HDB flat prices should not include land cost: PSP’s Leong Mun Wai

Key Concepts:

• HDB Flat Prices: The escalating cost of Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats in Singapore.
• BTO Prices: Prices of Build-To-Order flats.
• Land Cost: The cost of the land on which HDB flats are built.
• Affordable Home Scheme: A proposed scheme by the Progress Singapore Party (PSP) to remove land costs from HDB flat prices for Singaporeans who intend to live in them.
• Supply of HDB Flats: The government's strategy of increasing the number of HDB flats available.

Analysis of Escalating HDB Flat Prices

The speaker highlights the recent sale of a three-room flat in Queenstown for $935,000 as an example of the rapidly increasing HDB flat prices in Singapore. This serves as a focal point for the discussion on the government's strategies to manage these prices.

Government's Current Strategy: Increasing Supply

The speaker acknowledges that the government is attempting to control HDB prices by increasing the supply of HDB flats. However, the speaker argues that this measure alone is insufficient to curb the escalating prices effectively.

Critique of Current System

The speaker contends that under the current system, HDB prices, including BTO prices, will continue to rise rapidly. The core argument is that simply increasing supply is not a comprehensive solution and that a more fundamental change is needed to address the root cause of the problem.

PSP's Proposed Solution: Affordable Home Scheme

The speaker introduces the Progress Singapore Party's (PSP) "Affordable Home Scheme" as a potential solution. The key feature of this scheme is the removal of land costs from the price of HDB flats for Singaporeans who intend to live in them.

Rationale Behind the Scheme

The rationale behind the Affordable Home Scheme is that Singaporeans who simply want to live in HDB flats should not have to bear the burden of land costs. The speaker believes that this scheme would significantly impact the lives of Singaporeans by making public housing more affordable.

Potential Impact of the Scheme

The speaker emphasizes the potential transformative impact of the Affordable Home Scheme on the lives of Singaporeans. By removing land costs, the scheme aims to make HDB flats more accessible and affordable, particularly for those who intend to reside in them.

Conclusion

The speaker concludes by advocating for the implementation of the PSP's Affordable Home Scheme as a viable solution to rein in the escalating public housing prices in Singapore. The argument is that the current approach of simply increasing supply is inadequate, and a more fundamental change, such as removing land costs, is necessary to address the issue effectively.