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Thread: Khaw: Three groups need housing help

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    Default Khaw: Three groups need housing help

    http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/sub/...40737,00.html?

    Published May 27, 2011

    Priority: Young couples, divorcees, low earners

    Khaw sets near term focus on their housing needs

    By EMILYN YAP


    (SINGAPORE) Young couples, divorcees with children and low income families are among those who have made it to the Ministry of National Development's (MND) priority list.

    Former Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan, now the National Development Minister, revealed this yesterday in the first post he put up on his new Housing Matters blog.

    In the entry titled Trepidation and Expectation, Mr Khaw said that many people have sent him emails, letters and facebook messages offering feedback and suggestions for housing issues.

    'There were hundreds of them and many more will come, I am sure. I thank them all. They have given me a feel of the nature and the scale of the unhappiness and concerns,' he said.

    But Mr Khaw stressed that it is not possible to please everyone as demands are often contradictory. He gave an example: many people want him to bring property prices down, but many also warned him against doing so.

    'I am therefore realistic about what is doable. The key is to prioritise and set realistic goals, for short term, medium term and long term,' he said.

    'In the immediate, I will focus on the housing needs of some groups like the young couples, divorcees with children, and low income families as I appreciate the anxieties they are currently experiencing.'

    Fast rising home prices amid a sharp economic recovery in the last two years have bred a group of anxious home seekers. Housing affordability became a hot potato during the general election, with opposition parties coming up with various suggestions to keep flats within reach.

    'I am not a masochist. Housing is hot politically and there are genuine problems on the ground,' Mr Khaw acknowledged.

    'I will be very comfortable staying back in MOH (Ministry of Health) and I still have meaningful programmes to launch or complete. But I thought in my next five years I can be more useful in MND than in MOH.'

    Mr Khaw said he will consult widely and use all communication platforms available. Through his new blog, he will regularly share his thoughts on issues under MND's purview. These include housing, land use, construction and food safety. Just this week, MND also launched its Facebook page.

    Mr Khaw had a 'Health Minister Says' blog when he headed MOH and made regular posts since 2009. The new Health Minister, Gan Kim Yong, will be taking over that blog.

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    http://www.straitstimes.com/PrimeNew...ry_673023.html

    May 27, 2011

    Khaw: Three groups need housing help

    Top of his list: Young couples, divorcees with children and the poor

    By Esther Teo & Nur Dianah Suhaimi


    HIS blogging was a feature of his stint as health minister and now Mr Khaw Boon Wan and his online commentary are venturing into an even trickier minefield - real estate.

    The new National Development Minister filed his first post on his 'Housing matters' blog yesterday and went right to the key area of worry for many.

    Mr Khaw identified young couples, divorcees with kids and low-income families as the groups needing most help in getting on the property ladder, noting that he can 'appreciate the anxieties they are currently experiencing'.

    He also stressed in the blog posting aptly entitled Trepidation And Expectation that he is 'realistic about what is doable', adding that 'several wisely advised me 'not to try to please all, as that will surely fail'.'

    The minister spoke about the flood of advice, suggestions and feedback - some conflicting - he has received since he moved into the hot seat last week.

    These have helped give him a feel for the scale of the unhappiness and concerns, he added.

    As befitting someone who has made full use of new communications avenues, Mr Khaw stressed that he will consult widely with experts, customers, industry players and Singaporeans themselves.

    'I will use all communications platforms available, online, offline, closed-door forums, open forums, big groups, small groups. It will be time-consuming but I am sure will be enriching and educational.'

    It goes without saying that it will also be challenging given how housing became such a fierce issue during the election campaign.

    Mr Khaw wrote: 'I am not a masochist. Housing is hot politically and there are genuine problems on the ground.

    'At my Meet-the-People sessions, 70 per cent of appeal cases are on housing. I don't think I am the only MP who harasses MND and HDB regularly.'

    Mr Khaw said he would have been comfortable staying in the Health Ministry as he still had meaningful programmes to launch or complete. However, he felt he could be more useful in the National Development Ministry over the next five years.

    His first post has generated plenty of positive feedback, with MPs and industry experts saying Mr Khaw has correctly identified those in 'critical' need of help.

    Dennis Wee Group director Chris Koh said Mr Khaw is 'spot-on' in identifying those most affected and was right to say that not everyone can be pleased.

    Young couples and single parents, for example, face difficulties as they lack the cash to buy resale flats, he added.

    Mr Koh also identified genuine upgraders with an existing mortgage as another segment under pressure. The 60 per cent loan-to-value ratio for those with an outstanding loan has made it harder for them to finance a larger home.

    Holland-Bukit Timah GRC MP Liang Eng Hwa said divorced couples particularly need help because many cannot afford a new flat as a single after splitting the proceeds of the matrimonial home.

    'HDB might want to be more flexible with its rules, especially when there are children involved. I'm glad the minister is looking into this matter,' he said.

    Teacher Amelie Chew, 30, has wanted to buy a resale HDB flat in Bishan since marrying three years ago.

    She told The Straits Times: 'I can afford the mortgage but not the cash-over-valuation the sellers are asking for. I don't have $30,000 cash to spare.'

    Mr Zainudin Nordin, mayor of Central Singapore District, said low-income earners often face problems getting a rental flat and for some, buying a flat they can afford.

    He suggested Mr Khaw should also focus on those who lost their jobs during the recession, defaulted on mortgages and had their homes repossessed.

    'Some of them ended up living on the beach. They are now in temporary homes but they still need their own place,' he said. Mr Zainudin added he will post some suggestions on Mr Khaw's blog.

    Mr Tan Kok Keong, OrangeTee's head of research and consultancy, suggested the Government look to increasing the number of rental flats for low-income families as there is a long waitlist.

    The HDB could also consider introducing further stepped levels of housing grants for those in need, he added.

    Associate Professor Sing Tien Foo, of the National University of Singapore's department of real estate, said meeting the aspirations of younger people is a challenge while Mr Khaw will have to walk a tightrope between providing affordable housing and preserving the value of existing homes.

    Mr Khaw's blog post acknowledged that he is well aware of that tightrope: 'The demands are often contradictory,' he wrote. 'For example, many want me to bring property prices down. Many also warn me not to bring prices down.'

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