Debated in Parliament on 10 Sep 2012.
Mr Png Eng Huat asked the Minister for National Development for each of the years from 2009 to 2011 and the first half of 2012 (a) how many applicants applied under the HDB Fiance/Fiancee Scheme; and (b) what percentage of the applicants forfeited their deposits because they decided not to proceed with marriage and, of these applicants, what was the average time spent waiting for their flats.
In 2009, 14,682 couples applied for a new HDB flat under the Fiance/Fiancee Scheme. The corresponding figures for subsequent periods were 12,202 (2010), 13,640 (2011) and 7,936 (1H12).
Of these 48,460 couples who applied, 37,537 were invited to select and 26,174 booked a HDB flat. Subsequently, 1,135 couples, or 4.3% of those who had booked a flat, cancelled their bookings and had to forfeit their deposit. Amongst these, 367 cited relationship break-up, including annulment and divorce, as the reason for the cancellation.
Buyers of standard BTO projects, comprising five building blocks of 20 storeys high, will typically wait for two-and-a-half to three years to collect the keys to their flats.
PAPERCUTS