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Source:
www.hdb.gov.sg |
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Relaxation Of Policy On
Subletting Of Whole Flat |
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The Minister for National Development
announced in Parliament today that HDB will further relax its policy on
the subletting of whole flats. |
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With this relaxation, HDB flat owners can
now sublet their whole flats after meeting the Minimum Occupation Period
(MOP) of 5 or 3 years, depending on whether the flat had been purchased
with a housing subsidy. |
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Background |
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HDB flats sold under the Home
Ownership scheme are meant for long-term owner-occupation. |
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However, HDB recognises that the flat
is also the single most valuable asset for many Singaporeans, and
has a value that can be unlocked to provide some supplementary
income for flat owners. |
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HDB has gradually relaxed its policy
on the subletting of whole flats over the years since Jan 2003. |
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The policy was last relaxed in Mar
2005 when the MOP for subletting was further reduced to 10 years
for lessees with an outstanding HDB loan, and 5 years for all
other lessees. |
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Further Relaxation |
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With immediate effect, HDB will be
relaxing its policy on the subletting of whole flats through a
further reduction of the MOP and delinking it from the lessees¡¯
HDB loan status. The revised MOP is: |
5 years for owners of
subsidised flats, i.e. flats
purchased directly from HDB or from the open market with a CPF
Housing Grant; and
3 years for owners of non-subsidised flats, i.e.
flats purchased from the open market without a CPF Housing
Grant.
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This reduction of the MOP for
subletting will allow flat owners greater flexibility to monetise
their flats when it is needed, e.g. during retirement or times of
financial difficulty. It will also enlarge the rental market for
HDB flats and offer more rental housing options for those who are
not yet ready to buy a property. |
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With this relaxation, about 645,000
HDB flats can be immediately sublet by their owners. |
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Procedures for Subletting |
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Flat owners are required to seek HDB¡¯s
prior approval before they sublet their flats, and will have to
comply with HDB¡¯s subletting rules and conditions listed at
Annex A. They can submit their applications online at
HDB¡¯s InfoWeb at www.hdb.gov.sg.
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HDB will conduct half-yearly flat
inspections for approved subletting cases and work closely with
the community to gather feedback on nuisance created by
subtenants. |
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In the event that subtenants disrupt
the good environment and ambience of the public housing estates,
HDB may revoke the subletting approval and the flat owner will be
required to terminate the tenancy. |
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For further information or enquiries,
the public can contact the HDB Branch Office Service Line at 1800
2255432. |
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More..... (Annex A) |
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Source:
www.hdb.gov.sg Press Release 3
Mar 2007 |
SingaporeUpdate.com All Rights Reserved
HDB further relaxes policy on
subletting of whole flats