Sales of super-prime residential property in Singapore rebounded 60.9 per cent in the first quarter of 2023 to 37 deals, after a relatively slow Q4 of 2022 which chalked up 23 sales, according to data collected by real estate consultancy Knight Frank.
The consultancy counts transactions valued at over US$10 million to be in the super-prime category.
The number of Singapore transactions closed in Q1 was the same level as the year-earlier period. However, the average sale price of super-prime category deals here fell about 12.4 per cent to US$15.6 million in Q1 2023, from US$17.8 million in Q4 2022. The average sale price was also down 15.2 per cent year on year, from S$18.4 million in Q1 of 2022.
By volume, Singapore’s super-prime residential property transactions in the first quarter of this year surpassed sales in cities such as London and Geneva.
In Knight Frank’s Global Super-Prime Intelligence report released on Monday (Jun 5), Singapore ranked fifth out of 12 markets.
Knight Frank noted that the hike in Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD) for foreigners buying residential property in Singapore to 60 per cent is set to impact demand for prime properties in future quarters.
There were a total of 417 transactions across the 12 markets. Dubai led markets with 88 super-prime sales in Q1, followed by Hong Kong (67), New York (58) and Los Angeles (46).
While total sales volume in Q1 increased by 11 per cent from 376 sales the previous quarter, the total aggregate value of top-end residential sales fell 4 per cent to US$7.2 billion.
The average super-prime sale value was highest in Geneva at US$23.8 million, followed by London at US$20.4 million.
On an annualised basis, super-prime residential sales slowed over recent quarters as global housing markets were hit by roiling interest rate rises, said Knight Frank.
From the full year ended March 2023, 1,645 sales were recorded. This represents a 28.5 per cent fall from 2,298 sales for the full year of 2021 during the pandemic property boom.
The aggregate value of residential sales also fell 26 per cent to US$32.2 billion for the full year ended March 2023, from US$40.7 billion in 2021.
Super-prime sales in Singapore for the year to end-March 2023 stood at US$2.1 billion, down from a peak of US$4.6 billion in 2021.
Dubai topped the list for annual residential sales with 274 sales, followed by London (233), New York (219), Los Angeles (210) and Hong Kong (166). Singapore ranked sixth with 125 sales.
Knight Frank Singapore’s head of private office Nicholas Keong expects transactions for super-prime residential properties to total between US$25 billion and US$27 billion for 2023.
“However, the recovery in growth in the global economy later this year will aid transactions in 2024 with a return to sales in excess of US$30 billion and above,” he added.
Source: The Business Times