Luxury residential sales market moved at slower pace last year

Source : Channel NewsAsia - 7 Jan 2009

2008 saw a drastic fall in sales of luxury apartments in Singapore. Property consultancy CB Richard Ellis said 1,096 caveats were lodged in 2008 – a fifth of the sales volume in 2007.

In 2007, the average launch price of luxury projects ranged from S$2,000 to S$4,000 per square foot. But by the end of 2008, the average launch price of such homes had fallen to a range of between S$2,000 and S$2,600 per square foot.

To date, only 45 per cent of the luxury units launched in the second half of 2007 have been sold.

Looking forward, CBRE expects prices of luxury apartments to fall by about 10 to 15 per cent this year. It added that activity in the luxury residential market is likely to be lukewarm due to the current financial crisis.

For good class bungalows, fewer were sold last year compared to 2007. But those that were sold achieved higher transaction prices.

CB Richard Ellis said 49 good class bungalows, worth S$785 million, were sold last year, compared to 87 in 2007.

The bungalows were sold for an average price of S$822 per square foot in 2008, up 21 per cent from S$681 per square foot in 2007.