Implications Of The New HDB Resale Portal
As part of the government’s continuous efforts to streamline the resale process, the Ministry of National Development has launched a new HDB (Housing & Development Board) Resale Portal. Effective from 1 January 2018, all transactions of HDB resale flats must be carried out through this portal. Home buyers and sellers cheered at the news while property agents frowned. What benefits will this new portal bring to home buyers and sellers? Why is it not welcomed by property agents?
The Hassle To Buy Or Sell Your Flat In The Open Market
Most home seekers have experienced the nightmare of buying or selling their HDB flats in open market. First, you must enquire with HDB on the Buyer’s Eligibility. Simply put, the Ethnic and SPR quotas in your block and neighborhood. Consult your economics tutor on the implications of these quotas. How do they affect the resale price through demand and supply? You can also bring this up for discussion in your economics tuition class. This defines the group of buyers you can sell your flat to. Upon exercise of option, buyers and sellers have to schedule 2 appointments with HDB. The first appointment is to check through the required documents and deal with the financial matters and the second to complete the resale transaction by signing the documents. The whole process can take up to 16 weeks, or even longer if it coincides with the holiday period.
Everything On One Portal
The new HDB resale portal brings everything on one portal. By simply logging in with SingPass, you are able to check your eligibility to buy or sell the flat, the available quota in your block and neighborhood, and the recent transacted prices of nearby flats. Brainstorm with your economics tutor on the various factors that will affect your property price. Among the factors at play, which will exert a bigger impact? What are the likely outcomes under different circumstances? You can also make it an interesting topic for case study in economics tuition with your economics tutor.
Reduced Processing Time
With the new portal, the document check can be done online. Buyers and sellers are only required to make one appointment with HDB to complete the resale transaction. This will help cut down the processing time by half from 16 weeks to 8 weeks. Students have learned from their economics tutor at economics tuition, implications of production time on supply and price. Similarly, reduced process time also has its economic implications. Find out more about these in economics tuition from your economics tutor.
Reduced Financial Cost
The presence of such a portal has reduced the need to engage a property agent to perform the HDB resale transactions. Property agents charge 2 to 4 per cent commission from sellers and 1 to 2 per cent from buyers on the contracted price. This works out to be $8,000 to $16,000 for sellers and $4,000 to $8,000 for buyers for a typical HDB resale flat with a contracted price of $400,000.
In fact, HDB has already seen a growing number of HDB resale transactions completed without the involvement of an agent. In 2010, about 10% of HDB resale transactions were done this way and this percentage rose to close to 30% in 2017. With this new portal and the ease and convenience it offers, more home buyers and sellers will go agent-free.
It is self-evident why property agents do not welcome this move. However, those who have in-depth knowledge about their trade and have shown high level of professionalism will survive. Although buyers and sellers can bypass property agents and perform the transactions on their own, some may still prefer to leverage on their network in order to find a buyer / seller sooner and to secure a better price. Agents can also advise buyers / sellers with their expertise in property matters, for example, on the relevant rules and regulations related to their property transactions. You are advised to weigh the costs and benefits at your own discretion, with assistance from your economics tutor at economics tuition.
Ben Tan
Economics Tuition Singapore @ Economics Cafe
Principal Economics Tutor: Mr. Edmund Quek