Foreigners not solely to blame for rising private property prices

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Snippet from XinMSN
October 20, 2011

Rising private property prices cannot be attributed solely to foreign purchases.

National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan said there are many factors at play; low interest rates and Singapore’s strong economic fundamentals among them.

He told Parliament that locals account for more than four fifths of all private home purchases this year.

But foreign demand has nevertheless been growing.

Last year, Mr Khaw said foreigners accounted for 12% of private housing purchases.

This has grown to 16% in the first half of this year.

He said the Government is monitoring market conditions closely, and if need be will take further measures.

"For landed property, we have longstanding rules restricting foreign purchases which we recently tightened. However, we have to be very careful not to precipitate a loss of confidence, especially with the international backdrop of continuing uncertainty in financial markets and weak growth in the US and Europe."