Flat owners can buy the space fronting their flat, provided certain conditions are met under the Sale of Recess Area Scheme, according to Mr Mah Bow Tan, Minister for National Development.

This is in response to a question raised by Mr Lim Biow Chuan, MP for the Marine Parade GRC at the Parliament session yesterday. He had asked Mr Mah to clarify the reason why HDB allows the sale of recess area and common corridor space to some flat owners and not to others living in the same block of flats but who applied to purchase the areas later.

"HDB reviews these conditions regularly to ensure that other residents are not affected or inconvenienced by such sale," continued Mr Mah.

Mr Mah said: "The sale of recess area to flats next to corner units was ceased to minimise potential disputes between next-door neighbours in August 1995.

In September 1997, HDB discontinued the sale of recess area for certain point blocks, as there was feedback that other residents were being inconvenienced by the reduced corridor space. The last review was in Apr 2001, when the technical criteria were tightened to take into account the requirements of the Fire Safety Code.

HDB will continue to review the conditions for sale of recess area on a regular basis.This is to protect the wider interests of residents, while giving some flat owners the option of purchasing the recess area where feasible."