Home and office spaces have become conflated. This is a trying and experimental time for countries, as businesses are coerced to WFH (Work From Home), and productivity is a deciding factor between staying afloat and cutting costs. For the property arena, it is a perfect time to revaluate one's assets and investments.
Private properties in Singapore have fallen by 1.2% in the first quarter of the year, according to the Urban Redevelopment Authority. Cushman & Wakefield’s report (dated 13th April) has seen a massive drop in property investment sales in Singapore by 37% to S$2.02 billion in the first quarter of this year.
According to 99.co, the increasing spending power of Chinese buyers have influenced the property market in Singapore, which dipped sharply within the first two months of 2020, to about 4.3% of total buyers.
This means opportunities for Singaporean buyers to leverage on a rare window of opportunity, which may be short-lived with the COVID-19 situation already pivoting for the better in China, South Korea and a number of other Asian nations.
There is indeed the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. In Singapore, the Monetary Authority of Singapore has implemented several relief packages and deferment of repayments for property loans, a reprieve that has been welcomed by buyers and sellers alike.
This follows the second round of relief measures announced in late March, which brings its support measures to mitigate the damage of the economic downturn to S$55 billion ($38.38 billion), equivalent to 11% of the country’s GDP. This may reinvigorate the property market, further shoring up its appeal as a ‘safe haven’, as we await a resurgence of investment activity and ride out the global recession.
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