Singapore’s property market roared to life in the first half of the year with en bloc sales emerging as the prominent growth driver of real estate activity. The en bloc fever which can be traced to late 2016 has seen previous record prices being shattered with the five biggest en bloc sales involving the Pacific Mansion for $980m, Tulip Garden for about $907m, Park West for about $841m, Pearl Bank Apartments for $728m, and Goodluck Garden for $610m. The residential market boomed in the first half of 2018, as the en bloc market surpassed $9.9b in transaction value during that six-month period from $8.2b in 2017. However, in the midst of the strong uptrend, the government’s surprise cooling measures in July dealt a huge blow to bullish en bloc activity with analysts unanimously expecting fewer transactions in the latter half of the year. The move was most evident after the tender for Horizon Towers, the first major en bloc exercise to close after the property curbs, ended without a single bid despite the extension of the tender.... Continue Reading