1,135 couples cancelled flat bookings
By Romesh Navaratnarajah:A total of 48,460 couples booked their HDB flats between 2009 and 1H2012, but 4.3 percent of that total, or 1,135 couples cancelled their bookings.
These figures were revealed by National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan in a written response to Png Eng Huat, Member of Parliament for Hougang, who raised questions about the housing board's Fiance / Fiancee Scheme.
The cancellations were mostly due to relationship break-ups including divorces and annulments, cited by 367 couples.
In 2009, a total of 14,682 couples applied for the scheme, while in 2010, 12,202 couples booked their flats. Last year, 13,640 couples had flat bookings while in 1H2012, 7,936 couples applied for flats.
Out of the 48,460 couples who applied, 37,537 were invited to select their flats and 26,174 booked their units.
Mr Khaw noted that buyers of Build-to-Order (BTO) projects have to wait two-and-a-half years to three years before they can get the keys to their flats. Related Stories: PRC new citizen buys million-dollar HDB
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