City-fringe home sales chalk up highest gains

City-fringe homes tend to be overshadowed by those in prime and mass-market areas but property experts call the segment a "quiet achiever".

The segment - also known as the Rest of Central Region (RCR) - outperformed homes in the city and suburbs with the highest gains for new and resale units since the trough in the second quarter of 2009.

Property consultants said that city-fringe homes are sought after partly for their proximity to the city, exclusivity and accessibility. Generally, there are MRT links and lifestyle amenities. Investors find it easy to get tenants, especially as expats with smaller housing budgets scale down.

For instance, One Dusun Residences in Balestier is selling for about $1,500 psf compared with Suites @ Newton where flats go for about $2,100 psf.

Areas like Balestier and Geylang have done particularly well.

Four sites have been sold under the Government Land Sales programme this year but experts feel more land could be released given the demand.

Last week, the Singapore Real Estate Exchange (SRX) said the RCR segment recorded resale price gains of 7.1 per cent in the third quarter. Prices in the three months to Sept 30 hit $1,199 per sq ft (psf) - the highest since the SRX starting collecting information in 2006 - up from $1,120 psf in the previous quarter.

Source: The Straits Times – 13 October 2012