SINGAPORE'S private-home prices fell 1.8 per cent between July and September, snapping four straight years of growth and sending property stocks falling to near three-year lows.

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) said yesterday that early estimates showed the price index for private residential properties fell to 174.3 points for the three months ended September, from 177.5 in the previous three month period.

This is the first decline in the index since the first quarter of 2004, as concerns over the global financial turmoil caused home sales to slump.

'Bad news in the global markets deflated investor sentiments. We expect home prices to decline for, at least, the next 12 months,' said Mr Nicholas Mak, head of research at consultancy Knight Frank.

Private-home sales in Singapore fell 81 per cent in August from a year ago. URA will release the official price index in four weeks' time.