1 in 4 Appeals to Waive HDB Wait-Out Period for Private Home Owners Approved

Extenuating circumstances of flat buyers and their families taken into account: HDB

- Joyce Lim

About one in four appeals from private property owners seeking to bypass the 15-month wait-out period to buy a Housing Board resale flat has been successful, the Housing Board said.

From the time the rule was introduced on Sept 30, 2022, until March 31, 2025, HDB received and processed about 5,500 appeals for a waiver. Around 25 per cent of these were approved after careful assessment of each case.

Extenuating circumstances of the flat buyers and their families are taken into account "to ensure that applicants and families with genuine needs are given fair consideration", a spokeswoman for HDB told The Straits Times.

When asked, the HDB did not specify the typical reasons cited in appeals and the criteria used to assess them.

The 15-month wait-out period was part of a series of measures introduced to help cool the HDB resale market, which was heating up partly due to demand from private property downgraders flush with capital.

It also helps to prioritise public housing for Singaporeans with more urgent housing needs, HDB said.

The rule applies to private property owners and former owners looking to buy a non-subsidised HDB resale flat. It does not apply to those aged 55 and above who are buying a four-room or smaller resale flat.

National Development Minister Chee Hong Tat said recently that the rule may be relaxed before 2027, due to an expected rise in supply of new and resale flats.