Oral Answer by Ministry of National Development on update on the current number of HDB rental flats that are vacant in Woodlands, and nationwide
Mar 1, 2022
Ms Mariam Jaafar: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) whether an update can be provided on the current number of HDB rental flats that are vacant (i) in Woodlands and (ii) nationwide; (b) of which, what is the respective number of flats that needs to be spruced up; (c) what are the reasons for flats that does not need sprucing up to be left vacant; and (d) when does the Ministry expect to clear the backlog of flats that need to be spruced up.
Answer:
1 There are about 8,000 vacant rental flats across Singapore. About half of these are not available for new applicants as they are in blocks that are due for redevelopment or are reserved to house existing tenants of flats that are affected by redevelopment. The other half are available to new applicants, of which two-thirds need to be spruced up before they can be let out. In Woodlands, there are 320 vacant flats available to new applicants, and about 220 of them need to be spruced up before they can be let out.
2 Rental flats that are available to new applicants may be vacant as it takes time for flats to be matched to applicants, depending on the flat type, location, and Ethnic Integration Policy limits.
3 For vacant flats that need to be spruced up, the pace of sprucing works has been adversely affected by manpower shortages in the construction industry during this COVID-19 period. To expedite the works, HDB has appointed additional contractors to supplement HDB’s existing pool of term contractors. HDB is monitoring the situation closely, and aims to clear the backlog of flats that need to be spruced up by the third quarter of this year.
4 HDB will continue to prioritise and expedite flat allocation for applicants who are in urgent need of a rental flat, such as applicants with medical needs or other exceptional circumstances, though we may not always be able to meet their locational preferences.