HDB launches over 11,000 flats, including 5,795 BTO units in 5 towns

SINGAPORE — The Housing and Development Board (HDB) has launched more than 11,000 flats for sale in its largest exercise of the year. 

A total of 11,015 flats are available in November’s sales exercise, including 5,795 Build-To-Order (BTO) units and 5,220 Sale of Balance Flats (SBF), HDB said in a statement on Tuesday (Nov 17).

NEW BTO FLATS

The BTO flats are spread across seven housing projects — three in the non-mature towns of Sembawang and Tengah and four in the mature towns of Bishan, Tampines and Toa Payoh (Bidadari).

They range from two-room flexi to five-room units. 

Starting prices for flats in non-mature towns range from S$92,000 for a two-room flexi unit in Sembawang to S$394,000 for a five-room unit in Tengah, excluding grants.

For mature estates, starting prices range from S$121,000 for a two-room flexi unit in Bishan to S$627,000 for a five-room unit in Toa Payoh.

The units in Garden Court and Garden Terrace at Tengah will have shorter waiting times, and at least 95 per cent of the four-room and bigger flats there will be set aside for first-timer families, HDB said.

Two-room flexi flats at Bishan Ridges will be set aside for those aged 55 and above. These flats will be available on short leases of between 15 and 45 years, in five-year increments.

SUBSIDIES

The new flats are heavily subsidised, with prices taking into account factors such as location, flat attributes and prevailing market conditions. The prices of two-room flexi flats will also take into account the duration of the lease chosen, HDB said.

“HDB’s prices are considerably lower than the transacted prices of comparable resale flats in the vicinity,” the public housing authority said.

Eligible families that are first-time buyers can receive up to S$80,000 as part of the enhanced Central Provident Fund Housing Grant.

With the grant, buyers may pay as low as S$12,000 for a two-room flexi flat, S$88,000 for a three-room flat, S$200,000 for a four-room flat and S$291,000 for a five-room flat, HDB said.

These first-time buyers will continue to enjoy priority in flat allocation.

Applicants who wish to live close to their parents or married children in the same BTO project can also submit a joint application under the Multi-Generation Priority Scheme. This allows them to jointly apply for two flats, where a two-room flexi flat and a three-room flat are integrated in the mix.

SALE OF BALANCE FLATS 

The 5,220 balance flats on offer comprise 1,997 two-room flexi units, 701 three-room units, 1,740 four-room units, 668 five-room units, 120 3Gen units and 14 executive flats across various towns and estates.

The majority of the units are reserved for first-timer families. Eligible singles who are first-time buyers may also apply for a two-room flexi flat in non-mature towns.

HDB said that about 22 per cent of the balance flats are already completed and the rest are under construction.

Under the SBF exercise, a four-room unit in a non-mature town could cost around S$146,000, including grants.

Applications for both BTO and balance flats can be made on the HDB website from Tuesday until Nov 23.

Buyers may apply for only one flat type in one town under either the BTO or SBF exercise.

The November launch brings the total number of BTO flats offered this year to 16,752 units, HDB said.

Together with the 5,220 balance flats offered in the November SBF exercise, HDB has offered a total of 21,972 flats in 2020.

The next sales launch will be in February next year, with about 3,500 BTO flats in Bukit Batok, Kallang Whampoa, Tengah and Toa Payoh, said the HDB.

An additional 3,800 BTO flats in Bukit Merah, Geylang, Tengah and Woodlands will be offered in May next year.