DBS Bank has launched DBS Property Marketplace, a bank-led online property marketplace offering 100,000 listings from agents and owners. About 70% of these listings comprise resale and new launch condominiums as well as landed properties, while the remainder are resale HDB units. DBS has partnered with online property listing platforms EdgeProp and Averspace, and is currently in talks to partner with SoReal, a property portal by Huttons Asia, ERA Realty, and PropNex Realty.
Homebuyers start their purchase process by considering their affordability, such as how large a property they can afford, and how much loans they can take, says Tok Geok Peng, head of secured lending at DBS. “But more importantly, we found out that people really want to know about their cash flow. They want to know how much [of the loan] they can pay by CPF [Central Provident Fund], and how much by cash,” she adds.
The DBS Property Marketplace will feature a financial planner for homebuyers to determine their affordable price range based on their monthly cash flow, CPF savings and cash deposits. It will facilitate cheque-free payments and end-to-end digital documentation for customers to apply for a loan. Customers may receive a loan offer from DBS within a day, once documentation and compliance are completed, says Tok. She expects that about 80% of users of the marketplace will be local first-time homebuyers and upgraders.
There is a growing number of young, digitally-savvy consumers who are entering the property market, notes P’ing Lim, DBS head of deposits and secured loans. “Our partners are able to bring editorial content and data to complement the customer experience,” she says.
For now, the tools available on DBS Property Marketplace cater to first-time homebuyers, but other tools for upgraders, investors, and “silver-haired” property buyers will be progressively available by end-2019.
According to Bernard Tong, CEO of EdgeProp Singapore, the property platform’s goal is to “empower property seekers to make informed decisions by making information as accessible and widely available as possible”.
DBS Property Marketplace includes a one-stop shop that allows customers to set up their GIRO payments for utilities, set up digital home solutions like Wi-Fi, as well as engage renovation and cleaning services.
OCBC Bank has announced that it has plans to roll out a similar service soon. In January, OCBC launched its own property advisory and marketplace portal called OCBC OneAdvisor. The site features property listings pulled from EdgeProp, based on a homebuyer’s affordability, as well as financial planning advice, policy details, rules and regulations.
OCBC OneAdvisor is said to have over 135,000 listings and allows customers to search for a home based on their affordability. It’s affordability calculator which considers the Total Debt Servicing Ratio, Loan-To-Value ratios, stamp duties, as well as legal and agent fees.
“We believe [the online marketplace] represents a paradigm shift for financial services in the future,” says Jeremy Soo, head of DBS Singapore consumer banking group. “It allows us to provide one-stop solutions that effectively anticipate our consumers’ needs across their purchase journey.”