HDB abolishes sibling scheme

By Channel NewsAsia, Updated: 14/02/2011
HDB abolishes sibling scheme


HDB flats
SINGAPORE: Unmarried Singaporean and Permanent Resident (PR) siblings whose parents live overseas can no longer buy a new or resale HDB flat, from Monday.

The government said they can either rent a room or a small flat from the open market.

It said with the liberalisation of the subletting market for HDB flats over the years, the Citizen—Singapore PR sibling scheme, introduced since 1990, is now no longer necessary.

Previously, the government allowed unmarried Singaporean siblings to buy a new or resale HDB flat, while PR siblings could buy a resale flat on a case—by—case basis with certain conditions attached.

Senior Minister of State for National Development & Education Grace Fu said: "As HDB has been very stringent in assessing applications for this scheme, the number of such cases is small.

"There are about 300 cases each year, or less than one per cent of total flat transactions".

—CNA/wk

Singapore says will take more steps on property if needed
Reuters - Monday, February 14

SINGAPORE, Feb 14 - Singapore will introduce additional steps to cool its private housing market if necessary, National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan said on Monday.

He also described measures introduced on Jan 13 as pre-emptive and said it was too soon to assess the impact.

Singapore last month introduced new measures to cool home prices that have continued to rise despite earlier efforts to put a lid on a red-hot property market.

The measures included a stamp duty on those who buy and sell residential properties within four years, up from the previous requirement of three years.

Individual buyers who are still servicing an existing loan can only borrow up to 60 percent of the new property's value, down from 70 percent. For corporate investors, the loan-to-value limit was cut to 50 percent.

Singapore private home prices rose 17.6 percent last year.