When the CCR Is No Longer Out of Reach, Would You Upgrade to the Prime Core?

CCR Makes a Resurgent Comeback: How Far Can This Luxury Private Home Rally Go?

If a market consolidation builds momentum for the next recovery, Singapore's luxury private residential market delivered a definitive answer in 2025.

As a key bellwether for the prime residential segment, the Core Central Region (CCR) staged a remarkable rebound in 2025 following three consecutive years of lacklustre new home sales. According to Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) data, full-year new private home transactions in the CCR hit 1,915 units—a four-year high, and a stark contrast to the mere 378 units transacted in 2024.

This revival was no coincidence.

In 2025, several highly anticipated CCR projects were launched, with developers pricing more realistically in line with market expectations. Combined with an ongoing easing in interest rates, buyer confidence steadily recovered, jointly spurring the resurgence in central region sales. Crucially, underlying structural shifts in the market also took place, setting the stage for 2026's trajectory.

A pivotal shift has been the rapid narrowing of the price gap between the CCR and the Rest of Central Region (RCR). Transaction data indicates that the median price for new non-landed private homes in the CCR stood at around $3,074 psf in 2025, compared to $2,787 psf in the RCR—a price premium of just around 10%, the tightest spread seen since 1995. In comparison, the premium was still 21% in 2024, and during the market peak in 2006, the CCR-RCR price divergence was close to 80%.

With RCR property prices climbing steadily over recent years, the long-held assumption that "CCR is bound to be far more expensive" is being dismantled. Amid this compressed price gap, more buyers are re-evaluating the value proposition: with the price difference now relatively manageable, does it make sense to upgrade directly to a prime location to secure more mature amenities, prime scarcity value, and robust long-term capital preservation?

At the same time, land bids for several Government Land Sales (GLS) sites in the Outside Central Region (OCR) surpassed $1,300 psf per plot ratio (ppr) in 2025. Moving forward, the price gap between CCR and OCR could well face further compression.

Beyond per-square-foot prices, the overall quantum threshold—to which buyers are far more sensitive—has also declined substantially. Taking new non-landed private homes sized between 700 and 1,000 sq ft as an example, the average transaction quantum gap between the CCR and RCR narrowed to about $210,000 in 2025. Compared to the roughly $570,000 gap in 2020, this represents a significant contraction of over 60%.

This structural change means entering the CCR market no longer demands a drastic stretch in budget, effectively lowering the psychological barrier to entry.

Sales performances from various new launches in the second half of 2025 reveal that developers clearly recognise the overall price quantum remains the defining factor for take-up velocity. Across both the CCR and RCR, the bulk of transactions clustered below the $2.5 million sweet spot.

Take River Green in the CCR as an example: roughly 76% of transacted units were priced below $2.5 million. Similarly, Skye at Holland and UpperHouse at Orchard Boulevard saw close to 60% of their transacted units kept within this threshold.

Many developers deliberately anchored unit pricing within the accessible $1.5 million to $2.5 million band in 2025—a strategy expected to carry through into 2026.

Over a longer cycle, CCR home prices have not outpaced the broader market.

According to the URA price index, from Q1 2020 to Q4 2025, non-landed home prices in the CCR rose by a cumulative 20.7%, lagging far behind the RCR's 48.8% and the OCR's 49.9%. This explains why the market broadly considers CCR prices to be in a "catch-up" phase rather than showing signs of overheating.

The comparatively measured growth of the CCR in recent years is closely tied to Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty (ABSD) measures. The twin ABSD revisions in 2021 and 2023—notably the doubling of the rate for foreign buyers from 30% to 60% in April 2023—placed a heavy dampener on prime districts that traditionally relied on international capital. As a result, foreign buyers accounted for just 3.1% of new CCR home sales in 2025, a historic low spanning nearly three decades.

In their stead, local buyers have firmly emerged as the primary driving force. In 2025, Singapore Citizens made up an unprecedented 82.3% of transactions for new non-landed homes in the CCR, marking an all-time high. This structural shift is viewed as a vital indicator of market resilience and health. Local buyers primarily purchase for owner-occupation or long-term investment, prioritising location, product quality, and enduring value, which in turn tempers volatility in prime segments. Looking at the price distribution, roughly two-thirds of purchases by local buyers were transacted below $2.5 million, with most of the remainder falling between $2.5 million and $5 million; transactions above $5 million formed a modest proportion.

Looking ahead to 2026, market supply is set to normalise. New launch supply in the CCR was relatively tight over the past two years, with only about 630 and 680 units launched in 2023 and 2024 respectively. In contrast, the first 11 months of 2025 already saw around 2,618 new units introduced.

Heading into 2026, an estimated 2,500 new prime units are slated to enter the market. Notable launches include Newport Residences along Anson Road, River Modern in the River Valley precinct, as well as new pipeline projects around Bukit Timah Turf City and Holland Link.

While debate persists over whether buying demand was brought forward, the underlying fundamentals supporting the CCR remain solid. Sustained lower interest rates, disciplined developer pricing, compelling relative value in the core region, and burgeoning demand from HDB upgraders will continue to underpin the market.

Approximately 13,500 HDB flats are projected to reach their Minimum Occupation Period (MOP) in 2026, a marked increase from the 8,000 units in 2025. This expanding pool of prospective upgraders is likely to filter into the private market, including CCR developments that boast quantum-friendly layouts.

All things considered, the prime district market has not only engineered a solid rebound after a period of adjustment, but has also emerged structurally healthier in terms of buyer profile and pricing discipline. As long as projects remain competitive in site attributes, product specifications, and pricing, the CCR is poised to sustain its upward momentum in 2026—with this recovery proving more rational and enduring than ever before.