Archive for April 4th, 2008

Industry watchers hope new Master Plan will include higher S’pore plot ratios

Posted on April 4th, 2008 by Mindy Yong.
Categories: Singapore Real Estate News.

Industry watchers hope new Master Plan will include higher S’pore plot ratios

By Wong Siew Ying, 

SINGAPORE : Higher plot ratios and integrated developments with greenery and other features are among the wish lists of industry players, who are anticipating significant changes to the government’s new Draft Master Plan.

The master plan, expected to be released soon by the Urban Redevelopment Authority, will guide Singapore’s land use over the next 10 to 15 years.

Buildings in Singapore may get even taller, if property players have their wish.

Topping the industry’s wish list is higher plot ratios from the upcoming Draft Master Plan.

A higher plot ratio means a more intensive use of land, which analysts say will go some way to supporting a larger population base and encourage existing building owners to redevelop their property.

Chua Chor Hoon, Senior Director of Research at DTZ Debenham Tie Leung, said: “Many people would hope for the master plan plot ratio to be increased but I don’t think that would be the case. I think there isn’t really a need for the increase in plot ratio, unless there is some pressure for more space. If we intensify everything now, it will be very difficult to grow further in the future.”

For now, industry watchers expect the Draft Master Plan 2008 to provide more details about growth areas that have been identified by the URA previously.

They are areas in Jurong, Paya Lebar, Kallang, Punggol and the Southern Ridges, which could support a range of residential, commercial and recreational activities.

Market players also hope to see more interesting urban form where the features, like greenery and canals, are incorporated into the development plan.

Analysts expect the government to continue to grow the Marina Bay area.

They say effects will also be made to enhance the Central Business District.

However, they are concerned that the parking problems in the CBD may be aggravated as old buildings make way for newer ones, which have fewer parking lots.

Other possible key areas include more spaces for tourism and recreation.

Industry players say sustainable economic development and the conservation of old buildings might also be on URA’s cards. - CNA/de
Source : Channel NewsAsia - 04 April 2008

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Just 2 bids for Singapore Ten Mile Junction site

Posted on April 4th, 2008 by Mindy Yong.
Categories: Singapore Real Estate News.

Just 2 bids for Singapore Ten Mile Junction site

Kheng Leong unit offers $162.40 psf ppr; Sim Lian Land, $121.60 psf ppr
By ARTHUR SIM
THE public tender for an unusual development site at Choa Chu Kang Road and Woodlands Road has closed with just two bids received.
The site, on which the state-owned Ten Mile Junction currently sits, received a bid of $61 million or about $162.40 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr) from Peak Green Pte Ltd.

The company is understood to be linked to Kheng Leong, the privately owned property group controlled by the family of banker Wee Cho Yaw.

The second, lower bid of $45.68 million, or $121.60 psf ppr, was put in by Sim Lian Land.

Earlier estimates had put the value of the site at between $200 psf ppr and $250 psf ppr.

Savills Singapore director of marketing and business development Ku Swee Yong said that he was surprised by the lower-than-expected bid, but added that rising construction costs may have been a factor.

Recently, a development site at Jurong West was not awarded because the highest bid received was considered to be too low by the government.

But while Mr Ku did not know if the higher bid for the Ten Mile Junction site would top the reserve price for the site, he said: ‘I think the site should be awarded.’
 
‘This area is very local and I believe the household incomes are lower,’ he added.

Knight Frank director of research and consultancy Nicholas Mak noted that the current bid is one of the lowest in recent years.

‘The previous time when land tender bids of below $200 psf ppr were submitted was in the period from 2000 to 2002.

‘But during that period, the government did sell some of the sites at prices below $200 psf ppr.’

On whether the Ten Mile Junction site would be awarded, Mr Mak said that it depended on whether market conditions were the same as those during 2000-2002. ‘There is a 50/50 chance,’ he added.

The site, which has a residential potential gross floor area of 254,394 sq ft, could have between 200 and 240 apartments.

The existing commercial GFA is 121,191 sq ft.

CB Richard Ellis Research executive director Li Hiaw Ho said that if the site were awarded, the breakeven price for the newly developed residential project will be around $400 psf. This will translate to a possible selling price of about $500 psf.

Units in Yew Tee Residences, a new 99-year leasehold project and Maysprings, the development closest to the subject site, were transacted at $520-550 psf, he noted.

Source : Business  Times - 04 April 2008

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Sub-prime crisis not a barrier to genco sales - Singapore

Posted on April 4th, 2008 by Mindy Yong.
Categories: Singapore News.

Sub-prime crisis not a barrier to genco sales - Singapore

Senoko Power CEO Roy Adair says there is strong demand for quality assets
By RONNIE LIM

THE sub-prime crisis will not stymie the sale of the two remaining Singapore generating companies because there is a flight to quality assets, Senoko Power president and CEO Roy Adair said this week.
This is obvious from the strong investment interest that culminated in last month’s sale of Tuas Power, he told BT on the sidelines of the Asia Power and Energy Congress here.

The $4.2 billion sale of Tuas Power to China’s biggest power producer, China Huaneng Group, is an encouraging first step as investment company Temasek Holdings moves to divest generating assets, Mr Adair said.

The Tuas Power sale was launched in October last year and took just five months to complete.

But industry sources have said that amid the global credit crunch, Temasek is likely to take a breather before selling the island’s other two generating units - Senoko Power and PowerSeraya.

Given its stated timeline of mid-2009 to divest generating assets, it can still complete all three sales - barring macro shocks.

The keen interest in Singapore generating companies was underscored by Mark Takahashi, managing director of One Energy - a joint venture between Hong Kong’s CLP Holdings and Japan’s Mitsubishi Corp - which reportedly bid for Tuas Power, Singapore’s smallest generating company with capacity of 2,670 megawatts (MW).

‘We are always on the look out for good assets,’ he told BT, when asked if One Energy will now try for Senoko Power (3,300 MW) or PowerSeraya (3,100 MW).

Mr Adair and Mr Takahashi took part in a panel discussion on Wednesday on the challenges that face the power industry.

Mr Adair said Tuas Power has always been a competitive player and China Huaneng’s purchase will make it even more so.

Tuas Power recently told BT it is considering lower-cost coal-firing to repower its steam plants. It can tap the expertise of new owner Huaneng, which has huge experience with clean coal technology.

Mr Adair said the liberalisation of Singapore’s generating market brings the right pressure to bear.

‘There’s a more commercial culture and costs and electricity prices are driven down as power players are always looking for a competitive edge,’ he said.

This has helped cushion Singapore consumers from oil prices that have quadrupled in the past four years.

Energy Market Company (EMC) figures show that despite an 18.7 per cent fuel price rise last year, average electricity prices here dipped 6 per cent in 2007 after climbing for two consecutive years.

EMC chairman Tan Soo Kiang attributed this to efficiency gains and greater competition.

One Energy’s Mr Takahashi said a short-term challenge is to build generating capacity to meet strong electricity demand amid high fuel prices and construction costs and longer lead times.

Senoko Power’s Mr Adair said that in the long term, environment issues will come into play and ‘a lot of decisions we are taking now already have to take into account carbon emissions’.

Source : Business  Times - 04 April 2008

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Mindy Yong

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Occupancy at Singapore business parks hits five-year high

Posted on April 4th, 2008 by Mindy Yong.
Categories: Singapore News.

Occupancy at Singapore business parks hits five-year high

Office space crunch also lifts high-tech space occupancy to 94.1% at end of Q1
By ARTHUR SIM

(SINGAPORE) The average occupancy rate for business parks has hit a five-year high, crossing the 90 per cent mark.
According to a report by CB Richard Ellis (CBRE), the occupancy rate grew from 89.4 per cent at end-2007 to an estimated 90.2 per cent at end-March 2008, exceeding 90 per cent for the first time in five years.

This was attributed to the current tight availability of office supply in the CBD which saw financial institutions like Standard Chartered Bank, Credit Suisse and Citibank relocating part of their operations to Changi Business Park.

The office space crunch also pushed the average occupancy rate for high-tech space up by 1.3 per cent quarter on quarter to 94.1 per cent at the end of first quarter 2008.

CBRE director of industrial and logistic services Bernard Goh pointed out, however, that while the average occupancy rate for business parks is expected to grow, it would be at a ‘less robust pace compared with high-tech space’.

‘This is due to the healthy pipeline of upcoming business parks in the next four years,’ he said.
Mr Goh said some six million square feet of business parks are expected to be completed from 2008 to 2011. In comparison, only 1.5 million sq ft of high-tech space is expected to come onstream in 2011, explained Mr Goh.

Correspondingly, Mr Goh expects the growth in rental for high-tech space to continue to grow at a healthy pace.

Average monthly rent for high-tech space rose 7.3 per cent quarter on quarter to $2.95 per square foot (psf) by end-March, up from the 5 per cent quarter on quarter increase seen in the first quarter of 2007.

DTZ Debenham Tie Leung also sees more business park development projects in the pipeline.

In a report released yesterday, it said that the potential supply of business park space was 2.7 million sq ft as at end-2007, 10 per cent of total potential supply of private industrial space.

DTZ also noted that average monthly gross rents for business/high-tech industrial space rose 7.7 per cent quarter on quarter to $4.20 psf per month.

Generally, private industrial stock increased marginally by 0.7 per cent quarter on quarter to 299 million sq ft as at end-2007, with about 1.69 million sq ft of net lettable area of new private industrial space added in 4Q 2007, said DTZ.

However, DTZ has projected 7.13 million sq ft of new supply of private factory space for 2008. Subsequently, it is projecting a further 8.35 million sq ft, 2.77 million sq ft and 1.38 million sq ft for 2009, 2010, and 2011 respectively.
Source : Business  Times - 04 April 2008

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Mindy Yong

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Singapore MediShield moots bigger payouts for higher premiums

Posted on April 4th, 2008 by Mindy Yong.
Categories: Singapore News.

Singapore MediShield moots bigger payouts for higher premiums

Move to cut out-of-pocket payments by patients
By EMILYN YAP

(SINGAPORE) Payouts from the national health insurance scheme MediShield may be raised to cover about 80 per cent of hospital bills. The trade-off, however, comes in the form of higher MediShield premiums - though for most policyholders the increase may be less than $60 a year.
 
 
The Ministry of Health (MOH) is conducting a public consultation exercise on the proposed changes, which may be introduced as early as the end of this year if there is public support.

The proposed Medi- Shield changes aim to reduce out-of-pocket payments from patients. MediShield today covers about 60 per cent of large hospital bills at Class B2 or C wards on average, so patients have to co-pay the remaining 40 per cent. After the changes, higher payouts will reduce patients’ share of the hospital bills to 20 per cent.

However, to support higher payouts from the insurance scheme, premiums will have to increase. For those aged 60 or younger, premiums will rise by less than $60 a year. This group makes up 84 per cent of all policyholders.

Those between the ages of 61 and 80, who make up another 16 per cent of policyholders, may have to pay up to $120 more every year.

There are only 5,000 policyholders aged 81 and above, and they face the highest premium increase of up to $480 a year. ‘I have tried very hard to bring the premium hike as low as possible, but it is difficult,’ said Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan yesterday, at the sidelines of the commemoration ceremony for Phase 2 of the Khoo Teck Puat Hospital construction project. These elderly folk form a small pool and face a higher likelihood of hospitalisation.

To mitigate the impact of the premium increase for the elderly aged 81 and above, the Ministry of Health will raise the Medi- Shield deductible from $1,000 for Class C wards and $1,500 for Class B2 wards to $2,000 and $3,000 respectively.

The Medisave withdrawal limit for them will also be raised so that they can use Medisave to pay their Medi- Shield premiums in full. Medisave top-ups from the government will provide further help.

The proposed Medi- Shield changes will allow policyholders to make greater claims for a number of hospital expenses and outpatient treatments. For instance, the daily claim limit for normal wards will be upped from $250 to $450, and those for ICU wards will increase from $500 to $900.

Mr Khaw noted, however, that benefits from higher MediShield payouts may be offset if doctors start prescribing - or patients start demanding - more expensive treatments as a result.

‘For subsidised care, what we want is a good high standard of basic medical care at the lowest possible cost. The only way to do so is to use cheaper alternatives that are available,’ Mr Khaw said. The Ministry of Health is likely to keep a close eye on the size of hospital bills after the proposed MediShield changes kick in, to check if overconsumption does occur.

According to Mr Khaw, the proposed MediShield changes should not have an impact on the private medical insurance industry. Premiums for insurance plans that cater to Class A or B1 wards are unlikely to increase ‘unless the private insurers, for various reasons, want to improve the benefits’, he said. ‘That is their commercial decision.’

When contacted, AIA, a provider of Medisave-approved private integrated plans, said that it would study the proposals under consultation before giving any feedback.

The public consultation exercise will end on April 30.
Source : Business  Times - 04 April 2008

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Al-Futtaim bags Singapore Robinson after Lippo accepts offer

Posted on April 4th, 2008 by Mindy Yong.
Categories: Singapore Real Estate News.

Al-Futtaim bags Singapore Robinson after Lippo accepts offer

Bid raised to $7.20 to mop up more; Dubai investor now has an 87.19% stake
By MICHELLE QUAH

(SINGAPORE) It took up to the very last minute, but the Al-Futtaim Group has succeeded in its takeover of retailer Robinson & Co.
 
 
The Dubai-based investor managed to acquire more than 50 per cent of Robinson yesterday - on the very last day of its conditional bid - when the Lippo Group decided to tender into the offer.

Al-Futtaim’s offer for Robinson is now unconditional, i.e. the deal will have to go through, being no longer dependent on any conditions to succeed.

Al-Futtaim has also extended the deadline for its offer to April 30 and raised its bid price to $7.20 a share, from $7 previously - an indication of its determination to gain as much control of Robinson as possible.

‘Robinson has strong brand equity and an enviable heritage of meeting and exceeding customers’ expectations. We fully intend to continue with, and surpass, this proud tradition,’ James Gillespie McCallum, director of Al-Futtaim unit ALF Global, said yesterday.

‘We look forward to working with the company’s management to explore areas where Robinson can leverage on the Al-Futtaim Group’s retail expertise as well as further expand the company’s platform in the region.’

The group said yesterday it will not revise its offer or increase its offer price any further.

Al-Futtaim had looked to be in danger of failing in its takeover plan earlier, no thanks to Robinson’s share price trading stubbornly above the offer price of $7. Robinson’s buoyant share price performance had already forced Al-Futtaim to raise its bid from the original price of $6.25 offered in January.

Robinson shares closed at $6.86 yesterday, down 14 cents.

But the Middle Eastern group managed to triumph yesterday when the Lippo Group decided to accept its offer - and sell its 29.9 per cent stake to Al-Futtaim.

Lippo’s stake pushed the total number of acceptances received by Al-Futtaim past the critical 50 per cent mark, which turned its offer unconditional.

Al-Futtaim also has acceptances - pledged to it earlier by Silchester International, Aberdeen Asset Management Asia and Tecity - amounting to 23.18 per cent.

Al-Futtaim’s Robinson stake hit 60.8 per cent after Lippo’s acceptance. The stake then rose further to 87.19 per cent by 7pm yesterday. Of Al-Futtaim’s revised offer, Lippo president and Robinson deputy chairman Stephen Riady said: ‘The improved offer at $7.20 represents a ‘win-win’ for all parties. We believe the Al-Futtaim Group understands and appreciates the Robinson tradition and business and we are leaving Robinson in good hands.’

‘At the same time, Auric Pacific (the Lippo unit which owned the Robinson stake) will be able to utilise the proceeds from the divestment to focus on its other retail and food and beverage businesses,’ he added.

Lippo’s decision to tender into the offer came as something of a surprise to observers, given how hard the Indonesian group fought in 2006 to acquire a stake in Robinson. Lippo had bid $7.90 a share then - a price rumoured to be well above the offers made by other interested parties.

And, throughout Al-Futtaim’s offer for Robinson, Lippo has remained mum on its plans for its stake in the retailer. But BT had speculated that Lippo would likely sell its stake to Al-Futtaim. Lippo’s decision, back in 2006, to buy under 30 per cent of Robinson - even though a larger stake was available - so as to avoid having to make a general offer for the whole company, was an indication that Lippo was not keen on taking over all of Robinson.

The regional potential of Robinson - as a successful retail brand in Asia - has also not been exploited to the extent that Lippo had first hoped, when it bought its stake. Generous dividend payouts by Robinson since 2006 have also meant that Lippo’s outlay for its stake has dropped to $6.70 a share, from the $7.90 it paid - giving Lippo a financial incentive to now sell its stake to Al-Futtaim for $7.20.

Source : Business  Times - 04 April 2008

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Mindy Yong

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Singapore Ten Mile Junction site draws top bid of $61m

Posted on April 4th, 2008 by Mindy Yong.
Categories: Singapore Real Estate News.

Singapore Ten Mile Junction site draws top bid of $61m 
 
THE top bid for a unique 99-year leasehold site in Choa Chu Kang has come in at $61 million, which experts say is within expectations.
The residential site at the junction of Choa Chu Kang Road and Woodlands Road attracted only two bids, with Peak Green, a unit of Peak Properties, which is controlled by the United Overseas Bank’s Wee family, leading the way.

Its bid of $61 million values the site at $162 per sq ft (psf) per gross floor area. Sim Lian Land’s offer was well back at $45.68 million.

The site has an existing three-storey commercial development - the Ten Mile Junction mall - and was the first residential site above a Light Rapid Transit station offered for sale by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). It has a gross floor area of 254,394 sq ft for residential use, for either flats or service apartments. The mall has a fixed gross floor area of 121,191 sq ft.

The URA said the tender will be awarded once the bids are evaluated.

Knight Frank director of research and consultancy Nicholas Mak said the price was within expectations given the location and nearby amenities.

CBRE Research executive director Li Hiaw Ho said that if the site is awarded to Peak Green, the breakeven price will be around $400 psf. This will translate into a possible selling price of about $500 psf for apartments on the site.

NICHOLAS FANG

Source : Straits  Times - 04 April 2008

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Mindy Yong

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Lippo agrees to sell Singapore Robinson stake to Dubai retail giant

Posted on April 4th, 2008 by Mindy Yong.
Categories: Singapore Real Estate News.

Lippo agrees to sell Singapore Robinson stake to Dubai retail giant
 
It accepts higher price of $7.20 a share, giving up control of retailer

By Fiona Chan 
 
INDONESIA’S Lippo Group yesterday agreed to sell its shares in Robinson & Co, paving the way for Singapore’s oldest retailer to be taken over by the Al-Futtaim Group of Dubai.
Lippo, which owns 29.99 per cent of the department store chain, held out from selling until the very last moment, forcing Al-Futtaim to extend its offer deadline and raise its price twice.

The Indonesian group finally accepted the offer just before the 5.30pm deadline yesterday at a price - $7.20 a share - that was almost a dollar higher than the initial offer of $6.25.

With Lippo’s acceptance, Al-Futtaim would control 60.8 per cent of Robinson.

Barely two hours later, the acceptance level had soared to 87.2 per cent. The offer is now unconditional and has been extended to April 30 for the remaining shareholders.

These include OCBC Bank, which holds about 6 per cent of Robinson. OCBC declined to comment on whether Lippo’s move would affect its decision on its stake.

Lippo president Stephen Riady said $7.20 a share was ‘a good price’ for the group’s stake. ‘We bought it at $7.90 a share but received dividends of $1.50, so our cost is really $6.40,’ he told The Straits Times yesterday.

But he also gave other reasons for the sale: ‘The rationale for the disposal is the uncertain prospect of the retailing industry, because of the current adverse global situation.

‘Also, I think the big market for retail is really China and Indonesia. Robinson is not ready to go to China yet. It is focusing on Singapore and Malaysia, but this is a relatively small market.’

Mr Riady also raised concerns about Robinson’s rising cost of doing business in Singapore, with property rentals and staff costs escalating.

He also spoke of how department stores in Singapore are grappling with obsolescence, as mall owners start to favour smaller retailers.

‘Over the last two years, the owners of all the major retail malls in Singapore have gone, one by one, to Reits,’ he said. Reits, or real estate investment trusts, are listed funds that buy properties and collect rental income, which they distribute to unitholders like dividends.

‘The only interest of Reits is to increase yields, to ensure performance. If you have an anchor tenant like a department store, the rent is lower, so they don’t want that.’

Lippo is exiting Robinson less than two years after it bought its stake from OCBC and shook up Robinson’s board, ousting long-serving chairman Michael Wong Pakshong.

Under Lippo’s control, the 150-year-old retailer has been expanding steadily, opening a store in Kuala Lumpur and bringing in new brands.

Al-Futtaim has said it plans to accelerate this expansion and use Robinson as its own gateway into South-east Asia.

The Dubai group is headed by chairman Abdullah Al Futtaim, who is worth US$3 billion (S$4.15 billion) and was ranked the 287th richest person in the world last year by Forbes magazine.

Forbes said Al-Futtaim, which is the exclusive distributor for brands such as Ikea and Toyota in the United Arab Emirates, as well as Marks & Spencer, a franchise held by Robinson in Singapore, is ’so large and profitable that it may make up as much as 15 per cent of Dubai’s gross domestic product’.

Al-Futtaim’s bid sent Robinson shares to a three-year high even as other stocks endured wild swings recently.

But the stock fell 14 cents yesterday to $6.86 before Lippo’s announcement, possibly because of some jittery investors who feared that Al-Futtaim’s offer would lapse, which might have sent the shares tumbling.

Source : Straits  Times - 04 April 2008

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Mindy Yong

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Subsidised Singapore HDB rental flats in greater demand now

Posted on April 4th, 2008 by Mindy Yong.
Categories: Singapore Real Estate News.

Subsidised Singapore HDB rental flats in greater demand now 

30% jump in applicants in past few months; HDB says not all are needy

By Theresa Tan 
THE number of people applying for heavily subsidised HDB rental flats has shot up by at least 30 per cent in the past few months - to about 4,000 eligible applicants on the waiting list now.
As a result, the wait for these one- and two-room rental units is now up to 15 months - double the waiting time in 2006.

Though families hit by soaring rentals on the open market and those in financial difficulty are among those in the queue, the Housing Board said not all applicants are ‘needy or have urgent housing needs’.

It said that last year, more than half who applied for its rental units were former home owners who did not owe the HDB any money when they sold their flats.

In fact, some of those in the rental queue had enough money to buy a smaller unit after selling their flat, said National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan in the recent Budget debate.

The HDB stressed that its rental flats are meant for the poor who cannot afford to own a flat and have no other housing option.

Any family whose household income is $1,500 or less a month can apply for rental housing. Also, they must wait for 30 months after selling their flats before being eligible for subsidised rental homes.

MPs interviewed say they are seeing more and more people approaching them for help in securing a rental flat.

Besides those hit by rising rentals and financial troubles, there were others who had their flats repossessed by banks when they could not service their home loans.

The heavily subsidised HDB rental units are the only lifeline for these people, say the MPs interviewed, who included Ms Indranee Rajah, Madam Cynthia Phua and Madam Halimah Yacob.

Depending on household income and other factors, rentals are between $26 and $205 a month for a one-room flat; and between $44 and $275 for a two-room unit.

One person who has been on the waiting list for the past few months is part-time promoter Chan Yoke Yin, 46.

Her family ran into debt when her husband, a bus driver, was hit by cancer and a stroke, and had to stop work about four years ago.

The family started to fall behind in loan payments, and now owes the HDB more than $300,000 for a five-room flat. Madam Chan, who earns about $1,000 monthly, says she has ‘no choice’ but to sell her flat.

Ms Rajah said: ‘I have had an inordinately large number of people coming for help to get a rental flat last year.

‘There seems to be an acute shortage of rental flats.’

She has seen at least two cases of people living in the open while waiting for a rental unit, she said. One is an odd-job worker who has been sleeping at a bin centre for months, while the other is a family living on the beach.

The HDB says people who need a flat urgently can switch to estates where the wait is shorter, for example, in Woodlands. Waiting time at these estates is around three months, compared to Bedok and Tampines, where one can wait for up to 15 months.

Meanwhile, the HDB is referring those in urgent need to charities which run temporary shelters. The first shelter for homeless families, New Hope Community Services, has taken in about 20 families since opening last year.

It is managing ‘a few’ flats for this purpose, the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) told The Straits Times.

‘These families are not allowed to stay long term at these flats and are expected to move out as soon as they find alternative housing,’ said the MCYS spokesman. ‘Many such families have been able to move on to stay with their relatives or friends.’

HDB is also increasing the supply of rental flats from the current 43,000 units to 50,000 over the next few years and reviewing the eligibility criteria for rental housing to help the ‘genuinely poor’.
 
Source : Straits  Times - 04 April 2008

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Mindy Yong

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