HDB pilots new open concept ‘white flats’ in October BTO exercise

According to the HDB, the non-provision of inside dividing wall structures for such white condos will be factored right into the pricing. Buyers might opt right into the new style when they are invited to book their level.

For example, four-room apartments nowadays have 3 bed rooms. Young couples with no young children yet might not want all three rooms currently. A white flat allows them to partition the room with furniture pieces or glass partitions. Down the road, when they have kids, the spot could be repurposed, and the rooms created, includes Lim.

HDB is going to pilot a brand-new open concept layout in the October Built-To-Order (BTO) exercise, revealed Desmond Lee, Minister of National Development, at a speech on May 27.

He points out that those who intend to remodel their brand-new level can even see expense reductions as they will not need to demolish partitions, unlike those purchasing the standard HDB flats.

Christine Sun, chief analyst & strategist at OrangeTee Group, points out that such “white plan” concepts that give homebuyers the choice to personalize the layout of their units were available just in luxury exclusive homes prior to.

“Public housing flats that feature the white plan can be a novelty for some investors”, says Sun.

In contrast to existing apartments, these “white apartments” will have contiguous living and bed rooms spot without columns or parting walls. The initial set of such white flats will be featured at the Kallang-Whampoa BTO plan, with 310 three- and four-room units.

Hillock Green condo

However, she adds in that the new layout may have a possible disadvantage when marketing the unit in the future as it may attract a smaller pool of homebuyers.

A good example is Far East Organization’s Inessence brand of ultra-luxury houses, like Alba, Boulevard Vue and Skyline @ Orchard Boulevard in the prime communities of Orchard Road. The “white plan” concept enabled purchasers to customise their units.

“It gives the design of the HDB flat to be personalized and re-configured as family requires alteration,” comments Eugene Lim, key executive officer at ERA Singapore.

In spite of this, Sun predicts that any potential cost variation would certainly not be substantial as the construction of non-structural wall surfaces is less costly.


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