HDB recently transacted resale prices

While a property agent would have the information of the average prices of similar flats in a particular area, a buyer / seller should do their own homework and be aware of market prices.

One of the most popular e-services at HDB’s website is the Resale Flat Prices search facility which enables the public to check recently transacted resale prices without charge. This is part of the HDB’s on-going efforts to provide better services to the public to enable buyers and sellers of HDB resale flats make more informed decisions. (more…)

Single Singapore Citizen Scheme in purchasing resale HDB flat

Different types of flats under HDB will have different sets of criteria that you will have to fulfill in order to make a purchase. All criteria typically involve citizenship status, age, family nucleus, income ceiling, time bar and ethnic policy factors.

In the case of Single Singaporean Citizen Scheme, single Singapore citizens who have reached the age of 35 (based on date of birth) can buy a resale HDB flat under the Single Singapore Citizen Scheme. There is no restriction by flat type or location.

As for widowed persons and orphans, the age criterion is at least 21. For an orphan buying a resale flat on his or her own, he or she must not have another sibling below the age of 35 buying a flat separately under the Orphans Scheme, Single Singapore Citizen Scheme or Joint Singles Scheme.
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HDB resale flat buyer eligibility

Buying a home is not only the biggest financial commitment one will ever make. In Singapore, if you are going to purchase a HDB resale flat, you should also ensure that you have met the eligibility conditions before committing to the resale transaction.

At the moment, you have to qualify under one of the following schemes so that you can buy a resale flat from the open market:

• Public Scheme
• Fiancé/Fiancée Scheme
• Single Singapore Citizen Scheme
• Joint Singles Scheme
• Non-Citizen Spouse Scheme
• Non-Citizen Family Scheme
• Orphans Scheme
• Citizen/Singapore Permanent Resident (SPR) Siblings Scheme

Basically the eligibility conditions are with regards to citizenship, age and family nucleus.
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Toa Payoh – Excellent Residential Location

Toa Payoh is a district located in the Central Region of Singapore. Occupying a land area of approximately 8 sq km, it is one of the most populated public housing estates in Singapore and is the closest estate to the city. It houses some 150,000 residents to date and is one of the earliest satellite public housing estates in Singapore.

In the Hokkien dialect, Toa Payoh translates to “big swamp” (Toa means “big” and Payoh means “swamp”). It is the Chinese equivalent of Paya Lebar. To the older generation of Chinese here, Toa Payoh is known as Ang Xiang Shan or “burial hill” due to the prominent fixture of a cemetery located in the area.

The Toa Payoh Planning Area, an urban planning zone under the Urban Redevelopment Authority, encompasses the Toa Payoh New Town, Potong Pasir and the private housing estates in the Upper Aljunied area. The planning area is bounded by Braddell Road and Bartley Road to the north, Upper Paya Lebar Road to the east, MacPherson Road and Jalan Toa Payoh to the south and Thomson Road to the west. It covers a total of 845 ha in land area.

The Toa Payoh New Town, HDB‘s second satellite town after Queenstown, was built in 1968. The housing estate is self-contained and has a town center acting as a focal point for the shopping and entertainment needs of the residents. Industrial developments were also built within the town to provide residents with job opportunities close to home while schools were built within the neighborhoods.

The commercial development, HDB Hub, located at the Toa Payoh Town Center was completed in 2002. The Housing and Development Board relocated its headquarters from its premises at Bukit Merah to the HDB Hub on 10 June 2002. The building also accommodates Singapore’s first fully air-conditioned Toa Payoh Bus Interchange and integrates it with the existing Toa Payoh MRT Station. Toa Payoh MRT Station (NS19) is an underground station of the Mass Rapid Transit’s North South Line in Singapore.

The sporting facilities are based in the southern central part of Toa Payoh, which is located near the town center. It consists of 3500 seater Toa Payoh Stadium. There is also Toa Payoh Swimming Complex, where national swimmers train at the complex.

The Toa Payoh Community Library, located at 6, Toa Payoh Central, Singapore 319191 was opened on 7 February 1974. It was the second full-time branch library built by the National Library to decentralize its library services.

Toa Payoh Town Park was first developed in the seventies. The park is furnished with amenities such as open-concept restrooms, a large pavilion with a stage for organized activities, rustic-looking gazebos for the relaxation of visitors and brightly colored pathways for an enjoyable stroll or jog around the park. The park also features such as cascading pools at the edge of the pond, fountain pool around the observation tower, trellises with climbing plants, colorful landscapes throughout the park and festive lighting during national celebrations.

From Toa Payoh, getting to the bustling and trendy Orchard Road is a short drive or a MRT ride of 3 stops only. With its hawker centres, coffee shops, a community library, SAFRA, a landscaped park, two MRT station – Toa Payoh MRT Station (NS19) and Braddel MRT Station (N S18), Toa Payoh is proving to be an excellent place for both residents and visitors to experience local culture.

Singapore postal district & sector code

Singapore is divided into 28 separate postal districts. The following is a list of the areas and localities covered in each of the 28 districts:

D1 City – Business District
Boat Quay, Chinatown, Havelock Road, Marina Square, Raffles Place, Suntec City

D2 City – Business District
Anson Road, Chinatown, Neil Road, Raffles Place, Shenton Way, Tanjong Pagar

D3 Central South
Alexandra Road, Tiong Bahru, Queenstown

D4 South
Keppel, Mount Faber, Sentosa, Telok Blangah

D5 South West
Buona Vista, Dover, Pasir Panjang, West Coast

D6 City – Business District
City Hall, High Street, North Bridge Road

D7 City
Beach Road, Bencoolen Road, Bugis, Rochor
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HDB – the biggest landlord & developer of Singapore

Residential property in Singapore can be broadly classified into land properties, private and public housing. The vast majority (80%) of Singapore residents live in public housing estates while the rest reside in private estates. The HDB (Housing & Development Board) is the organization that plans and develops affordable and comfortable residential estates

The HDB is the statutory board of the Ministry of National Development responsible for public housing in Singapore. It’s headquarters were previously located at Bukit Merah. The new HDB Hub is now located at 480 Lorong 6 Toa Payoh since 10 June 2002. The HDB’s comprehensive housing programmes have involved the provision of not only the residential units but also the supporting facilities in the housing estates such as shops, childcare centers, carparks and industrial workshops.

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The HDB is generally credited with clearing up the squatters and slums of the 1960s and resettling residents into low-cost government-built housing. About 80-90% of Singapore’s population are currently living in HDB flats. Costing between S$110,000 to S$800,000, these units are the most common form of accommodation for locals in Singapore. Thus, in Singapore’s context, HDB flatas or the public housing is not considered a sign of poverty or a lower standard of living; as compared to public housing in other developed countries. For example, an HDB 4-room flat depending on age, environment and surrounding amenities can have a sale value of between S$300,000 to above S$400,000. Adding to the variety of public housing is the design, build and sell scheme (DBSS) introduced in 2005. Under DBSS, designated sites are sold to private developers, who are then responsible for designing, building and selling the flats.

An intermediate category of housing to bridge the gap between HDB flats and private condominiums was introduced in 1995. Called executive condominiums, these units offer the standard of private condominium living but at lower prices even though they are built and sold by private developers. The reselling of such units is subject to certain restrictions, which are lifted only after a minimum occupation period of ten years. (more…)

Introducing Singapore Real Estate Property

Singapore is one of Asia’s most advanced and cosmopolitan cities. It is an island state with a limited amount of undeveloped land. Because land is scarce, it is a precious resource and property is constantly in demand.

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Majority of the population live in high-rise HDB (Housing & Development Board flats (public housing) and condominiums. The rest of the people here own and live in private apartments/condominiums or live in a landed property.

Investing in real estate is very common among wealthier Singaporeans. More than 90% of households own their homes and are equipped with modern amenities.

Residential properties in Singapore can be divided into three main categories: Private apartments, landed properties and HDB apartments.

Private apartments are classified either as apartments or condominiums by the government. The distinction is somewhat artificial, but typically apartments are smaller developments and condominiums generally have more facilities and are larger. Most condominiums come with swimming pool, tennis court, gym, squash court, children playground and a BBQ area. They also typically have their own enclosed car park and security guards looking after the security at the entrances and the whole area around the condominiums. Tenure of private apartments is commonly freehold, 99-year leasehold or 999-year leasehold. A freehold title enables the owner to hold the property in perpetuity, whilst a leasehold title confers possession upon the purchaser for the duration of the lease (for example, 99 or 999 years). On expiry of the lease, the title and interest in the property revert to the State.

Interest rates in Singapore are currently relatively low which is helping to attract more buyers to the property market. Home financing can be quite affordable and if an investor decides they want a mortgage to buy their investment property in Singapore they should have this agreed in principal before making any offer to buy otherwise the sale could fall through and the potential buyer could lose up to a 10% deposit.
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