“Covid-19 = economic downturn = desperate sellers”. This seems to be the common assumption right now in Singapore’s real estate market. A report released earlier this month that’s often cited is the 1.1 per cent decline in private home prices. The common follow-up to this is that “now is the best time to buy”. But before you ready your cheque book, here’s what we’ve been noticing of late. While Covid-19 is wreaking havoc, it may not lead to as much of a discount as you might think. In fact, from our observations on the ground, sellers appear far from desperate. A report by the Straits Times a few days ago showed a surprising 0.3% rise in new private home prices in Q2 (from the previous 3 months). Some have also posted price increases (mostly minimal) since launch as well. If anything, it is congruent with what we’ve seen of late, with slated price increases in some of the new launches....