Appeals for Public Rental Flats and Interim Rental Housing
Ministry of National DevelopmentSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns Mr Muhamad Faisal Bin Abdul Manap’s inquiry regarding the statistics and assessment criteria for public rental and interim housing appeals between 2013 and 2015. Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong stated that HDB received approximately 8,700 annual requests, with 6,900 successful public rental placements and 510 interim housing allocations across that period. He noted that HDB exercises flexibility for needy households without alternative options or family support regardless of eligibility criteria based on individual merit. Additionally, complex cases may be referred to Family Service Centres for professional social assessments and holistic support services to resolve underlying instability.
Transcript
10 Mr Muhamad Faisal Bin Abdul Manap asked the Minister for National Development for each year between 2013 and 2015 (a) how many cases of appeals have been received from the respective Members of Parliament on behalf of their residents for public rental flats and interim rental housing respectively; (b) of the total number of appeals, what is the number of successful appeals; (c) what are the main considerations for favourably granting these appeals; and (d) whether for complex cases, referrals will be made to Family Service Centres or voluntary welfare organisations to have the respective cases further assessed before a decision on their appeals is made.
Mr Lawrence Wong: From 2013 to 2015, the Housing and Development Board (HDB) received requests from around 8,700 appellants a year for public rental flats. These included appeals made through Members of Parliament and appeals made directly to HDB.
Over this same period, a total of 6,900 households were successful in their requests for public rental flats. Another 510 households were assisted with Interim Rental Housing.
HDB assesses each appeal on its own merit. For needy households which do not meet the eligibility criteria, HDB will exercise flexibility and offer public rental if they are unable to buy a flat and have no other housing options or family support.
HDB may also refer complex cases to a Family Service Centre (FSC) for a social worker’s assessment if the client consents. Apart from exploring their housing options, HDB will then work with the social service agencies to help the families with counselling, financial assistance and employment support to address the underlying causes of housing instability.