New private home sales surge in October as market extends rebound

New private home sales surged to an 11-month high in October, after developers launched more units in response to growing demand from home buyers.

- Wong Yang

This continues the uptick in market activity that began in September, when sales of new private homes rebounded from a 16-year low in August.

In October, developers sold 738 private homes, excluding executive condominium (EC) units, according to data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) on Nov 15.

This is an 84 per cent jump from the 401 units sold in September and more than 3.5 times the 204 units sold in October 2023.

October's sales volume is also the highest since November 2023, when 784 units were sold, said Ms Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist at real estate firm OrangeTee Group.

She said the boost in sales can be explained by improving consumer sentiment as the economy gains momentum and recent interest rate cuts that have made mortgages more affordable.