Tampines, Holland Village BTO projects most popular among first-timers in June launch
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The Holland Vista BTO site in Queenstown, which is currently a carpark.
ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO
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SINGAPORE - Housing Board Build-To-Order (BTO) projects in Tampines and Holland Village were the most popular among first-timer families in the June sales exercise.
As at 5pm on June 26, around eight first-time applicants were vying for each of the 214 four-room flats and 174 five-room flats at the Tampines GreenTopaz project, which has a waiting time of three years and one month. The development is near Tampines West MRT station, and one of its four blocks will also have two-room rental flats.
Holland Vista in Queenstown drew 2,100 applicants for 228 four-room flats, despite having the longest waiting time in this launch – four years and nine months. It will be the first public housing project in the area since 2012.
The first-timer application rate stood at 6.2 for these prime location public housing (PLH) model flats that come with stricter conditions, including an 8 per cent subsidy clawback upon resale and a 10-year minimum occupation period (MOP).
In all, 6,938 flats are on sale across eight projects
Tanjong Rhu Riverfront I and II in Kampong Arang Road, which are PLH projects, had a total of 3,763 applicants for 1,296 four-room flats, with two first-time applicants gunning for each unit.
Three-room flats were undersubscribed among first-timers, with 0.8 first-time applicant vying for each of the 197 such units.
The projects, comprising 11 blocks ranging from eight to 29 storeys, are near the Stadium and Mountbatten MRT stations. Property analysts said the flats could have views of the Singapore Sports Hub and Marina Reservoir.
Among the projects in non-mature estates, Chencharu Hills in Yishun was the most sought after. The development, bounded by Sembawang Road and Lorong Chencharu, is the first BTO launch in the up-and-coming housing area
The five-room flats in this project had 1,509 applicants for the 390 units, with about two first-timers vying for each unit. There were two first-time applicants for each of the 420 four-room flats. At least 95 per cent of four-room and larger flats in non-mature estates are set aside for first-time applicants.
In Jurong East, the first-timer application rate for the Teban Breeze project in Teban Gardens Road and Jurong Town Hall Road was 1.9 for the 234 five-room flats, and 1.1 for the 444 four-room flats.
Application rates were lower for a 1,609-unit development in Woodlands along Admiralty Road and Marsiling Lane.
The first-timer application rates were below one for four- and five-room and three-generation flats at Marsiling Peak I and II. This means all first-time applicants for these flats are set to get a chance to select a unit.
Marsiling Peak I, a project with a shorter waiting time
Three-room flats in Woodlands and Jurong East were also undersubscribed among first-timers, with a first-time application rate of 0.7 across the three projects, while those in Yishun drew about one applicant per flat on offer. These units have an estimated size of about 69 sq m.
Those who get a queue number for this launch can expect to book their flat at the HDB Hub in Toa Payoh between September 2024 and August 2025.
In a Facebook post on June 26, HDB said first-time applicants who applied for three-, four- and five-room and three-generation flats in Woodlands and Jurong East “stand a very good to relatively good chance of being able to book a flat”.
The median application rate for first-time applicants for three-room and larger flats was 1.8 as at 12pm on June 26, higher than that in February’s exercise, HDB noted.
It expects the final application rate for June’s sales exercise to stand at about two, lower than the pre-pandemic norm.
“This continues the trend of more muted application rates for first-timers buying three-room and bigger flats, which form the vast majority of BTO sales launch purchases, since the November 2022 sales launch,” it added.
Ms Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist at property firm OrangeTee Group, said she expected more applicants in June’s sales exercise as the new classification of flats into Prime, Plus or Standard categories will take effect from the October launch.
As at 5pm on June 26, the total number of applicants stood at 21,827, the highest since November 2022, when there were 24,179 applicants, she noted.
“A project like Tampines GreenTopaz saw a higher number of applicants, as these buyers get to enjoy the flat with just a five-year MOP, while future flats in similar locations will likely be classified as Plus flats,” she said.
The Tampines GreenTopaz project is near Tampines West MRT station, and one of its four blocks will also have two-room rental flats.
PHOTO: HDB
BTO units in choicer locations will fall under the Prime and Plus categories. These flats will have stricter resale conditions, such as a 10-year MOP and a subsidy clawback upon resale.
Standard flats, which will form the bulk of public housing supply, will come with a five-year MOP and have no significant restrictions on the pool of resale buyers.
Mr Mohan Sandrasegeran, head of research and data analytics at property agency Singapore Realtors, said the high demand for flats in Holland Vista could be attributed to its proximity to Holland Village MRT station and the One Holland Village mall.
“The rarity of newer public housing flats in the Holland Village area likely further boosted the interest of potential home owners eager to secure an HDB flat in this sought-after location,” he added.
