Singapore - Housing 01 (May 08 - Oct 08)

[ishak]

Property Sector
DBS Group Research, Sept 22

PROPERTY stocks were among the worst hit in the recent meltdown that saw the Straits Times Index and global indices touching new lows. On a month-on-month performance, the FTSE Real Estate and Development Index eased 12.6 per cent, hot on the heels of top losers Oil and Gas Index (-19 per cent) and S-chips (-16 per cent).

After the battering, Allgreen, Ho Bee and Singapore Land are now trading at 0.5-0.6 times P/B value. Recent worries about the ailing global economic outlook over the next 6-12 months have brought property stocks closer to their trough valuation. We see buying opportunities for stocks trading at/below down-cycle troughs and at a steep discount to its BV.

The transformation of Singapore into a global city is still ongoing and with the long-term population planning parameter of 6.5 million, demand for physical properties should pick up again once the potential buyers sense an about-turn in the local economy and global economic sentiment.

DBS Research has stress-tested the property coverage based on two scenarios:

• Back to 2002-03 - downcycle troughs: The theoretical worst-case prices for some of the larger cap property companies are calculated based on the trough discounts to RNAV during the 2001-03 downcycle.

• Back to Q2 2006 - before the run-up: In Q2 2006, the producer price index was 31.3 per cent lower than Q2 2008 and the office rental index was 53 per cent below Q2 2008 levels.

Based on the above and current valuations, our top picks are Allgreen, Ho Bee and Keppel Land. All three have substantial upside to our recently revised TPs and are also trading at below or close to our trough valuations. We also like City Developments, which is a key proxy for the Singapore residential market and will be a prime beneficiary when the market sentiment recovers. City Dev has resilient core earnings as well as cheap landbank across all the market segments.

[ishak]

HDB launches 992 flats under balloting exercise
CNA, 26 Sep 2008

The Housing and Development Board (HDB) of Singapore has launched the sale of 992 flats under its Balloting Exercise on Friday.

They include surplus flats available from the Selective En Bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS) in Ang Mo Kio, Kallang, Whampoa, Queenstown and Jurong West, as well as remaining units at The Pinnacle@Duxton.

HDB said on Friday the units offered are of different types and designs that will suit varying needs and budget of home buyers.

Prices of three and four-room flats in Jurong West are expected to cost between S$142,000 and S$253,000.

While the 428 units at Singapore's first iconic 50-storey public housing project, The Pinnacle@Duxton are priced between S$457,000 and S$646,000.

The Board said that buyers who do not find a flat of their choice in this balloting exercise can consider applying for a new flat under the Build-To-Order exercises in the future.

Interested buyers can view models of the projects at the Habitat Forum at the HDB Hub or visit unfurnished sample units on site.

Applications for the new flats can be submitted online at www.hdb.gov.sg from September 26 to October 9.

[iam802]

Pretty misleading headline for the article.

What they mean actually should be "HDB launches balloting for surplus flats"

[ishak]

Most expensive HDB flats
A new five-room flat in Tanjong Pagar costs $646,000.
FOR sale: the most expensive flats ever launched by the Housing Board.
ST, Sep 26, 2008

It has released the last batch of 428 flats at the Pinnacle@Duxton in the prime Tanjong Pagar area, but at a price.

Five-room units start from $545,000 and go up to an eye-popping $646,000 for a 49th storey flat. There are also four-room flats up for grabs, which range in price from $457,000 to $555,000.

The flats at the 50-storey Pinnacle@Duxton were among 992 new flats released for sale on Friday under HDB's latest balloting exercise, which also included surplus units from the Selective En bloc Redevelopment Scheme in Ang Mo Kio, Jurong West, Kallang/Whampoa and Queenstown.

The flats for sale in Ang Mo Kio are 128 studio units, priced between $80,000 and $115,000.

At Jurong West, 285 three-, four- and five-room flats are available, starting at $142,000.

Buyers can expect to pay $364,000 to $554,000 for the four- and five-room flats in Kallang/Whampoa, and $481,000 to $539,000 for the five-room flats in Queenstown.

[kennynah]

A new five-room flat in Tanjong Pagar costs $646,000.

expensive hor....

[ishak]

very insane.

[iam802]

I learn 2 words recently..... mark-to-market and asset bubble.

[-dol-]

What happen to "affordable public housing"?

What's HDB's mission and function?

[blid2def]

I think wait for US housing to continue to drop until it finds a floor, then buy a foreclosed house there and ship back to Singapore. Maybe still cheaper. Hahahaha...

[kennynah]

What happen to "affordable public housing"?

What's HDB's mission and function?

it's been the same all the years...to be a monopoly landlord and master lessor and profit from the mass population's need for housing.