HOUSING AND DEVELOPMENT BOARD FLATS (Unmarried person under 35 years as sole lessee of existing flat)

Mr Cheo Chai Chen asked the Minister for National Development whether the Housing and Development Board will consider allowing an unmarried person, under 35 years of age, to be the sole lessee of an existing flat which was inherited by him and his sibling upon the death of their parents and, with the marriage of the sibling, leaving him as the sole occupier.

The Senior Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for National Development (Mr Matthias Yao Chih) (for the Minister for National Development): Mr Cheo cited a situation in which two siblings inherited an HDB flat upon the death of their parents. Now one of the siblings is married and intends to move out of the flat, leaving behind the remaining sibling as the sole occupier. The issue is whether the remaining sibling qualifies to be the sole owner and occupier of the HDB flat.

To optimise the use of the limited land resource in Singapore, a proper family nucleus is made one of the eligibility conditions for owning an HDB flat. Single person households, unless the single person is more than 35 years old, are not allowed to own HDB flats. If we allow single person households to own HDB flats liberally, this would lead to an under-utilisation of HDB flats. Therefore, the remaining unmarried sibling cannot own and occupy the HDB flat on his own.

Mr Cheo Chai Chen (Nee Soon Central): ( In Mandarin): I would like to ask the Senior Parliamentary Secretary whether he agrees that in the circumstances cited, it will be unreasonable for HDB to take back the flat. A single person below the age of 35 cannot apply for a HDB flat, or even to purchase a HDB flat from the open market. As we all know private properties are very expensive ---

Mr Speaker: Order. Mr Cheo, are you making a speech? Could you proceed to ask your question?

Mr Cheo Chai Chen: ( In Mandarin): I would like to ask the Senior Parliamentary Secretary, in the circumstances I have cited, if we do not allow the single person to continue occupying the flat will we not make him homeless, suffer inconvenience and increase his financial burden because private properties are so expensive? I would like the Senior Parliamentary Secretary to consider this question.

Mr Matthias Yao Chih: Sir, Mr Cheo need not be concerned that HDB will compulsorily acquire the flat. Time and opportunity are given to persons in such circumstances to find accommodation, or to invite somebody else who is eligible to join him to occupy the flat, or to move out to live with his sibling who has married. In all these cases, if he wishes to sell his flat, he can do so.

Mr Cheo Chai Chen: ( In Mandarin): I would like to ask the Senior Parliamentary Secretary whether he is aware that if a person is asked to move out, it will cause him great inconvenience because he has to move a lot of things out of the flat and he has probably spent a lot of money renovating the flat. He has to start all over again. Why can the Senior Parliamentary Secretary not consider allowing such people to continue occupying the flat? It is fait accompli. It is already an accomplished fact that we must accept. On the other hand, there are not many such cases. So it would not affect the general policy of the Government.

Mr Matthias Yao Chih: Sir, Mr Cheo suggests that it is very disruptive for a person to move to another place of accommodation. There are more than 30,000 transactions a year where people move from one flat to another flat and there are lots of renovation going on, some very costly, and the people seem to be doing this rather than staying where they are all the time. So this may not be a big concern at all and he should not be worried about it. He suggests that since the numbers are small, we should accommodate them. The point is not whether the numbers are big or small. The point is the principle that we want to establish here.

Sir, HDB does not build accommodation. HDB builds homes for families, for people to bring up their families in a clean, hygienic and conducive environment for the development of their children. If we agree to this principle, then we should build more homes for family units. For single people in those circumstances, we will try to accommodate them in whatever way we can within their circumstances. But on Mr Cheo's first concern whether we will acquire those flats, we will not.

Mr Cheo Chai Chen: ( In Mandarin): I would like to ask the Senior Parliamentary Secretary this question. Does the Senior Parliamentary Secretary not agree that such single persons will also get married eventually? So why must he cause him the trouble of moving house in the first place? The next question is: From the legal point of view, there are many circumstances which are not specially created because of a natural course of events, for example, the parents have passed away and the flat is handed down to the children, or one of the children gets married while the other is unmarried, etc. So in circumstances of this nature, I think special consideration should be given. This does not involve the question of principle at all.

Mr Matthias Yao Chih: Sir, Mr Cheo is pursuing his line of questioning on a wrong premise. We do not force people to move out of their flats.