HDB offers more than 5,500 BTO flats in July with four Prime projects in Bukit Merah, Clementi, Toa Payoh
HDB also put up 4,662 Sale of Balance Flats (SBF) for sale under its July SBF exercise – the second SBF exercise this year.
Four Prime category projects were offered, in Bukit Merah (Alexandra Peaks and Alexandra Vista), Clementi (Clementi Emerald) and Toa Payoh (Toa Payoh Ascent).
This round, HDB has also raised the additional subsidies for Prime flats to keep flats more affordable for Singaporeans. In line with this, subsidy recovery rates for this round's Prime projects will increase to 12 per cent for Clementi and 11 per cent for Bukit Merah and Toa Payoh, up from 9 per cent in the June exercise.
Prime flats command higher market values due to their more favourable attributes, and thus receive additional subsidies to ensure their affordability and accessibility to Singaporeans across a range of incomes. Their selling prices are substantially lower than those of comparable resale flats, as part of the subsidy is recovered upon the flat's first sale.
Huttons senior director of data analystics, Lee Sze Teck, noted that the subsidy clawback for the July BTO exercise is the highest to date.
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He pointed out that the clawback for an Alexandra Peaks project launched in December 2023 was 8 per cent, but the clawback for the project in the current July batch has risen to 11 per cent, 'presumably due to higher HDB resale prices'.
'If resale flat prices continue to rise, HDB may need to give more subsidies for Prime flats in future BTO projects. The question is how high can the clawback go,' said Lee.
PropNex CEO Kelvin Fong believes the higher subsidy clawback rates are unlikely to deter applicants, as the Prime projects on offer are in 'attractive' locations.
In the Standard category, flats are available under four projects across Bukit Panjang (Bangkit Breeze), Sembawang (Sembawang Beacon), Tampines (Simei Symphony) and Woodlands (Woodlands North Grove).
Seven out of 10 of the BTO flats offered this time have waiting times of four years or less, HDB said. About 1,396 flats at Bangkit Breeze and Clementi Emerald have waiting times under three years. Another 775 flats at Sembawang Beacon have a three-year waiting time.
Starting prices, excluding grants, range from S$148,000 for a two-room flexi under the Sembawang Beacon project to S$658,000 for a five-room unit at the Simei Symphony project.
Eligible first-timer families may apply for the Enhanced Central Provident Fund Housing Grant (EHG) of up to S$120,000. HDB said this allows buyers to purchase a three-room Standard flat starting from S$162,000, or a four-room Standard flat starting from S$248,000.
This is the first BTO exercise where the HDB's relaxed income assessment rules – which let young couples get higher loans – kick in. This allows couples to delay their income assessment for a housing loan until just before they collect the keys to their flat, so long as one party is a full-time student or national serviceman.
Christine Sun, OrangeTee Group's chief researcher and strategist, said this shifts the assessment focus from immediate to future income.
'We expect more couples to opt for larger or pricier flats, as they are more likely to qualify for a higher loan amount, given that many would have been working for some time by then,' Sun said.
Given that this is the first BTO sales exercise granting priority access to singles who apply for two-room flexi flats to live with or near their parents, PropNex's Fong expects higher demand for two-room flexi flats from singles.
For SBF units, starting prices before EHG are S$81,000 for a 30-year lease community care apartment, S$111,000 for a two-room flexi, S$351,000 for a five-room unit and S$645,000 for an executive flat.
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