DEMAND has been red-hot for two recent launches from the Housing and Development Board (HDB), with more than 10 times as many applicants than flats available. An offering of 150 smaller flats - studios to three-roomers - was swamped with 2,426 applications in the space of just a week.

And, last Friday, the half-yearly sale of three-room premium, four-room and bigger flats achieved an extraordinary response: 7,036 applications have been submitted for 683 units, yet the offer still runs until Thursday.

The launch of the smaller units featured three-roomers, two-roomers and studios in estates across the island, including Bukit Merah, Geylang, Jurong East, Sengkang, Ang Mo Kio and Marine Parade.There were 582 applications for studios and 1,844 for two- and three-roomers combined in the offer from Oct 2-8.