Desmond Lee says he’s “committed to keeping public housing affordable & accessible to Singaporeans”

SINGAPORE — Singapore Minister for National Development Desmond Lee recently shared with Singaporeans what his commitment is when it comes to his work for public housing.

On Monday (Dec 12), Mr Lee wrote a Facebook post where he shared a few words about a recent talk of his where he was able to look back at the year and talk about what 2023 holds. In his post, he addressed the issue of public housing, which has become a hot topic in Singapore. “The pandemic, among other factors, contributed to tightness in the housing market, wrote Mr Lee. “Looking ahead, there are other challenges we have to face including rising interest rates, inflation and uncertain geopolitical situations.”

In late November, when Mr Lee made a statement on the apparent moderation of private and public housing markets, citing the property cooling measures that the government rolled out, many Singaporeans took the opportunity to share their two cents on the matter, with one even calling on the Minister to “open his eyes wide to see.”

In his recent post, Mr Lee mentioned the longevity of housing policies, saying, “Housing policy is inherently long-term. What we do today, takes time to manifest and has wide and far-ranging implications on not just today’s homebuyers and homeowners, but also tomorrow’s.

“My colleagues and I at MND and HDB are committed to keeping public housing affordable and accessible to Singaporeans. We are prepared to make necessary changes so that our housing policies continue to meet evolving housing needs and aspirations of Singaporeans. This is a conversation we have had before and will continue under Forward Singapore, as we refresh our housing social compact.”

In other news, Mr Lee’s statement that in the coming years, the government will be launching more BTO flats with shorter wait times has also gotten Singaporeans talking.