Small apartment prices climb 11.8% in 2011

Larger units in Central Region up 5.7%; those elsewhere up 11.7%. Prices for small apartments islandwide as well as for larger apartments outside the Central Region rose about twice as fast as prices of larger apartments in the Central Region last year. This trend, while similar to the one in 2010, was more pronounced last year. According to flash estimates released by NUS for its Singapore Residential Price Index (SRPI) series, the sub-index for small apartments islandwide (up to 506 sqft) rose 11.8% for the whole of 2011. The sub-index for Non-Central Region (excluding small apartments) climbed 11.7% while that for Central Region (excluding small apartments) increased 5.7% in 2011. Central Region comprises Districts 1-4 (which includes the financial district and Sentosa Cove) and the traditional prime residential districts of 9, 10 and 11. The overall SRPI rose 9.2% last year. For 2010, the sub-index for small apartments gained 13.8% and that for the Non-Central Region (excluding small apartments) climbed 14.9%. The Central Region sub-index (excluding small units) was up 7.7%. The overall SRPI rose 11.7%. For the month of December compared with the preceding month, only the small apartments sub-index posted a gain (3.4%). The sub-indices for the Central and Non-Central regions dipped 0.4% and 1% respectively, taking the overall index down by 0.8%.