Tag Archives: HDB News

12,700 bids for 2,132 flats so far

APPLICATIONS are pouring in for the HDB’s sales exercise for 2,132 flats in 24 estates across the island.

RELATED LINKS  Number of Applications Received as at 07 October 2009

The homes, launched under its new Sales of Balance Flats scheme last Thursday, have attracted 12,728 bids as of the latest update at 5pm yesterday – about six times oversubscribed.

Analysts say applications could hit 20,000 when the process closes next Wednesday, making 10 bids for every available flat.

The main reason for their popularity is that the flats are completed or nearly completed, so buyers will not have to wait three years before moving in.

Flats on offer are accumulated from earlier build-to-order exercises, the Selective En-bloc Redevelopment Scheme and repurchased flats.

The HDB’s new process has replaced the previous balloting, quarterly sales and half-yearly sales exercises.

Read Also :  Two BTO projects to start despite slower flat sales

Source : Straits Times – 7 Oct 2009

Two BTO projects to start despite slower flat sales

MODERATE sales at two Housing Board projects launched last year suggest that first-time home buyers still have plenty of choice despite the high demand for flats in some areas.

RELATED LINKS  89% OVERALL TAKE-UP RATE

The take-up rate at Punggol Breeze was 69 per cent while only 55 per cent of applicants selected flats at Fernvale Residence in Sengkang, according to new HDB data released to The Straits Times this week.

Some home seekers turned down a chance to buy as the waiting time for the build-to-order (BTO) projects – three to four years – was just too long.

‘Some eventually decided to opt for other housing that can be ready sooner than BTO flats,’ said the HDB. Other reasons buyers gave were that preferred flats had already been sold, or that they had decided to consider other housing options.

Waiting time is likely a key factor, given the overwhelming response to last week’s launch of 2,132 completed or nearly completed HDB flats. Continue reading