HDB RENTAL FLATS (Numbers and types)

Mr Cheo Chai Chen asked the Minister for National Development (a) if he will state the numbers and types of Housing and Development Board flats (i) on rental to Singaporeans and (ii) vacant and presently available for rental to eligible Singaporeans and (b) whether steps have been taken to shorten the waiting time for eligible Singaporeans in urgent need of such flats.

Mr Lim Hng Kiang (for the Minister for National Development): At present, a total of 52,280 flats are let out at subsidised rents to lower income Singapore citizen families under the Public Scheme for Rental Flats. Of the 52,280 rental flats, 20,240 are 1-room, 25,910 are 2-room, and the majority of the remaining 6,130 are 3-room flats.

As I mentioned in my reply to Dr Vasoo earlier, there are at present 4,900 applicants on the waiting list for rental flats. About 1,400 flats are available for rental to these citizen families. HDB will be increasing the supply of rental flats to help reduce the waiting time for applicants. Some 2,300 additional flats will be released for rental in the coming months.

Let me just assure the Member that, in general, an applicant who is not too choosy about the location of his rental flat is able to select a flat within two to six months from the date he submits his application. This is because, in addition to the normal monthly selection exercises, HDB also conducts frequent selection exercises for flats not selected during the normal monthly selection exercises. Applicants who are in urgent need of rental housing can therefore participate in these exercises for unselected flats, and should be able to get their flats earlier.