new property rules
Government to ramp up supply of new flats
By Jessica Cheam
HOME-buyers can look forward to an unprecedented surge in supply of new Housing Board (HDB) flats this year and next - enough to fill a town as big as Toa Payoh.
The HDB said yesterday it will offer 16,000 new flats this year, and up to 22,000 next year under its build-to-order (BTO) scheme. Taken together, the number surpasses the 35,400 flats in Toa Payoh today.
It will also release more land for tender for executive condominiums (ECs) and its design, build and sell scheme (DBSS), where private sector operators develop public housing projects.
These could yield 7,000 DBSS flats and 8,000 EC units over the next two years if demand is sustained.
In contrast, only 4,000 units have been launched for sale under the DBSS scheme since it started in 2005 and 10,000 flats for ECs in the last 10 years.
The ramp-up of supply follows Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's announcement in his National Day Rally speech on Sunday that the $8,000 a month income ceiling will be slightly relaxed for the 'sandwich group' of home-buyers.
Those with a monthly household income of between $8,000 and $10,000 will now also be eligible to buy DBSS flats - where previously their only option apart from private property was EC units.
They will be allowed to buy the flats with a CPF Housing Grant of $30,000.
Speaking at a briefing yesterday, National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan said the increase in supply will ensure that there are enough flats for those who wish to buy. He said this would also dampen prices, although other factors such as the economy, jobs and interest rates would also play a part.
The new DBSS homes will be built in mature towns such as Yishun, Tampines, Bedok, Hougang and Jurong West, said the HDB.
The new EC homes will be spread across new and mature estates such as Sengkang, Yishun, Punggol, Pasir Ris and Bukit Panjang.
Asked if the increase in supply could create a housing supply glut in the future, Mr Mah said that supply could be adjusted to demand based on HDB's BTO system, which builds only when a certain level of demand is reached.
He added that the measures will have an impact on the market but 'it will not cause a great problem... but we still need to watch it'.
Mr Mah also said that the completion time for new flats will be cut from three years to 2-1/2 years for projects launched from the middle of next year onwards. This will be achieved by streamlining HDB's internal processes and awarding the tenders for projects earlier, he said.
CBRE Research executive director Li Hiaw Ho said yesterday that first-time home-buyers 'stand to benefit most from the measures, not only from the increase in supply providing more options, but also from an expected reduction in competition from buyers who are purchasing second and subsequent properties'.
'The main thrust of these revised measures... reiterates the Government's stand that HDB homes are primarily for owner-occupation and should remain so,' he added.
HDB said it will offer 16,000 new flats this year and 22,000 next year under its BTO scheme. The completion time for new flats will be cut from three years to 21/2 years. --BT FILE PHOTO
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