Data for Rentals of Privately-owned HDB Shops and for Licensing of Outdoor Refreshment Areas

Mr Dennis Tan Lip Fong asked the Minister for National Development (a) why does HDB not collect or publish rental transaction data for privately-owned HDB shops and licensing data for outdoor refreshment areas; and (b) whether the Ministry will require such data to be reported and published to allow for an evidence-based assessment of rental pressures on heartland businesses.

Mr Chee Hong Tat: The Member's question pertains to privately-owned Housing and Development Board (HDB) shops. For privately owned shops, different Government agencies may collect and publish related aggregated data, which allows for data transparency while balancing commercial sensitivities. For example, the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) maintains records on lease and tenancy transactions that are submitted to IRAS for the payment of stamp duty, including those for privately-owned HDB shops. The rental data collected by IRAS are made available by geographical location and property type on the Urban Redevelopment Authority's Real Estate Information System.

HDB announced in January 2026 that for HDB-owned coffeeshops, the Government will start collecting data on stall rents charged by rental coffee shop operators. HDB will assess how the stall rents data can be made publicly available, to enable stallholders to make better-informed decisions. In the same vein, HDB is looking to make available Temporary Occupation Licence (TOL) data for outdoor refreshment areas (ORA) to provide greater transparency on ORA TOL fees paid by HDB coffee shop operators.