Debated in Parliament on 6 Nov 2023.
Mr Patrick Tay Teck Guan asked the Minister for National Development what is the Ministry doing to bring the launch of HDB BTO projects back on track to the usual months of February, May, August and November, in view of the delays and glitches with the newly introduced HDB Flat Eligibility letter system.
While Build-To-Order (BTO) flats are typically launched in the months of February, May, August and November, this may be adjusted from time to time. For example, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the planned May 2020 launch was postponed and combined with the August launch. The Housing and Development Board (HDB) strives to announce any changes to its launch exercises as early as possible to keep potential home buyers well-informed.
In May 2023, technical glitches at the BTO and Sale of Balance Flats (SBF) launch resulted in a delay of the ballot results. To provide applicants from the May launch sufficient time to receive their ballot results and make an informed decision before entering another launch exercise, HDB postponed the next BTO launch from August to early October. This will have some knock-on effects on the following launch, which has been postponed to December 2023.
We remain committed to provide a steady supply of new flats and will continue to have regular launches throughout the year to meet housing demand. We remain on track to launch about 23,000 flats in 2023 and a total of 100,000 flats from 2021 to 2025.
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