Buyers book 75% of units at launch of Buona Vista condo

TWO days after new property curbs kicked in to raise additional stamp duties for some home buyers, a development in Buona Vista sold more than 200 of its 275 units at its launch on Saturday.

Among the new launches in 2023, Blossoms by the Park in Slim Barracks Rise achieved the highest take-up rate of about 75%, at an average price of US$2,423 (RM10,755) per square foot (psf).

Several buyers told The Straits Times they were not affected by the new cooling measures, which do not apply to Singaporeans buying their first home.

Developer EL Development on Saturday said all one and two-bedroom units, except for the two-bedroom penthouses, were fully sold.

It added that 96% of the buyers were Singaporean and Singapore permanent residents, with foreign buyers making up only 4%.

Tracy Ong, associate group director of Huttons Asia, said the frenzy for bookings began almost from the moment the development was launched.

Huttons Asia is one of the marketing agents for the development.

“The smaller units were snapped up really fast. Almost every few minutes, I would hear a ping alert in our booking system, alerting us that a unit has been taken up,” added Ong.

“My client’s queue number was 674 and he wasn’t too hopeful of getting a unit. By lunchtime, two-bedders were almost sold out and the three and four-bedders were also being snapped up really fast.

“But there were also a lot of buyers who decided to drop out of the queue. Maybe the units that they wanted had already been sold. Thankfully, my client managed to secure a three-bedder.”

Serene Tan, 42, a housewife, was among the first 50 buyers to pick her unit, a two-bedroom apartment with a study for US$1.6mil (RM7.1mil).

Tan said she and her husband moved to a rental apartment, paying US$3,800 (RM16,868) a month, after selling their Housing Board flat in Clementi earlier in 2023. They bought the condo unit as an investment.

“If the price is right, we may sell it a few years later,” she added.

“We are aware of the speculation that prices might drop following the stamp duty announcement. However, we have confidence in the project, which is why we are going ahead with the purchase.”

Industry experts said they expected the strong sales despite the latest hikes on the additional buyer’s stamp duty (ABSD) for Singapore citizens and permanent residents buying their second and subsequent properties.

While foreigners will bear the brunt of the ABSD increases if they purchase any residential property here, most buyers of Blossoms by the Park are Singaporean, they noted.

Property portal Mogul.sg chief research officer Nicholas Mak said foreigners made up fewer than 5% of condo buyers in District 5 between January 2022 and now.

“Foreign buyers are not the main demand driver of private residential property any more, especially outside of the central region,” said Mak.

The strong sales performance at Blossoms by the Park affirms the view of a resilient market, underpinned by a healthy and stable demand for private housing among local buyers, said PropNex chief executive Ismail Gafoor.

He added: “Many buyers at new launches do not pay ABSD and are not affected by the new measures.”— The Straits Times/ANN