Oral Answer by Ministry of National Development on impact of the ongoing pandemic on HDB Build-to-Order (BTO) supply, the progress of construction work, and wait times for ongoing projects
Oct 5, 2021
*1893. Miss Cheryl Chan Wei Ling: To ask the Minister for National Development in view of the constant start/stop in construction works with the surge in number of COVID-19 cases (a) whether the previous estimated timelines of HDB BTO project completions are expected to be lengthened; and (b) if so, whether further help will be given to the affected flat owners.
*1661. Mr Seah Kian Peng: To ask the Minister for National Development given the continued high demand for BTO flats coupled with the delay in completion of various ongoing BTO projects, whether the Ministry will consider bringing forward various planned BTO projects or consider building more BTO flats than currently planned.
Answer:
Mr Speaker, Members have shared concerns about the impact of the ongoing pandemic on our HDB Build-to-Order (BTO) supply, the progress of construction work, and wait times for ongoing projects. Let me address these concerns and set out what we are doing to keep our BTO programme on track and support affected homebuyers.
First, Mr Seah had asked if HDB will build more BTO flats or advance planned projects in view of demand. We recognise that demand for public housing has remained strong and that is why we had adjusted our supply.
We had launched 14,600 flats in 2019. We increased that to 16,800 in 2020. We are on track to launch 17,000 BTO flats in 2021. Next year, we will increase the BTO flat supply even further and launch more than 17,000 flats. We are finalising the details and will announce our plans for 2022 when ready.
Second, there have been concerns over the waiting times for BTO flats, as raised by Ms Cheryl Chan. Some have said that waiting times have risen to 6 to 7 years. This is not the case.
Let me start with ongoing BTO projects:
• The average waiting time for ongoing BTO projects, including delays brought about by the pandemic, has remained between 4 to 5 years.
• Thus far, the Government’s support and assistance measures have helped to keep the pandemic-induced delays to our BTO projects to a year or less, except for one project which had already experienced project difficulties unrelated to the pandemic.
• The total wait time for any given project has been kept under 6 years.
For BTO projects launched last year and this year, the estimated waiting times range from 3 to 5.5 years.
For example, Hougang Citrine launched in August is expected to be completed in 3 years. Alkaff Breeze in Bidadari launched in February has a waiting time of just over 3 years, and Garden Court @ Tengah, launched last November, has a waiting time of about 3.5 years.
There are some projects that will take longer:
• Such as Queen’s Arc – launched in August this year – expected to take longer at about 5.5 years.
• There are a few projects like Queen’s Arc, where the waiting times are longer. This is because the conditions of the site are difficult, and construction will take longer, or these are projects with very high storey-heights, which require more construction time.
• These have caused some people to worry that all new BTOs will take 6 to 7 years. But these are in the minority.
• By and large, barring further unexpected developments, most flat buyers can expect to move into their flats within 4 to 5 years after booking their flats.
Third, the recent news on Greatearth’s insolvency may have added to the anxieties of home buyers waiting for their flats to be completed, and some are concerned whether this puts the completion of their homes at risk.
To try to minimise the impact on home buyers, HDB has brought new contractors on board, within a month, to take over Greatearth’s affected projects. Unfortunately, this will still add a further 2 to 3 months delay to affected projects, but we are working closely with the new contractors to bring the projects back on track. We are watching the progress of all BTO projects closely and have stepped up efforts to detect emerging issues earlier and resolve them.
Fourth, existing home buyers may be concerned about further delays to ongoing projects given the impact of COVID-19 on the construction industry. With tightened border controls over foreign workers, disruptions in the supply of building materials and stringent worksite public health measures, there have been manpower and material shortages and a slowdown in work, which have affected public and private construction projects.
To mitigate the pandemic’s impact on our public housing programme, HDB has rolled out extensive assistance to help contractors complete ongoing projects in a timely manner. To tackle manpower shortages, HDB has worked with firms to safely recruit workers from various countries and co-shared the increase in manpower costs. HDB has also worked with contractors to explore ways to speed up construction without affecting safety and quality.
To minimise work stoppages due to COVID-19 transmission, we have implemented Antigen Rapid Testing (ART) on top of Rostered Routine Testing (RRT) at worksites. This allows members of the construction workforce who have been infected to be picked up and treated early, and close contacts quarantined swiftly. Worksites can then continue operating as long as workers are on the ART regime.
To help with the higher cost of materials, HDB has extended the period of protection against steel price fluctuations and supplied contractors with more concreting materials at protected prices.
This is in addition to the extensive government support provided through JSS, construction restart grants, legislative interventions, advance payments, sharing of prolongation costs and manpower cost increases, and foreign worker levy rebates.
While the pandemic has inevitably caused delays to both private and public sector construction projects, including BTO projects, we will continue to do our best to minimise the extent of the delays. HDB has also taken steps to support affected homebuyers.
We have helped some flat buyers secure interim accommodation, and will be increasing the supply of flats under the Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS) by 800 units over the next 2 years. For low-income households with no family support and no other housing options, HDB will consider offering Interim Rental Housing (IRH) on a case-by-case basis.
Flat buyers who face delays that exceed their Delivery Possession Date (DPD) will be compensated at the amount and for the period as set out in the COVID-19 (Temporary Measures) Act (COTMA), which applies to all developers.We will also consider waiving flat booking forfeitures and the one-year wait-out period based on the flat buyers’ circumstances, such as for flat buyers who choose to cancel their BTO flats due to BTO delays, and buy a resale flat to meet their urgent housing needs.
Even amidst the ongoing pandemic, we are committed to delivering public housing to Singaporeans. With these measures, we will press on to keep our BTO programme on track and support homebuyers who may be affected by the delays.