Why aren't specific HDB subsidy and development cost figures released?
I think PAP sometimes has a problem in communications - though in this case it might be the fault of the parliamentary formula of asking questions and providing answers on the spot.
I agree that the response given by the minister does not sound particularly good for many onlookers. Why wouldn't HDB just release all of the figures? Does the argument of subjective affordability really cut the mustard here?
This response is, of course, fairly accurate - after all the value is in the eye of the beholder and given the huge oversubscription of the BTOs one wouldn't think Singaporeans find these apartments hard to afford.
But there is a more practical reason why releasing specific figures for each development makes no sense - and that is that they are not comparable and yet people would immediately begin to make these comparisons between them.
Each housing project has different parameters, may face different obstacles, different land pricing in a specific spot and, thus, different monetary levels of direct subsidies.
Giving specific figures for each project would not provide greater clarity - it would only trigger more questions and require even more answers, since property development is an inherently complex endeavour.
People would be asking why someone three streets away is getting a $5000 higher subsidy, or why development costs for a particular property were 5.683% higher than for some other.
You'd then have the minister, or HDB staff at least, respond to petitioning buyers or owners that there was a rock, or a pipe, or unusual geological conditions that made property A more expensive to develop than property B. Or that land on plot C was valued higher than the plot D.
(And then, of course, some armchair "experts" would immediately argue that it's all wrong and PAP is robbing the nation.)
This would only result in a massive administrative headache.
HDB presents its complete numbers at the end of each year and gets audited like all other bodies of the government. Meanwhile, all BTOs come at a demonstrable discount over the resale market, making them very affordable in comparison (and historically near the average median income to price ratio).
That's enough.
