Small band of dissenters fights en bloc sale frenzy

I refer to the article, ‘Small band of dissenters fights en bloc sale frenzy’ (ST, May 30).

I am proud of retiree Mary Chan, who, in spite of being in her 70s and computer-illiterate, put up a valiant fight for her home. Sadly, she failed and will end up losing her flat in an en bloc sale.

As a senior citizen myself, I appreciate the steps taken by the Government to safeguard my health and welfare, e.g., by revamping ElderShield, passing the Maintenance of Parents Act, and extending the employment age.

I appeal to the Government to also safeguard my home and those of others like Mary Chan from being sold off by strangers.

According to press reports, there were 72 en bloc sales last year and this number is likely to be exceeded this year, seeing the frenzy that has taken hold.

There are many more Mary Chans caught in this situation who are unable to fight back. Many have sleepless nights and feel helpless to prevent the loss of their homes. Some descend into depression.

One in five Singaporeans will be 65 or older by 2030.

Minister for National Development Mah Bow Tan said at a BCA-SIA seminar last September: ‘With such a high proportion of elderly people, it is important for us to create an environment where our elderly can ‘age in place’. What this means is that they can also continue to enjoy living in familiar surroundings and among friends and neighbours.’

One way of ensuring this is for the Government to step in and either stop this en bloc frenzy altogether or make it mandatory for the interests of the elderly to be fully safeguarded before an en bloc sale commences.

The recent en bloc sales of huge properties have ‘released’ many hundreds of new home buyers into the property market.

In the short term, the supply of homes will not be able to satisfy the demand.

This will create a ’shortage’ of homes and drive prices of property up.

Visit any showflat and you will find developers selling more small units and fewer medium/large ones.

This is logical because the smaller units are affordable and sellable.

Therefore, those who sell their medium-sized/large apartments in en bloc sales will now have to settle for small units unless they pay extra and buy penthouses or landed property.

For en bloc sales, only prime district and freehold land will continue to attract large premiums.

Developers are willing to offer multi-million-dollar price tags because such land commands a high selling price per unit.

If you gain less than a million dollars from the en bloc sale of your 99-year leasehold estate, it may be financially wise to consider buying a HDB flat. This way, you get to keep some cash in the bank.

Source: The Straits Times, 01 June 2007