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Paywalled, but let me guess: Wealthy buyers from China pouring money into Singapore real estate and pricing out locals. Vancouver had a similar phenomenon, which took years to address:
The latest batch of data on empty homes in British Columbia, and the taxes levied on them, offer insight into what first became a hot issue in the mid-2010s, when the housing market went ballistic and there was a widespread feeling that many homes were left vacant by overseas owners, as locals struggled to afford a place to live.
The new B.C. data lands at a relevant national moment: The federal government, as of Jan. 1, is bringing in a 1 per cent tax on “non-resident, non-Canadian owners of vacant, underused housing” – including foreign-owned vacant land in big cities. The City of Toronto also plans to start taxing vacant homes in 2022. Like the original B.C. taxes, these moves aim to increase rental housing supply, and lower rental prices, by penalizing investors who don’t rent out their properties.
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/editorials/article-a...
Think taxing vacant housing or houses only used during Christmas seems like a good idea. There are ton of houses near me here in London that are empty most of the year.