Singapore Home Tax Hike Not a Market Cooling Move, Minister Says
- Stamp duty on homes worth more than S$1 million increased
- Move comes as housing prices rebound from four-year slide
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Singapore’s tax increase on home purchases exceeding S$1 million ($758,960) is aimed at making duties more equitable rather than imposing an additional property curb, said S. Iswaran, minister of trade and industry.
Stamp duty on the portion of a property’s price above S$1 million will be raised starting Tuesday to 4 percent from 3 percent, the government said in its budget Monday. Home prices have rebounded in the past two quarters, prompting aggressive land bids from developers as the property market shrugged off cooling measures ranging from additional taxes to limits on loans to emerge from a four-year slump.