SALES of new homes slowed almost to a standstill last month, delivering another blow to the already-weak housing market here.

Property developers yesterday said they sold only 185 new units in February, about half of the 343 they launched in the month and well down from the 328 sold in January.

This anaemic performance, coupled with the continuing quietness of the market this month, prompted some experts to predict that new home sales this quarter could hit one of the lowest levels ever seen here.

"The current weak market sentiment is likely to stay, which means that the total number of new homes sold in the quarter may be 700 to 800 units," said Mr Li Hiaw Ho, executive director of CB Richard Ellis Research.

He said this could be worse than during the Asian financial crisis, when just 894 new units were sold in 1997's last quarter. Only Sars in 2003 saw fewer new homes sold: 427.

In contrast, developers sold 14,811 new homes in the exuberant boom last year, or an average of 3,700 homes each quarter.

Property consultants say they were not surprised by last month's feeble numbers, given the Chinese New Year holiday and the snowballing global financial crisis originating from the United States.

But even as some admitted the contraction was "worse than expected", they stressed the silver lining: home prices are still holding steady.

At Hong Leong Holdings' Aalto in Jalan Kechil, two units were sold for a median price of $2,619 per sq ft (psf), up from the median $2,078 psf fetched by three units in January.

"There are strong fundamentals to support home prices," said Mr Chua Yang Liang, Jones Lang LaSalle's head of South-east Asia research.

"En bloc sellers have to look for housing and they are cash-rich. We still believe in the 'remaking Singapore' story and with more foreigners coming in, property prices are likely to hold in the coming months."

But market confidence will "remain shaky" until the extent of the US recession can be measured, said Ms Tay Huey Ying, director of research and consultancy at Colliers International. She expects market activity to remain lacklustre until June.

At some projects, prices have started to dip slightly. At Ritz-Carlton Residences in Cairnhill, only one unit was sold last month at $4,140 psf. None was sold in January, but five were taken up in December for between $5,053 and $5,146 psf.

The best performer last month was the Cosmo condominium in Guillemard Crescent, where 41 out of 45 units were sold, mostly within the first week of its launch, for between $1,048 psf and $1,152 psf.

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