Singapore New Home Sales to Rebound in H2 2026: CBRE Forecasts Up to 8,500 Units

Expert takeaway: After a soft first half dragged down by a thin launch calendar rather than weak demand, CBRE expects Singapore new home sales to regain momentum in the second half of 2026, projecting 7,500 to 8,500 units for the full year as major launches return. For buyers, the story is not a booming market but a normalising one where realistic developer pricing and efficient, harmonised floor areas separate the strong launches from the laggards.

Singapore new home sales are set to rebound in H2 2026

The headline number is doing the rounds for good reason. URA data shows the first half of 2026 was underwhelming on volume, but the underlying demand signals stayed firm. The consensus among research houses is that the second half will be materially busier as developers finally release the projects they held back during the year's quieter stretches.

CBRE has been consistent on its number. CBRE Research expects 7,500 to 8,500 new homes to be sold in 2026, which it frames as a moderation from the high base of 2025. Other houses are broadly aligned but slightly more bullish, with PropNex around 9,000 units and Knight Frank in an 8,000 to 10,000 range.

What the URA data actually shows for the first half of 2026

The soft first half was a supply story, not a demand story. Developers launched 1,783 uncompleted private residential units (excluding ECs) in Q2 2026, compared with 1,844 units in the previous quarter. Despite the lighter pipeline, take-up held up well.

The most telling figure is that demand outran supply. Developers sold 2,141 private residential units (excluding ECs) in Q2 2026, compared with the 2,013 units sold in the previous quarter — the highest quarterly developer sales in five quarters. That sales exceeded launches for the first time since Q4 2024 means developers were clearing previously launched inventory rather than relying on fresh stock.

Zooming out, developers sold 4,164 new private homes in the first half of 2026, down 9.2% from 4,587 units in the corresponding period last year. The dip is real, but modest given how few new projects actually hit the market. June was a case in point, joining February as one of only two months this year without a single new project launch.

Resale did much of the heavy lifting while launches were thin. There were 3,813 resale transactions in Q2 2026, compared with 3,225 units in the previous quarter, and resale made up roughly 62% of all private sale transactions. When buyers cannot find new launches, they simply buy resale — hardly a sign of weak appetite.

The launch pipeline driving the second-half recovery

The rebound thesis rests on a fuller launch calendar from mid-year. Sales are expected to rebound from July as several major projects enter the market, including the 499-unit Lentor Gardens Residences, the seventh development in the Lentor estate, and the 380-unit Dunearn House, the first residential launch in the Bukit Timah Turf City rejuvenation area.

Government supply is also being kept deliberately generous. 4,745 private residential units will be launched under the Confirmed List for the second half of 2026, bringing the full-year Confirmed List supply to 9,320 units, over 50% higher than the annual average over the past 10 years. That steady release is the government's mechanism for keeping prices stable while satisfying pent-up demand, a theme we unpack further in our look at what the 2H2026 GLS programme means for buyers.

Developers are voting with their wallets too. In the Q2 GLS tenders, bids for Core Central Region sites such as Peck Hay Road, Dunearn Road and River Valley cleared benchmark levels above comparable 2025 tenders, signalling confidence in the prime segment's medium-term pricing. For a fuller view of which projects are worth watching, see our roundup of the top new launch condos to watch in H2 2026.

Why price growth is cooling even as volumes recover

Rising volumes do not automatically mean rising prices, and 2026 is proving that. The overall private residential price index increased by 0.5% in Q2 2026, lower than the 0.9% increase in the previous quarter, bringing the cumulative increase for the first half of 2026 to 1.4%, below the 1.8% gain in the first half of 2025.

The growth has also become lopsided. The Core Central Region outperformed with 2.0% price growth, while the Outside Central Region edged down 0.2% and the Rest of Central Region declined 1.4% in the quarter. That divergence tells buyers something important: broad-based appreciation is over, and location plus project fundamentals now matter more than a rising tide. We explore the wider split in our piece on the private versus HDB divergence in 2H 2026.

The RCR softness is partly a pricing-discipline story. Realistically priced launches such as Hudson Place Residences in one-north cleared strong volumes at sensible psf, which mechanically pulls median prices down even as sales rise. You can see how that project scored in our Hudson Place Residences review.

How harmonised floor areas change what you are actually buying

If you are shopping the H2 2026 launches, understand that the psf you see is measured differently from a few years ago. Under the now-standard harmonised floor-area rules, saleable area is measured to the middle of the wall, all strata areas count as GFA, and voids such as aircon ledges, planter boxes and high-ceiling spaces are excluded from the strata area.

In practice this means new launches show a smaller but more efficient saleable area. A 2026 three-bedroom quoted at 950 sq ft may deliver more genuinely usable space than an older 1,000 sq ft unit padded with a large aircon ledge and planter void. When comparing two launches, look at layout efficiency and true liveable space, not just the headline number. Our step-by-step guide to buying a new launch condo walks through how to read a harmonised floor plan at the showflat.

Opportunities and risks for buyers in the second half

The rebound creates genuine openings, but it is not a green light to buy anything.

• Opportunity: A fuller launch calendar means more choice and more competition among developers, which keeps pricing honest, especially in the OCR and RCR.
• Opportunity: Mortgage rates have stayed low relative to 2025 peaks, improving affordability. Run your sums with a mortgage affordability calculator before committing.
• Opportunity: Efficient harmonised layouts mean you pay for liveable space rather than voids.
• Risk: Price growth is concentrating in the CCR. Buying a weakly located RCR or OCR unit at a stretched psf carries real downside if the segment keeps softening.
• Risk: Geopolitical and inflation shocks remain a wildcard, and CBRE's forecast is explicitly conditioned on no major economic shocks.
• Risk: A generous GLS pipeline caps how fast prices can climb, so treat any launch's capital-growth pitch with scepticism.

Upgraders in particular should sequence financing carefully. Before committing to a new launch, confirm how much cash and CPF you will need and how the sale of your existing home slots in — our guide on financing your first condo after selling an HDB covers bridging loans, LTV limits and timing, and the MAS LTV rules set the borrowing ceilings.

The H2 2026 rebound is real, but it rewards discernment rather than urgency. With price growth concentrating in the CCR, a deliberately generous GLS pipeline capping upside, and harmonised floor areas changing how you should read every showflat, the difference between a good buy and a mediocre one now comes down to project-specific fundamentals. If you are weighing an upcoming launch, comparing it against resale, or sequencing an upgrade around your existing home, the team at PropertyNet.SG can help you cut through the marketing and pressure-test the numbers against your own finances. Reach out for an independent, no-obligation conversation before you commit.