In Your Opinion Podcast: Does Singapore's Sers scheme still work?

(From left to right) Sing Tien Foo, Professor of Real Estate and Director of Institute of Real Estate and Urban Studies at National University of Singapore and Opinion Editor, Grace Ho.

ST PHOTO: HADYU RAHIM

Grace Ho

Synopsis: Every second and fourth Friday of the month, The Straits Times' opinion editor Grace Ho takes a hard look at political and social issues of the day with her expert guests.

In this episode, she looks at why the Selective En bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS) exercise for a few Housing Board blocks of flats in Ang Mo Kio attracted controversy, especially after elderly residents found out that they had to pay up to $100,000 to move to a replacement flat of the same size. Several steps have been taken since then to support the residents.

In the studio to help make sense of SERS is Sing Tien Foo, Professor of Real Estate and Director of Institute of Real Estate and Urban Studies at National University of Singapore.

Highlights (click/tap above):

1:09 Why some residents don't want to move to a replacement flat, and the history of SERS

6:40 Who stands to gain from the three options available under Ang Mo Kio SERS

13:32 Grace discusses three alternative options with Professor Sing

18:40 Should there be leases even shorter than 50 years?

21:35 Can Singaporeans continue to expect their HDB flats to appreciate in value?

Produced by: Grace Ho (graceho@sph.com.sg), Ernest Luis, Hadyu Rahim and Eden Soh

Edited by: Hadyu Rahim

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