Changes to income assessment, housing grant disbursement as HDB streamlines home buying process

SINGAPORE: From Tuesday (May 9), people looking to buy Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats will have their incomes assessed over a period of 12 months, instead of the most recent three or six months.

Announcing the changes on Monday night, HDB said it would also make changes to grant disbursements from Tuesday.

For first-timer households comprising a Singaporean and permanent resident couple, housing grants will now be disbursed to both. Previously housing grants were only disbursed to Singaporean flat applicants.

There is no change for first-timer households comprising a Singaporean couple.

HDB introduced a new HDB Flat Eligibility (HFE) letter on Tuesday, which is aimed at streamlining the purchase process for buyers.

Announced last month, the HFE letter will replace the previous HDB Loan Eligibility (HLE) letter.

The HFE letter will inform flat buyers upfront of their eligibility for a new or resale flat purchase, Central Provident Fund (CPF) housing grants and HDB housing loan, including grant and loan amounts.

Buyers' personal particulars will be retrieved from Myinfo or eligibility assessment, reducing the number of documents they will need to submit to HDB.

"To facilitate the link-up, HDB will in tandem streamline its income assessment guidelines, including the income assessment period. HDB will also adjust the way it assesses households’ eligibility for housing subsidies for greater consistency," it said.

INCOME ASSESSMENT

Changing of the income assessment period to 12 months, where income months are available, will provide a clearer gauge of an applicant's income level.

This is especially so for those whose income fluctuates from month to month.

"This approach leverages available data to allow for a more consistent assessment across applicants, who may have jobs with different work nature and remuneration structures," said HDB on Monday.

Other changes include the cut-off date of the income assessment period and income components considered.

The updated guidelines will apply to other schemes where relevant, such as the purchase of executive condominium units from property developers, the Lease Buyback Scheme, and the Silver Housing Bonus. 

HOUSING GRANTS

HDB has also streamlined the assessment of eligibility for housing subsidies.

Previously, a household's eligibility is generally assessed based on all applicants and core occupiers. With the new HFE letter, it will now be based on the core family nucleus, which is formed by the core applicants and core occupiers.

These are the applicants and occupiers who meet the eligibility conditions for a flat purchase.

"Moving forward, all members of the core nucleus, including core occupiers, will enjoy the housing subsidy, and the housing grants will be shared among the core nucleus, for first-time applicants," said HDB.

From Tuesday, eligible housing grants will be shared among applicants and occupiers in the core nucleus, regardless of whether they are Singaporeans or permanent residents. Previously, housing grants are only disbursed to Singaporean flat applicants.

"This is a fairer approach as the Singaporean or permanent resident core occupier will be treated as a second-timer after enjoying a housing grant, similar to Singaporean core applicants," said HDB. 

Second-time applicants in the core family nucleus who previously received a housing subsidy will be required to pay their resale levy before collecting the keys to their second subsidised flat.

"For the majority of households, there will be no change in the overall grant amount enjoyed, as their eligibility for housing grants will continue to be assessed on a household basis," said HDB.

The Housing Board said it will also consider the eligibility of the core nucleus for other conditions, including the continuous employment condition for the Enhanced CPF Housing Grant.