More HDB flats in Punggol with two new BTO projects

Source : Business Times – 17 Nov 2009

Punggol Sails and Punggol Ripples will have a total of 1,078 new flats

THE Housing & Development Board (HDB) yesterday launched new build-to- order (BTO) projects at Punggol with a total of 1,078 flats.

And four more BTO projects – with 2,700 flats in all – can be expected next month in Bukit Panjang, Sembawang and Dawson.

Including the two latest Punggol projects – Punggol Sails and Punggol Ripples – HDB has offered about 10,800 flats under BTO and other exercises so far this year. Last month HDB announced plans to ramp up the supply of new flats to meet increased demand for public housing.

HDB also said that with effect from this BTO exercise, 95 per cent of the supply of two, three, four and five-room flats will be set aside for first-timers.

‘This will give greater priority to first-timers, who generally have more urgent housing needs than second-timers,’ it said.

Punggol Sails and Punggol Ripples will have 130 studio apartments and 436 three-room, 403 four-room and 109 five-room flats.

Studio apartments will be priced from $65,000 to $92,000; three-room flats will sell for $158,000 to $185,000; four-room flats for $249,000 to $305,000; and five-room flats for $332,000 to $377,000.

PropNex chief executive Mohamed Ismail expects strong interest in the new projects.

‘Plans are already underway to construct the 4.9km Punggol Promenade linking the estate’s two activity clusters,’ he said. ‘As part of the Punggol 21 Master Plan, this will enliven the area and increase the value of homes there.’

He expects the two BTO projects to be at least five times subscribed on the back of the increasing HDB resale price index.

BTO projects are typically cheaper than resale flats. The typical selling prices of new units are 10-20 per cent cheaper than those of comparable resale units in the area, Mr Ismail said.

HDB expects first-time flat buyers will need to use 23-27 per cent of their monthly household income to meet their monthly loan commitments for these two projects.

The agency says this is well below the 30 per cent international benchmark for affordable housing.

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CPF interest rate stays at 2.5% in Q1 next year

Posted by luxuryasiahome on November 17, 2009

CENTRAL Provident Fund members will continue to receive 2.5 per cent a year interest on savings in their Ordinary Account for the first three months of next year.

The CPF board said yesterday the interest rate as derived from those of the major local banks from August to October this year worked out to 0.42 per cent a year. But interest of 2.5 per cent will be paid, as this is the minimum rate provided for under the CPF Act.

With the Housing & Development Board, the CPF Board also said the concessionary interest rate for HDB mortgage loans will remain at 2.6 per cent a year from January to March next year.

For the Medisave, Special and Retirement accounts, the interest rate will be announced in December, after the 12-month average yield of the 10-year Singapore Government Security has been computed.

The CPF interest rate for the Special, Medisave and Retirement Accounts is pegged at one per cent above the yield rate. The current rate of 4 per cent for the October-December period will be kept as the floor until Dec 31 next year, to ‘help members adjust to this floating rate’. In addition, an extra one per cent interest will be paid on the first $60,000 of a member’s combined balances, with up to $20,000 from the Ordinary Account.