Singapore tightened curbs on the property market after home prices posted a second straight quarter of strong gains, extending their recovery from a four-year slump.
The government raised stamp duty rates and toughened loan-to-value limits for buyers to keep price increases in line with economic fundamentals, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, the Ministry of National Development and the Ministry of Finance said in a joint statement.
The sharp increase in prices could “raise the risk of a destabilizing correction later, especially with rising interest rates and the strong pipeline of housing supply,” they said.
An index tracking private residential prices jumped 3.4 percent in the three months ended June 30, according to a flash estimate from the Urban Redevelopment Authority this week.
That builds on a 3.9 percent gain in the first quarter — the biggest since the second quarter of 2010.
For foreign purchases of residential property, the additional buyers stamp duty increases to 20 percent from 15 percent, while for Singaporean citizens the rate increases apply only from their second purchase onward.
The rebound in home prices has prompted aggressive land bids from developers. The government in February raised taxes on home purchases exceeding S$1 million (US$730,000) as collective apartment sales reached levels the central bank described as exuberant.
Much of the gains are being driven by so-called en-bloc sales, where a group of owners band together to sell entire apartment buildings, Cushman & Wakefield Inc said.
Singapore home sales jumped to the highest in nine months in May as developers sold 1,121 units.
For entities buying any residential properties for development, the additional buyers stamp duty rises by 10 percentage points to 25 percent, with a further 5 percentage points imposed for developers.
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