Strata commercial market saw pick-up in retail activity in 2H2025, while office momentum slowed: Knight Frank

/ EdgeProp Singapore

January 28, 2026 1:56 PM SGT

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The biggest strata retail transaction in 2H2025 was a multiple-unit sale at GB Building on Cecil Street for $39.2 million ($3,000 psf) in July of last year (Picture: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)

The strata commercial property market in Singapore saw a mixed performance in the second half of last year, with the retail segment outperforming the office segment. Research by Knight Frank Singapore shows that the strata retail market recorded 181 transactions in 2H2025, surging 58.8% from the 114 transactions in 1H2025.

The units were sold for a total of $448 million, jumping 52.9% from $293 million in the first half of last year. Unit prices averaged at $3,491 psf in 2H2025, rising 16.2% from $3,006 psf in 1H2025. The biggest strata retail transaction in 2H2025 was a multiple-unit sale at GB Building on Cecil Street for $39.2 million ($3,000 psf) in July of last year.

According to Mary Sai, executive director for capital markets at Knight Frank Singapore, the increase in strata retail deals could have been contributed by owner-occupiers seeking to own their spaces as a means of mitigating occupational costs within the challenging retail operating environment.

In a January research report, Knight Frank notes that freehold strata retail properties made up 109 of the deals in 2H2025, with a total sales value of $285 million. This is up from 59 such transactions recorded in 1H2025 for a total of $169.5 million. The report adds that this is the best half-year performance since 1H2016, when 114 strata retail units worth $266.9 million were sold.

Leasehold strata retail units made up 72 deals in 2H2025, with the units sold for $163.1 million. This surpasses the first half of last year, when 55 units were sold for $123.5 million. However, the average unit price declined marginally, falling 1.9% from $2,853 psf in 1H2025 to $2,800 psf in 2H2025.

For the whole of 2025, 295 strata retail transactions worth $741.1 million were logged, a significant improvement from the 249 deals worth $433.3 million in 2024. Average unit price surged from $2,905 psf in 2024 to $3,282 psf in 2025.

Lower strata office activity

Over in the strata office market, the second half of 2025 saw activity ease, with 163 transactions recorded, 14.7% lower than the 191 deals logged in 1H2025. Sales value also plummeted, falling 51.7% from $736.4 million in 1H2025 to $355.8 million in 2H2025. Average unit price decreased by 20.7% from the $2,805 psf in 1H2025 to $2,224 psf in 2H2025.

For the full year, a total of 354 strata office units were sold for $1.1 billion in 2025. While the number of units sold surpassed the 330 units sold in 2024, sales value fell 5.2% y-o-y.

Knight Frank’s report highlights that demand for strata offices remained concentrated in the CBD and city-fringe locations, with the Downtown Core Planning Area registering the highest number of deals at 40 units with a total sales value of $123 million. This was followed by the Outram Planning Area with 24 transactions worth $23.1 million, and the Geylang Planning Area, with 23 transactions worth $34.9 million.

In addition, a substantial amount of units transacted in 2H2025 are leasehold properties, the report adds. These include multiple units sold at Manhattan House in the Outram Planning Area, which has a remaining lease tenure of 43 years, while in the Geylang Planning Area, several transactions took place at Paya Lebar Square, which has roughly 85 years remaining on its lease. In the Downtown Core, most of the 40 units sold are leasehold strata offices with at least 42 years of remaining tenure.

“Collectively, these transactions highlight buyers’ continued acceptance of leasehold strata offices with sufficient remaining lease tenure to facilitate a viable exit strategy, reinforcing investor preference for strategically-located assets that offer both investment resilience as well as collective sales potential,” comments Knight Frank’s Sai.

Market outlook

Despite the more muted performance in the strata office market in 2H2025, Sai observes that the full-year sales volume for 2025 marks a new cyclical high. "2025 marked a record year in terms of the number of transactions, with the last peak in 2014 with 515 transactions totalling $1.7 billion in total sales value," she observes.

Looking ahead, sheanticipates that buying sentiment in the strata office market could remain supported by interest rate cuts. At the same time, prices will likely be bolstered by the absence of new strata office supply in the near term. To that extent, Knight Frank is projecting strata office sales value to reach around $1 billion in 2026.

In the strata retail market, while robust activity supported performance in 2025, Sai believes it is unclear whether the momentum will continue in 2026, given ongoing operational headwinds in the retail environment. Knight Frank is predicting the total strata retail transaction value this year to range between $500 million and $700 million.

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