Tuesday, January 5, 2010

New housing ahead for Hougang, Choa Chu Kang and Woodlands

A pair of new Build-to-Order (BTO) projects have been launched by the HDB in Choa Chu Kang and Hougang.

Called Limbang Green and Buangkok Vale, the flats will cost from a low of $64,000 for a Studio flat to a high of $288,000 for a 4-room unit.

The Housing and Development Board said in a news release on Tuesday that the new flats are priced below their equivalent market prices and most of the 2- to 4-room flats will be set aside for first-time buyers.

The latest BTO project will offer a total of 1,291 standard flats with 646 units being 4-room flats and the rest being Studio Apartments (276 units), 2-room flats (128 units) and 3-room flats (241 units).

The development in Choa Chu Kang, called Limbang Green, will have 592 standard flats, comprising 276 Studio Apartments, 128 units of 3-room flats and 188 units of 4-room flats.

The selling price for the Limbang Green flats range from $64,000 to $89,000 for a Studio Apartment; $140,000 to $169,000 for a 3-room flat; and $226,000 to $278,000 for a 4-room flat.

At Hougang, the Buangkok Vale project offers 699 standard flats, comprising 128 units of 2-room flats, 113 units of 3-room flats and 458 units of 4-room flats.

The Buangkok Vale units are priced from $88,000 to $111,000 for a 2-room flat; $142,000 to $182,000 for a 3-room flat; and $231,000 to $288,000 for a 4-room flat.

The HDB said that it aims to keep public housing affordable for first-time homebuyers, and that the market prices take into account the prices of resale flats in the area – adjusted for factors such as location, flat attributes, project design and prevailing market conditions, as determined by professional valuers.

In a month’s time, the HDB also plans to launch another 1,500 flats in Punggol and Woodlands and if there is sustained demand, more BTO projects can be expected, bringing the number of new BTO flats to about 12,000 this year.

In addition, tenders are being called for the sale of two Executive Condominum (EC) housing sites at Buangkok Drive and Yishun Ave 11.

Introduced in 1995, the Executive Condominium Housing Scheme (ECHS) offers households with income of up to $10,000 a month, strata-titled apartments with facilities comparable to private condominiums but with initial eligibility and ownership restrictions similar to public housing.

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has meanwhile put up for sale by public tender, its first residential site to be sold in 2010 through the Confirmed List under the Government Land Sales (GLS) Programme.

The residential site at Choa Chu Kang Road / Woodlands Road is earmarked for an integrated commercial and residential development, that is co-located with the Ten Mile Junction LRT station.

A 3-storey podium block comprising commercial space and the Ten Mile Junction LRT station is already built and in operation.

The current sale will only include the existing commercial development and the future residential development to be built above the podium.

Source: Channel News Asia, 5 Jan 2010

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