Oral Answer by Ministry of National Development on size and occupancy limit for public rental flats

Aug 6, 2018

1. Mr Alex Yam Ziming: To ask the Minister for National Development 

(a) what are the sizes of the largest available public rental flats in each decade since 1965;

(b) why have sizes changed; and

(c) whether the size of new public rental flats built since 2006 are suited for large families.

2. Mr Alex Yam Ziming: To ask the Minister for National Development 

(a) whether there is a limit to the number of occupants for HDB's rental flats; and

(b) whether the Ministry has plans to introduce basic occupancy standards for these rental flats.

Answer:

Public housing first started with HDB blocks comprising 1-, 2-, and 3-room rental flats. Subsequently, as part of the Government’s overall move to encourage Singaporeans towards homeownership, HDB sold existing 3-room rental flats to the sitting tenants, and closed the 3-room rental register in 1982. Hence, when HDB resumed the rental building programme in 2007, only 1- and 2-room flats were built.

The rental rates for these 1- and 2-room public rental flats are heavily subsidised so that they remain accessible to the lower-income households. More than 90% of households in these public rental flats have 4 or fewer persons living together. Larger families who form 2 separate family nucleus, such as grandparents living with parents and children, and need more space may also apply for two separate rental flats.

There are no plans to impose a limit on the number of family members who can live in a rental flat or to impose occupancy standards for such flats. We take a similar approach for flats which are sold or rented in the open market, because in the same manner, there is no limit on the number of related persons who can stay together as a family in these units. 
  
We will continue to review how best to meet the needs of public rental households, including larger families, as part of the Government’s broader effort to support vulnerable families.