Commentary on Monthly New Home Sales for August 2024

By Tricia Song (宋明蔚), Head of Research, Southeast Asia, CBRE

Private new home sales plunged 63.6% m-o-m and 47.2% y-o-y to 208 units in the month of August on the lack of new launches as developers avoided launching in the lunar Seventh Month which spanned 4 August to 2 September 2024. This is, nonetheless, a record low for the month of August since August 2008’s 325 units, as homebuyers’ tentative stance persisted amid weak economic conditions, high interest rates, and resistance to high price points.

August’s sales take the year-to-date 2024 tally of new homes sold to 2,668 units, 48.6% lower y-o-y from 5,190 units over the corresponding period in 2023. This follows H1 2024 sales of 1,889 units which is a record low for half-year developer sales, below the previous floor of 1,977 units in H2 2008 during the Global Financial Crisis (GFC). 2024 is shaping up to be the weakest since 2008’s 4,264 new private home sales in terms of annual new sales, with the market sentiment cautious since late 2023. Nevertheless, pent-up demand is building up, and with more attractive launches waiting in the wings, pending interest rate cuts, and a more optimistic economic outlook, home sales could improve in the next few months.
Top 10 Selling Projects in August 2024 (including ECs and landed)

Project Name	Street Name	Tenure	Locality	Units Sold in the Month	Median Price ($psf) in the Month	% of project sold to date
Tembusu Grand	Jalan Tembusu	99 yrs	RCR	30	2,455	74%
North Gaia	Yishun Close	99 yrs	OCR	24	1,306	90%
Hillock Green	Lentor Central	99 yrs	OCR	17	2,108	55%
Lentoria	Lentor Hills Road	99 yrs	OCR	15	2,217	46%
Hillhaven	Hillview Rise	99 yrs	OCR	14	2,153	55%
Lentor Hills Residences	Lentor Hills Road	99 yrs	OCR	13	2,148	94%
The Botany At Dairy Farm	Dairy Farm Walk	99 yrs	OCR	12	2,078	97%
The Continuum	Thiam Siew Avenue	FH	RCR	10	2,868	47%
The Reserve Residences	Jalan Anak Bukit	99 yrs	RCR	9	2,566	97%
Lentor Mansion	Lentor Gardens	99 yrs	OCR	8	2,185	86%
Lumina Grand	Bukit Batok West Avenue 5	99 yrs	OCR	8	1,504	79%
The Myst	Upper Bukit Timah Road	99 yrs	OCR	8	2,004	64%

Source: CBRE Research, URA

With no new launches in August, buyers were snapping up remaining units in previously-launched projects. The top performing project in the month was Tembusu Grand (638 units), previously launched in April 2023, and which is regaining some attention of late as the adjacent Emerald of Katong (846 units) is targeting to launch in October. Tembusu Grand sold 30 units at a median price of $2,455 psf in August 2024, not too far off from the $2,463 when it was launched in April 2023. 

The second top project in the month was North Gaia (616 units), an EC in Yishun, which sold 24 units at a median price of $1,306 psf. It is 90% sold, since its first launch in April 2022 at a median price of $1,301 psf. With new private launches at above $2,000 psf, ECs would continue to appeal as the more affordable option for eligible first-timers.   

The Lentor area continues to see steady interest, with Hillock Green, Lentoria, Lentor Hill Residences and Lentor Mansion in the top 10 selling projects in August 2024. The third best performing project was Hillock Green (474 units), the third project in the Lentor district, which sold 17 units at a median price of $2,108 psf in August, bringing its cumulative take-up to 260 units or 55%.

By market segment, August 2024’s developer sales (excluding ECs) continued to be led by the Outside Central Region (OCR). 123 units or 59.1% of total August new home sales were sold in the OCR, down from 444 units (77.8%) in July. The Rest of Central Region (RCR) sold 65 units (31.3% of August sales), down from 106 units (18.6%) in July 2024. Lastly, the Core Central Region (CCR) observed steady sales, moving 20 units (9.6% of August sales), compared to 21 units (3.7%) in July. 

Outlook and Forecasts