In August, developers in the real estate market faced a notable slowdown, with sales of new private residential units totaling just 394. This figure marked a substantial decline of 72.1% compared to July's sales, and a 10% decrease when compared to the same month last year.

When including executive condominiums (ECs) in the tally, the total number of new private homes sold in August reached 649, a significant drop from the 1,471 units sold in the previous month, as reported by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) on September 15.

August has traditionally been a sluggish period for property transactions, influenced by cultural beliefs that discourage home purchases during the seventh month of the lunar calendar. Developers typically refrain from launching new projects during this period as well. In August, only 590 units were introduced to the market, representing a 72% decrease from the preceding month but a notable increase compared to the 134 units launched in the same month last year.

Developers focused their sales efforts primarily in the first half of August, managing to sell 283 units before the start of the Festival of the Hungry Ghosts on August 16.

Interestingly, there were no sales of residential properties priced at S$10 million or higher in August, mirroring the trend observed in July. However, June saw two significant transactions at Les Maisons Nassim for S$32.7 million and S$30.8 million.

The number of units purchased by foreigners also declined, with only 12 units sold in August compared to 19 units in July. Half of these purchases were in the prime Core Central Region (CCR), while the other half were in the Rest of Central Region (RCR) city-fringe areas and suburban Outside Central Region (OCR) locations.

The standout performer in August's new home sales was Altura, an executive condominium project located in Bukit Batok West Avenue 8. This project sold 62.5% of its units, translating to 225 out of 360 units.

Private home sales saw a dip in August, mainly due to the absence of major project launches during the month. The bulk of developer sales came from four projects: Orchard Sophia, The Arden, The LakeGarden Residences, and TMW Maxwell. 

According to property transaction records, Liv @ MB reported 13 units sold in July and 12 units in August, marking the only months with double-digit sales since May 2022 when the project launched with 224 units sold. Additionally, One Berman had 13 transactions in August, representing the highest sales volume in six months.

Breaking down the geographical distribution of sales, nearly half (48.7%) of the units sold in August were in the Outside Central Region (OCR), followed by the Rest of Central Region (RCR) at 26.9% and the Core Central Region (CCR) at 24.4%.

Looking ahead, the market anticipates new launches including Marina View Residences with over 700 units, the suburban project Hillock Green, and J’Den, the redevelopment of JCube mall. These developments could potentially inject fresh energy into the real estate landscape.