Home sales to foreigners dive 78 per cent

Home sales to foreigners dive 78 per cent

Home purchases by foreigners plummeted 78 per cent in the first quarter as the effects of the 10 per cent additional buyer's stamp duty hit hard.

Most foreigners have retreated hastily from the market, buying just 293 homes in the first three months of the year.

This is 78 per cent down from the 1,358 homes bought by foreigners in the fourth quarter.

Permanent residents (PRs) are not included as foreigners in these figures.

Among PRs, home purchases dipped just 7.5 per cent to 790 units, while Singaporean purchases fell 12 per cent.

Experts say the implementation of ABSD has caused foreigners to pull out of the market in a knee-jerk reaction as they reevaluate their options. They say some foreigners might still see long-term potential in Singapore's property market and are attracted by rebates offered by some developers to cushion the impact of the tax, but others are simply watching and waiting. Uncertainty in global markets might have also taken its toll on foreign purchases.

Source: The Straits Times – 20 April 2012