SINGAPORE — The Housing and Development Board said on Thursday that it has dealt with 53 violations of minimum occupation period rules since 2017. It added that it was already probing some cases of"vacant" Build-to-Order flats being sold on the open market when they were reported in the media recently.
HDB’s statement comes amid concerns from Singaporeans that some BTO flat owners are not living in their homes during the MOP period, and flipping them for a profit later. In his post, Mr Lee said he was asked whether a family can buy a BTO flat, not live in it or move into it for five years, and then sell it as “almost brand new” on the resale market. The answer, said Mr Lee, is no.
In any case, HDB said flats are meant to meet the housing needs of Singaporeans and are primarily intended for owner-occupation. “If there are signs that the flat has not been lived in, HDB will withhold the resale application and commence investigations to ascertain if the flat owners had failed to fulfil the MOP,” it said.If there are signs that the flat has not been lived in, HDB will withhold the resale application and commence investigations to ascertain if the flat owners had failed to fulfil the MOP.