Minister of National Development Khaw Boon Wan has clarified comments made by Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam on the affordability of HDB flats.
Speaking in Parliament on Thursday, Mr Tharman said:
“Our housing subsidies are such that a family with a $1,000 income through subsidies can purchase a small flat….”
Mr Tharman also hit back Workers’ Party MP Gerald Giam’s comments about Singaporeans being unable to afford a flat, telling him to ‘catch up’ with policies already introduced.
‘So I would like to assure Mr Gerald Giam, who might not have caught up with all the developments… that a family with $1,000 income can now, through our housing subsidies, purchase a small flat,’ he added.
The comments caused a stir among Singaporeans who find it hard to believe that a family with a monthly income of $1,000 can afford to buy a HDB flat, but Mr Khaw explained that Mr Tharman was referring to a two-room Built-To-Order (BTO) flat.
“That’s because such a flat would cost a first-time applicant – who earns S$1,000 – about S$40,000, after subsidies. The mortgage payment can be fully paid through the applicant’s CPF, without incurring any additional out of pocket money,” Mr Khaw said.
Singapore, Singaporean, citizen, online, temasek, review, revealed, emeritus, news, politics, yahoo, google, facebook, xinmsn, ipad, youtube
No comments:
Post a Comment