Developers’ Sales Fall to 203 Units in December Amid Year-End Lull

As the market entered the year-end lull, Singapore developers' private home sales tumbled to 203 units in December 2024, down sharply from previous months. This performance reflected the seasonal slowdown in homebuying demand during the traditional festive holidays.

Festive Lull and Absence of New Launches Lead to Sharp Drop in December 2024 Private Home Sales

Property market observers noted that the year-end holidays and a lack of new project launches led to a steep decline in new private home sales in December 2024. According to data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) on 15 January 2025, developers moved 203 new private residential units (excluding Executive Condominiums, or ECs) last month, plunging 92.1% from the 2,557 units sold in November.

Sales Performance Including ECs

Factoring in Executive Condominiums (ECs), total new private home sales in December stood at 373 units, down 87.1% from the 2,894 units recorded in November.

Analysis of December Sales Figures

Data showed that only 20 new units were launched for sale in December, down 99.3% month-on-month and 44.4% year-on-year. This marked the lowest monthly launch volume since the URA began tracking the data in 2007.

In contrast, developers launched 2,871 new units in November across several major projects:

Chuan Park: 916 units

Emerald of Katong: 846 units

Nava Grove: 552 units

The Collective at One Sophia: 367 units

Union Square Residences: 366 units

The 203 new units sold by developers in December represented the second-lowest monthly volume in 2024, ahead of only February's 153 units.

Full-Year Performance and Market Trends

Despite the subdued showing in December, it was the highest December sales volume recorded since 2021 on a year-on-year basis. This reflected spillover momentum from November's strong buying sentiment, with buyer demand persisting even without new launches in December.

According to URA data, a total of 6,560 new units (excluding ECs) were sold throughout 2024, slightly above the 6,421 units booked in 2023. Nevertheless, this remained the fourth-lowest annual sales tally on record, surpassing only:

2008: 4,264 units

2004: 5,785 units

2023: 6,421 units

The subdued sales in recent years highlight a challenging market environment, largely weighed down by multiple rounds of cooling measures, elevated interest rates, and stiff competition from a large volume of newly completed homes since 2021.

Developers launched approximately 6,647 new homes across 2024, a 12% decline from the 7,551 units launched in 2023.

Top-Selling Projects

According to URA data, new homes in the Outside Central Region (OCR) led sales in December with 111 transactions. However, this marked an 88% plunge from the 893 units sold in November 2024.

Excluding ECs, the 474-unit Hillock Green—jointly developed by Soilbuild Group, Forsea Holdings, and United Engineers—emerged as the best-selling project in both the OCR and islandwide in December. URA data showed that the 99-year leasehold development transacted 19 units at a median price of S$2,278 psf.

According to URA data, OCR sales were also supported by The Myst and Chuan Park. The Myst moved 17 units at a median price of S$2,080 psf, while Chuan Park sold 11 units at a median price of S$2,657 psf.

Meanwhile, the Rest of Central Region (RCR) and Core Central Region (CCR) recorded sales of 73 and 19 units respectively, falling sharply from November's 1,569 and 98 units.

Breakdown by Buyer Profile

The priciest transaction last month was a S$14.578 million unit at 32 Gilstead purchased by a foreign buyer. Foreign buyers acquired a total of 6 new private homes in December, down from 22 in the previous month. Of these, 3 were located in the Core Central Region (CCR) and 3 in the Rest of Central Region (RCR).

With no new Executive Condominiums (ECs) launched in December, EC sales contracted 49.1% month-on-month to 170 units. However, the 504-unit Novo Place supported overall volumes after holding a second round of balloting for second-timers last month. Novo Place moved 158 units at a median price of S$1,647 psf, taking its cumulative take-up to 445 units (88%) since its launch in November 2024.

Sales Expected to Rebound in January

Industry watchers expect sales to rebound in January, driven by fresh project launches. These include the 777-unit The Orie in the RCR and the 113-unit Bagnall Haus in the OCR, both of which will open for booking on 18 January.

One Bernam, first launched in May 2021, will also contribute to January sales. Over the weekend of 11 and 12 January, the CCR integrated development released 87 units at promotional prices.

Given the uptick in activity, Lee from Huttons anticipates developers' sales in January could reach between 700 and 900 units.

Outlook for the Coming Months

Several new launches are lined up in the coming months, including the 477-unit Lentor Central Residences, the 501-unit Elta, and the 1,193-unit Parktown Residence. With this diverse pipeline of launches, developers' sales are expected to get off to a stronger start in 2025 than in 2024.

Developers could launch more than 11,000 new homes in 2025, excluding ECs. The firm expects full-year developer sales could reach between 8,000 and 9,000 units.

A "quantum-focused strategy" will remain key for developers in 2025. For both homebuyers and investors, overall quantum remains the single most critical factor when securing financing, calculating payable stamp duties, and assessing potential rental yields.