Monthly condo rental volumes up as prices dropped in January

6,306 units were rented in January 2025.

Condo rental volumes increased by 7.6% month-on-month, an estimated 6,306 units, compared to 5,862 in December 2024, according to data from 99.co.

Year-on-year, rental volumes were 4.5% higher. However, rental volumes were 5.6% lower than the 5-year average for January. Breaking it down by region, in January 2025, 36.6% of the total rental volume was from OCR, 32.8% from RCR, and 30.6% from CCR.

Meanwhile, January 2025 rental prices dropped by 0.3%. CCR and RCR decreased by 0.6% and 0.4%, respectively, whilst the OCR percentage remained the same in January 2025.

Year-on-year, overall rental prices increased by 0.5% compared to January 2024. Rental prices in CCR decreased by 1.8%, whilst RCR and OCR increased by 1.9% and 0.4%, respectively.

Luqman Hakim, Chief Data & Analytics Officer at 99.co said that the market activity in January was likely fueled by expatriates securing leases ahead of the new year, as well as tenants taking advantage of declining rents. Landlords were also more willing to negotiate lower prices rather than leave their units vacant.

“However, given the firm demand, the price decline may only be temporary. The HDB rental market continues to attract tenants looking for affordable alternatives amid high private rental prices. However, if condo rents fall further, some tenants may opt to rent condos instead, which could place additional downward pressure on HDB rents in the coming months,” Hakim said.