HOME buyers can look forward to plenty of new flats in the year ahead, as the Housing Board (HDB) aggressively ramps up the number of flats to tackle supply concerns.
It launched 1,291 new flats in Choa Chu Kang and Hougang yesterday, with another 1,500 new flats to be put up for sale in Punggol and Woodlands next month.
It is also putting up for sale two new executive condominium sites next Friday, which will cater to middle-income families with private housing aspirations who earn up to $10,000 a month. These sites are in Buangkok Drive and Yishun Ave 11.
In total, the HDB will offer 12,000 new build-to-order (BTO) flats this year if there is sustained demand, it said in a statement yesterday.
This flurry of activity comes amid mounting concerns over the supply of HDB flats. Some analysts say supply is not keeping up with high levels of demand.
Flash estimates released on Monday showed resale flat prices continuing their upward march, rising 3.8 per cent in the fourth quarter last year over the previous quarter to hit a new high.
Real estate agency PropNex's chief executive Mohamed Ismail said the upcoming BTO projects will not have a big impact on current resale flat prices, owing to the waiting period of three to four years for the new flats.
'For those who cannot wait, they will still have to turn to the resale market,' he said. But he noted that the HDB has been launching new flats almost every month since the middle of last year to meet demand.
Yesterday's new projects - Limbang Green in Choa Chu Kang and Buangkok Vale in Hougang - offer 1,291 standard flats for sale.
Limbang Green in Choa Chu Kang Drive is served by Yew Tee MRT station and has 276 studio apartments, 128 three-room flats and 188 four-roomers. Prices range from $64,000 for a studio unit to $278,000 for a four-roomer.
Buangkok Vale, which is bounded by Buangkok Green and Yio Chu Kang Road, offers 128 two-roomers, 113 three-room flats and 458 four-room homes. Prices start at $88,000 for a two-roomer and go up to $288,000 for a four-room flat.
Mr Ismail expects the flats to be popular and estimates five applications for every flat on offer. Both projects are located in mature estates, and the three- and four-room flats are about 30 per cent and 20 per cent cheaper respectively than similar flats in their areas, he said.
First-timers will get priority for 95 per cent of the flats, and those eligible can apply for a housing grant of up to $40,000. Applications for the new flats are now open and close on Jan 18.
Source, Straits Times, 6th January 2010
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