HDB late payment charges suspended till Sept 30

Six-month extension to help home owners and rental tenants facing financial hardship

Home owners and public rental tenants who are unable to pay their Housing Board mortgage and rental payments on time will have their late payment charges suspended for a further six months till Sept 30 this year.

In a Facebook post yesterday, Minister of State for National Development Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim announced the extended suspension of late payment charges on both HDB mortgage and public rental arrears, in a targeted move to help households that have financial difficulties.

"While we are seeing positive signs in our economy and job market, some Singaporean households continue to face uncertain or difficult financial situations due to Covid-19's economic impact," he said.

"The extension of the late payment charges suspension is to help these households tide through, in line with the Government's approach to provide targeted support to households in need."

The HDB first suspended late payment charges on both mortgage and rental arrears for three months last April, and then extended it to Sept 30 last year.

The second extension took place last October and ended last month.

The current late payment charge is 7.5 per cent a year based on the outstanding instalment amount at the end of the month.

Between last April and last month, more than 5,200 households that had difficulties paying their mortgage or rent had taken up financial assistance measures offered by the HDB.

These include deferred or reduced repayment schemes and extension of loan tenure to reduce the monthly instalments.

During the same period, the HDB also reduced the rent for about 4,000 households, said Dr Faishal.

  • >5,200

    Number of households with difficulties paying their mortgage or rent that took up financial assistance measures offered by the Housing Board between last April and last month.

Last October, National Development Minister Desmond Lee said families living in public rental flats would have their rent slashed by half for three months, from October to December last year.

Home owners and tenants who are facing financial difficulties are encouraged to contact their local HDB branch for help.

Those on bank loans can tap the Extended Support Scheme introduced by the Monetary Authority of Singapore and financial institutions. The scheme helps individuals facing cash-flow difficulties transition gradually to full loan payments.

Individuals may apply to make reduced instalment payments on their property loans up to Dec 31 this year.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on April 13, 2021, with the headline HDB late payment charges suspended till Sept 30. Subscribe