28-05-2025
Singapore's Two-Speed Property Market Is Hard to Read
Two years ago, Singapore doubled the stamp duty on foreign homebuyers to a steep 60%. Since then, residential property has become a twin-speed market. Prices of high-end downtown condominiums, which used to attract heavy Chinese demand, have grown at a much slower pace than more affordable suburban apartments aimed at local owners.
This divergence is starting to cloud the outlook for real estate in the Asian financial center. Sales of new homes fell to 663 last month, down from 729 in March. Does that mean that economic concerns, particularly around trade, are making prospective owners cautious? I'm not quite willing to buy into the pessimism — not yet. Local demand is still robust. But it isn't reflected in developer sales that are skewed toward the central region, which is more of a playground for the global rich. 1
