Counting Down to Zero: Are There Alternatives to VERS?

In excess of 80% of Singaporeans live in HDB flats, with the overwhelming majority relying on their CPF ordinary balances to pay the mortgage of these 99-year properties. In time, some Singaporeans go on to upgrade and purchase private property. The majority, however, either remain in the HDB cycle of upgrading or downgrading within the public housing market, or re-purchase public housing by the time they retire.

With many Singaporeans entering their golden years, the knowledge of their HDB flats steadily losing value before reaching zero can become a significant source of mental stress and insecurity.

Are there alternatives to better preserve or retain the wealth locked up within older HDB flats so the Singaporeans that reside within them are able to have better peace of mind?

This working paper takes a look at the evolution of Singapore’s housing policies over the decades. Thereafter, it proposes the principles that ought to underpin a robust public housing policy for Singapore in the decades to come, and considers what can be done about falling HDB resale prices.

Without the insights and information available to national development policymakers, alternative housing options can prove challenging to develop. The Workers’ Party Policy Team consulted with real estate experts, industry professionals, members of the public and organised a panel discussion on housing before drafting this working paper.

In raising alternative proposals, the team consciously sought to consider alternatives and proposals that ought not to portend uncertainty and wild fluctuations in the property market. We thank everyone for your contributions and aim to fine-tune and improve this paper.

We look forward to your feedback and suggestions.

Read the whitepaper here: Read now