Property consultants attribute the fall to seasonal factors and price resistance, as well as government measures introduced last month to calm the fast-rising market.
A slowdown had been expected, as the fast and furious pace of sales – which hit a whopping 2,772 units in July alone – was not sustainable, they said.
Still, the weaker September sales figure is about treble the number of units sold in the same month a year earlier. Sales in the first nine months of the year are now 12,969 units.
Experts expect full-year sales to exceed the 2007 new home sales record of 14,811 units.
Developers launched 1,413 units in September, down from 1,613 units in August, according to data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).
This puts the take-up rate at 81per cent, the lowest level since February this year, as buyers become more selective even as they continue to favour small units in suburban projects, said DTZ head of South-east Asia research Chua Chor Hoon.
Most of the sales in September were suburban homes, followed by those in city-fringe locations.
Sales from two major launches accounted for about half of September’s sales. Hundred Trees in West Coast Drive sold 327 units, while The Interlace in Alexandra Road sold 243 units.
Sales of city-centre units saw a steep fall in September to just 152 units, down from the 551 units in August and lower than the 294 units sold in September 2007, when the market was hot.
The August sales figure was revised upwards from 1,699 units, largely due to the inclusion of the sale of 99 units at The Trizon at a median price of $1,367 psf. Previously, the city-centre project had recorded no sales in August.
The highest-priced unit sold last month was at Seven Palms at Sentosa Cove, at $3,353 psf. By comparison, two units fetched over $4,000 psf in August.
Mass market prices have inched up in recent months to average levels of $750 psf to $1,000 psf, from $500 psf to $750 psf previously, said Savills.
Last month’s sales may have fallen from recent months but they still beat the number sold in the market run-up in September2007 by an ‘alarming 122per cent’, said Jones Lang LaSalle’s head of research South-east Asia, Dr Chua Yang Liang.
‘This is an area of concern considering that we are just slowly emerging out of a recession and the unemployment outlook remains fragile.’
Dr Chua said the rate of change of the URA price index is closely correlated with transaction volume, albeit lagging by about two to three months.
That means the fourth-quarter price index could rise 5 per cent to 8per cent, from the third quarter estimate of 15.9per cent, he said.
Although the index is a lagging indicator, if its rate of property price increase is not matched by adequate job creation and income growth, further government policies could be introduced to cool the property market, he added.
Experts expect fourth quarter sales to moderate further to below 1,000 units a month.
Source: Straits Times, 16 Oct 2009
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