SINGAPORE: Nearly 200 flat buyers of Anchorvale Village will be eligible for compensation of between S$1,100 (US$830) and S$4,500 for the completion delay brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.
This comes as the Housing and Development Board (HDB) on Sunday (Jul 16) announced the completion of 12,000 flats across 16 projects in the first half of 2023 – both the highest figures compared with the same period since 2018.
Among the completed projects is Anchorvale Village in Sengkang where the residential blocks were delayed beyond their delivery possession date, which refers to the legal contractual date by which HDB is required to deliver possession of the flat.
Under the COVID-19 (Temporary Measures) Act, flat buyers whose flats are delayed beyond the delivery possession date will be able to seek reimbursement for qualifying costs.
The residential blocks were completed in June, five months after the project’s original delivery possession date of January 2023.
A total of 197 households of Anchorville Village who booked their flats by May 4, 2022 are eligible for the reimbursement, said HDB in a news release.
“To minimise inconvenience to flat buyers, HDB will be offering to pay flat buyers of Anchorvale Village the maximum reimbursement sum that they would be eligible for, without them having to submit any claims/proof of the expenses,” said the Housing Board.
The buyers will receive the reimbursement within two months after completing the flat purchase and accepting the settlement agreement.
The estimated amount for the affected flat buyers ranges from S$1,100 to S$4,500, with the average reimbursement sum being about S$3,000.
The total reimbursement amount for all 197 households is estimated to be about S$600,000, said HDB.
Flat buyers were invited to collect their keys on Jul 10, said HDB, with 115 households having done so to date.
Anchorvale Village is one of the two BTO projects delivered past its delivery possession date, the other being Waterway Sunrise II.
“With the successful completion of Anchorvale Village, HDB has handed over both delayed projects, despite the challenges posed by COVID-19,” said HDB.