HDB launches new BTO project under prime location model in Kallang/Whampoa

SINGAPORE - A total of 3,953 Build-To-Order (BTO) flats were launched for sale by the Housing Board on Thursday (Feb 17), including 398 units in Kallang/Whampoa - the second project under the prime location public housing (PLH) model - which comes with a 6 per cent subsidy clawback clause upon their resale.

The units are spread across six housing projects in four estates, in the first sales exercise of the year.

The project under the PLH model - King George's Heights - comes with stricter buying and selling conditions.

It comprises three-room and four-room flats housed in one block with two wings of 33 and 47 storeys. Bounded by King George's Avenue, Syed Alwi Road and Rochor Canal, the site is within a six-minute walk of the first PLH project in Rochor launched in November last year.

Prices start from $353,000, without grants, for a three-room flat, and $488,000 for a four-room flat.

Buyers will have to wait an estimated 59 months - just under five years - for these flats, as the project is estimated to be completed in the third quarter of 2027.

Before the Covid-19 pandemic, the waiting time for a standard BTO flat was about three to four years.

Owners of the Kallang/Whampoa flats will have to pay 6 per cent of the resale price or valuation, whichever is higher, to HDB when they sell their home on the open market for the first time. The subsidy clawback applies to only the first resale transaction and does not apply to subsequent resales.

This also means that owners who choose not to sell their flats will not get their subsidies clawed back.

This is because HDB has to provide additional subsidies on top of those provided for all BTO flats in order to launch these prime area flats at affordable prices.

All subsidies are factored into flat prices when they are launched as BTO flats.

Owners will also be subject to a 10-year minimum occupation period, up from the five years for other flats, before they can sell their flats on the open market.

Standard BTO flats come with a five-year MOP and do not have a subsidy clawback clause.

The other mature estate BTO project is Dakota Crest in Geylang, with 443 two-room flexi, three-room and four-room flats on offer across three blocks.

The project is located along Geylang River and the Geylang Park Connector, and is served by both Mountbatten MRT station and Dakota MRT station.

Prices start from $352,000 for a three-room flat and $522,000 for a four-room flat, making them the most expensive units in a mature estate in this launch.

This comes on top of the 63 months - slightly more than five years - estimated waiting time for these units, as the project is estimated to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2027.

There are two BTO projects in the non-mature estate of Yishun.

The bigger project is Grove Spring @ Yishun, where 987 two-room flexi, three-room, four-room and five-room flats are on offer across eight blocks on a site bounded by Yishun Avenue 6 and Yishun Avenue 8.

Prices start from $180,000 for a three-room flat, $270,000 for a four-room and $385,000 for a five-room.

Buyers will also have the shortest wait for these flats at 26 months - just over two years - as the project is slated for completion in the fourth quarter of 2024.

The smaller adjacent project is Yishun Boardwalk, where 852 two-room flexi, three-room, four-room and five-room flats are spread across eight blocks.

Prices start from $189,000 for a three-room flat, $276,000 for a four-room flat and $410,000 for a five-room flat, making them the most affordable in this sale exercise.

The waiting time is also one of the shortest in this launch, at about 30 months - or 2½ years - as these flats are slated for completion in the second quarter of 2025.

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Buyers can also choose from two BTO projects in the "forest town" of Tengah.

The bigger project is Plantation Creek in the Plantation district, where 713 four-room and five-room flats are on offer on a site next to the Pan-Island Expressway (PIE).

Prices start from $309,000 for a four-room flat and $420,000 for a five-room flat and these flats are slated for completion in 44 months - around 3½ years - in the second quarter of 2026.

The smaller project is Parc Flora @ Tengah, where 560 two-room flexi, three-room, four-room and five-room flats are on offer in the Park district, where the car-free town centre is located.

Prices start from $231,000 for a three-room flat, $322,000 for a four-room flat and $428,000 for a five-room unit.

Buyers will have to wait 36 months - or three years - for these flats as the project is slated for completion in the third quarter of 2025.

Applications for the flats close next Wednesday (Feb 23) at 11.59pm on the HDB flat portal. The flats will be allocated through balloting.

In May, about 5,300 flats will be offered in towns such as Bukit Merah, Jurong West, Ghim Moh estate in Queenstown, Tampines, Toa Payoh and Yishun.

Another 6,300 to 6,800 flats in towns such as Ang Mo Kio, Bukit Merah, Choa Chu Kang, Jurong East, Queenstown and Woodlands will be offered in August.

The exact location of these projects and the number of flats at each site will be released closer to the launch date.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.