PropNex Picks
January 03, 2024
Softer HDB Resale Flat Volume Weighed On Prices In December 2023
Wong Siew Ying
Head of Research and Content
The HDB resale volume softened in December, affected by the seasonal lull which typically sees slower market activity amid the festive period and school holidays. Transaction data showed that 2,009 flats were resold in December – down by 6% from the 2,137 units sold in the previous month. When compared with December 2022, the resale volume was down by about 10% year-on-year. Non-mature towns made up about 62% of the transactions in December, with Sengkang, Woodlands, and Jurong West leading sales during the month.
Apart from the festive seasons, the HDB’s build-to-order (BTO) exercise in December could also have steered some buyers from the resale market to the BTO segment, especially those who do not have a pressing need for a new home. The HDB launched more than 6,000 new flats in seven towns - Bukit Panjang, Jurong West, Woodlands, Bedok, Bishan, Bukit Merah, and Queenstown - for application in December.
In view of the weaker sales, the average HDB resale prices fell marginally by 0.4% MOM to $578,587 in December, but were up by 5.2% YOY from December 2022 (see Chart 1).
Chart 1: HDB resale volume and average transacted price by month
Source: PropNex Research, Data.gov.sg
Jul-23 | Aug-23 | Sep-23 | Oct-23 | Nov-23 | Dec-23 | MOM % change | |
3-ROOM | $413,667 | $411,399 | $415,016 | $413,524 | $420,172 | $412,656 | -1.8% |
4-ROOM | $582,175 | $597,690 | $589,500 | $592,461 | $592,688 | $597,908 | 0.9% |
5-ROOM | $684,851 | $690,447 | $694,687 | $692,186 | $690,780 | $698,665 | 1.1% |
EXECUTIVE | $831,930 | $844,183 | $833,436 | $855,699 | $839,811 | $822,098 | -2.1% |
Source: PropNex Research, Data.gov.sg
Evaluating the sales data by towns and flat types, it was found that 3-room flats in both mature and non-mature towns witnessed a fall in the average resale price from November to December, with that of mature town posting a larger decline of 2.4% MOM (see Table 2). Meanwhile, 4-room, 5-room and executive flats in mature estates saw their average resale prices rise by between 1.0% and 2.6% MOM in December.
In particular, the average resale price of 5-room flats in mature towns achieved the fastest pace of growth during the month. This could be due to the sustained demand for resale 5-room flats, especially in the city fringe and near the city centre as the HDB typically does not offer new 5-room BTO flats in such locations.
Over in the non-mature towns, executive flats booked a 2.0% MOM decline in the average resale price, while that of 3-room flats saw a marginal 0.7% MOM dip. Meanwhile, 4-room and 5-room flats garnered a slight MOM increase in their average resale price in December.
Table 2: Average transacted HDB resale flat prices in Mature and Non-mature towns
Mature towns | Non-mature towns | |||||||
| Nov-23 | Dec-23 | % change MOM | Nov-23 | Dec-23 | % change MOM | ||
3 ROOM | $427,418 | $417,148 | -2.4% | $409,439 | $406,446 | -0.7% | ||
4 ROOM | $680,457 | $687,550 | 1.0% | $547,533 | $551,515 | 0.7% | ||
5 ROOM | $800,776 | $821,628 | 2.6% | $643,735 | $646,952 | 0.5% | ||
EXECUTIVE | $911,036 | $928,361 | 1.9% | $801,167 | $785,030 | -2.0% | ||
Source: PropNex Research, Data.gov.sg
In December 2023, mature towns made up the top 3 lists of estates in PropNex’s ranking of average transacted resale prices on a per square foot basis ($PSF) by flat types (see Table 3). The highest average PSF price for 4-room flats in December was $982 psf in Central Area – supported by two flats that were resold for more than $1 million in Cantonment Road. Specifically, one of the 4-room flats set a new record high unit price for HDB resale flat transactions at $1,409 psf. Meanwhile, the Central Area and Bukit Timah achieved the highest average resale unit price for 5-room flats and executive flats in December at $1,031 psf and $859 psf, respectively.
Table 3: Top 3 towns by Average $PSF transacted price by flat type in December 2023 (and corresponding price in previous month)
Source: PropNex Research, data.gov.sg
Based on resale transaction data, about 34.2% of resale flats sold in December were priced at below $500,000, compared to 33.6% in the previous month. Meanwhile, about 63.4% of the flats resold were priced at between $500,000 and just under $1 mil – down from 64.3% in September. The proportion of resale flats sold for at least $1 million made up 2.4% of December’s sales – rising slightly from 2.1% in the previous month (See Chart 2).
Chart 2: Proportion of HDB Resale Transactions by Price Range
Source: PropNex Research, Data.gov.sg
The number of HDB flats resold for at least $1 million dip by about 7% MOM to 48 units in December from 45 units transacted in the previous month (see Chart 3). This takes the total number of such flats resold to an all-time high of 470 units in 2023 – up by 27% from the record 369 units in 2022.
Chart 3: Number of “Million-dollar” HDB Resale Flats sold By Month
Source: PropNex Research, Data.gov.sg
Of the 48 units of million-dollar resale flats transacted, three units are located in non-mature towns (Woodlands 2 units, Jurong East 1 unit). The remaining flats are in Ang Mo Kio, Queenstown, Kallang Whampoa, Bukit Merah, Toa Payoh, Clementi, Central Area, Bukit Timah, Bishan, Serangoon, and Geylang. By flat type, 21 of the million-dollar resale flats are 5-room units, followed by 17 units of 4-room flats, and 10 units of executive flats.
The most expensive HDB resale flat sold in December was a 5-room flat at Pinnacle @ Duxton in Cantonment Road (see Table 4). The 105 sq m (1,130 sq ft) flat which is located between the 28th and 30th floor fetched $1.42 million. This is followed by a 4-room flat – also in Cantonment Road – which was resold for $1.411 million or $1,409 psf, marking the highest ever transacted PSF price point for HDB resale flats.
PropNex expects that the sales volume for million-dollar resale flats could remain elevated in 2024, propped up by several groups of buyers: a) those seeking larger flats in more central locations; 2) former private home owners who have served their 15-month wait-out period; and 3) buyers looking for ‘restriction-lite flats’ in appealing locations.
From 2H 2024, the HDB will classify new flats by Standard, Plus, and Prime categories – with Plus and Prime flats being subjected to more stringent resale and rental conditions, as well as a 10-year minimum occupation period. Some prospective buyers may not be keen on the tighter rules, and could opt to buy resale flats in attractive locations instead – as existing resale flats are not affected by the new classification framework.
Table 4: Top 10 HDB resale flats transacted in November 2023 by Transacted Price
Town | Type | Street | Storey range | Floor area SQM | Lease start date | Price | PSF ($) |
CENTRAL AREA | 5 ROOM | CANTONMENT RD | 28 TO 30 | 105 | 2011 | $1,420,000 | $1,256 |
CENTRAL AREA | 4 ROOM | CANTONMENT RD | 46 TO 48 | 93 | 2011 | $1,410,888 | $1,409 |
BUKIT MERAH | 5 ROOM | BOON TIONG RD | 19 TO 21 | 112 | 2016 | $1,400,000 | $1,161 |
BUKIT TIMAH | EXECUTIVE | TOH YI DR | 10 TO 12 | 146 | 1988 | $1,350,000 | $859 |
CENTRAL AREA | 5 ROOM | CANTONMENT RD | 10 TO 12 | 107 | 2011 | $1,320,000 | $1,146 |
BUKIT MERAH | 5 ROOM | HENDERSON RD | 04 TO 06 | 113 | 2019 | $1,288,000 | $1,059 |
BUKIT MERAH | 5 ROOM | BOON TIONG RD | 13 TO 15 | 115 | 2005 | $1,250,000 | $1,010 |
TOA PAYOH | 5 ROOM | LOR 1A TOA PAYOH | 16 TO 18 | 113 | 2012 | $1,228,000 | $1,010 |
TOA PAYOH | 5 ROOM | LOR 1A TOA PAYOH | 13 TO 15 | 113 | 2012 | $1,215,000 | $999 |
ANG MO KIO | 5 ROOM | ANG MO KIO ST 52 | 25 TO 27 | 117 | 2011 | $1,200,000 | $953 |
Source: PropNex Research, Data.gov.sg
Join PropNex Friends to get the latest updates on real estate trends and research reports.
