Residential property buyers from mainland China are helping to push real estate values in Singapore to new market highs, according to the latest figures.
Jones Lang LaSalle has reported significant increases in the price of mass market private apartments in the first quarter of the year, with the average cost of a home now standing at SD 1,935 per square foot in prime areas. The consultancy noted that the prime market continues to be dominated by foreign buyers.
Mainland Chinese, Indonesian and Malaysian buyers have taken at least half of the total sales in the first three months of 2011. Chinese buyers account for the largest share for mass market units, at 63 per cent for properties priced between SD 500,000 and SD 1.5 million.
A growing number of market analysts believe that the surge in buyers from China is a direct result of the tightening of real estate rules in China.
"While we do not expect a repeat of what is observed this past quarter, we can expect the number of Chinese buyers to continue at a healthy level as seen in previous quarters as the fiscal and monetary policy in China remains conducive to overseas investment," said Dr Chua Yang Liang, head of research for South-east Asia and Singapore at Jones Lang LaSalle.