Desmond Lee: First BTO project in Mount Pleasant estate to launch in October

SINGAPORE: The first Build-to-Order (BTO) project in the upcoming Mount Pleasant housing estate will be launched for sale in October, Minister for National Development Desmond Lee announced on Wednesday (5 March). The project will feature approximately 1,500 two- to four-room units, along with public rental flats, in residential blocks exceeding 40 storeys. It is one of six planned BTO projects for the estate, which was first announced in November 2021. Residents can expect amenities such as an eating house, supermarket, and the Mount Pleasant MRT station. The station, part of the Thomson-East Coast Line, will open in tandem with the completion of the BTO projects in the area.

Prime location with integrated heritage elements

Bounded by Thomson Road and the Pan-Island Expressway, the Mount Pleasant estate is located near Toa Payoh town and MacRitchie Reservoir, offering residents access to amenities and nature, according to a joint statement from the Ministry of National Development (MND) and the Housing and Development Board (HDB). The estate will have around 5,000 new homes built on a 33-hectare site that previously housed the Old Police Academy and pre-war black-and-white bungalows. Authorities have stated that heritage elements will be “sensitively integrated” into the estate’s design, with six buildings from the Old Police Academy set for conservation.

Classification under new flat categories unclear

It remains unclear how the Mount Pleasant BTO projects will be classified under the Standard, Plus, or Prime framework. Prime and Plus flats, typically located in central or well-connected areas, receive more subsidies to ensure affordability. However, they come with stricter resale and rental conditions. For instance, owners of Plus and Prime flats must live in their unit for at least 10 years before selling, compared to five years for Standard flats. Additionally, a subsidy clawback applies upon resale. ERA’s key executive officer Eugene Lim expects the project to fall under the Plus or Prime category due to its central location. Huttons' senior director of data analytics, Lee Sze Teck, echoed this view, highlighting its proximity—less than 1km—to Toa Payoh and schools such as CHIJ Primary (Toa Payoh). Lee suggested that the project is likely to be categorised as Prime, given that resale prices in nearby Toa Payoh are high, which may require the government to provide additional subsidies to keep the BTO flats affordable. He estimated that four-room flats in the Mount Pleasant BTO project could start from S$525,000, with top-floor units potentially exceeding S$700,000 due to unblocked city views.

HDB to launch 19,600 new flats in 2025

The Mount Pleasant BTO project is part of HDB’s plan to launch 19,600 new flats this year. Two Sale of Balance Flats (SBF) exercises will be conducted, with the first in February being the largest to date, offering 5,500 units. Lee noted that BTO flats will be launched in approximately 60 per cent of towns and estates this year. Speaking in Parliament during the debate on his ministry’s budget, Lee also announced a policy adjustment for second-timer families, who have previously received a housing subsidy. From July 2025, the allocation quota for three-room and larger BTO flats for second-timer families will be increased by five percentage points.

Policy shift for second-timer families

Previously, the government had prioritised first-time applicants due to high demand, with a policy introduced in August 2022 reserving at least 85 per cent of three-room flats and 95 per cent of four-room and larger flats in non-mature estates for first-timer families. However, with demand stabilising, the government is shifting focus to other groups. BTO application rates for first-time families have dropped from 3.7 times in 2019 to 2.1 times in 2024, and further down to 1.5 times in the February 2024 BTO sales exercise. Lee emphasised that the change aims to support second-timer families, including those who have outgrown their current homes or need to downsize for financial reasons. “We do not expect a significant impact on the application rate for first-timer families, as we are continuing to build more BTO flats to meet demand,” he said.