The most red ink spilled in a single transaction during the quarter is S$2.1 million
[SINGAPORE] The number and proportion of private residential properties resold at a loss jumped to their highest levels in four years in the second quarter of 2026 as price growth eased.
Data consolidated for The Business Times by real estate consultancy Cushman & Wakefield showed that 4.7 per cent of all resale transactions in Q2 were made at a loss, up from 3.7 per cent in the previous quarter.
This is the highest proportion recorded since Q2 2022, when there were 5.3 per cent of such transactions.
Cushman & Wakefield research head Wong Xian Yang noted that it also marks the highest quarterly count, at 134 units, since then.
The majority of these deals, at 64 per cent, were in the Core Central Region. The Rest of Central Region (RCR) and Outside Central Region (OCR) accounted for the rest, at 18 per cent each.
Wong attributed the rise in loss-making transactions to a more selective home-buying environment as the pace of price growth moderated.
In Q2, the overall price index rose 0.5 per cent, slowing from a 0.9 per cent increase in the prior quarter. For non-landed private homes, prices fell 0.1 per cent, swinging from a 1.3 per cent rise in Q1.
This brought the price growth of private residential properties to 1.4 per cent in the latest half-year, down from a 1.8 per cent increase in H1 2025.
Still, Wong noted that loss-making transactions remained “relatively low”, below the five-year average of 5.3 per cent from 2021 to 2025.
They are also well below Covid-19 pandemic highs, at less than one-fifth of the 21.8 per cent record in Q2 2020, when market uncertainty was at its peak following the introduction of “circuit-breaker” measures.
Since then, a recovery in transaction volumes and buyer sentiment has steadily reduced the proportion of loss-making resale deals.
Going forward, Wong reckons that overall levels of such transactions will continue to stay low, given still-rising home prices.
“Barring a significant deterioration in economic or market conditions, private residential prices are expected to rise by 2 to 4 per cent year on year in 2026,” he said.
He added that this would be supported by “resilient underlying local demand, and elevated replacement costs which should underpin current pricing levels”.
On Jul 28, the government lifted a 15-month wait-out period imposed on private homeowners looking to buy a HDB flat in the resale market. The restriction was introduced in 2022 to moderate demand for public housing resale flats in a time when prices were surging.
Wong said its removal is unlikely to have a material impact on private residential resale prices or the share of loss-making transactions.
“While some private homeowners may choose to sell their private property and purchase an HDB flat following the removal of the wait-out period, they are generally likely to have holding power and are generally not inclined to sell at a loss.”
The biggest losers
Data compiled by Cushman & Wakefield showed that in Q2, private homes in Singapore’s prime region chalked up the biggest losses, losing between S$902,270 and S$2.1 million.
The deal that spilled the most red ink by quantum was a 2,852 square foot (sq ft) unit on the 50th floor of 99-year leasehold The Orchard Residences.
It was sold for S$10.2 million or S$3,576 per square foot (psf) in late June, 17 per cent lower than its original purchase price of S$12.3 million or S$4,312 psf in November 2013.
Based on a holding period of 12.6 years, this works out to an annualised loss of 1.5 per cent.
By percentage, the biggest loss-making resale deal was a 624 sq ft unit at the 103-year leasehold The Scotts Tower, which changed hands at S$1.1 million or S$1,762 psf in late June.
This was nearly half of its previous price of S$2.1 million or S$3,402 psf in July 2012, representing a loss of just over S$1 million. That translates to an annualised loss of 4.6 per cent over a 14-year holding period.
The other four biggest losers by percentage were also at the 36-unit The Scotts Tower, making losses of S$902,270 to S$1.4 million, or 36 to 43 per cent of their original prices.
Wong said it was unclear why there was a spike in the number of units sold at The Scotts Tower, which was completed in 2016.
Caveats data showed six resale transactions for units on different floors in Q2, all of which were sold at a loss.
In 2025, there were four resale transactions recorded at the project, and in 2014, just three. All of these deals, save one, were sold at a loss as well.
Most of these units were first purchased when the project launched for sale in 2012, at the height of the market, before multiple cooling measures – including the Total Debt Servicing Ratio framework – were introduced.
Top profit- and loss-making resale deals in Q2
Top profit-making deals by percentage (non-landed)
| Project Name | Latest price (S$) | Previous price (S$) | Profit/Loss (S$) | Profit/Loss (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Tampines Trilliant | 3,500,000 | 1,384,000 | 2,116,000 | 153 |
| Hundred Palms Residences | 2,050,000 | 825,300 | 1,224,700 | 148 |
| Hundred Palms Residences | 2,700,000 | 1,090,500 | 1,609,500 | 148 |
| Hundred Palms Residences | 2,055,000 | 858,900 | 1,196,100 | 139 |
| Hundred Palms Residences | 2,580,000 | 1,083,300 | 1,496,700 | 138 |
Top profit-making deals by percentage (non-landed excluding ECs)
| Project Name | Latest price (S$) | Previous price (S$) | Profit/Loss (S$) | Profit/Loss (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Haig Court | 3,250,000 | 1,550,000 | 1,700,000 | 110 |
| River Isles | 2,100,000 | 1,041,000 | 1,059,000 | 102 |
| Cashew Heights Condominium | 2,100,000 | 1,050,000 | 1,050,000 | 100 |
| The Atria At Meyer | 3,480,000 | 1,790,000 | 1,690,000 | 94 |
| Parc Centros | 1,770,000 | 917,250 | 852,750 | 93 |
Top profit-making deals by quantum (non-landed)
| Project Name | Latest price (S$) | Previous price (S$) | Profit/Loss (S$) | Profit/Loss (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nassim Park Residences | 22,950,000 | 18,800,000 | 4,150,000 | 22 |
| Ardmore Park | 12,250,000 | 8,700,000 | 3,550,000 | 41 |
| The Waterside | 6,280,000 | 4,150,000 | 2,130,000 | 51 |
| The Tampines Trilliant | 3,500,000 | 1,384,000 | 2,116,000 | 153 |
| Sky@Eleven | 6,300,000 | 4,200,000 | 2,100,000 | 50 |
Top loss-making deals by percentage (non-landed)
| Project Name | Latest price (S$) | Previous price (S$) | Profit/Loss (S$) | Profit/Loss (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Scotts Tower | 1,100,000 | 2,123,900 | (1,023,900) | -48 |
| The Scotts Tower | 1,870,000 | 3,299,335 | (1,429,335) | -43 |
| The Scotts Tower | 1,750,000 | 3,046,460 | (1,296,460) | -43 |
| The Scotts Tower | 1,260,000 | 2,162,270 | (902,270) | -42 |
| The Scotts Tower | 1,880,000 | 2,958,400 | (1,078,400) | -36 |
Notes: Based on caveats downloaded on Jul 18, 2026. All are strata units. This table is condensed. See full version.
Source: URA, Cushman & Wakefield Research
GRAPHIC: Kew Keat Boon, BT
Meanwhile, the most lucrative resale deal in Q2 was for a 6,954 sq ft duplex penthouse unit at freehold luxury development Nassim Park Residences.
It was transacted at just under S$23 million or S$3,300 psf in early June, 22 per cent or S$4.2 million higher than the original purchase price of S$18.8 million in May 2019.
This works out to an annualised profit of 2.9 per cent over a seven-year holding period.
In terms of percentage gains, executive condominium (EC) transactions continued to be the most profitable in the quarter, with gains of 138 to 153 per cent.
Topping the list was a 2,465 sq ft unit at The Tampines Trilliant, which changed hands at S$3.5 million or S$1,420 psf in mid-April.
This was more than double its previous price of S$1.4 million or S$561 psf in March 2012, earning the seller a cool S$2.1 million in profit. Based on a holding period of around 14 years, it works out to an annualised profit of 6.8 per cent.
The remaining four most profitable resale deals were from Hundred Palms Residences EC in Yio Chu Kang, which reached its five-year minimum occupation period in December 2024.
Since then, caveats data showed 127 resale transactions at a median price of S$1,844 psf.
“Notably, (the project) has been setting record prices, with the top few historical resale EC prices on a psf basis being achieved,” Wong said.
In June, a 958 sq ft unit was sold for S$2.1 million or S$2,140 psf – the highest psf ever recorded for an EC. The next 50 highest psf resale transactions were also recorded at Hundred Palms Residences.
Excluding ECs, the top-five percentage gainers were for units in the suburbs and city fringe.
The biggest money-making deal in this group was a 1,442 sq ft unit at the freehold Haig Court condominium, which transacted at S$3.3 million or S$2,253 psf in mid-May.
This was more than double of the S$1.6 million or S$1,075 psf price tag in January 2012, making the seller S$1.7 million in gains. Over a holding period of 14.3 years, this translates to an annualised profit of 5.3 per cent.
For its study, Cushman & Wakefield examined caveats for non-landed private homes that were transacted in Q2, and which had prior purchase history between January 2012 and June 2026.
The analysis excludes transaction costs and taxes, such as buyer’s stamp duty and seller’s stamp duty.
