AMDK press is jealous of SG prized Huat Huat Property again... Why Hah?

Pricey property is a pointy dilemma for Singapore​

By Anshuman Daga
June 28, 202310:42 AM GMT+8Updated 9 hours ago



CommentaryBy Anshuman Daga

View of construction of new private residential properties in Singapore

View of construction of new private residential properties in Singapore April 29, 2021.

REUTERS/Edgar Su
SINGAPORE, June 28 (Reuters Breakingviews) -

Singapore’s soaring housing prices are bucking a global slump but the trend is also turning rich overseas arrivals into an easy scapegoat for the city’s rising cost of living.

If Asia’s safe haven wants to keep growing as a regional wealth hub, politicians will need to work harder to keep costs in check.
The island nation is facing pressure in two interlinked parts of the market.

Prices of state housing, owned by some 90% of Singaporeans, jumped 10% last year on top of a double-digit price rise in the prior year. Many homeowners aspire to own slicker private condominiums however, and prices there are rising almost as fast.
 
The reasons for the squeeze are simple. Construction was delayed during the pandemic, more people are working from home, and there is unprecedented interest in Singapore as a place to live, work and invest as geopolitical tensions between the United States and China increase.

Like in most other places, inflation is also high, at 4.7%. It’s a pointy problem however for a country that traditionally has managed housing for the masses well.

Politicians are mindful of elections due to be held by 2025. In June, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s government said it would redevelop the city’s only horse racecourse for housing, including public homes.

It notes some 40,000 public and private housing units are due to be completed this year, the highest level in five years. Singapore also hiked taxes on private second-home purchases.
 
Property purchases in Singapore by foreigners fell by 28% in the second quarter from the previous quarter, per preliminary data from real estate agency OrangeTee & Tie, after authorities doubled stamp duties to 60% in April and raised other levies.

The government has in recent months hiked taxes on high-end properties, tightened housing loan limits, and taken steps to moderate demand for public homes.

Buying by foreigners has been low, at about 4% of all private residential purchases on average over the last 3 years, the government clarified in May in a reply to a question in parliament on wealth inflows.

Editing by Una Galani, Katrina Hamlin and Thomas Shum
 
Dontch worry. All that money coming in must be invested overseas to prevent inflation.

Feb. 14 - Air India announces a record order for 470 jets from Airbus and Boeing, including 40 A350s, 20 787s and 10 777-9s, as well as 210 A320neo family jets and 190 737 MAXs. The first planes will enter service in late 2023, with the bulk to arrive from mid-2025. This comes on top of six Boeing widebody planes it agreed to lease in December.

Nov. 29 - Tata says it will merge Air India with Vistara, its joint venture with Singapore Airlines. The Singaporean carrier will invest $252 million into Air India as part of the deal due to be completed by March 2024, giving it a 25.1% stake.
 
Yeah, we are in good hands... They really 为国为民
 
Don't worry..
PAP minister living in rideout looking out for us.
 
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