Is it a good time to buy?

[batgirl_cdn]

Do you think buying a condo rather than renting is a good way to go in Singapore at the moment?

[durain]

depends if you can afford to buy or not, or how long you gonna be in singapore. in the long run, buying a brick and mortar is always a good investment.

will price goes up, will price goes down? no one knows. that's the risk you got to take into considersation. but with singapore so small and expanding, the chances will be property price will always on the trend of going up.

[keepitreal]

I would say not. As each day goes by of late, I am becoming increasingly convinced of over supply. Couple this with the nervousness in the world economy at the moment and you have your answer.

[NCD22]

I am moving to Singapore shortly and it was my understanding that the housing market has gone bonkers because of UNDER supply, not OVER supply. (supply vs. demand, supply goes up, demand goes down meaning prices go down...But right now prices are going up, so logically?)

But perhaps that is not right...

[Elvis123]

Prices have gone up a huge amount over the last 2 years. It appears that they are easing at the moment. Rent however continues to climb, albeit not the the same rate as the previous 12 months but continues to rise none the less.

Do your research. There are plenty of new developments coming onto the market which may decrease prices when they are done, however the government wants to increase population to 6.5m over the coming years so we will continue to need the supply.

I bought 12 months ago and have seen a nice increase in value.

Hope this helps...

[KOTW]

There are huge risks of buying Singapore property at the top of the current cyle.

Current supply is large(look at supply in the rental market for cues). Therefore, prices should begin to fall and become more in line with actual demand soon.

I suggest waiting for a little longer(6m-1.5y) if you are hoping to snap-up property at a reasonable valuation.

[keepitreal]

Take a look in the Straits times on a Saturday and view the sales pages, it's chocca block with property for sale and rent.

I was thinking of buying and went to see something last week. They were asking for 1.10m and the agent said they would listen to offers around 1.08m - I was like, get real mate...i wouldn't pay 900k for that shoe box...

What does GBP 400k buy you in the UK or USD 800k in the US these days? The answer is a lot, this market is well topped out and they'll be giving them away by the end of the year....

[sundaymorningstaple]

The answer is a lot, this market is well topped out and they'll be giving them away by the end of the year....

Don't hold your breath.......

[Superglide]

I bought 12 months ago and have seen a nice increase in value.

Exactly the simplistic reasoning of so many thinking they can easily make a buck or two.

Speculation abundant.

[ksl]

I bought 12 months ago and have seen a nice increase in value.

Exactly the simplistic reasoning of so many thinking they can easily make a buck or two.

Speculation abundant.

Exactly the simplistic reasoning why it was better to buy, than pay the 50% increase in rental!

Speculation aside, it wasn't intentional and still isn't, especially in HDB, although one doesn't have to be braindead, to realise that, a mortgage is cheaper, than renting, and it doesn't even matter if one doesn't even sell the property....it's better than throwing the rental money into unscrupulous landlords pockets, of which i despise. This property will more than likely outlive myself and my wife, and will be given away for someones good fortune, so why not

[Guowei58]

I posted this in anotehr thread...it looks like the high end market is becoming soft...which will probably impact the mid-tier market.


Singapore Luxury Home Prices May Fall 32% by 2010, Times Says
2008-03-26 20:12 (New York)


By Jean Chua
March 27 (Bloomberg) -- Singapore luxury home prices may fall as much as 32 percent from their 2007 peak by 2010, the Business Times reported, citing Nomura Research.
Average prices will fall 17 percent this year, 10 percent in 2009 and 9.3 percent in 2010 as rental growth slows and the number of unsold units increases, the newspaper said, citing the Nomura Research report.
Prices may have fallen about 5 percent in the first two months of this year, the newspaper said.

[sillingw]

Historically property increases a little more than the rate of inflation over the long term (and I stress long term) People who try to time bubbles can win or lose it's still gambling. If you take the track of buying for the long term - even if you move away, you can rent out. If you put a reasonable deposit down so that possible rent will be less than the interest on the mortgae then it's hard to see how you can lose. You can see from the diverse opinions here that no-one really knows if they are going to go up or down, but long term, they will go up. The prices today in real terms (taking inflation into account) are abbout where they were before the asian economic crisis so some would say that they have just recovered their values. I will admit that I am on the positive side and have invested in the property market for the last three years - but not for short term gains (otherwise I would be selling now) The rent more than covers the mortgage and so the equity is what I look at. I am very bullish about property investment on an island that has limited land, a growing population that is getting wealthier, and a sound economy.

[kwokhua]

For expats moving to Singapore, perhaps, you should also consider the option an HDB flat. There are nice and cosy flats around in Singapore and it is defintely worthed a look. The more beautiful and affordable HDB flats are located mainly in the Pasir Ris, Punggol and Sembawang areas. These areas may seem remote but frankly, with our smaill land size, no place in Singapore is beyond our reach.

And if the emphasis is still on condo Living, Pasir Ris has a few condominium estates as well and they are really nice places to live in. The plus point is that the rental fee is defniitely much lower than the condos found in the city.

Therefore, it's time to refocus.

[Loops]

Do you think buying a condo rather than renting is a good way to go in Singapore at the moment?

I would say wait. We're thinking of buying but prices are too high. I'm sure they will come down (I'm no expert but that just seems to be the way it goes!). When we moved here prices were low, and I think they will be low again. These things seem to go in cycles.

[ksl]

Wait! http://www.singaporeexpats.com/forum/ftopic48634.html