SINGAPORE: The Housing and Development Board (HDB) will launch 2,085 Build-to-Order (BTO) flats with shorter waiting times across three projects in Bukit Batok and Sengkang in October’s sales exercise.
In particular, the flats in West BrickVille@Bukit Batok will be completed within two years, making it “one of the shortest wait time projects” it has ever launched, HDB said on Sunday (Oct 6).
The Fernvale Sails and Fernvale Oasis BTO projects in Sengkang will only take slightly longer to complete, with a wait time of two years and three months, and two years and nine months respectively.
With October’s sales exercise, the total number of Shorter Waiting Times (SWT) flats launched this year will rise to 2,876 units, fulfilling a commitment that was made last year and reiterated in January.
“In 2023, HDB committed to launching 2,000 to 3,000 SWT flats per year by 2025. With this latest offer, HDB has met the target a year ahead of schedule,” it said.
“Almost 70 per cent of these flats comprise 4-room and 5-room flats, which are the most popular flat types among families.”
HDB has been able to offer nearly 3,000 SWT flats this year by “working closely with various government agencies to make sites available earlier, and starting construction works many months, or even more than a year, ahead of the project launch”, said CEO Tan Meng Dui.
“This builds on the current delivery timelines of our mainstream BTO projects, where we have already been awarding tenders and starting construction as soon as the sites become available, instead of waiting till the sales launch for flat applications to come in.”
Mr Tan noted that this year’s supply of new flats with a waiting time of less than three years is “almost four times that of last year’s supply”.
According to HDB, 732 SWT flats were offered in 2023.
He said that this “provides more options for homeowners with more pressing housing needs”.
HDB will continue to deliver affordable and quality flats safely, with a certain proportion of SWT flats every year to “better support home ownership aspirations of Singaporeans”, Mr Tan added.
It will also continue to recalibrate its building programme over time so that SWT flats will make up a larger proportion of new flat supply.
WEST BRICKVILLE @ BUKIT BATOK
The upcoming BTO project in Bukit Batok will be situated between Bukit Batok Road and Bukit Batok West Avenue 8. The project comprises 689 units of 2-room Flexi, 3-room, 4-room, 5-room and 3Gen flats across five residential blocks.
The project’s design pays tribute to the brick factories that once operated in the area, HDB said.
“Its landscape, with meandering jogging and cycling paths connecting to facilities such as the children’s playgrounds and fitness corners, draws inspiration from the flowing form of kiln smoke.”