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Thread: Review of HDB income ceiling in 6 months: Mah

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    Default Review of HDB income ceiling in 6 months: Mah

    http://www.straitstimes.com/PrimeNew...ry_664433.html

    May 4, 2011

    GE 2011

    Review of HDB income ceiling in 6 months: Mah

    Ceiling for first-timers buying new flats could be raised to $10,000

    By Jessica Cheam, Housing Correspondent


    THE income ceiling for buying new HDB flats - unchanged for the past 17 years for first-timers - is set to be reviewed in the next six months, said National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan.

    He said the ceiling could be raised from the current $8,000 to $10,000, though the actual level will be decided after the study.

    If the ceiling is raised, it will be a stunning turnaround by Singapore's policymakers, who, as recently as March, defended the ceiling as still relevant.

    Mr Mah himself had said in Parliament that four in five households still qualify for public housing with the ceiling at $8,000.

    'Our budget is not limitless. Our subsidies are targeted to offer more help for the lower-income group,' he said then.

    His announcement of the timeframe for the review, made on the sidelines of his walkabout in Tampines Street 23 yesterday, follows a hint dropped by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Monday that couples in the middle-income group could get some relief from the Government's review of the income ceiling.

    A couple's combined income now has to be below $8,000 a month for them to qualify to buy a new flat directly from the Housing Board, which is typically 20 to 30 per cent cheaper than a market-rate resale flat.

    Those who go for resale flats from the open market receive a housing grant of up to $40,000 if their joint monthly income is below $8,000. It is unclear whether the review will also look at the income ceiling for this housing grant.

    Calls have been getting louder for the ceiling to be raised, as couples bust the ceiling soon after joining the workforce and become barred from buying flats from the HDB or getting the grant.

    At the same time, they say they are unable to afford resale flats or private property, prices of which have been on a bull run in recent years.

    Mr Mah, who is leading the People's Action Party team's bid for re-election in Tampines GRC, yesterday acknowledged that the recent National Wages Council's recommendation for a rise in wages in tandem with economic conditions and a tight labour market means that the 'urgency... to look at the ceiling is there'.

    The minister said he has received 'a lot of feedback' on this from residents through block visits, e-mail and other ministers.

    The message from the middle class is 'Don't forget about us. The Government has done a lot for the low-income ... compared with the middle class', he said.

    So it is important for the Government to assure this group - also called the sandwich class, who have to look after their children and their parents - that they are taken care of, he added.

    Mr Mah said that when the Government raised the income ceiling for the top-tier flats under HDB's Design, Build and Sell Scheme from $8,000 to $10,000, it held back on raising that for new build-to-order flats because the market was still very hot then.

    'If we raise the income ceiling, more people will join the queue. So we decided to wait for a while, until the queue gets shorter, and more and more flats are rolled out,' he said.

    Market analysts that The Straits Times spoke to expressed surprise at the timing of the review, but agreed that it has been a long time coming.

    Property agency PropNex chief executive Mohamed Ismail said: 'Many in the industry have said it's worth considering, as we have to factor in the increase in current prices and inflation.'

    Dr Yu Shi Ming, who heads the National University of Singapore's department of real estate, noted that Singaporeans are now getting married later, so they are likely to bust the income ceiling by the time they settle down.

    It is 'natural' that this policy is reviewed, and it could also take the pressure off the HDB resale-flat market and stabilise prices, he said.

    Aspiring first-time flat buyer Koh Wan Ping, 27, said the review is good news, but will not influence how she casts her vote in Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC.

    Mr Jeffrey Chua, 30, is less sanguine. Having balloted for a flat - unsuccessfully - twice, he is expecting the income ceiling revision to put more people in the queue.

    'It may be harder for me to get that dream flat then. We'll have to wait and see,' he said.

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    http://www.straitstimes.com/PrimeNew...ry_665010.html

    May 5, 2011

    HDB income ceiling review: NSP claims credit

    By Marc Lim & Cheryl Lim


    SINGAPOREANS can pat themselves on the back for getting National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan to relook the Housing Board income ceiling for flat buyers, said the National Solidarity Party (NSP) yesterday.

    It said that it was only after the opposition raised residents' concerns over the high cost of HDB flats that Mr Mah announced, on Tuesday, that a review would be conducted in the next six months to possibly raise the cap from the current $8,000 to $10,000.

    His announcement came just two months after he stoutly defended the existing ceiling in Parliament, saying that four in five households qualified for public housing with the $8,000 cap.

    Addressing the NSP rally at the Tampines Stadium, the party's Tampines GRC candidate Raymond Lim said that the party's attempts to hold Mr Mah accountable for his policies had made him 'panic'.

    'What do we see lately?' asked the former Young People's Action Party (PAP) member, who made the switch to join the opposition last year.

    'We see panic attempts by Mah Bow Tan to create YouTube videos to address the collective voices of Singaporeans. We see Mr Mah trying to lift the income ceiling. We see Mr Mah announcing new (build-to-order) flats. This is checks- and-balances at work.'

    He said this showed why voters should choose the opposition - so that their voices can continue to be heard.

    Also taking aim at Mr Mah was candidate Reno Fong, who said that the minister owed Singaporeans an apology for the high prices of HDB flats.

    NSP secretary-general Goh Meng Seng continued on the theme of accountability, saying: 'We don't want ministers to work once in five years but spend the rest of the four years caught off guard. Do you want to vote for ministers like that?

    'There should be no reasons for ministers to be caught off guard... because they have been sitting at the same table having meetings, discussing the economic strategy of increasing the huge number of foreign workers, to increase the GDP.'

    Mr Goh noted that if Mr Mah had been in the private sector, he would have been seen as a great chief executive whose policies - Certificates of Entitlement, and Electronic Road Pricing when he was Transport Minister, and now housing policies - all yielded great financial gains.

    Unfortunately, said Mr Goh, Mr Mah is in a business that should 'put Singaporeans first'.

    He brought up the example of old HDB blocks, slated for demolition, being used as rental flats fetching market rates.

    These flats in areas such as Havelock Road, Taman Ho Swee and Toa Payoh are managed by private companies which can then decide how much to charge tenants, who must be either Singaporeans, permanent residents, students or those with employment or S-Pass permits.

    Rents can go up to about $1,500 a month. Mr Goh asked why such flats cannot be made available for the needy.

    Additional reporting by Tham Yuen-C

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    So silly, prices crashing and claiming credit.....

    Mark my words, it will crash by 2 years.

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    Quote Originally Posted by kingkong1984
    So silly, prices crashing and claiming credit.....

    Mark my words, it will crash by 2 years.
    Mark the date 4th may 2013.... Come bck with glory or change a new nick

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    hee hee wonder when will government start subsidizing citizens to buy private properties?

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    Quote Originally Posted by Allthepies
    hee hee wonder when will government start subsidizing citizens to buy private properties?
    You wait long long... the day they do that is the day they admit that their housing model of HDB failed! If all get subsidy to stay in private, then who'll buy from HDB??? Not this own goal lah!!!

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    Quote Originally Posted by Allthepies
    hee hee wonder when will government start subsidizing citizens to buy private properties?
    it will only happen if u vote Singapore Devil Party IN!

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    Quote Originally Posted by devilplate
    it will only happen if u vote Singapore Devil Party IN!
    Its polling day.. i'm going to vote for Singapore Devil Party. Do I put a tick or a circle beside SDP?

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    Quote Originally Posted by ysyap
    Its polling day.. i'm going to vote for Singapore Devil Party. Do I put a tick or a circle beside SDP?
    just vote as many opposition in!

    enjoy short term gains is our priority

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    Your can put a yes.... Hahahaha

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    Quote Originally Posted by devilplate
    just vote as many opposition in!

    enjoy short term gains is our priority
    i ready to soak up lots of stocks when the market crash after the election preparing for short term gains

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    Quote Originally Posted by Allthepies
    i ready to soak up lots of stocks when the market crash after the election preparing for short term gains
    Keep our finger crossed

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    I was queuing for some blue chips on Friday but did not drop so low. Will wait for Monday.
    Quote Originally Posted by Allthepies
    i ready to soak up lots of stocks when the market crash after the election preparing for short term gains

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    Quote Originally Posted by DC33_2008
    I was queuing for some blue chips on Friday but did not drop so low. Will wait for Monday.
    actually i just wana see below 60% .....tat matters most

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