THEY are among the priciest flats ever launched by the Housing Board, but there has been no shortage of potential buyers.

The 50-storey Pinnacle@Duxton in Tanjong Pagar has attracted 1,467 applications for the 428 four- and five-roomers on offer - that is about 3.5 hopefuls for each unit.

Cheaper homes in less central areas were in even more demand, with applications streaming in at a rate of 20 per new flat in some districts.

HDB's balloting exericse on Friday attracted a total of 4,463 applications for 992 flats on sale in Ang Mo Kio, Queenstown, Jurong West, Kallang /Whampoa and Tanjong Pagar as of 5pm on Monday.

The 111 five-roomers at the Pinnacle start at $545,000 and hit $645,800 for a 49th storey unit - the most expensive new HDB flats - yet there were still 372 applicants.

Demand for those flats paled in comparison with the 762 applications for just 39 four-room flats in Kallang/Whampoa, priced at $364,000 to $435,000.

Property analysts said the response was not surprising, considering the underlying demand for new flats by first-time buyers and the preference for cheaper units.

Read the full story in Tuesday's edition of The Straits Times.