Debated in Parliament on 10 May 2021.
Mr Leon Perera asked the Minister for National Development (a) in the last five years, what are (i) the average number of unoccupied HDB rental flats and (ii) the top three reasons for the turnaround time for vacated flats; (b) for how long do the rental flats remain unoccupied each year; (c) how often does HDB assist in the clearance of unwanted belongings following the vacation of a rental flat; and (d) whether HDB imposes deductions from tenants’ deposits for doing such work.
Over the last five years, the average number of vacant rental flats was about 8,000. Currently, about one third of the vacant rental flats are set aside for purposes such as to rehouse existing tenants who will be affected by redevelopment and for operator-managed residences such as MSF’s shelters. The remaining are meant for new rental tenants. However, more than half of these flats will need to be spruced up before they can be let out to new rental tenants. Given the severe labour crunch in the construction industry, the pace of sprucing works has slowed down. HDB is working on measures to speed up the sprucing works and to facilitate key collections as quickly as possible.
The vacancy period of flats meant for allocation ranges from two months to over a year. The main factors affecting the vacancy period are the time required to spruce up the flat, the level of demand by new tenants for flats at the flat location and the time taken by tenants to move in, especially those affected by redevelopment of existing rental blocks.
Under the Tenancy Agreement, tenants need to return the flat to HDB in a clean and tidy condition. If there are belongings left behind in a vacated flat, HDB will first try to contact the ex-tenants and their next-of-kin. If they cannot be contacted, HDB will leave a notice on the flat door for a few weeks to seek a response from the ex-tenants or their next-of-kin, before helping to remove the belongings.
Over the last five years, HDB has assisted in the removal of unwanted belongings from about 30% of flats following the termination of tenancy. The cost incurred is deducted from the tenants’ deposit, as it goes beyond maintenance, which HDB pays for on a goodwill basis. On a case-by-case basis, HDB may waive the cost incurred, for example, for elderly tenants with medical conditions.
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