While home values from the US to New Zealand are declining, Singapore’s private property prices jumped 13.2% in the third quarter from a year ago due to factors including a shortage of supply and an influx of expatriate arrivals. That’s fueled affordability concerns for nearly six in 10 potential buyers and tenants, according to a recent survey.
Singapore’s housing affordability will deteriorate further in the coming year, due to the double whammy of rising prices and interest rates, according to Moody’s Investors Service.
First-time private home buyers in August needed 19.4% of their average monthly household disposable income to cover monthly mortgage repayments on new loans, up from 17.3% in December 2021, Moody’s analysts said in a report Tuesday. The measure will worsen over the next 12 months because gradual gains in incomes won’t be enough to offset increases in home prices and interest rates, they added.
