The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced today that the property cooling measures will remain.

“There is still some way to go, to entrench the gains in stabilising the property market and restoring household debt sustainability,” says MAS Managing director Ravi Menon.

“Prices have moderated by a cumulative 9.4% from their peak in the third quarter of 2013. But they had gone up by 60% between 2009 and 2013 when nominal incomes had increased by only 30% during the same period. The risk of a renewed surge in property prices is not trivial given that interest rates are likely to remain low and global investors continue to search for yield. And while the growth in household debt has eased considerably, it will take time for household balance sheets to strengthen and become more resilient to interest rate and income shocks,” notes Menon.