The five sites on the Confirmed List comprises four private residential sites and an EC site, while the eight sites on the Reserve List comprise four private residential sites, another EC site, two White sites, and a hotel site. (Picture: Samuel Isaac Chua/The Edge Singapore)
SINGAPORE (EDGEPROP) - The Singapore government has announced 13 sites under the 1H2022 Government Land Sales (GLS) programme. The 1H2022 GLS list comprises five Confirmed List sites and eight Reserve List sites.
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This comes as the government promised to ramp up the supply of both private and public housing development sites when it announced the new round of cooling measures near midnight on Dec 15.
“To ensure that there is sufficient supply of private housing to meet demand and ensure market stability, the government has decided to increase the supply of private housing on the Confirmed List to 2,785 units for the 1H2022 GLS Programme, from 2,000 units for the 2H2021 GLS Programme,” says the Ministry of National Development (MND) in a press release on Dec 16.
MND also says that the government is prepared to step up supply further if demand remains strong.
The five sites on the Confirmed List comprises four private residential sites and an Executive Condominium (EC) site. In total, the four non-EC sites could yield about 2,290 private residential units while the EC site could yield 495 EC units.
The eight sites on the Reserve List comprise four private residential sites, another EC site, two White sites, and a hotel site. If all of these sites were triggered for sale, they could yield another 3,715 private residential units, including 700 EC units, 968,400 sq ft of commercial space, and 530 hotel rooms. (Find Singapore commercial properties with our commercial directory)
“With the dwindling unsold units in the market, it is evident that developers need to replenish their land bank and the increased supply is welcome news. However, the increased supply of land together with the cooling measures dampening demand will likely exert downward pressure on land bids. This will have an effect on the eventual selling price,” says Mark Yip, CEO of Huttons Asia.
However, Alice Tan, head of consultancy at Knight Frank, says that the overall number of potential private residential homes remains relatively unchanged from the GLS lists in 2021. “When combining both the Confirmed and Reserve Lists together, the number of possible new private residential units decreased by 5.2%, from 6,860 units in 2H2021 to 6,500 units in 1H2022,” says Tan.
Amid diminishing unsold inventory of new private homes in the market, construction delays, and pent-up demand from genuine homebuyers, the increase in the total number of residential units for development under the Confirmed List of the 1H2022 GLS programme could be viewed as “muted”, she adds.
Tan says over the next six months developers are increasingly likely to trigger the smaller sized sites on the Reserve List, especially ones where 600 units or less can be built because larger sites are even less appealing given the increase in the Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty to 35% for housing developers.
“The sites on the Confirmed List are located in the Rest of Central (RCR) and Outside Central Region (OCR). This is a timely injection of supply as home demand in these two sub-markets has been very strong, supported by Singaporean buyers looking to upgrade or enter the private residential market,” says Ismail Gafoor, CEO of PropNex Realty.
According to data from PropNex, as of the end of 3Q2021, the number of unsold inventory in the Core Central Region was 6,880 units, in the RCR there were 5,878 unsold units, while there were 4,382 new units left in the OCR.
The site that could yield the most number of units is a 271,251 sq ft site at Dunman Road that could yield 1,035 units. According to Wong Xian Yang, head of research, Singapore at Cushman & Wakefield, the site has strong locational attributes due to its proximity to Dakota MRT station as well as nearby amenities such as the Old Airport Road food centre.
“While the recent cooling measures might crimp demand slightly for the site, given its size and higher development risk, owner-occupier demand for future development is expected to be strong given its strong locational attributes. As such, larger developers or consortiums would be keen on this site,” says Wong.
The 1H2022 GLS programme also includes three residential sites in Lentor. Two Confirmed List sites at Lentor Central and Lentor Hills Road (Parcel B), as well as a Reserve List site at Lentor Gardens. Mark Yip of Huttons Asia says that this is likely in response to the demand for more housing in the Lentor area and the opening of Lentor MRT station in August this year.
The release of an EC site at Bukit Batok West Avenue 5 under the Confirmed List will also help address the upgrading demand of residents in that area, says Yip. “Up to 7,788 three-room to five-room HDB flats were completed from 2015 to 2018 (in that area) and will offer a potential pool of HDB upgraders for the EC when it is launched for sale.” (Find HDB flats for rent or sale with our Singapore HDB directory)
Check out the latest listings near Dakota MRT station, Lentor MRT station