Higher home buyer tax seen cooling Singapore's collective sales frenzy

SINGAPORE (Feb 20): Singapore's move on Monday to raise stamp duty on expensive home purchases is likely to dampen the recent wave of redevelopment sales in the city-state's recovering property market, analysts said.

From Tuesday, the wealthy city-state will apply a new top marginal rate of 4% stamp duty on the portion of residential property value in excess of $1 million, Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat said in his budget speech. The current rate ranges between 1 and 3%.

Heng said the move was a progressive tax and came against the backdrop of suggestions to tax the rich more.

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