Developers' new home sales set to cross 1,500 units in August after July surge on wave of new launches

Business Times

a day ago

[SINGAPORE] New project launches in July chalked up strong sales in a fresh wave of homebuying demand, which could take developer sales for August to their highest in nine months.
Excluding executive condominiums (ECs), new home sales rang in at 940 units for July, up about 250 per cent from the month before and also 63 per cent higher year-on-year, indicated data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority on Friday (Aug 15).
Analysts reckon homebuying activity will stay robust this month. More than 900 units have already been sold in three new condominium projects launched in the first two weeks of August. With the 941-unit Springleaf Residence to start booking sales this weekend, August numbers could top 1,500 units, the highest since a bumper 2,560 units were transacted in November 2024.
Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist at Realion Group, said: 'The increased marketing activity and buying confidence of affluent investors will create a positive ripple effect in the broader market, motivating hesitant buyers or those waiting on the sidelines to invest.'
Earlier in August, River Green moved 88 per cent of its 524 units at an average price of S$3,130 per square foot (psf); Promenade Peak sold 54 per cent of its 596 units at average price of S$2,894 to S$3,343 psf, and Canberra Crescent moved 40 per cent of its 376 units at average S$1,974 psf.
'The good sales is an indication that there is still ample interest for well-priced projects with attractive attributes, given lower interest rates and resilient economic growth,' said CBRE's head of research of South-east Asia Tricia Song.
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With two more projects – Springleaf Residence and Artisan 8 – launching in August, analysts expect the developers to sell between 1,000 and 2,000 units, before the Ghost Month lull begins in September.
Including ECs, 1,311 units were sold in July with 2,275 units launched, versus the 613 units sold and 616 units launched in the same month in 2024.
Analysts said the surge in transactions came as new condo launches flooded the market after the seasonal lull in June. Some also noted that buyers were unfazed by the recent upward revision of seller's stamp duty rates and the extension of the holding period to a fourth year.
Wong Siew Ying, PropNex Realty's head of research and content, said: 'July marked a bright start to the second half of 2025 for developers' sales and in particular, may signal a broader recovery in the Core Central Region (CCR) sub-market.'
Some 5,527 new units, excluding ECs, have changed hands in the first seven months of 2025 – making up 85 per cent of the full-year sales in 2024, Wong pointed out.
New launches in the prime CCR – The Robertson Opus and Upperhouse at Orchard Boulevard – led to a 'dramatic recovery' in the sub-market, which saw 357 transactions, said Wong.
This represents the highest monthly sale in the segment in more than four years, since 443 units changed hands in April 2021, she added.
The Robertson Opus moved 43 per cent of its 348 units in the recorded month at a median price of S$3,359 psf, while Upperhouse sold 59 per cent of its 301 units at a median price of S$3,259 psf.
Both projects sold 'extremely well', highlighting the resilient demand for prime CCR homes and strong fundamentals in Singapore's property market, said Huttons Asia's senior director of data analytics Lee Sze Teck.
He added: 'Buyers saw exceptional value in CCR homes as the gap between the median psf of new homes in the CCR and Rest of Central Region (RCR) narrowed from a high of 56.5 per cent in 2018 to a mere 1.9 per cent in H1 2025.'
Leonard Tay, Knight Frank Singapore's head of research, said sales at the new CCR launches reflect a shift in buyer sentiment – from previously muted interest to a growing willingness to pay a reasonable premium for new developments.
Well-priced new launches
Analysts pointed to competitive pricing strategies by developers for July's new launches.
The proportion of sales priced above S$2.5 million was 44.3 per cent last month, compared with 50.7 per cent in June 2025, Lee noted. 'Developers had priced their projects below the sweet spot price which helped to lift sales of CCR projects.'
In the RCR, 73 per cent of Lyndenwoods' sold units were priced below S$2.5 million, indicating that a sizable number of units in the project is well within the budget range of many homebuyers today, said Wong.
Lyndenwoods, CapitaLand Development's first residential project at the Singapore Science Park, was the overall best-selling project in July. It sold 97 per cent, or 331 of its 343 units last month, at a median price of S$2,463 psf.
Among the three segments, the RCR led in condo and private apartment sales, accounting for 54.6 per cent of sales. The OCR made up 7.4 per cent of new sales last month.
While Wong expects developers to continue using quantum pricing to target 'the pricing sweet-spot' of S$2.5 million or below to generate sales momentum, rising land prices and sustained high construction costs may limit their ability to price future projects competitively.
Singaporeans made up 85.7 per cent of buyers in July, while permanent residents (PRs) accounted for 12.4 per cent, said Lee.
ERA Singapore's chief executive officer Marcus Chu noted that the luxury segment recorded its highest monthly take-up since November 2024. In July, 28 deals for homes priced at least S$5 million were sold to largely locals and PRs.
A five-bedder duplex penthouse with a roof terrace at 21 Anderson was sold for about S$52.3 million, while a four-bedder at the same project fetched S$21 million.
'These deals underscore the appeal of expansive floor plates and prestigious addresses among high-net-worth PR buyers,' said Chu.