Singapore Condo, HDB Rents Jumped More Than 10% In 2021

The rental markets for Housing Board (HDB) flats and private apartments ended on a robust note in 2021, as rents surged by more than 10 per cent despite demand slipping in December. Condo rents jumped by 11.4 per cent while HDB rents climbed by 10.4 per cent in the whole of last year, as more turned to rental housing options owing to construction delays caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, according to flash data from real estate portals 99.co and SRX released Monthly rents for condos rose by 1.1 per cent last month, with price growth observed across the board in central Singapore, the city fringes and suburbs. Rents for HDB flats rose for the 18th consecutive month last month at a faster pace of 1.4 per cent over November across all flat types in both mature and non-mature estates. ERA Singapore head of research and consultancy Nicholas Mak said one of the reasons for the steady rise in rents was the construction delays plaguing new HDB flats and private housing. More home buyers may now have to rent accommodation while waiting for their new homes to be completed, thus propping up rental demand. The latest round of property cooling measures introduced in mid-December could possibly increase rental housing demand, he added. Measures include an increase in additional buyer's stamp duty rate from 12 per cent to 17 per cent for citizens buying their second residential property, and from 15 per cent to 25 per cent for those buying their third and subsequent properties. "This will incentivise a home buyer who already owns a property to sell his existing property before buying the next property. If the next property is under construction, this home buyer will need to rent accommodation while waiting for his new home to be completed," said Mak.