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Independent Singapore

HDB extends S$300 monthly rental vouchers till December 31 for families waiting for BTO

SINGAPORE: The Housing and Development Board (HDB) announced on Monday (June 16) that it will be extending the Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS) Voucher by six months, making it effective until Dec 31. HDB explained that the extension is intended to provide support to young couples and families currently in the open market while they wait for their new flats to be completed. Families who qualify will receive S$300 each month on a reimbursement basis to help with their rental costs during the support period. The HDB added that it expects around 200 households to benefit from this extension. Among other factors, these families must have booked an uncompleted flat from HDB's sales exercises and have a household income of S$7,000 and under. The complete criteria for eligibility for the scheme can be found here, and details concerning the application process are available here . 'This extension will sustain interim support for eligible families until HDB fully ramps up the supply of PPHS flats to 4,000 units by the end of this year,' HDB added. Read also: 'No NS, no plans to settle but still gets BTO?' — Singaporean questions HDB rules for new citizens HDB also noted that the application rate for PPHS flats has substantially decreased from more than 20 in 2021 to around three at present. This is largely due to the increased supply, which has risen from 800 units four years ago to around 4,000 units by the end of this year. All qualified applicants who are married with children aged 18 and under, including expectant parents, have been invited to select a PPHS flat since June 2023. The supply of new flats has also steadily gone up, and HDB is on track to launch more than 130,000 Build-to-Order (BTO) flats from 2021 to 2027. These include units with shorter waiting times. 'Therefore, BTO application rates for first-timer families have fallen from 3.7 times in 2019 to 1.5 times in the February 2025 sales exercise. Median waiting times have also been reduced to less than four years, comparable to pre-COVID levels. All BTO projects undergoing construction are on track to be delivered on time,' HDB added. The PPHS was first launched on Jan 31, 2013, with the HDB launching 1,150 flats for application under the scheme. /TISG Read also: WP MPs concerned with access & affordability of housing for Singaporeans