EXTENSION OF HDB PUBLIC RENTAL SCHEME TO FAMILIES WITH LARGE NUMBERS OF CHILDREN AND DO NOT HAVE REALISTIC PROSPECT OF PURCHASING OWN HOMES

In my outreach work at our 1-room and 2-room rental flats, I noted that living conditions for some of our children are not ideal because of the size of their families. I felt they should be housed in bigger rental flats. I therefore asked the Minister whether these families can get access to 3-room rental flats. My concern is to ensure that we provide a more conducive environment for our children in these circumstances. My PQ and Minister Desmond Lee’s answer are set out below.

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — -

Mr Murali Pillai asked the Minister for National Development (a) how many families are currently residing in 3-room rental flats under the Public Rental Scheme; (b) whether HDB will consider extending 3-room rental flats to families with large numbers of children who do not have a realistic prospect of purchasing their own homes so that their children will have a safer and more conducive environment to grow up in.

Mr Desmond Lee: There are currently about 200 public rental households living in 3-room flats.

The Housing and Development Board works closely with the Ministry of Social and Family Development and selected Family Service Centres (FSCs) to assist large families with children to access 3-room rental flats on a case-by-case basis. In particular, we focus on large families who do not have family support and have no alternative housing options. These families are also supported by social workers from the FSCs, who work closely with the families to holistically address the challenges they face.

For families staying in public rental, our goal is to uplift them, so that they can build up their finances and buy their own flat eventually. This is why we have paired rental housing with social support via the ComLink programme, where agencies provide holistic support to rental families to address their needs and aspirations. When the families are ready for home ownership, we provide substantial grants and one-to-one guidance to help them buy a flat.