Rising Demand and Supply Constraints Push COE Costs Even Higher in Latest Bidding
The cost of car ownership in the world’s most expensive city has risen yet again. The latest Certificate of Entitlement (COE) bidding results show that the premium for Category B vehicles—larger and more powerful models—has reached S$150,001, breaking previous records.
The bidding exercise on Wednesday, 18 October, marked the first instance of Category B COEs exceeding the S$150,000 threshold. Nearly all categories saw an increase, except for commercial vehicles. Category A, covering smaller cars (up to 1,600cc and 130bhp), climbed from S$104,000 to S$106,000. Motorcycle COEs (Category D) rose from S$10,856 to S$11,201, while Open Category (E), applicable to all vehicles except motorcycles, saw a jump from S$152,000 to S$158,004.
Conversely, Category C, which includes commercial vehicles such as buses and goods transporters, experienced a slight dip, dropping from S$85,900 to S$84,790.
This bidding round saw 2,697 bids submitted for 2,023 available COEs. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) recently announced the reallocation of 300 additional Category A COEs this month, boosting the supply for smaller cars by 24 per cent in October. In November, the overall COE quota is set to increase by 13 per cent over a three-month period, with the largest boosts in Categories A and C. A total of 12,774 COEs will be available during this period.
Earlier this month, Singapore gained international attention when a Category E COE exceeded S$150,000 for the first time. A Reuters report highlighted that securing a COE in Singapore now costs as much as four Toyota Camry Hybrids in the United States.
The recent surge in COE prices is attributed to a post-pandemic rise in car demand, significantly increasing costs compared to 2020. At the peak of Covid-19 restrictions, a COE could be obtained for just S$30,000. The escalating prices have made car ownership unattainable for many middle-class Singaporeans, impacting the traditional aspirations of financial success, homeownership, and vehicle ownership, often referred to as the “Singapore Dream.”
