Saturday, April 08, 2006
HDB to offer 80 more 2-room flats in Sengkang
MORE two-room flats are to be provided to meet growing demand for these
low-cost homes.
The Housing Board will offer another 80 of these units, which it plans
to convert from executive flats in a Sengkang block that has stood
largely empty since it was completed six years ago. HDB is trying to buy
back the three flats it sold in the 80-unit block before proceeding with
the conversion.
The 80 two-room flats will be available next year and are in addition
to the 100 converted units in Jurong West - to be made available by year
end - and another 90 in Sengkang to be built from scratch and made
available in about three years. Prices have not been confirmed for the
converted units.
HDB announced earlier this year that it was resuming construction of
the 45 sq m one-bedroom flats - after a break of about 20 years - to
expand housing options for the poor.
Then, it decided to speed up the process by converting more flats in
its surplus stock of 8,000 units.
The smaller units are in demand from those on low incomes, as well as
from owners of large flats seeking to downgrade.
National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan stressed yesterday that the
Sengkang and Jurong West conversions would be a one-off exercise to
create two-room flats quickly, not the start of a concerted programme to
reconfigure large unsold flats into smaller, and potentially more
saleable units.
Each of the 80 Sengkang units will be converted into one 2-room flat
and one 3-room flat.
Together with newly introduced housing grants for the poor, ranging
from $5,000 to $20,000, the smaller flats give a leg up to low-income
households looking to own homes.
The new two-room flats to be built from scratch in Sengkang will cost
$70,000 each. A family with an income of $1,000 a month, which buys the
flat with a housing grant of $20,000, will pay just $200 a month for its
housing loan, Mr Mah said, after a visit to a mock-up of a converted
flat in Sengkang.
HDB will also help flat owners facing financial hardship by deferring
their housing loan repayments, or extending the repayment period, for
example. It helped 30,000 owners last year.
Blab-away for as little as 1ยข/min. Make PC-to-Phone Calls using Yahoo! Messenger with Voice.
low-cost homes.
The Housing Board will offer another 80 of these units, which it plans
to convert from executive flats in a Sengkang block that has stood
largely empty since it was completed six years ago. HDB is trying to buy
back the three flats it sold in the 80-unit block before proceeding with
the conversion.
The 80 two-room flats will be available next year and are in addition
to the 100 converted units in Jurong West - to be made available by year
end - and another 90 in Sengkang to be built from scratch and made
available in about three years. Prices have not been confirmed for the
converted units.
HDB announced earlier this year that it was resuming construction of
the 45 sq m one-bedroom flats - after a break of about 20 years - to
expand housing options for the poor.
Then, it decided to speed up the process by converting more flats in
its surplus stock of 8,000 units.
The smaller units are in demand from those on low incomes, as well as
from owners of large flats seeking to downgrade.
National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan stressed yesterday that the
Sengkang and Jurong West conversions would be a one-off exercise to
create two-room flats quickly, not the start of a concerted programme to
reconfigure large unsold flats into smaller, and potentially more
saleable units.
Each of the 80 Sengkang units will be converted into one 2-room flat
and one 3-room flat.
Together with newly introduced housing grants for the poor, ranging
from $5,000 to $20,000, the smaller flats give a leg up to low-income
households looking to own homes.
The new two-room flats to be built from scratch in Sengkang will cost
$70,000 each. A family with an income of $1,000 a month, which buys the
flat with a housing grant of $20,000, will pay just $200 a month for its
housing loan, Mr Mah said, after a visit to a mock-up of a converted
flat in Sengkang.
HDB will also help flat owners facing financial hardship by deferring
their housing loan repayments, or extending the repayment period, for
example. It helped 30,000 owners last year.
Blab-away for as little as 1ยข/min. Make PC-to-Phone Calls using Yahoo! Messenger with Voice.
// posted by Shajahan @ 12:01 PM 