Singapore cuts supply of private housing in 2019

Release of 14 sites to yield 6,500 private homes, the lowest number since 2007

Due to moderating demand and a glut of incoming homes in the city-state, Singapore’s Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has decided to lower the supply of private residential units in the first half of 2019.

Fourteen sites will be released under the Government Land Sales (GLS) programme for the next six months. “Together with the supply in the pipeline, this will sufficiently cater to the housing needs of our population,” the URA said in a statement.

The release comprises five Confirmed List sites and nine Reserve List sites, which can yield about 6,475 private residential units; 86,000 square metres in gross floor area (GFA) of commercial space; and 1,115 hotel rooms. The number of private homes to be released is the lowest since the first six months of 2007 when only 5,475 units were offered.

Singapore currently has 45,000 private housing units in the pipeline, including 31,000 unsold units from GLS and en-bloc sale sites with planning approval, the URA noted. These do not include the estimated 28,000 existing private homes that remain vacant around the city-state.

Moreover, overall transaction volumes have declined and developers’ demand for land has moderated since the implementation of cooling measures in July.

“Given these factors, the Government has decided to moderate the total supply of private residential units for the 1H2019 GLS Programme,” the URA stated.

Authorities will continue to monitor the property market closely and adjust the supply from future GLS Programmes, “as necessary,” the statement read.