Singapore home sales fell in February after speculation about property curbs dampened buyer appetite.
Purchases of new private apartments fell 60% to 645 last month, Urban Redevelopment Authority data showed on Monday. That compares with 1,632 in January, which exceeded a two-year high.
Singapore’s property market rallied even amid the pandemic, seeing a spike among private apartments, shophouses and public flats. That’s prompting speculation that the government may impose another round of cooling measures on private residencies to prevent the market from running ahead of economic fundamentals.
With home prices rising 2.2% last year, a further increase in excess of 5% could tip the market into “bubble territory,” DBS analysts said in January. Authorities last imposed property curbs on private residential units in 2018, when it raised duties on additional home purchases and tightened loan limits.