February 06, 2023, 01:11 PM
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It appears that another vacant and unoccupied HDB flat has been listed on PropertyGuru.
The listing, put up on Friday, Feb. 3, showed a three-room flat located at Block 23 Teban Gardens Road in Jurong East being sold for S$500,000.
The unit was completed in 2012 and has an 88-year lease left.
In the video posted by the property agent, the flat appeared in mint condition with no furniture in sight.
The unit, with two bedrooms and two bathrooms, was also described as "currently vacant" and not renovated.
'Owner passed away long ago': Agent
In response to AsiaOne's queries on Feb. 4, the property agent claimed that the homeowner had passed away long ago.
Mothership has also reached out to the property agent for comment.
On Dec. 22, 2022, the Housing and Development Board announced that it is investigating “vacant" BTO flats being sold on the open market and may compulsorily acquire units if their owners failed to physically occupy them during the five-year minimum occupancy period (MOP).
While the death of the owner is one of the reasons given for reselling the flat before the MOP is fulfilled, such exceptions are granted on a case-by-case basis and require special approval from the HDB.
Mixed reactions
When the listing was posted on Reddit, opinions were divided as some sought more context and the circumstances surrounding the unit's sale.
A commenter suggested that the listing and its details can become evidence and be reported to HDB.
Screenshot via Reddit
Others, however, were willing to give the seller the benefit of the doubt as it could be the case that the owner simply took photos of the flat before moving in or cleared the house after moving overseas.
Screenshot via Reddit
'A rare case': Industry expert
An industry veteran interviewed by Shin Min Daily News said it is relatively rare to encounter cases in which an HDB flat was resold after the owner passed away within the five-year MOP.
He explained that in those cases, the intended seller would need to furnish HDB with the owner's death certificate first before applying to sell the flat.
This process would also typically take a month to complete.
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Top images via PropertyGuru and Clarie Lim's YouTube page
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