Slump in resale condo activity in May due to US tariffs and market uncertainties

Sales momentum in the overall property market fizzled in May, including the resale condo market. About 839 condo units worth $1.57 billion was resold during the month - compared with the 1,154 resale transactions valued at $2.3 billion transacted in April.

The decline in resale home market activity could have been due to the market uncertainties and volatilities spurred by the US liberation Day tariffs in early April. During the month, overall home sales activity saw a pullback as more buyers adopt a wait-and-see approach, opting to observe how the US-tariff situation would unfold before making any decisions. In May, new sales accounted for just 28.5% of non-landed transactions, while resale transactions accounted for two thirds of transactions (67%, see Chart 1).

Chart 1: Proportion of private non-landed transactions (excl. EC) by sale type by month

Due to the absence in new launches during the month, the average unit price of new non-landed homes fell after a brief uptick in April. The average new sales price declined by 6.7% month-on-month (MOM) to $2,571 psf in May, while the average resale unit price slipped by 0.3% MOM. As such, the new sale and resale price gap slipped to 45% in May (see Chart 2) after reaching 55% in the previous month.

Chart 2: New sale and Resale Price gap of non-landed homes (overall) by month

Uptick in profitability and winners

In terms of profitability, resale condo units transacted in May saw a slowdown in gains compared with the previous month. Analysing the profits reaped by resale non-landed private homes in April and May 2025, it was found that resale condo deals garnered lower profits. That said, the proportion of loss-making transactions shrunk in May 2025 over the previous month. The resale profit analysis involves computing gains achieved for the units by matching the condo resale transactions in May against their respective previous purchase price, according to caveats lodged.

The study showed that 13% of resale condo transactions (91 deals) in May made more than $1 million in profits, compared with 14.5% in April. Of these million-dollar profit-making deals, a substantial portion (42.9%) came from the city fringe or Rest of Central Region (RCR) homes, followed by Outside Central Region (OCR) (30.8%), and Core Central Region (CCR) homes (26.4%). Loss-making deals in May accounted for 4% of transactions, slipping from the 4.4% in April (see Chart 3).

Chart 3: Proportion of profit quantum of resale non-landed transactions (Apr 2025 vs May 2025)

The average profit was subsequently computed on a project basis. To minimise sampling errors, resale condominium projects that posted fewer than five transactions during the month are excluded from the study. Based on URA Realis caveat data analysed by PropNex Research, the most profitable condo in the CCR, was The Glyndebourne in District 10, which pulled in an average profit of nearly $605,000 across three transactions in May.

Top Resale Condo projects^ in terms of average gross profit* by region (May 2025)

In the RCR, the most profitable condo development in May was Maple Woods, a project located in District 21, which achieved an average profit of over $2.3 million, across three transactions. Maple Woods was also the overall best performing project in terms of average profit quantum in May. In the heartlands or Outside Central Region (OCR), the most profitable project was The Centris in District 22 which garnered an average profit of nearly $1.1 million across five transactions.

Going by districts, resale homes in District 22 (Boon Lay, Jurong, Tuas) raked in the highest profits on quantum basis, with transactions reaping average gains of nearly $940,000 per deal. In terms of annualised gains, resale homes in District 20 (Ang Mo Kio, Bishan) enjoyed an average annualised profit of 5.9% per deal.

Top 10 Resale Condo districts^ in terms of average gross profit* (May 2025)

Analysing individual transactions by gross profit quantum, it was found that the top five gainers from each region ranged from $1.6 million to $3.3 million. The units which chalked up bigger gains were mostly sizeable large format condos that are more than 1,300 sq ft in size, and consisted mostly of older projects built in the 1980s to early 2000s. The respective holding periods for the most profitable resale properties were mostly beyond 15 years - the oldest being a unit held for nearly 26 years.

Top 5 Resale Condo transactions in May 2025 by gross profit by region

It was found that the overall most profitable transaction and top gainer in the CCR was for a 13th floor unit at Rivershire. It was resold for an estimated profit of $2.94 million, reflecting an annualised profit of 4.5%. Based on URA Realis caveat data, the 2,088-sq ft unit was first bought in May 1999 and subsequently resold for $4.32 million in May 2025, with a holding period of 26 years. The freehold project in Newton was built in 1991, and it is situated within River Valley.

The top gainer in the RCR in terms of gross profit was for unit transacted at Maple Woods in District 21, which fetched a gross profit of $3.99 million (annualised profit of 6.4%), based on caveats lodged. The 2,551-sq ft 9th floor apartment was sold for $5.45 million, with a holding period of more than 20 years. The freehold project in Bukit Timah was built in 1997, and it is near to the Bukit Timah MRT station on the Downtown Line (DTL).

Over in the OCR, the top gainer in May was a 7th floor unit located in Windy Heights in District 14. The 2,476-sq ft unit was sold for over $3.2 million, achieving an estimated profit of $2.47 million - which reflects an annualised profit of 7.3% over a holding period of about 22 years. The freehold project was built in 1983 and it is situated within a quiet corner of the Kembangan locality.

With rising new launch prices, condo resellers may stand to benefit as some homebuyers may find themselves priced out of the new launch market and could consider options in the resale segment. That said, resale gains may potentially see some moderation, particularly amidst the economic volatilities and uncertainties around how interest rates will move in the near-term.