Sentosa Cove: 64.5% of Resales Unprofitable as Gains Shrink 60%, Landed Homes Fare Better

Data compiled by Mogul.sg, covering landed and non-landed homes, showed that 64.5% of resale transactions between May 2023 and June 2026 were unprofitable, up from 62.8% between March 2020 and April 2023. While the average loss on loss-making transactions narrowed to $1.28 million from $1.56 million, gross gains on profitable resales fell by about 62% to $655,590 from $1.75 million. The figures exclude stamp duties, property tax, legal fees and agent commissions.

Separate analyses by Cushman and Wakefield and Newmark also found that most resale transactions in the enclave were unprofitable. Between 2021 and the first half of 2026, Cushman and Wakefield found that just 83 out of 244 non-landed resale transactions were profitable, while 23 out of 47 landed resale transactions were profitable.

Newmark’s analysis showed the median loss widened 36.3% from $271,225 to $369,640 for non-landed homes, while the share of loss-making transactions fell slightly to 65.5% from 67.3%. Combined resale volume fell to 126 between May 2023 and June 2026, from 208 in the preceding period.

Wong Xian Yang, head of research for Singapore and South-East Asia at Cushman and Wakefield, said that landed homes generally held their value better than non-landed properties. Newmark’s data showed the median profit for landed resales was S$677,500 between May 2023 and June 2026, compared with a median loss of $380,444 in the preceding period, though the sample was small at just 10 transactions.

Sentosa Cove is the only place in Singapore where foreigners can buy a landed property, subject to government approval. As at Q2 2026, Sentosa had about 392 landed homes against 1,766 non-landed homes, according to Cushman and Wakefield. Analysts pointed to a small buyer pool as one factor weighing on the enclave.

“Sentosa is a lifestyle-driven location that appeals more to foreign buyers than to local purchasers,” said Shanting Wong, head of research at Singapore at Newmark. Cushman and Wakefield’s Wong noted that condo units at Sentosa Cove typically range from about 1,900 sq ft to 2,400 sq ft, but demand remains relatively niche as “many local households still prioritise living closer to schools and amenities on the mainland”.

Despite the weak resale market, non-landed resale prices at Sentosa Cove rose 5.7% in Q2 2026 from the previous quarter, and 7.5% from a year earlier, according to Realis data cited by Savills’ Alan Cheong. In contrast, non-landed resale prices in the wider Core Central Region (CCR) fell 2.4% from the previous quarter. From Q1 2021 to Q2 2026, non-landed resale prices at Sentosa Cove rose 18.1% on a psf basis.

“The longer prices for non-landed homes at Sentosa Cove languish below $2,000 psf, the greater the chances for them to outperform those on the main island,” Cheong said. However, he cautioned that decaying leases on Sentosa Cove properties could eventually act as a drag on prices.

No new residential land parcels have been sold at Sentosa Cove since 2008. The 302-unit Cape Royale, completed in 2013, was the last major new condo development. CDL relaunched The Residences at W Singapore Sentosa Cove in April 2024 at an average of $1,780 psf, 36% below the $2,793 psf average at its initial 2010 launch. The latest phase of the Greater Sentosa Master Plan will bring the 120-hectare Brani Island into the Sentosa precinct over the next two decades, though Newmark’s Wong expects a more limited impact on residential demand.