Singapore’s real estate market remains ‘resilient’ despite 7.3% q-o-q drop in investment deals in 1Q2025: Colliers
The accommodation market even saw lower investments previous quarter, dropping 41.9% to $153 million. On the flipside, financial investment volume got an increase from the sale of an employee real estate portfolio by Blackstone to Bain Capital for $750 million. Another worker dorm room, Lantana Lodge, was also sold for $19.1 million throughout the quarter.
On the other hand, industrial investments dropped 90.5% q-o-q to $0.2 billion. Colliers notes that the weaker performance follows a high base registered in 4Q2024 when a 49% stake in 2 data centers was sold to Keppel DC REIT for around $1.4 billion.
The report notes a shift amongst financiers towards income-driven strategies, with purchasers targeting older, under-managed assets with potential for shifting and rent out optimisation.
Even so, a significant leap in non commercial investment sales, driven by Government Land Sale (GLS) tenders, assisted to support quantity, says Colliers. GLS offers amounted to $2.8 billion, or approximately 42.9% of overall investments, last quarter, boosting residential investments by 68.3% q-o-q to $3.9 billion. Without the GLS transactions, 1Q2025 investment volume would certainly have plunged 35.7% q-o-q, Colliers watches.
“Careful financial investment chances– particularly in redevelopment, value-add plays, and different possessions– have risen in appeal because of their structural tailwinds, beneficial market fundamentals along with a method of diversity,” says Catherine He, head of research at Colliers Singapore.
On a y-o-y basis, financial investments in 1Q2025 were up 60.1%. Excluding the GLS agreements, investment volume expanded 36.4% y-o-y.
The Singapore realty capital market has remained “resilient” in 1Q2025 in spite of a slip in financial investment quantity, according to Colliers. Data compiled by the firm in an April study report shows that Singapore realty financial investment quantity dropped 7.3% q-o-q to $6.5 billion previous quarter.
The commercial sector viewed $1.4 billion investments in 1Q2025, rising 73.9% q-o-q, predominantly steered by the acquisition of the standing 50% stake in Northpoint City (South Wing) for $1.1 billion by Frasers Centrepoint Trust.
Looking ahead, Tan Boon Leong, executive administrator and co-head of investment services at Colliers Singapore, expects Singapore to continue to be “well-positioned as a safe haven for capital”, despite expanding worldwide financial skepticism amid trade battles and unstable policy switches. For the whole of 2025, Colliers is approximating financial investment sales to total in between $29 billion and $32 billion, presenting a 10% to 20% growth contrasted to last year.
That said, investors are going to need to adjust to tighter return spreads, controlled occupant requirement and global volatility with imaginative, active property managing approaches, Colliers says.
