SINGAPORE – The Housing and Development Board (HDB) will launch up to 14,000 flexible two-bedroom flats under the build-to-order (BTO) model between 2024 and 2026, Minister for National Development (MND) Desmond Lee said.
The minister told Parliament on Monday (18 September) that this represents an increase of around 30 per cent compared to the last three years between 2021 and 2023 and will help meet demand from single and senior households looking for the “right size”.
Lee was responding to a question from Jurong Group Representation Constituency (GRC) member Xie Yao Quan, who wanted to know whether there were plans to offer more two-bedroom apartments in future Plus and Prime BTO projects.
The planned increase in the number of future two-bedroom flats is part of the government’s strategy to improve access to housing for singles under a new public housing framework that will come into effect in the second half of 2024. Under the new framework, singles aged 35 and above will be able to purchase new flexi two-bedroom flats in standard, plus or prime BTO projects islandwide. Currently, singles are only allowed to purchase new flexi two-bedroom flats in immature residential areas.
More funding for Plus and Prime apartments
In his speech, Lee also said the government will provide more subsidies for apartments in Plus and Prime BTO projects. This is in addition to existing grants such as the Enhanced CPF Housing Grant (EHG) for eligible homebuyers.
The minister said this in response to another question from Xie, who had asked whether the government would impose a price cap on Plus and Prime BTO flats as an additional measure to ensure their affordability. In his response, the minister said that setting a cap could be “distortive” as prices then “may not fully reflect the characteristics of the flats”.
Minimum occupancy period (MOP) for Plus apartments
In response to another question from Xie – who had asked whether the government would consider shortening the minimum residence period (MOP) of Plus apartments to less than ten years, given the lower subsidies for Plus apartments compared to Prime apartments – the minister said the government had “carefully considered” this and that a minimum residence period of ten years seeks to “strike a balance between strengthening the intention to own the property on the one hand and providing flexibility for owners to move for compelling reasons”.
Lee added that many Singaporeans supported the introduction of a longer MOP period “because they believed that HDB flats should be primarily for owner-occupation”, citing views from the Forward Singapore housing talks.
The Minister also said that while the vast majority of existing HDB flats have a five-year MOP, most households in Singapore stay in their HDB flat for 10 years or more before selling it.
“For those who actually need to move out before the end of the MOP, the HDB will review the application on a case-by-case basis,” the minister said.
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