According to DTZ's Director of Research, with more private residential units being completed this year, and with the impact of the cooling measures and the slowdown in economic growth, the overall local private property price increase will slow down to between 2 and 5 per cent this year; the unemployment rate remaining low and the increase in the resale price of HDB flats should be able to support HDB upgraders in their demand for private homes.

Sun Yanqing, vice-president of Orange Industry Research and Consulting, predicted that overall prices will continue to stabilise as more private homes are completed, with price increases for the year expected to be between 4% and 6%. She also believes that if the price of executive PR flats is excluded, the annual sales of new private residential units this year will be between 7,000 and 8,000 units, similar to last year.

As for the private rental market, Mr Lam Chun-man, director of Dai Yuk Cheung's Industrial Research and Consultancy Department, said rents are expected to adjust in the second half of the year, but will grow by 5 to 10 per cent for the year as a whole, much lower than last year's 28 per cent rise.

For resale HDB flats, Lan believes that HDB resale prices are likely to rise by 4 per cent to 6 per cent this year. Bonaire's president Ismay predicted a 5% to 6% rise in HDB resale prices, which is lower than the double-digit growth of the past two years, and an overall volume of 27,000 to 28,000 flats, with demand for smaller flats expected to remain strong.