Singapore says home prices rise strong for 2nd straight quarter

SINGAPORE private home prices posted a second straight quarter of strong gains as the property market extended its recovery from a four-year slump.

An index tracking private residential prices jumped 3.4% in the three months ended June 30, according to a flash estimate from the Urban Redevelopment Authority. That builds on a 3.9% gain in the first quarter, which was the biggest since the second quarter of 2010.

The rebound in home prices has prompted aggressive land bids from developers as buyers shrug off cooling measures ranging from additional taxes to limits on loans. The government in February raised taxes on home purchases exceeding S$1 million ($764,000) as collective apartment sales reached levels the central bank described as exuberant.

Much of the gains are being driven by so-called en-bloc sales, where a group of owners band together to sell entire apartment buildings, according to Cushman & Wakefield, Inc.

“There is a lot of liquidity in the market right now,” said Christine Li, a senior director of research at Cushman & Wakefield. “Money is coming back to owners who participated in collective sales. This recycling of capital is pushing up prices.”

Singapore home sales jumped to the highest in nine months in May as developers sold 1,121 units. —