Debated in Parliament on 10 Jan 2023.
Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis asked the Minister for National Development whether the Government will consider providing a time-limited rental subsidy for rental flat applicants who qualify for the Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme and Public Rental Scheme respectively, provided that they are unable to find alternative temporary housing arrangements and have been unsuccessful in obtaining a flat from HDB after a pre-defined time period.
For the Public Rental Scheme, all applicants who meet the eligibility criteria will be placed in the queue and allocated a flat when their turn is due. HDB will expedite the allocation for applicants who are in urgent need of a flat, such as those with medical grounds or other exceptional circumstances.
The Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS) provides an additional temporary housing option for households awaiting key collection for their new HDB flats. While we are progressively increasing the PPHS supply from 800 units in 2021 to 1,800 in 2023, the supply remains limited.
Currently, families looking for temporary housing may turn to the open rental market. Providing subsidies or grants for renting flats in the open market is likely to induce demand and drive up market rents, which would compound rather than help solve matters. As such, we have no plans to provide such rental subsidies.
For low-income households with no family support and no other temporary housing options, HDB may offer them Interim Rental Housing on a case-by-case basis.
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