The scheme aims to help public rental families with young children own a 2-room Flexi flat.
The Fresh Start Housing Scheme opened for applications from Thursday (1 December) to help public rental families with young children own a 2-room Flexi flat.
Under the scheme, qualified families can buy a 2-room Flexi flat with shorter leases ranging from 45 to 65 years, and receive a Fresh Start Housing Grant of up to $35,000.
To qualify, at least one of the applicants must be in stable employment during the last 12 months. The family must also manage their finances well, with the children – at least one of which is below 16 years of age – regularly attending school.
“We are starting with a more targeted approach. So the number of Fresh Start families may not be large to begin with. But we will keep the scheme open, and families who are keen but do not qualify on their first attempt can apply again when they are more ready,” said National Development Minister Lawrence Wong in a blog post.
He revealed that the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) and the HDB will assess the readiness of families who apply, and check in with families who are on the scheme to ensure they remain on track.
To support outreach efforts and provide guidance on the scheme’s implementation, Wong has also appointed a Fresh Start Advisory Committee, which will be chaired by Dr Mohamad Maliki Osman, Senior Minister of State at the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Dr Maliki served as Minister of State in the Ministry of National Development when the scheme was initiated, and his experience will help to ensure its smooth implementation.
Meanwhile, interested families must apply on the HDB website or at any HDB branch office, and be emplaced on the scheme before they can apply for a 2-room Flexi flat in HDB’s sales exercises.
Romesh Navaratnarajah, Senior Editor at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact him about this or other stories, email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg
