Singaporean Matters: Million Dollar HDBs

Will our children be able to afford one?

It was recently reported that there have been 266 million-dollar HDB resale flat transactions in 2022. This exceeds the 259 units recorded in 2021. Many Singaporeans are naturally up in arms as they see this as a sign of the high cost of living and the impossibility for their children to ever own a home.

But is this really the case? Has the price of public housing risen to the level, or will rise to the level, that will be beyond the reach of the next generation of Singaporeans?

The reality is that while prices have risen, I believe that HDBs are still affordable. A check with HDB’s website reveals that Build-to-Order (BTO) apartments in non-mature towns sold in August 2022 are reasonably priced — a four-room apartment, after grants, will cost a Singaporean couple somewhere in the region of $250,000.

In fact, the HDB builds an average of 17,000 BTOs a year and will launch 23,000 BTOs in 2022 and 2023. With an average annual birth rate of 31,000 citizens, this is more than enough to address Singaporean’s housing needs.

So whenever I hear a Singaporean lament the high cost of public housing and question their children’s ability to afford a home, I believe that I have met an ill-formed Singaporean who has been misled by social media. If Singaporeans are prepared to buy a home in a non-mature town, housing is definitely affordable. It is a simple question of needs vs wants, and I think the G cannot satisfy all wants.