The last couple of years have not been good for Singapore homebuyers and renters. A combination of factors – rising interest rates, construction delays and a housing shortage – has seen HDB apartments selling for as much as $1 million, and rental hikes of at least 20 per cent.
The latest government cooling measures, announced in September 2022, were designed to rein in skyrocketing property prices. The measures – which entailed a higher medium-term interest rate floor for bank and HDB housing loan eligibility, a reduction of Loan-to-Value limit for HDB housing loans from 85 to 80 per cent, and a 15-month wait for private property owners under 55 years old who want to purchase non-subsidised HDB resale flats – don’t seem to have helped much, with the property market expected to continue its bullish run in 2023, despite the gloomy global economic outlook.
But how are rising real estate prices impacting the lives of Singaporeans and long-term residents? How have their dreams for the future been affected, what
