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Home > Breaking News > Singapore > Story
July 25, 2009
Slow sales for DBSS
By Jessica Cheam
THE numbers show it: Singapore has been gripped by a buying frenzy that seems to have pervaded every segment of the property market.
Sales volume for HDB resale flats has surged 58 per cent in the second quarter, and private home sales have even spread from the mass market to the upper-mid-tier segment.
But while sales have been brisk at condos, the pace has been somewhat slower in the HDB hybrid condo-style flat sector, also called Design, Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS) projects.
These condo-style HDB flats have better finishes and facilities, and are built by private developers.
A survey by The Sunday Times shows that sales at three centrally located DBSS projects - The Peak@Toa Payoh, Park Central at Ang Mo Kio and Natura Loft at Bishan - do not seem to have moved as briskly compared to the pace seen in the HDB resale market and for private mass market homes, where projects such as 8@Woodleigh in Potong Pasir were fully sold out in a short timeframe.
Sales are hovering at the 70 per cent to 75 per cent level, despite the fact that buyers no longer have to ballot and can buy a flat via walk-in selection.
Analysts note that 70 per cent is a decent level of sales but point to a number of reasons these DBSS flats have not performed as well as their peers - the exception being Parc Lumiere at Simei, which has sold 93 per cent of its 360 flats since its April launch.
Firstly, the target audience - HDB home buyers - are highly price-sensitive. Prices for bigger flats - hitting the upper range of $600,000 and just over $700,000 each - are out of reach for many buyers, say analysts.
This is why Parc Lumiere was a sell-out, said PropNex chief executive Mohamed Ismail, although its location was less central. 'Most of the flats were priced below the $500,000 psychological barrier.'
Also, the only flat types left are five-roomers, which may be too big for young couples buying their first property.
July 25, 2009
Slow sales for DBSS
By Jessica Cheam
THE numbers show it: Singapore has been gripped by a buying frenzy that seems to have pervaded every segment of the property market.
Sales volume for HDB resale flats has surged 58 per cent in the second quarter, and private home sales have even spread from the mass market to the upper-mid-tier segment.
But while sales have been brisk at condos, the pace has been somewhat slower in the HDB hybrid condo-style flat sector, also called Design, Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS) projects.
These condo-style HDB flats have better finishes and facilities, and are built by private developers.
A survey by The Sunday Times shows that sales at three centrally located DBSS projects - The Peak@Toa Payoh, Park Central at Ang Mo Kio and Natura Loft at Bishan - do not seem to have moved as briskly compared to the pace seen in the HDB resale market and for private mass market homes, where projects such as 8@Woodleigh in Potong Pasir were fully sold out in a short timeframe.
Sales are hovering at the 70 per cent to 75 per cent level, despite the fact that buyers no longer have to ballot and can buy a flat via walk-in selection.
Analysts note that 70 per cent is a decent level of sales but point to a number of reasons these DBSS flats have not performed as well as their peers - the exception being Parc Lumiere at Simei, which has sold 93 per cent of its 360 flats since its April launch.
Firstly, the target audience - HDB home buyers - are highly price-sensitive. Prices for bigger flats - hitting the upper range of $600,000 and just over $700,000 each - are out of reach for many buyers, say analysts.
This is why Parc Lumiere was a sell-out, said PropNex chief executive Mohamed Ismail, although its location was less central. 'Most of the flats were priced below the $500,000 psychological barrier.'
Also, the only flat types left are five-roomers, which may be too big for young couples buying their first property.
