Estimates from property market trading networks SRX and 99.co showed that the overall resale price of HDB flats edged up by 0.3 per cent month-on-month in July. By HDB type, three-, four- and condominium-type HDB flats rose between 0.2 per cent and 1.2 per cent, while five-room resale prices fell 0.3 per cent.

When compared to the same period last year, the overall resale price of HDB flats rose by 7 per cent.

In terms of transaction volume, a total of 2,056 flats changed hands last month, an increase of 10.7 per cent from the previous month and a 13 per cent decline year-on-year.

In addition, 32 flats were sold for at least a million dollars last month, two fewer than the previous month and accounting for 1.6 per cent of the total number of transactions. Of these, five million-dollar HDB flats were resold in Redhill, four each in Toa Payoh and Kallang-Whampoa, and three each in Queenstown, Bishan and Clementi. The remaining million-dollar HDB flats came from Bukit Timah, Central, Woodlands, Jurong East, Geylang, Hougang, Pasir Ris and Serangoon.

According to OrangeEase's Vice President of Industry Research and Consulting, Sun Yanqing, while HDB resale prices rose for the fifth consecutive month in July 2023, and by 7 per cent compared to July 2022, the resale price growth rate in the first seven months of this year slowed down compared to the same period in the previous two years.

Local HDB resale prices rose by 4.2 per cent in the first seven months of this year, but grew by 8.2 per cent and 6 per cent in the same period in 2021 and 2022 respectively.

She said the slowdown in price increases could be due to a shift in demand to the pre-sale HDB (BTO) market as more projects were launched for sale in the past two years.

In addition, resale prices have hit record highs in many places, affecting the affordability of some buyers. As such, the potential for significant price increases is limited at this time.

In response to the rebound in HDB resales last month, Sun Yanqing attributed this to more buyers returning to the market after the June school holidays, while some buyers may have rushed to complete their transactions before the lunar month of July.

It is also possible that more people have been granted HDB Flat Eligibility (HFE), which has led to an increase in the number of transactions.