Freehold vs. Leasehold Premium and the Structure of Lease Decay
A repeat-sales study of realised returns, the freehold premium, and lease decay in Singapore private housing.
May 2026 paper | separate June sensitivityVairavan Shanmugam — housing and real estate research
Housing markets are shaped by policy, capital, and location.
I study housing and real estate markets from a global perspective, with a focus on Asia. My work brings together transaction data, geospatial methods and market context.
New launch or resale?
Evidence from completed sales.
I compared 166,970 completed buy-sell pairs, including executive condominiums, to examine how realised returns differed by entry type and purchase cohort.
Historical, gross nominal price-only returns. Costs and unsold holdings are excluded.
Questions, maps and evidence.
I start with a question, then work through the data, method and limits. These projects approach housing through tenure, accessibility and neighbourhood characteristics.
Condo Prices Near MRT Stations
Comparing condominium transaction prices near MRT stations, grouped by station, line, and tenure.
Amenities and Property Prices in Singapore
Comparing property-price models with broader and narrower sets of neighbourhood amenities in Singapore.
The tools behind the work.
Research also depends on repeatable processes. This automated HDB report brings transaction analysis, charts and town comparisons into a single reporting workflow.
Workflow illustration / Historical projectResearch beyond the desk.
New launch or resale unit? Here's a guide for homebuyers
A follow-up guide drawing on the earlier property feature and its evidence on entry prices, returns and buyer decisions.
Many happy returns for resale homes
Independent repeat-sales research on new-sale and resale-entry returns, featured in BT's property coverage.
Image: The Business Times / SPH Media
Singapore experience.
International conversations.
Briefings for professional audiences, visiting students and community organisations.
- US Professional Audience Briefing
- GOPIO Singapore
- UT Austin MTC
A path from
practice
to research.
My path into research began with business, developed through hands-on analytical and technical work, and grew to include public communication and leadership. Each stage shaped how I approach questions, work with evidence and explain what I find.
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Business foundation
I graduated with First Class Honours in International Business, building a foundation in how organisations operate, markets develop and strategic decisions are made. That business perspective continues to shape the questions I ask of data.
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Analytical & technical foundation
Through roles at Standard Chartered and Singtel Cyber Security, I developed practical experience in reporting, dashboards and process improvement. I learned to connect business questions with data and technical tools, and to make analytical work useful within everyday workflows.
Alongside this development, my Master of Management at SUSS included a thesis examining geospatial metrics for property-price prediction in Singapore.
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From analysis to communication
At Ohmyhome, my work grew to encompass housing-market research, transaction analysis and communicating findings to different audiences. Through CNA appearances and presentations to professionals, students, community leaders and international delegations, I developed my ability to explain complex analysis clearly while retaining its context and limitations.
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Technical leadership
At Ohmyhome, I led cross-functional teams to turn business needs into working technical solutions. My role grew beyond building analyses and tools myself to coordinating people across functions, guiding implementation and driving delivery. That experience developed my ability to connect technical detail with business priorities and lead others towards a shared outcome.
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Doctoral research
I am pursuing a PhD in Management (Real Estate) at NUS Business School. I bring practical experience in analysis, systems and communication to research on housing and real estate markets, taking a global perspective with a focus on Asia and Singapore as a key empirical setting.