HDB to pilot new type of public rental housing for low-income singles

A mock-up of a shared dining area of the new HDB rental units. - ST

SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/Asia News A new type of public rental housing where low-income singles live in their own rooms but share toilets and kitchens will be rolled out in end-2023.

Called Single Room Shared Facilities, this new housing type aims to give tenants greater privacy while providing a community-type living environment, said the Housing Board on Monday (March 13).

HDB will pilot the initiative at the former Anderson Junior College hostel in Ang Mo Kio Avenue 8, which comprises two 11-storey blocks. The site will be able to house 480 tenants in single rooms, fully partitioned out of 240 units.

Each room, about 9sq m, will come fitted with basic furnishings such a single-size bed frame, wardrobe, table, chair, wall shelves and a mini refrigerator.

Tenants will have to buy their own mattress for hygiene reasons, said HDB.

The 24 tenants on each level will share common facilities such as toilets, and kitchens equipped with five cooking stoves, sinks and cabinets.

They will also share laundry and activity rooms, as well as dining areas repurposed from former study rooms.

This set-up is unlike the Joint Singles Scheme Operator-Run model implemented in end-2021, which pairs singles to share a one- or two-room HDB flat which are semi-partitioned.

Speaking to reporters after a tour of a sample unit, National Development Minister Desmond Lee said the former hostel site was picked to reduce the preparation time to start the pilot as HDB could “make do with the existing infrastructure and make adjustments to it”.

“If we do make this a permanent feature of our rental flat offerings, there will be of course changes to the configurations and the ratio (of tenants to facilities). This is using existing infrastructure and making do with what we have to test out this model,” he added.

Lee said the pilot will run for one to two years for HDB to collect data on whether the model will work, and if it should be included among the Government’s public rental schemes.

The former hostel site is currently still being fitted out, and singles will be able to apply individually in end-2023 when it is ready. The prevailing public rental eligibility criteria for singles will apply.

An operator will be appointed to manage the site, including managing tenancy matters and providing social support, as well as furnishing and maintaining the premises, said HDB.