SINGAPORE: With longer minimum occupation periods (MOP) for new Housing Board flats in desirable locations, the number of million-dollar resale flat transactions could be crimped in time to come, said an analyst.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced on Sunday (Aug 20) a major shift to how HDB flats are classified, with Build-to-Order (BTO) projects eventually dropping the mature/non-mature tags.
From the second half of 2024, flats will be categorised as Standard, Plus or Prime. Owners of Plus and Prime flats, which will be in choicer locations, will have to wait 10, instead of the usual five, years before selling their units. They will also be bound by stricter resale conditions.
Prime flats, which are in towns near the city centre, are the most highly subsidised and the first owners will have to pay back a portion of the subsidies if they sell the flat. Such flats can also only be sold to buyers who meet HDB’s BTO eligibility criteria, including the income ceiling, currently set at S$14,000 (US$10,000) for couples and S$7,000 for singles.
The new Plus category of flats, which can also be found outside the central region, will be characterised by their choice locations within a region, such as proximity to near transport nodes or town centres.
To keep the selling price low, these flats will get more subsidies and buyers will similarly face clawback of these subsidies when they sell the flat. The amount and other details have yet to be announced.
Finally, Standard flats will have the same resale conditions as most flats now – a five-year MOP and no income ceiling on the buyers on resale.