Updated from : The Straits Times, 5 Feb 2021
A total of 3,740 Build-To-Order (BTO) flats, including Singapore’s first assisted living public housing project for seniors, were launched for sale by the Housing Board yesterday in the first sales exercise of the year.
The flats are spread across seven housing projects in the mature towns of Kallang/Whampoa and Toa Payoh (Bidadari), and the non-mature towns of Bukit Batok and Tengah.
Those aged 65 and above can apply for a home at Harmony Village @ Bukit Batok, where 169 Community Care Apartments in a 15-storey residential block are on offer. The new housing concept comes with a mandatory service package to support seniors who wish to live on their own and yet enjoy some care, support and communal activities.
These flats are expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2024 and will come with senior-friendly fittings such as grab bars and a wheelchair-accessible bathroom.
Prices range from $52,000 to $60,000 for a 32 sq m unit, and the flats are sold on short leases of between 15 and 35 years. These units cannot be resold or rented out.
In Bidadari, which is part of Toa Payoh town, two out of the three projects have four-and five-room flats.
ParkEdge @ Bidadari, the biggest project of the three, has 476 four-and five-room flats on offer on a site opposite the future Mount Vernon funeral parlour complex that is slated for completion in 2025. The flats are estimated to be completed in the first quarter of the same year.
Another project, Alkaff Breeze, has 353 four-and five-room flats and is located near Cedar Primary School and the upcoming Alkaff Lake. These are estimated to be completed in the second quarter of 2024, the earliest to be ready in this launch, along with the Community Care Apartments in Bukit Batok.
The last BTO project in Bidadari, Bartley GreenRise, located on a site next to Maris Stella High School and within walking distance of Bartley MRT station, offers 387 three-and four-room units.
Prices start from $312,000, without grants, for a three-room flat and $464,000 for a four-room one. A five-room flat starts from $611,000, making these units the most expensive in this launch.
Since 2015, HDB has not launched five-room BTO flats in a centrally located mature estate outside of the Bidadari estate.
In Kallang/Whampoa, 626 two-room flexi, three-room and four-room flats are on offer at McNair Heights, on a site next to Kwong Wai Shiu Hospital and within walking distance of Boon Keng MRT station.
Prices start from $359,000 for a three-room flat and $532,000 for a four-room unit.
The estimated completion date is in the second quarter of 2026, making it one of two projects with the longest wait time in this launch.
A BTO project in Woodlands launched last August and another in Bishan last November had similarly long waiting periods, with completion dates estimated to be in the second quarter of 2026.
The biggest project for this launch is West Hill @ Bukit Batok, where 962 two-room flexi, three-room, four-room and five-room flats are on offer at the site bounded by Bukit Batok West Avenue 8 and Bukit Batok West Avenue 5.
Prices start from $175,000 for a three-room unit and $384,000 for a five-room one, making these flats the most affordable in this launch.
But home owners will have to wait until the second quarter of 2026 to get their keys.
In the new “forest town” of Tengah, a total of 767 two-room flexi, and three-and four-room flats are on offer at Parc Woods @ Tengah.
Prices start from $209,000 for a three-room unit and $298,000 for a four-room one. These flats will be completed in the first quarter of 2025.
Applications for the flats close on Wednesday on the HDB flat portal.
In May, the HDB will launch about 3,800 flats in Bukit Merah, Geylang, Tengah and Woodlands.
Another 4,930 flats will be offered in Queenstown, Kallang/ Whampoa, Tampines, Jurong East and Hougang in August.
Analysts said the projects in Kallang/Whampoa and Bidadari are likely to be the most popular in the current launch, going by application trends from past launches.
PropNex chief executive Ismail Gafoor said McNair Heights in Kallang/Whampoa would appeal to families who wish to live in a central location. He noted that the previous project in the area was heavily oversubscribed – 5.4 times for three-room flats and 15.6 times for four-room flats.
Software engineer Chee Rui Yi, 24, plans to apply for a flat in Bidadari with her partner, although they are unsure about the four-year wait for two of the projects.
“We are just going to apply and see what ballot number we get. We are actually already considering a resale flat, but I just want to try my luck in this BTO lottery,” she said.
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