Is Singapore's property slump finally ending?: QuickTake Q&A

(July 28): Singapore home prices have ground steadily lower since reaching a record in 2013, when the government imposed the last of a slew of measures to cool a red-hot market. Authorities in the Southeast Asian island-state loosened some of those restrictions in March, raising speculation that the end was nigh for the cooling measures -- and those falling prices. Transaction volumes have certainly perked up and real estate shares are on a tear.

1. How long have home prices been dropping?
For 15 straight quarters. However, the latest decline in that record run was a mere 0.1% in April to June from the previous quarter. That’s the smallest drop since the retreat in prices began. Home values are down about 12% since 2013, but there are signs of a turnaround: Residential sales jumped by 64% in the first half of 2017.

2. What about those cooling measures?
The March changes were a case of minor tweaks, such as imposing stamp duty only if a seller had owned the property for three years or less, down from four years. Singapore’s central bank said in June that it’s not yet time to ease property curbs and the adjustments made by the government in March didn’t signal an unwinding of the measures.

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