Debated in Parliament on 8 May 2024.
Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song asked the Minister for National Development in each year from 2021 to 2023 (a) how many appeals for subsidised rental HDB flats did HDB receive from (i) married couples without children (ii) elderly couples or (iii) singles, who needed a place to rent while waiting for their BTO flats to be constructed; (b) how many of such appeals were granted for each category; and (c) whether HDB can provide more subsidised rental flats for the aforementioned categories of persons awaiting construction of their BTO flats.
The Housing and Development Board (HDB) does not have the detailed breakdown of appellants for subsidised rental flats which the member has requested.
Today, HDB provides subsidised rental housing under the Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme, or PPHS, for families who are waiting for their flats to be built, and who have less income at their disposal to rent. To meet increased demand for PPHS flats since the COVID-19 pandemic, HDB more than doubled the supply of flats from about 800 in 2021 to 2,000 units currently. Application rates have since come down significantly, from over 20 times in 2021, to less than three times in the April 2024 exercise. In recent exercises, all eligible married applicants with children were invited to select a PPHS flat. We will further double PPHS supply to 4,000 units by 2025. In the interim, from this July, eligible families who rent HDB flats or bedrooms in the open market can tap on the one-year PPHS (Open Market) Voucher to defray their costs of renting.
In addition to PPHS, HDB provides lower-income households who do not have other temporary housing options with interim rental housing on a case-by-case basis.
Regarding the groups that the Member asked about, in the last three years, HDB assisted 146 married couples without children, 72 elderly couples, and 211 singles with interim rental housing.
Given the limited supply of flats available, we are unable to offer a subsidised HDB rental flat to all flat buyers waiting for their new flats. Subsidised rental supply will continue to be prioritised for those with greater needs.
We understand Singaporeans’ desires to move into their own homes sooner. We have, therefore, brought down waiting times for flats in recent launches. At the recent Build-To-Order (BTO) sales exercise in February, more than 80% of the BTO flats launched have a waiting time of three-and-a-half years or less. We are also on track to launch 2,800 Shorter Waiting Time flats in 2024, with a waiting time of less than three years. This is one year ahead of our target to launch 2,000 to 3,000 Shorter Waiting Time flats per year by 2025.
PAPERCUTS