The Ministry of National Development (MND) in Parliament on Tuesday noted that new Housing and Development Board (HDB) units and resale flats remain cheap since Singaporeans’ wages have typically kept pace with their costs over the last several years.
When pricing new HDB flats, the government acknowledged that HDB adds a large subsidy to the flat’s estimated market value in order to keep them value for money.
As a response to MP Yip Hon Weng’s question on whether Singaporeans’ incomes had kept pace with the prices of BTO and HDB resale apartments, it issued the statement in question.
According to MND, first-time BTO purchasers who meet the eligibility criteria might receive up to $80,000 in Enhanced CPF Housing Grants (EHG).
In order to keep resale apartments affordable for first-time homebuyers, the government gives housing allowances of up to $160,000, it stated.
In response to a query from MP Louis Chua on the present rate of HDB resale price rises, MND said that the Government is here to “ensure a sustainable and stable housing market where prices fluctuate substantially in accordance with economic realities”.
Due in part to low borrowing rates, the recent price rise has been linked to an overall rise in demand for property in the current market.
HDB resale apartments, despite price rises, remain affordable, according to MND.
HDB claimed that resale flat purchasers taking out a HDB housing loan had maintained a 23 percent mortgage servicing ratio over the previous three years, which is the percentage of monthly income utilized to pay for mortgage installment payments.
Buyers may use their CPF contributions to pay down their resale flat’s mortgage debts, resulting in little or no financial investment for the buyer.
HDB is on target to introduce 17,000 BTO homes this year, up from the 14,600 BTO units released in 2019 and the 16,800 BTO units launched in 2020.
Additional 5,300 units via SBF exercises and open booking will bring this year’s HDB flat supply to 22,300 units.
Hong Kong’s Housing and Development Board (HDB) said it would continue to increase the supply of flats and will launch more than 17,000 units in 2022.
We will continue to constantly monitor the economic and property market situations to ensure that public housing remains available to Singaporeans,” said MND.
