Forum: Forced to sell flat and need help to get another

I am a senior Singaporean who is struggling to secure a home despite repeated applications and appeals.

After being diagnosed with cancer, I could not work, and had to sell my flat due to mortgage difficulties. This has left me renting a place, with no permanent home.

I am not eligible for any senior housing schemes, and current HDB schemes do not help me.

Priority to live near parents or children is not helpful for seniors who have lost their parents or whose families are overseas.

Ownership rules require seniors to be home owners to apply for priority housing within 4km of their current address, but how can we have ownership if we had to sell our homes due to hardship? I was also not eligible for the HDB Lease Buyback Scheme because of my age.

If seniors heed the Government’s advice to downsize but there are not enough HDB units for them to buy directly from the Government, downsizing can leave them in a worse situation than before, putting them at risk of ending up without a home.

Oversubscribed Build-To-Order and Sale of Balance Flats exercises and high resale prices make it difficult for seniors to buy a flat.

CPF retirement savings also cannot be used to meet urgent financial needs.

Despite contacting the authorities, I have not received any help.

I hope my story highlights the gaps in housing and financial policies, and the need for empathy and practical support for seniors who are left without housing options.

Eileen Goh Gek Tin