Written Answer by Ministry of National Development on matrix used by HDB in assessing the condition of rental flats before they are being rented out

May 10, 2021

Dr Wan Rizal: To ask the Minister for National Development what is the matrix used by HDB in assessing the condition of rental flats before they are being rented out to those who need it. 

Answer:

After rental flats are returned to HDB, HDB will carry out sprucing works, such as cleaning and painting the flat, installing new locks, and repairing or replacing any defective fittings. 

The flats are inspected after the works have been completed, before they are let out again. Officers are equipped with a checklist to check for defects and ensure that the fittings and fixtures in the flat are functional and up to acceptable standards.

For flats which remain vacant for some time after sprucing, HDB checks them every six months to ensure that they remain in a suitable condition for letting out to new tenants. 

There was a recent incident where a rental flat tenant posted on social media about the condition of the rental flat allocated to her. The incident was due to an error where a HDB staff mistakenly thought that all the sprucing works had been completed for the affected unit. Upon discovery of the mistake, HDB immediately allocated a replacement rental flat to the affected tenant, and assisted her to move the next day. HDB has since tightened our processes to prevent another similar incident from happening.