HDB releases 1,329 new flats targeting young couples

Flats in Woodlands Dew and Woodlands Meadow attractively priced, designed and situated for newly weds.

HDB released 1,329 new flats on Tuesday in two Build-To-Order (BTO) projects: Woodlands Dew and Woodlands Meadow. The sites are adjacent to each other and will be linked by a landscaped walkway, allowing future residents to access the amenities found in the adjoining project, as mentioned in a PropNex report.

“The flats are clearly targeted at young couples hoping to start families,” says PropNex corporate communications manager Mr Adam Tan. “Firstly, there is the introduction of 2-room flats, although the majority of the flats are the perennially popular 4-roomers, with 539 or 40% of the total number catering for that flat type, an ideal size for families with two children.

“Then, there is the fact that the prices are very attractive. Compared to HDB’s 2Q10 median resale prices for similar flats in Woodlands, the median indicated pricing for these units are between 22.9% (for 4-room flats at Woodlands Meadow) and a generous 39.2% (for 3-room flats at Woodlands Meadow) cheaper. This will appeal to young couples who have just started their careers and are looking to start a family in the next few years.

Mr Tan adds that another attractive feature for the young couples and their future families is the education centre within the development of Woodlands Dew and a central green space with recreational facilities in both projects.

“Such facilities, as well as the shops and supermarket within Woodlands Dew and the Resident’s Committee Centre, offer a lifestyle and convenience that can be enjoyed by the whole family,” he elaborates.

“Then, of course, there are the primary and secondary schools in the area that will a be a boon to young parents with school-going children.”

With regards to the property cooling measures announced by HDB on 30 August 2010, Mr Tan does not advise prospective first-time buyers to wait for Cash-Over-Valuation (COV) levels to come crashing down anytime soon, and then buy a resale flat.

“The new measures are meant to discourage speculative purchasing of HDB flats for investment purposes,” he explains, “but most of the people who buy HDB flats are genuine homeowners anyway, so demand for public housing currently still exceeds supply.”

He also highlights the fact that it is not realistic to expect COV levels to maintain at $0–5k levels, as the COV is a premium that will always exist for flats that are high in demand, i.e. in a popular area, on a high floor, etc.
He further reveals that while PropNex, which has a 30% share of the HDB resale market, has seen a dip in COV levels since the 2Q10 and the announcement of the new measures, they are drastic.

“The new measures only really affect homeowners who purchased their flat after the new measures were announced,” he said, “as they now have to plan ahead with the knowledge that they will be locked in to the new purchase for at least five years. For the majority of the genuine homeowners who are buying for owner occupation, this is not an issue and they are still in the market to buy.”

Given the sustained high demand for public housing, Mr Tan expects the oversubscription rate for the BTO to be around four times.