Tenants’ Market
We are getting a regular stream of inquiries on our rental listings signalling good demand.
However, most tenants we meet during viewings are taking their time to find a unit.
From our conversations, the options available to them seem aplenty.
Offers coming in are starting to trend lower, although largely dependent on the supply of units in the area and how strongly a tenant is bound to one particular location.
For example, we recently secured a higher rental for one of our renewals for a 3+study unit in Goldenhill Park, made possible due to the consistently low supply of large units up for rent in the Lorong Chuan area.
Who are the renters?
For the smaller unit types,
- We are seeing a higher percentage of foreigners working for tech companies looking for 1-year leases instead of 2 years.
- This could be due to uncertainty in job stability (just our assumptions).
- There is also a significant number of young locals moving out from their family homes.
- They are usually not bound to specific locations and hence have many options.
For the larger unit types,
- We are seeing no lack of demand from both local and expat families.
- For the locals, school zone is evidently one of the major reasons for renting.
- On the contrary to the smaller unit type renters, this group of renters are only looking for longer term leases.
Expectations
From what we are seeing, we are pretty much out of the period where landlords have all the say in terms of rental pricing.
As a landlord, it is time to adjust one’s expectations accordingly to avoid unnecessarily prolonging your vacancy period which can result in bigger losses.
More time is needed to find a tenant now.
If you have an upcoming renewal, it is better to renew with the same tenant rather than attempt to find a new one, if the market rent for your unit type or condo is not significantly higher.
