WE REFER to the letter by Mr Ee Teck Siew, 'Structural changes needed' (Aug26). With regard to income ceiling, the Government is committed to ensuring that public housing remains affordable to the majority of Singaporeans. This is achieved through proper targeting of subsidies and calibrating supply to match demand.

The income ceiling ensures that the Government's limited public housing subsidies are given to those who need them more. At the current ceiling, about eight out of 10 Singaporean households qualify for housing subsidies.

Those with higher incomes can buy HDB resale flats, where there is a wide range to suit varying budgets. They need not buy private property if they cannot afford it. For example, if a household with a monthly income of $10,000 buys a five-room resale flat in a non-mature estate at the average price of $364,000, only about 15 per cent of their income is needed to service the loan.

As for owner occupation, the HDB has relaxed its policy over the years to reduce the restrictions on transactions of HDB flats in the resale market. However, HDB flats are primarily meant for owner occupation. Hence, policies are put in place to achieve this, as well as prevent abuse of housing subsidies. For example, there is a Minimum Occupation Period before owners can sell their flats. If we liberalise the HDB resale market to the same extent as private property market as suggested by Mr Ee, it would lead to speculation and price escalation.

Finally, we agree with Mr Ee that land should be made available regularly by the Government to meet the needs of our growing population and economy. The Government has been doing this via the Government Land Sales Programme, which is reviewed half-yearly, taking into consideration market conditions. Developers are also required to complete their projects within a stipulated Project Completion Period, which is typically six years for private residential sites.

Lily Chan-Wong (Mrs)
Deputy Director (Policy & Property)
for Director (Estate Administration & Property)
Housing & Development Board

Loh Teck Hee
Deputy Director, Property Research
Urban Redevelopment Authority

This article was first published in The Straits Times.