According to the latest data on the Housing and Development Board's website, out of the eight newly launched projects, only four projects for three-room and larger flats have first-time homebuyer application rates exceeding 1. Particularly, two projects in Woodlands have been popular, with a high application rate of 3.9 for five-room units for first-time applicants, and an astonishing 59.6 for second-time applicants.
Moreover, in the projects in Bedok with five-room units and Bukit Panjang with four-room units, the application rates for first-time homebuyers have also reached 1 or above.
However, the HDB projects in the prime location of Queenstown have disappointed. The application rates for first-time applicants for three-room and four-room flats are 0.3 and 0.7, respectively. The HDB projects in the Queenstown prime location did not meet expectations for both first-time homebuyers and second-time applicants, with very low application rates.
For these two projects, four-room flats are the only unit type with significant competition, with an average of about ten families competing for one unit.
A research report titled "Singapore Market Outlook 2024" released by Cushman & Wakefield predicts that local private residential property prices may unexpectedly rise by up to 3% next year.
Despite recent measures to cool down the property market and increase the supply of private residential units in Singapore, factors such as high replacement costs and expectations of no economic recession make it difficult for private residential property prices to decline.
The report indicates that strong holding power on the part of sellers, high elasticity in homebuying demand, and the potential for reduced borrowing costs are factors that will drive an increase in private residential prices next year.
In terms of office space, the report predicts that, with rising interest rates and an increase in new supply, rental prices for Grade A office buildings in the Central Business District are expected to stabilize and may grow by 2% next year.
