House prices up by 1.74% y-o-y in Q2 2020

Singapore’s real house prices rose by 1.74% during the year to Q2 2020, following annual rises of 2.4% in Q1 2020, 1.9% in Q4 2019, 1.67% in Q3, 0.67% in Q2 and 2.43% in Q1. On a quarterly basis, house prices increased slightly by 0.77% during the latest quarter. 

Demand is falling; supply is steady

In the first half of 2020, total home sales, which include new sales, sub-sales and resales, fell sharply by 18.5% y-o-y to 6,933 units, following declines of 13.5% in 2019 and 11.5% in 2018, according to the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). 

In Q2 2020, there were a total of 374,752 housing units available in Singapore, almost unchanged from the previous quarter, according to URA. Of which 354,590 units are occupied, while the remaining 20,162 units are available, making up a 5.4% vacancy rate, unchanged from the previous quarter but down from 6.4% in Q2 2019.

Rents, rental yields: yields are poor in Singapore at 3.3%

Singapore apartment costs are high, at around $14,373 per sq. m. 

Singapore: typical city centre apartment buying price, monthly rent (120 sq. m)
	Buying price	Rate per month	Yield
Singapore	$1,724,760	$4,736	3.30%

Recent news. Singapore’s economy shrank by a huge 13.2% year-on-year in Q2 2020, following a 0.3% contraction in Q1. It was the biggest fall on record as the coronavirus crisis took a huge toll on the economy.

Recently, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) revised down again its economic projections for Singapore to a contraction of between 5% and 7% and would be country’s worst recession since independence.