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Singapore Millennials Stuck With the Folks as Home Prices Spiral

(File photo: Reuters/Edgar Su)
(File photo: Reuters/Edgar Su)

By Pooja Thakur

Being a millennial in Singapore and looking for a home to call your own is tough.

Almost 70 percent of Singaporeans aged between 21 and 37 say they don’t have a structured savings plan to fund a home purchase, and therefore live with their parents, according to a report by PropertyGuru. Residential prices in the city-state increased almost 7 percent in the first half of 2018 before cooling measures implemented in early July muted the rise.

Other reasons for not leaving the nest include not being married, which in Singapore means you can’t apply for a government-subsidized apartment.

To be fair, it is more common for children in Asia to live with their parents longer than in the West. There’s an expectation that sons and daughters will look after their parents as they age, and contribute to their financial well being.

Still, a majority of them want to get on the property ladder at some point, with central, northeastern and eastern parts of the island most desirable, according to the survey.

Other highlights were:

  • 88 percent of Singaporeans are dissatisfied over the state of the property market, with respondents citing high home prices as the key concern

  • Housing supply is likely to increase next year because S$10.5 billion ($7.7 billion) of en-bloc deals concluded in the first half of 2018 and many of those redeveloped sites will likely launch in 2019

  • Prices of private condos in centrally located areas like Serangoon and Potong Pasir are expected to remain elevated due to underlying demand

  • Private property rents have increased slightly as the vacancy rate fell to 6.8 percent in the third quarter, down from 7.1 percent in the three months ended June

© 2018 Bloomberg L.P