December BTO exercise: 6,000 flats launched, including Bukit Merah and Queenstown prime location projects

SINGAPORE: More than 6,000 Build-to-Order (BTO) flats were launched on Tuesday (Dec 5), with two projects under the Prime Location Housing (PLH) model.

The eight projects, comprising 6,057 flats, are in Bedok, Bishan, Bukit Merah, Bukit Panjang, Jurong West, Queenstown and Woodlands.

Two projects – Alexandra Peaks in Bukit Merah and Ulu Pandan Vista in Queenstown – are offered under the PLH model.

"Given that new flats in prime locations naturally command higher market values, these PLH flats will be priced with additional subsidies on top of the substantial market discounts applied across all BTO flats," said HDB.

PLH flat owners are required to pay HDB a percentage of the resale price upon selling it after the 10-year minimum occupation period.

For this month's BTO exercise, HDB will increase additional subsidies for those who buy PLH flats. This comes against the backdrop of increasing prices in the resale market, it said.

"With these additional subsidies and the substantial market discounts already applied across all BTO flats, the selling prices of the PLH flats in Alexandra Peaks and Ulu Pandan Vista will be significantly lower than the transacted prices of comparable resale flats nearby," added HDB.

The subsidy recovery rate for these two projects will be set at 8 per cent, taking into account the extent of the additional subsidies provided.

That means owners of these flats will have to return 8 per cent of the resale price or valuation – whichever is higher – when they sell their flats. This is higher than the 6 per cent in previous PLH projects.

HDB said that 20 per cent of the PLH flats in Alexandra Peaks and Ulu Pandan Vista will be set aside for first-timer families; and 2 per cent for second-timer families under the Married Child Priority Scheme. 

This is two-thirds of the usual quota for BTO flats in mature estates.

The other BTO flats offered range from two-room to five-room flats, as well as Community Care Apartments.

Community Care Apartments (CCAs) will provide senior-friendly housing with care services that can be customised according to a person’s needs.

HDB previously announced that about 250 of such flats in Bedok will be offered in December's BTO exercise as part of the Chai Chee Green development. 

Community Care Apartments have been popular in the past because of their elderly-friendly features and the scarcity of such properties, said OrangeTee & Tie's senior vice president of research and analytics Christine Sun.

The first such apartments in Bukit Batok were heavily oversubscribed, with 706 applicants vying for 169 units in February 2021. The second in Queenstown saw fewer applicants, with 383 people vying for 245 flats in November 2022.

Ms Sun said she expects "healthy demand" for the Community Care Apartments in Bedok, with possibly more applications than Queenstown but fewer than Bukit Batok.

She noted that the location in Bedok may not be the ideal choice for some buyers due to a lack of amenities and not being directly accessible to an MRT station.

HDB said that it is expecting high application rates for flats in the mature estates of Bedok and Bishan, as well as the non-mature estate of Bukit Panjang, where the supply is "relatively small".

Analysts are expecting demand for Sin Ming Residences in Bishan to be healthy.

Huttons Asia's senior director for data analytics Lee Sze Teck said flats in Bishan are "extremely popular", judging from past BTO exercises and the number of million-dollar flats sold. Among HDB towns, Bishan ranks second in terms of the number of million-dollar flats sold.

The project may also see high application rates given its shorter waiting time, with HDB expecting a waiting time of about two years and eight months.

"This is possibly the first BTO project in a mature estate with a shorter completion time of less than three years," said Mr Lee.

Those who wish to improve their chances of securing a flat are encouraged to apply for a flat in the non-mature estates of Jurong West and Woodlands, it added. At least 95 per cent of the four-room and bigger flats in these estates are set aside for first-timer families.

"All new flats are priced with significant market discounts to ensure affordability, and hence selling prices are considerably lower than the transacted prices of comparable resale flats," said HDB.

Eligible first-timer families can benefit from the Enhanced CPF Housing Grant of up to S$80,000 (US$60,000).

"Applicants are encouraged to plan their finances carefully and select a suitable flat based on their budget, needs and preferences," said HDB.

The Housing Board has also tightened the rules for non-selection of flats, to better allocate flats to those with "more pressing housing needs".

BTO applicants who have received a queue position will not be eligible to apply for a flat in subsequent exercises until after their flat booking appointment.

"This ensures that they do not crowd out other applicants who have not secured a queue position. 

"We encourage all flat applicants to carefully consider when they should apply for a new flat and to book a flat when invited to do so," HDB said.

Applicants who wish to take part in December's BTO exercise must have a valid HDB Flat Eligibility (HFE) letter when they submit their application. 

HDB said it takes about a month to process the HFE letter application, and it may take longer during peak periods such as BTO sales launches. 

Applicants for December's exercise should have applied for an HFE letter and submitted all required documents by Nov 11, said HDB.

WAITING TIMES

About half of the flats on offer in December's launch will have a waiting time of four years or less, said HDB.

"HDB has been working on various measures to reduce the waiting time for upcoming BTO flats," said the board.

"These include the prioritisation of sites where construction works can begin earlier, breaking larger BTO projects into smaller projects for more efficient resource management by contractors and adopting innovative procurement practices in order to shorten the project duration and expedite project completion."

Close to 70 per cent of flats launched this year will have wait times of four years or less, and the median waiting time is about three years and 10 months.

This is a "return to the pre-pandemic norm" and an improvement from waiting times during the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw waiting times go up to four to five years. It said it aims to offer more BTO projects with waiting times of three to four years.

A total of 22,780 BTO flats have been launched this year.

HDB will offer about 4,100 flats in the February 2024 BTO exercise. They will be in Bedok, Queenstown, Choa Chu Kang, Hougang, Punggol and Woodlands.

"The supply will be subject to review, as project details are firmed up closer to the launch date," said HDB.

It encouraged all interested flat buyers in the February 2024 BTO exercise to apply for an HFE letter early and submit all required documents by Jan 15, 2024.