserve Residences

From 15th November to 21st Nov 2022

The Housing and Development Board will launch more than 9500 BTO (Build-to-Order) flats in its upcoming sales exercise, which takes place on 23 November 2022. The number of private homes, including The Reserve Residences, sold in Singapore fell by 68.4% month-on-30 and 65.8% annually to 312 units in October.

Among its many features, The Reserve Residences floor layouts will also include a 20,000 sqm shopping mall. This will allow residents to shop for all their household needs and more.

1 HDB will launch more than 9,500 BTO flats by November 2022

HDB will launch more than 9,500 BTO units in its upcoming sales exercise, CNA reported Desmond Lee, National Development Minister.

Three projects are included in the Prime Location Housing (PLH), model. Two of them will be in Queenstown (Ghim Moh Natura, Ulu Pandan Banks), and the third in Kallang/Whampoa.

Lee pointed out that the projects are close to transportation nodes like Dover, Buona Vista and Kallang MRT stations. He also noted that they are “well-served” by existing amenities.

He stated in a Facebook post that “Given their attractive locations and attributes these flats would naturally attract higher market values.”

Lee noted that Queenstown Canopy, the third Queenstown project, will not fall under the PLH model because it is further from major retail amenities as well as main transport routes.

HDB will offer two projects for Tengah, which will have waiting periods of just over 3 years. This will be the shortest project to launch that month.

2 New private home sales fall 68.4% in Oct 2022

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), data showed that new private home sales in Singapore fell 68.4% month on month and 65.8% year over year to 312 units in October.

This was the lowest monthly sale since February 2016, when only 303 units had been shifted.

Edmund TIE’s Head for Research and Consulting Lam Chern Woon stated that the low sales volume is likely due to “a lack of major projects launches in October 2022 in immediate aftermath of the cooling actions”.

Developers launched 102 units in October, down 90% from September’s 913 units.

The Core Central Region made up 54.8% of the total sales. While the Rest of Central Regions (RCR), and Outside Central Regions (OCR) made 26% and 19.2% respectively,

“The CCR tends attract more foreign purchases, so the percentage of foreigners in October shot up at 11.7%, up form 4.5% in September,” stated Lee Sze Teck (Huttons Asia’s Senior Director for Research).

He also said that 64.4% of the total sales last month was due to sales of properties valued at more than $2 million.

3) Government reviews housing estate classification

Desmond Lee, Minister of National Development, stated that the Government is currently reviewing whether the Government’s public housing estate classification should change to “keep up with the times”, according TODAY.

“As non-mature estates begin to get older and the lines between them, and mature estates blur, these distinctions are becoming less important,” he stated during a session of government engagement.

“For instance, Jurong East and Sengkang residents may be able to share the many amenities found in their towns with you, which can be comparable to those found in mature estates.”

Lee said that the Government is looking into how it can prioritize access to public housing for people with more pressing needs.

He pointed out that the majority of Singaporeans agree that first-timer applicants should have more priority for families with lower incomes and couples with children.

The minister said that it was not easy to agree on who needs more urgently, as is evident by the tensions arising from the suggestions received.

4) There is no need to review SERS, as not many eligible sites are anticipated, states MND

The Ministry of National Development (MND), has rejected a petition to put the Selective En Bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS) under moratorium or further review. It stated that it “doesn’t expect many more sites will be eligible”.

According to TODAY, “SERS is very selective and the Housing and Development Board(HDB) estimates only about 5% of HDB flats can be suitable for SERS.”

“Most of these projects have high potential for redevelopment… Therefore, a thorough review of SERS is unnecessary.”

The ministry responded to Leong Mun Wai’s petition to the Public Petitions Committee.

Leong signed the petition for five Ang Mo Kio residents, who were affected by a recent SERS exercise.

5) OCBC and DBS raise fixed home loan rates

DBS and OCBC raised their interest rate for fixed home loans. OCBC set the rates for its one and two-year fixed rates packages at 4.3% per annum, reported CNA.

These packages were previously priced at 3.35% & 3.5%, respectively.

DBS offers fixed rate packages at 4.25% per annum. There are four fixed rate packages offered by DBS, ranging from two to five years.

DBS maintained its floating rates at a three month compounded Singapore Overnight rate Average (SORA), with a 1% lending margin per annum and a lock-in period of two years.

CNA reported that OCBC kept its floating rate at a “three month compounded SORA (0.98% lending margin) for the first year and second year before increasing to 1% in year three”.

Maryanne Phua is OCBC’s Head of Home Loans. She believes that floating packages will be more appealing to customers who want flexibility in their prepayment.

6) URA grants Bukit Timah Link and Hillview Rise sites for the highest bidders

URA has stated that the tenders for Bukit Timah link and Hillview Rise websites were awarded to the highest bidders.

Far East Civil Engineering (Pte. Limited and Sekisui House were the highest-bidders for Hillview Rise’s site at $320.78 Million, while Bukit One was the highest bidder for Bukit Timah link at $200 million.

The tenders for the two sites were launched for sale on 31 Aug and closed on 3 Nov. The Hillview Rise site attracted four bids, while five bids were received for the Bukit Timah Links site.

Hillview Rise covers an area of 10,395.2 square meters and will yield 335 housing units. The Bukit Timah link site, which covers 4,611.1 square meters, is expected to produce 160 housing units. The leasehold tenure for both sites is 99 years.

7) Tracking $1 Million resale flats

According to Chua Mui Hoong (Associate Editor at The Straits Times), large-sized transactions for resale flats worth more than $1,000,000 are not unusual, given the rising inflation and hot property market due the shortage of supply and increased demand, said Chua Mui Hoong.

A jumbo-sized, or executive, maisonette – that spans 1,500 to over 2,000 square feet – should be sold for more than $1 million, even if it’s located in suburbs like Woodlands, Hougang, or Yishun.

In an opinion piece, she stated that “Tracking $1,000,000 resale flats was faddish but unnecessary.”

Chua says it is important to track median resale values for four-room flats across all estates.

She explained that it would be better to analyze these on a per-square-foot basis and by the age of the flat.

PropertyGuru’s article, “Rise Of Four-Room Million Dollar HDB Flats In Singapore: Where Are They Found?” examined this trend.

Chua stated that “if any million-dollar transactions merit attention, they would have to be the four-room flat sales that exceed that threshold outside of the city centre area.”

8 Widow co-owns flat in New York with her brother-in-law. She seeks a court order for the sale of flat

A widow who owns a 30% stake in the HDB flat has gone to the High Court seeking orders to sell the flat and to have full control.

Madam Sun Yunyuan, Madam Sun Yunyuan’s brother-in law, holds the remaining 70% of the flat. He claims that selling it immediately would cause hardship for him and his family. CNA.

Ng Yit Beng was not opposed to the sale of the flat but he wanted to exercise his right to first refusal to purchase the 30% stake in Sun.

Judge Commissioner Goh ruled in the case and agreed that Ng and his family would be affected by the sale of the flat immediately. He also pointed out that Ng is the majority-owner.

He also prohibited the parties from selling the flat on the open marketplace within six months.

Ng can acquire Sun’s 30% stake in the flat during the six-month moratorium period at a cost of 30% or more, according to the judge.

After such a period, Ng may not have Sun’s share. In that case, both can sell the flat on the open market.

9) Ming Arcade for sale for more that $140 million

Ming Arcade is a freehold development project located at 21 Cuscaden Road. It has been listed for sale by Savills Singapore . The agent believes it will sell for more than $140 million, or $2,542 per square foot per plot (psf per unit).

The seven-storey commercial building was completed in 1982. It features three basement levels, an additional 88 units, and an existing verified development baseline measuring 55,046 square feet. This is equivalent to a plot ratio 4.54

It occupies 12,132 square feet and is zoned commercial under the 2019 Master Plan. The height limit for this site is up to 20 stories.

Savills stated that the property’s “zoning” is commercial. However, it could be used for residential or hotel use. This would require approval from the URA.

It was also added that commercial zoning means that successful bidders don’t need to worry about Additional Buyers Stamp Duty (ABSD).

The tender for Ming Arcade is closed on 15 December 2022.

10) The real estate investment volume fell 30% in Q3 2022

After experiencing strong real estate investment momentum in the first two quarters 2022, the investment volume fell 30% quarter-on quarter to $5.33 trillion in the third quarter, according to Singapore Business Review, citing Colliers.

However, the real estate investment volume accounted for 85% of last year’s total at $23.93 trillion.

Colliers said that the decline in Q3 2022 was due to higher borrowing costs, higher inflation, and greater economic uncertainty.

Colliers predicts that market players will reassess portfolios in the face of greater uncertainty.

It stated that the market will continue to search for inflation-proof assets and high-quality assets as it faces additional challenges such as rising operating costs due to rising interest rates.

Colliers anticipates that institutional investors will look to the city-state again for opportunities, especially in the office, logistic, and commercial segments, once interest rates and inflation slow down.

It added that “We also envision more joint ventures, platform investments leveraging third party expertise as investors seek out to de-risk.”

11). Public tender for freehold residential site development located on Dorset Road

The Tender exercise for the sale of property at 103/A/B Dorset Road and 105/A/B Dorset Road was launched by ERA Realty Network, the exclusive marketing agent. It closes Thursday, 15 December 2022 at 3pm.

The 3-storey, walk-up apartment block has dual frontages onto Truro Road and Dorset Road. It covers a total of 1,025.2 sq metres. This could yield 16 units, with an average size of 85 sqm.

The property is less than 500m from Farrer Park MRT station, North-East Line. It is also close to the Central Expressway. You will also find many dining, shopping, medical, and schooling options nearby.

“This site is perfect for developers who want to build a boutique residential community that is nestled within a quiet residential enclave yet is only minutes from the buzz of activity and a plethora amenities,” said Tay Liam Hiap (Managing Director of Investment Sales, ERA Realty).

Piccadilly Grand’s recent sale success is a sign that there will be strong demand for units in the area, as there are no new launches planned. This sale does not require approval from the Strata Titles Boards, which allows the buyer to quickly turn the property around and launch the new project.

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