13 of 40 properties sold en bloc in last three years were less than 30 years old

SINGAPORE — Nearly one in three developments that went en bloc in the last three years – or 13 out of 40 – were less than 30 years at the point of sale, said Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong in Parliament on Tuesday (Feb 6).

Most of the developments were, however, more than 20 years old at the point of sale and were small developments with fewer than 20 units each, he said.

The developments that were less than 30 years old thus accounted for about 6 per cent, or 240 units, of about 4,000 units sold en bloc in the last three years.

The government’s approach is to allow collective sales to proceed if the market feels it is “economically viable”, but with certain safeguards in place, said Mr Wong in response to Nee Soon Member of Parliament Lee Bee Wah’s question on whether the authorities would consider imposing a minimum number of years before a development may go en bloc.

“The main objective of the collective sales framework is to give owners the choice on whether to go for redevelopment. Such redevelopment allows rejuvenation and land-use optimisation in residential developments,” said Mr Wong.

Newer developments are subject to higher consent thresholds. Under the Land Titles (Strata) Act, buildings less than 10 years old are required to obtain 90 per cent consent from owners before a collective sale may go through – higher than the 80 per cent threshold for older developments.

The Act was also amended in 2010 to impose stricter restrictions such as the enforcement of a two-year hiatus after a failed first attempt, to prevent harassment of homeowners who had refused to sell their properties.

Asked by Dr Lee if his ministry was concerned about the recent spate of en bloc sales, Mr Wong said other safeguards are in place.

“Even if the consent thresholds are reached, the developer will have to submit their development plans to the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) for approval,” he said.

The URA will go through the plans and ensure that height and unit sizes are kept to regulations, and adequate provisions are made for parking.

“We have also put in place a new provision which is to do a traffic impact analysis before the developer gets planning approval,” said Mr Wong.

Along with questions on whether the bidding for land was sustainable, the latest round of collective-sale fever has raised concerns over the strain on roads and other infrastructure, as developers seek to increase the number of units to be built on the plots of land.

Last year, 37 en bloc tenders worth more than S$8.7 billion were awarded, including the record-setting sale of the 200-unit Amber Park for S$906.7 million.

In one of the biggest en bloc deals last year, former Housing and Urban Development Company (HUDC) estate Normanton Park was sold for S$830.1 million. Kingsford Huray Development’s winning bid was over S$30 million higher than the reserve price.

More properties have also been put up for collective sale or have formed sale committees.