PUNGGOL, SENGKANG,HOUGANG SEE UNPRECEDENTED DEMAND
OVERWHELMING demand for the latest batch of new Housing Board (HDB) flats suggests newlyweds are now looking at outlying estates they once shunned.
A total of 5,147 applications had been made yesterday by the close of the HDB's latest sale of just 316 flats in the far-flung areas of Hougang, Punggol and Sengkang.
That is 16 would-be buyers for every flat - a big jump in demand since June when 922 flats in the same areas attracted 3,955 applicants, or about four buyers for every flat.
Market watchers say only mature estates used to experience such high demand.
But the latest figures suggest new trends in which couples are turning increasingly to new HDB flats as resale prices rise - and to estates further away from the city.
The August and October sale of flats in established towns, and in the north and west zones, saw a 100 per cent take-up rate for the first time, the HDB said last week.
Earlier this year, applications for mature towns such as Bukit Merah were seven to 13 times the flats offered, while in newer estates such as Sengkang, this number was a lower 1.8 to 4.7 times, said the HDB in answer to queries from The Straits Times.
Housing experts The Straits Times spoke to said the limited flat supply means couples cannot afford to be too picky as competition is tough.
Associate Professor Tu Yong of the National University of Singapore's department of real estate said the buoyant economy is fuelling demand as more people get married.
The booming HDB resale market has priced homes out of reach of many buyers, so it is no surprise more people are turning to new, cheaper flats.
Resale home prices grew by 11 per cent in the first nine months of this year.
The HDB's latest sale offers flats from $142,000 for a four-room flat in Hougang where the median price is $250,500 in the resale market, and from $278,000 for an executive flat in Sengkang compared to $346,000 for a resale unit.
New flats can be paid for with Central Provident Fund monies or a home loan, unlike in the resale market where couples typically have to fork out cash to get a flat. Typically too, the more established the town, the higher the sum of cash needed upfront.
The problems faced by newlyweds in finding homes was flagged in Parliament last month by Aljunied GRC MP Cynthia Phua, who said she gets appeals from distressed couples every week.
IT consultant Goh Jhin Hin, 29, has tried to get a flat nine times in the past year - and rejects the notion that couples are too choosy.
He has applied for a range of locations from Toa Payoh to Sengkang - all without success. 'Getting a flat now is like gambling - it all depends on your luck,' he said.
Last month, National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan said the HDB will offer 7,000 new flats in the next seven months. He also urged newlyweds not to be too choosy, adding that it was not realistic 'for the HDB to offer only new flats in mature estates in the heart of the city'.
First-timer Leonard Tan, 27, widened his net and got lucky. He bagged a Bukit Panjang executive flat earlier this year, after failing to get his dream Ang Mo Kio home.
Property agency PropNex's chief, Mr Mohamed Ismail, said outlying, less mature estates such as Punggol and Sengkang are now seen as more attractive by young couples - hence the higher demand.
Mr Goh said build-to-order flats - which are built only if a certain level of demand is reached - are not a solution for him as the flats will be ready only in four to five years time.
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