Co-living seen as sole institutional entry route, Savills says

Shophouse conversions and platform deals dominate as other asset classes lag.

Singapore’s co-living sector is emerging as the main entry point for institutional capital into the city-state’s living market, driven by shophouse and serviced apartment conversions as well as platform acquisitions, according to Savills’ APAC Living Sectors Q2 2026 report.

The report maps five entry strategies across Asia Pacific living markets but identifies Singapore as having only co-living as a meaningful institutional pathway.

Build-to-rent, multifamily, and purpose-built student accommodation do not currently offer scalable institutional entry routes, according to the report.

Activity is concentrated in obsolescence-driven conversions of shophouses and serviced apartments.

Savills said these assets often fall below institutional return thresholds, with private and high-net-worth capital accounting for most deals.

Singapore’s financing environment, however, continues to support transaction viability at that level.

Weave Living is highlighted as a key operator, backed by Warburg Pincus and BlackRock on Citadines Mount Sophia.

Platform M&A remains small in scale compared with other APAC markets, typically under $129.42m (US$100m).

Transactions include Habyt’s acquisition of Hmlet in 2022, followed by Hmlet Japan, backed by Mitsubishi Estate, acquiring the Habyt platform in May 2026.

Other deals include The Assembly Place acquiring Libeto from Commontown and LHN partnering Oxley Holdings to expand Coliwoo.

Warburg Pincus has also expanded its exposure in the sector, increasing its investment in Weave Living in 2024 as part of a strategy targeting $4.53b (US$3.5b) in assets under management across Asia.

Weave subsequently launched a $188m Singapore joint venture with BlackRock.

The report said Singapore is not a viable ground-up build-to-rent market at scale, as residential land pricing is anchored to the condominium market, limiting competitiveness for rental-focused development.

Rental-specific land sales exist but remain limited rather than systemic.

Singapore is also grouped with Hong Kong and Seoul as markets with limited availability of stabilised living assets, meaning institutional capital continues to rely on conversions and platform deals.

Savills flagged three signals to watch in Singapore, namely potential rental housing reforms, policy support for rental-specific land release, and platform IPO exits.

It cited listings involving Coliwoo and The Assembly Place as early indicators of growing institutionalisation and clearer exit pathways.