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Posts tagged with "hdb"
Issues That Matter: Uniquely Singapore – F1 or F9?
Jan. 25 | “Can you imagine walking to every HDB block and every floor that you go, every 12 flats that you count, one of them is in arrears by more than three months? And at the end of the day, if they cannot pay and they default (on their mortgage loans),...
HDB should focus on building basic, functional flats
Oct. 21 | Minister for National Development, Mah Bow Tan, in a letter published in the Today newspaper on 15 October, touched on several points about public housing. One of these was that “some may overstretch their budgets to buy these flats.” Gerald Giam,...
TCMR numbers show many residents in S&CC arrears
Jun. 11 | Leong Sze Hian – In the Town Council Management Report released by the Ministry for National Development, Hougang and Potong Pasir both scored the lowest in the category for Service and Conservancy Charges (S&CC) Arrears Management. Does this mean...
Singaporeans’ rights to social security and public housing
May. 14 | Social security Singaporean workers have to make mandatory contributions of up to 34.5 per cent of their wages to their own individual pension accounts (the Central Provident Fund accounts). The government issues non-marketable government bonds at 2.5...
HDB caught red-handed bending its own rules
Apr. 16 | Note: This letter was rejected for publication by TODAY Your VOICES page (TODAY April 13) featured two letters with opposing perspectives about sky-high HDB flat prices — the euphoric “Let’s talk about property” by Lulu See and the more sensible...
Homeless in Singapore due to technicality
Apr. 13 | Zia is a 42-year old divorcee with five children. Four of the younger ones are in school whilst her eldest son is due to complete his National Service this year. As a Patient Service Assistant at a health care centre, she earns a gross income of $1500...
PAYM policy forum: now I know why flats are “affordable”? (Part 1)
Apr. 12 | I attended the People’s Association Youth Movement (PAYM) policy forum @ Jurong GRC on Sunday (11 April). The discussion, entitled “HDB Flats: Towering Pinnacles, sky-high prices?”, was attended by about 50 people. The three speakers...
HDB: cannot withdraw cash profits anymore when you sell?
Mar. 30 | By Leong Sze Hian I refer to the report “Govt to explore ways to increase use of CPF for buying HDB flats” (Channel News Asia, Mar 27). One possible implication or policy change may be this: cash profits from the sale of HDB flats may have...
Mah defends HDB policies
Mar. 17 | For those who may have missed the programme, here is National Development minister, Mah Bow Tan, on the Talking Point programme where he defended HDB’s housing policies.
Homeless people are “defective”, needs “rehabilitation”?
Feb. 12 | Andrew Loh The response from the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS), the Housing and Development Board (HDB) and the National Parks Board (Nparks) to a letter by Mr Joshua Chiang on the issue of the homeless is, to say the least,...
ST Forum letter on homeless situation and official reply
Feb. 11 | ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN The Homeless Deserve Better Treatment Letter from Joshua Chiang as published in the Sunday Times on 8 Feb 2010 As a private citizen who is working with other concerned individuals to aid and raise awareness for the homeless in Singapore,...
Many Singaporeans want to migrate – Why?
Feb. 10 | Leong Sze Hian I refer to the article “Singapore envies Kiwi lifestyle” (New Zealand Herald, Feb 9). It states that “The bait was better working hours, cheaper cars and housing – and in three weeks thousands from Singapore have...
Public housing flats – Singaporeans come first or foreigners?
Feb. 7 | Andrew Loh If you have always thought the homeless are lazy people or are unemployed on purpose, perhaps you have bought into the stereotype of these people too conveniently. Yet it is not uncommon to find such views of the homeless among Singaporeans. However,...
Yet another set of SERS flats – refurbished & to be rented out – in Boon Lay
Feb. 6 | I passed by Boon Lay Ave a few occasions and noticed that Block 216-220 is still intact. The former residents were told to move out due to an “en bloc” development in the estate. Today, I passed by once again and saw this interesting banners....
Nowhere else to turn
Feb. 6 | Joshua Chiang The first thing you would notice about Rahim (not his real name) is the slight bulge on the left side of his T-shirt. As he lifts his shirt to reveal an ostomy bag attached to the side of his abdomen, Rahim tells us the pouch collects...
SERS flats converted to condo for expats
Feb. 5 | Andrew Loh / Joshua Chiang Blocks 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 along Tiong Bahru Road were built by the Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT) which operated between 1927 and 1959. The SIT was a body set up by the British colonial authority to solve the housing problems...
HDB’s inflexible policies will result in more homeless S’poreans
Feb. 3 | Andrew Loh / Leong Sze Hian / Picture from Wikimedia ‘There’s no question that our policies are designed for the good of the people. While there may be certain parts of the policies that are not favourable, overall, I think these policies...
Help the singles with affordable housing
Feb. 2 | Letter to TOC by: Joseph Ang Under the existing HDB policy, singles are not allowed to buy or rent flats directly from the Housing and Development Board (HDB), unless they partner with another single person and apply under the joint-singles scheme. In...
The curious case of Block 29
Feb. 2 | Andrew Loh / Joshua Chiang “The Government’s first responsibility is to Singaporeans.” – Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, New Year Message, 2010. On 18 January, officers from the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) moved...
“The government’s first responsibility is to Singaporeans”
Feb. 1 | Andrew Loh / Pictures by Joshua Chiang So, the homeless at Sembawang Park have been relocated to HDB flats. All seem to be well. And on the surface, at least, the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports, should be congratulated for stepping...
50 years of HDB – homelessness is its biggest challenge
Jan. 23 | Andrew Loh Come next Tuesday to Friday, the Housing and Development Board will host the International Housing Conference, an event to showcase and boast about the HDB’s achievements over the last 50 years. Titled, “Sustainable Housing : Charting New...
HDB housing policies – tilting the advantage towards PRs?
Jan. 11 | The following is Part One of a special three-part focus on the Housing and Development Board’s public housing policies. Parts Two and Three will be published on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively. Leong Sze Hian I attended the HDB’s Resale Seminar...
Year In Review (Part 2): Retirement, CPF, economic outlook
Jan. 1 | This is Part 2 of Fang Shihan’s interview with Mr Leong Sze Hian. In this video, Mr Leong looks into the problems faced by some people in monetising their HDB flats for retirement and the problems with the CPF Life Scheme. Part 1 is here: Year In...
Property tax hike – Minister Lui’s reason
Nov. 23 | The problem is, the longer you defer it, the larger the increase will be…if HDB prices continue to go up. Minister Lui Tuck Yew, on property tax hike SAVINGS accounts have seen miserly interest rates of below 1 per cent per annum since 2001 –...
Mah’s explanation does not square with HDB’s annual report
Nov. 20 | Leong Sze Hian Number of flats sold declined, contradicting Mah’s explanation on reasons for HDB’s S$2 billion deficit. On 7 November, the Minister for National Development, Mr Mah Bow Tan, explained why the Housing and Development Board has incurred...
NSP to adopt “minister-specific” strategy in next elections
Nov. 16 | Andrew Loh “Whichever place we contest, it will be minister-specific. Not at the personal level but at the policy, ministry level. It’ll be ministry-oriented,” says the National Solidarity Party (NSP). Revealing the party’s General Elections...
4-room flat sold for record $653,000
Nov. 12 | From the Straits Times: A FOUR-ROOM Queenstown HDB flat has sold for $653,000, setting a new record for price per sq ft (psf), amid continuing red-hot demand for resale flats. The buyers, a male Indonesian permanent resident and a Singaporean woman, could...
One landlord’s woes
Nov. 9 | Ravi Philemon (Top: Meeting KPI target at whose expense?) “I had no choice”, says Mr Muthu (not his real name), “I had to rent out my 3-room flat because I lost my job and could not pay even the minimum monthly payments to the bank”. He has...
Singapore acts to cool property fever
Nov. 8 | The following is an excerpt from the Malaysian Insider The Singapore government yesterday fired a clear signal that it intends to keep private homes affordable by announcing its land sales programme for the first half of 2010 earlier than expected. *** The...
HDB Annual Report : Deficit has doubled – really?
Nov. 3 | Leong Sze Hian >> TOC Columnists ACCORDING TO the Housing Development Board’s annual report, the deficit for FY2008/2009 has almost doubled to $2.12 billion from $1.08 billion in FY2007/2008 – due mainly to an increase in Expenditure from...
High property prices cloud the view of a generation
Oct. 19 | Ian Choo AS AN exchange student many years ago, I was surprised to find that many of my Danish counterparts already owned the houses that they lived in – despite being single and all of 21 years young. I later found out that the reason was really one...
“We will agree to disagree,” says MND on lift upgrading issue
Oct. 17 | We do not expect the Workers’ Party to accept these basic facts, and we will agree to disagree. Lim Yuin Chien Press Secretary to the Minister for National Development
WP’s Sylvia Lim rebuts ministry’s reply on lift upgrading
Oct. 15 | Sylvia Lim’s letter to the Straits Times: I AM responding to the reply from the Minister for National Development’s press secretary on Tuesday (‘Ministry: MP Low wrong on lift upgrading’), as the Member of Parliament for Hougang,...
The disappearing wet market
Oct. 14 | Report by Tng Ying Hui / Photos by Wallace Woon Photo: Wet markets here seem to be facing a bleak future. BARELY six months into the job, Mr and Mrs Teo, like many others stallholders in Sembawang wet market, were told by their landowner to move out in...
SDP calls on Dr Teo Ho Pin to stand with Bukit Panjang residents
Oct. 11 | The following is an excerpt from the Singapore Democrats. The SDP expressed its concern that the sale of the market to Sheng Shiong will increase the cost of operating the facility, thereby increasing prices for shoppers. (Left: Dr Chee talking to a vendor....
No basis for MP not to announce lift upgrading
Oct. 10 | Low Thia Khiang This is a press release of the Worker’s Party. Low Thia Khiang is the Secretary-General of the Worker’s Party and the MP for Hougang. I refer to the HDB’s reply to Mr Muhammad Yusuf Osman’s letter on the Lift Upgrading...
HDB : “Getting a flat” statistics that hardly anybody believes?
Oct. 9 | Leong Sze Hian I refer to the article “Easy for first-time buyers : Mah sets records straight on claims by couples” (ST, Oct 8). It states that “HDB figures yesterday showed that eight in 10 first-timers could get a flat on their first try if they...
Revisit the policy & practice
Oct. 9 | Ravi Philemon “All things being equal, we have always put the PAP wards first”, National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan again reiterated the illogical reasoning to bring upgrading efforts to People’s Action Party (PAP) wards first, as the...
Mah Bow Tan dismisses flat buyers’ complaints
Oct. 8 | Don’t worry, there are flats available for you, in different parts of Singapore at prices that are affordable. Mah Bow Tan
The future of discontent
Sep. 22 | Harrison Goh / Guest Writer SINGAPORE may have reached the end point of its involvement in the global manufacturing market with the impending departure of Seagate’s plant. While this is not unexpected, it spells a deepening crisis that most Singaporeans...
Is the HDB profiteering from flat owners’ woes?
May. 30 | Leong Sze Hian One out of every seven HDB flat owners have problems paying their mortgage loans. This seems to be what the statistics have revealed. Last year, the HDB visited 60,000 flats which had problems paying their loans and gave financial counseling...
“They gave me an umbrella and a teddy bear.”
Apr. 9 | The following is an update to the earlier story of Mr Wong Tai Phong titled, “A victim of bureaucratic red tape and inflexible policies.” Andrew Loh “Luckily you didn’t come yesterday,” Mr Wong says to me as I enter his house. “Why?” I ask....
A victim of bureaucratic red tape and inflexible policies
Apr. 8 | Andrew Loh / Deborah Choo Mr Wong Tai Phong was a secret society member in his younger days. “I was one of the Bugis Street terrors”, he tells us in his home. I can see why. He is burly, and speaks in a rather brusque manner. As a gang member,...
Sardine City
Mar. 27 | As it is, many of my peers have expressed a sincere wish to emigrate, not because of the high cost of living or the stressful lifestyle. It is primarily because they are appalled by how Singapore has been transformed into a city where it is difficult...
Retiring backwards?
Mar. 22 | Leong Sze Hian I refer to the article “I can’t take the flat with me when I die” (Today, Mar 2). In the example cited by Today, a 62 year old male with a 3-room HDB flat, will get $5,000 cash and $5,000 to his CPF, followed by a lifelong...
Issues That Matter: Uniquely Singapore – F1 or F9?
Mar. 22 | Over the years, Mr Leong Sze Hian has written countless letters to the local press on issues which affect every Singaporean. These include the Central Provident Fund (CPF), healthcare, education, transport, housing, credit, the charities, employment and...
HDB must stop ticking checklists and start reviewing cases
Mar. 16 | Deborah Choo “The government can build two- or three- room flats now, but that is only the future plan. You have to solve the problem now!” said Mr Henry Tan (not his real name), speaking on the government’s plan to build more two- and three-room...
Uniquely Singapore – a video with Leong Sze Hian
Mar. 14 | Here is a video which TOC did with financial analyst, Mr Leong Sze Hian. In this 8-minute short film, Mr Leong speaks about a few issues which are highlighted in his latest book , “Issues That Matter: Uniquely Singapore – F1 or F9”. Mr Alex Lew,...
Providing affordable housing – HDB should re-look policies
Feb. 17 | Leong Sze Hian I refer to the article, “Measures to help new HDB flat buyers, existing owners” (Business Times, Feb 6). I would like to applaud the HDB for its pro-active measures to help Singaporeans during the recession, such as freezing...
