REVIEW OF HDB POLICY TO ENCOURAGE YOUNG COUPLES TO LIVE NEAR PARENTS

Dr S Vasoo asked the Minister for National Development whether he will make further reviews of the policy to encourage young couples to live near parents in older Housing and Development Board housing estates.

Mr Lim Hng Kiang: HDB's public housing policies support the national policy of upholding the family as the basic unit of our society. There are various housing policies in place to encourage young couples to live near or together with their parents. For example, applicants under the Multi-Tier Family Housing Scheme are accorded higher priority in the allocation of new HDB flats. They are also eligible, subject to credit assessment, for mortgage loans of up to 90% instead of the usual 80% of the purchase price.

In addition, HDB also has the following schemes to encourage young couples to stay near or together with their parents:

(i) Sale of Adjoining Flat Scheme

As the majority of the smaller HDB flats are located in the older HDB estates where a lot of elderly parents are living in, HDB implemented the Sale of Adjoining Flat Scheme in 1993 to encourage young couples to live with their parents. Under this scheme, lessees of 3-room and smaller flats are allowed to buy the adjoining flat from the open market and combine both into a larger flat to accommodate the extended family living together.

(ii) CPF Housing Grant Scheme

The CPF Housing Grant Scheme implemented in 1994 provides a housing grant for first-timer couples who are buying resale HDB flats. If the first-timer couple buys a resale HDB flat in the same estate or within 2 km from their parents' flat, they are eligible for a higher grant of $50,000. Similarly, a multi-tier family buying a resale flat to stay together is also eligible for the $50,000 CPF housing grant.

(iii)Lessees/Tenants Affected By SERS/Relocation Scheme

To support an extended family living together, affected lessees or tenants under the Selective En-Bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS) or Relocation Scheme are allowed to include their children as joint applicants in their application for new flats.

(iv) Mutual Exchange of Flats Scheme

The Mutual Exchange of Flats Scheme introduced in 1979 provides another avenue for married children and their parents to stay near each other. This scheme allows lessees of HDB flats who have occupied their flats for at least a year to exchange their flats in the same or different estates. Through this scheme, the married child can exchange his existing flat with another lessee whose flat is close to that belonging to the former's parents, so that the married child could live close to his parents.

(v) Studio Apartments

In March 1998, the first batch of Studio Apartments for elderly was launched in the older estates as an alternative form of housing for senior citizens. HDB is mindful of maintaining the family ties between the elderly lessees who wish to live apart from their children but yet be near to them. Thus, priority allocation of Studio Apartments is given to elderly lessees whose children are taking over the elderly lessee's existing flats that are located in the same electoral division as the Studio Apartments. With this, the elderly lessees are able to continue living in the same housing estate which they are familiar with, and at the same time be in close proximity with their children.

HDB will keep an open mind to new proposals that aim to encour age young couples to buy a flat to stay with or near their parents.