SINGAPORE (Oct 6): Donald Han, a veteran property consultant and managing director of Hospitality Strategies Asia Pacific, has noticed lots of “old and smart money” pouring into prime property in Districts 9 and 10 recently.

This implies a growing expectation that property prices in Singapore have hit bottom after 15 straight quarters of decline.

By Han’s reckoning, there are 10 to 12 developers at any given time that can raise more than $1 billion each to pursue development sites.

Yet, the window of opportunity may not extend much beyond next year for those in a collective sales committee.

By then, more sellers are likely to have come into the market and potential buyers would have more choices. And with the property cooling measures still in place, buyers are restricted from levering themselves and flipping properties the way they could a decade ago.

Developers have also come together to try to bring back the market. Winnings bids of recent government land sales are 25% above the recent bottom in 2015.

In Singapore, it is government policies that have traditionally provided the catalyst and discipline for the property sector to thrive.

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This article, written by Chan Chao Peh, appeared in The Edge Singapore, Issue 800 (Oct 5, 2017). The full article is available in print.