HDB to begin tapering off construction programme from 2014

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http://business.asiaone.com/news/hdb-begin-tapering-construction-programme-2014-khaw-boon-wan

The Housing Development Board (HDB) will be tapering off its construction programme beginning 2014 as the supply and demand for public housing returns to balance, National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan said in a blog post today.

"The Nov 2013 BTO/SBF launch is about to close.

"The offering of 8,952 flats in a single launch was the largest in HDB's history. With this, we have delivered over 25,000 BTO flats this year and over 77,000 BTO flats in the last three years.

"Three years of sustained ramp-up have begun to restore the balance in our housing market. The COV trend in the resale HDB market is symptomatic of this development and is welcomed.

"Another sign is the average BTO application rate; it has fallen from a high of 5.3 in 2010 to a low of 2.9 this year.

"We have cleared the backlog of young families buying their first flats, with average BTO application rate for first-timers holding steady at below two times.

"As the supply and demand for public housing returns to balance, we will begin to taper off the massive construction programme from 2014. We will do so in a measured way, to allow the market to gradually adjust, just like what we had done to cool the property market earlier."