Why Do The Government Allows Ppl To Speculate Public Housing?

[Wind78 0]

Hmmmm read from somewhere, the government refuse to put a ceiling to how much a HDB can worth.

What if, in future, a 3 room flat cost 500 - 600K? Who can afford public housing?

Why isn't the govt doing anything to stop speculator from spiking up all the living cost?

Why har?

[therat 18]

b'coz government say

http://luxuryasiahome.wordpress.com/2009/0...-resale-prices/

‘Unrealistic’ to cap HDB resale prices

Posted by luxuryasiahome on July 21, 2009

A CAP on increases in the resale prices of HDB flats would be ‘unrealistic’, Parliament heard yesterday.

Senior Minister of State for National Development Grace Fu argued that prices of properties – especially HDB flats which are owned by 85 per cent of Singaporeans – should be a reflection of Singaporeans’ wealth, and hence it was ‘not such a bad idea for prices to move steadily over time’.

Referring to a letter published in The Straits Times’ Forum page last Saturday, she noted that there are Singaporeans who bought their flats at the height of the property boom in 1996 and are waiting for prices to return to that level so that they will no longer be in ‘negative equity’ – with their flats worth less than the loans they took out.

Ms Fu was replying to a question from Madam Ho Geok Choo (West Coast GRC), who asked if a cap should be imposed on rising HDB resale prices. Madam Ho raised concerns about whether or not HDB resale prices were being artificially propped up by inflated valuations.

Responding, Ms Fu pointed out that HDB valuations were not made by the Government, but by independent valuers based on recent transacted prices. She said the HDB resale price index has fluctuated within a narrow range of between plus 1 per cent and minus 1 per cent in the last few quarters, suggesting that prices have stabilised.

In fact, the cash over valuation or COV amounts have fallen – from a high of $22,000 in the fourth quarter of 2007 to below $5,000 in the second quarter of this year, said Ms Fu. The COV refers to the amount that a seller wants over and above the valuation of his flat.

A lower COV means that the buyer has to fork out less in cash, as banks lend only up to a certain percentage of the valuation amount.

Ms Fu noted that HDB flats remained affordable to Singaporeans, as first-time home buyers who purchase a resale flat in non-mature estates use on average about 25 per cent of their household income to service their loans. This is ‘well below’ the benchmark of 30 per cent the HDB uses to measure affordability, she noted.

She also reminded Parliament of housing grants the Government gives to first-time home buyers who opt for resale flats.

There is a CPF housing grant of $30,000, or $40,000 for those buying a flat near their parents. Those whose household income is less than $5,000 per month may get an additional grant of up to $40,000. The income ceiling for this was raised from $4,000 to $5,000 in February this year.

JESSICA JAGANATHAN

[raincole 0]

If capped, then how can Singaporean be asset-rich?

[therat 18]

asset rich, cash poor

How to keep the bank busy

How to create job for those elite

[merryman 0]

If capped, then how can Singaporean be asset-rich?

buy private properties then...

Wind78, still not getting over HDB's pricing and regulation?! You don't have much choice though unless you're going for private properties..

[Wind78 0]

buy private properties then...

Wind78, still not getting over HDB's pricing and regulation?! You don't have much choice though unless you're going for private properties..

Well I'm not quite worried lah!

I tink during my living years I still can buy a flat.

I'm just buay song of how the govt makes money out of it.

Imagine the taxes they collect from it. Ooooo!!!! No wonder Temasek loose so much money effortlessly And still can smile and

Anyway, most likely the creation of the pro creators will likely suffer the most

Hmmm now 4 rm = 400K maybe 10 yrs later 4 rm = 4 million? Ooooo! Shiok!!!

Hahahahhaha

[Wind78 0]

b'coz government say

http://luxuryasiahome.wordpress.com/2009/0...-resale-prices/

‘Unrealistic’ to cap HDB resale prices

Posted by luxuryasiahome on July 21, 2009

A CAP on increases in the resale prices of HDB flats would be ‘unrealistic’, Parliament heard yesterday.

Senior Minister of State for National Development Grace Fu argued that prices of properties – especially HDB flats which are owned by 85 per cent of Singaporeans – should be a reflection of Singaporeans’ wealth, and hence it was ‘not such a bad idea for prices to move steadily over time’.

Referring to a letter published in The Straits Times’ Forum page last Saturday, she noted that there are Singaporeans who bought their flats at the height of the property boom in 1996 and are waiting for prices to return to that level so that they will no longer be in ‘negative equity’ – with their flats worth less than the loans they took out.

Ms Fu was replying to a question from Madam Ho Geok Choo (West Coast GRC), who asked if a cap should be imposed on rising HDB resale prices. Madam Ho raised concerns about whether or not HDB resale prices were being artificially propped up by inflated valuations.

Responding, Ms Fu pointed out that HDB valuations were not made by the Government, but by independent valuers based on recent transacted prices. She said the HDB resale price index has fluctuated within a narrow range of between plus 1 per cent and minus 1 per cent in the last few quarters, suggesting that prices have stabilised.

In fact, the cash over valuation or COV amounts have fallen – from a high of $22,000 in the fourth quarter of 2007 to below $5,000 in the second quarter of this year, said Ms Fu. The COV refers to the amount that a seller wants over and above the valuation of his flat.

A lower COV means that the buyer has to fork out less in cash, as banks lend only up to a certain percentage of the valuation amount.

Ms Fu noted that HDB flats remained affordable to Singaporeans, as first-time home buyers who purchase a resale flat in non-mature estates use on average about 25 per cent of their household income to service their loans. This is ‘well below’ the benchmark of 30 per cent the HDB uses to measure affordability, she noted.

She also reminded Parliament of housing grants the Government gives to first-time home buyers who opt for resale flats.

There is a CPF housing grant of $30,000, or $40,000 for those buying a flat near their parents. Those whose household income is less than $5,000 per month may get an additional grant of up to $40,000. The income ceiling for this was raised from $4,000 to $5,000 in February this year.

JESSICA JAGANATHAN

"Senior Minister of State for National Development Grace Fu argued that prices of properties – especially HDB flats which are owned by 85 per cent of Singaporeans – should be a reflection of Singaporeans’ wealth"

Singaporean wealth?

Let see,

If I buy a 4 room flat, 450K in TPY, I borrow loan from either the bank / HDB, in paper I own the flat, but in the eye of the law, if I cannot afford to pay, HDB/Bank has the rite to seize my flat. I have to work all my life to pay for the loan, is that wealth to me?

Does the size of our loan & debt = to the size of a Singaporean Wealth?

Hmmmmmm.....

Edited August 3, 2009 by Wind78

[raincole 0]

"Senior Minister of State for National Development Grace Fu argued that prices of properties – especially HDB flats which are owned by 85 per cent of Singaporeans – should be a reflection of Singaporeans’ wealth"

Singaporean wealth?

Let see,

If I buy a 4 room flat, 450K in TPY, I borrow loan from either the bank / HDB, in paper I own the flat, but in the eye of the law, if I cannot afford to pay, HDB/Bank has the rite to seize my flat. I have to work all my life to pay for the loan, is that wealth to me?

Does the size of our loan & debt = to the size of a Singaporean Wealth?

Hmmmmmm.....

If out of budget, can get somewhere cheaper.

Sengkang, woodland, etc still affordable.

[horseman 0]

Personally I don't think there is any speculation in public housing. The govt controls supply. There are strict rules on demand - income eligibility, foreigners not permitted, etc. Buyers cannot flip the flats for quick profit and there are rules on tenanting the unit out. So the increase in prices of HDB flats are largely due to asset appreciation, which is not a bad thing for asset owners. What the govt has to do is to find a balance between keeping public housing affordable while allowing the assets to appreciate in value. Also, there is a limit to how much public flats can appreciate in value as compared to private properties, hence making private properties more attractive to speculators.

[othello 0]

I'm also not happy about the whole situation, but what to do ? lan lan suck thumb lor, unless one chooses to migrate. We are living in a land scarce place and as the populaiton increases, thats what gonna happen. Me and wife still can take it, what I am worried for are those on the fringes. We still have poor people here y'know .....

problem is the majority depends on public housing and the alternative is private housing, which is deemd an upgrade and costs much more. There is no middle ground.

At the end of the day, its prudent to plan properly and try to strive towards debt-free status.

[raincole 0]

I'm also not happy about the whole situation, but what to do ? lan lan suck thumb lor, unless one chooses to migrate. We are living in a land scarce place and as the populaiton increases, thats what gonna happen. Me and wife still can take it, what I am worried for are those on the fringes. We still have poor people here y'know .....

problem is the majority depends on public housing and the alternative is private housing, which is deemd an upgrade and costs much more. There is no middle ground.

At the end of the day, its prudent to plan properly and try to strive towards debt-free status.

Not happy now. Wait for another 20 years maybe you may feel better

Actually HDB is building more and more project. What irks me is the long waiting time 3-5 years.

Sometime with money, lots of things will be simplier but that's not the way of life.

[Wind78 0]

Not happy now. Wait for another 20 years maybe you may feel better

Actually HDB is building more and more project. What irks me is the long waiting time 3-5 years.

Sometime with money, lots of things will be simplier but that's not the way of life.

Now they come up with DBSS, wah tat is a classic, I almost fall into it's trick.

Imagine this,

they outsource it to private developer, call it semi-govt/private housing. But the space is like 3 room flat, but they give u high ceiling and tag it at 700k. OOOOOO!

Private developer don't want to risk their own money to build before selling, so wat they do, they make u register a unit with them and start paying for it before you can actually live in it. And it usually takes 4 - 5 years to build.

Let see... if you pay for something that you don't get to use for the next 4 - 5 years, wat is the ROI of it? Another rich ppl toy house bah!

Correct me if i'm wrong, i tink u cannot sell it after 5 years, wah 10 years of burden.... gosh... maybe the govt can stop playing all these little tricks to impressive and blind the market and start going back to basic housing need.

Bcos of all these exorbitant price tags and dunno from which planet these rich ppl come from that we can't afford anything!!!

[aosis 0]

i think it's wealth to the bank / gahment lor. How many can afford to pay off in < 10 years ?

[yuyu123 0]

After reading through these, I think it comes from one thing - I WANT.

I think in the market, there are so many types of flats.

If one can't afford in TOY or AMK, why not think of Jurong West? The EA there is around 300k?

I bought Yew Tee, because it is cheap.

I WANTa big house, and I cannot afford a landed, and no, I can't afford AMK houses or Telok Blangah.

There is MRT at Yew Tee, thus, it is fine.

Come to think of it, why not plan and just buy a new house at SK or Punggol? Plan a few years ahead.

Yes, I WANT to get a house fast and I cannot get a number for Half-yearly sale, thus I went for the Resale market.

Thus it boils down to the 'I WANT' mentality.

I believe that there are many choices out there.

A 4 room flat in Bishan is as ex as an EM in Pasir Ris.

A 4 rm flat in Telok blangah is as ex as my EM.

so...what do you want? Or are you really asking, what do you need?

[merryman 0]

After reading through these, I think it comes from one thing - I WANT.

I think in the market, there are so many types of flats.

If one can't afford in TOY or AMK, why not think of Jurong West? The EA there is around 300k?

I bought Yew Tee, because it is cheap.

I WANTa big house, and I cannot afford a landed, and no, I can't afford AMK houses or Telok Blangah.

There is MRT at Yew Tee, thus, it is fine.

Come to think of it, why not plan and just buy a new house at SK or Punggol? Plan a few years ahead.

Yes, I WANT to get a house fast and I cannot get a number for Half-yearly sale, thus I went for the Resale market.

Thus it boils down to the 'I WANT' mentality.

I believe that there are many choices out there.

A 4 room flat in Bishan is as ex as an EM in Pasir Ris.

A 4 rm flat in Telok blangah is as ex as my EM.

so...what do you want? Or are you really asking, what do you need?

haha, there are reasons why a house need to be fast and it doesn't necessary means 'I WANT'... yes, people can choose to rent (even worse cuz paying for other people's home loan) or stay with parents (provided they have a spare room) or even marry later (and forget about having the possibility of children)... in view of these reasons, I say I need an apt fast, not I want.. You may beg to defer but different people have different needs..