High Time URA Curb the Use of SOHO

Finally the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has decided to curb the use of SOHO by developers. This has to come sooner or later after the URA clamped down on developers and real estate salespersons selling loft space in industrial strata units.

Why is this important?

First of all, in Singapore, SOHO is never classified as a type of land use by URA. Our broad categories of land use are residential, commercial, industrial, hotel and institutional use. It is a pure marketing term.

Second, the term has been abused by developers and real estate salespersons that a lot of buyers think that the residential home can be used as an office. But that is not true. You have to apply to the authorities to use your home as an office. And you might not get approval.

Third, such units are always marketed at a higher price than residential units. Why is that so? The rationale used is that SOHO is a mix of residential and commercial so it can be priced higher than residential. But if it cannot be used as an office, the price paid is not justified.


But why now, you may ask.

My guess is that the URA is trying to "clean up" its residential price index. It has been "polluted" by some developers marketing their residential homes as "SOHO-styled" units and at higher prices than normal.


Overall this is a good step forward for the real estate industry. With the Council of Estate Agents (CEA) set up to regulate the "cowboy" industry, URA has also to get its act right. In fact, when I was training the real estate salespersons, many of them do not understand what is SOHO. With this, I hope the market will be less confused over such marketing terms.

But then again, developers are creative. Soon new marketing terms will appear. Like for example, the developer who introduced dual key concept now calls it TRIO to differentiate its products from the competitors.

New 3Gen HDB Flat - Rehash of Dual Key Concept

The HDB is going to launch a "new" concept flat in the September 2013 BTO exercise. Is this really new?

Lets look at the floor plan below. There will be four bedrooms - a studio for the grandparents, a room for the parents and two rooms for the children.

Source: HDB

Lets look at a dual key floorplan from Flamingo Valley. The differences between the 3Gen flat and a dual key concept are that in a dual key, the studio has a separate door and there is a dry kitchen.

Source: Flamingo Valley Floor Plans

So what's new about this flat? Nothing in fact. It is a rehash of the popular dual key concept in the private housing segment of the market.

It is just that the HDB do not want to build multi-generation flats or jumbo flats or even executive apartments or executive maisonettes.

The intention is good in that it encourages 3 generations to stay together. But hey, don't we already have the Multi-Generation Priority Scheme (MGPS)? In the MGPS, the parents and the married child will stay in the same neighbourhood but not together. It is the idea of "so near, yet so far". But this 3Gen flat will be "in your face" kind of living.

Will this be popular?

My guess is lukewarm. Why? It is tough to get two parties to apply together and not all parents and child+partner want to live together. MGPS has not seen much success because of the first reason.

Let me give you some illustrations. The list is not exhaustive.

Scenario 1 - Parents with only child. Parents own HDB flat.
This case is simpler as there is only one child. The parents will sell off the HDB flat and move over with the child. But there will be complication if the parents' current HDB flat is bought direct from the HDB. If they choose to buy a 2-bedroom, they have to pay a resale levy to HDB. The solution is to buy a studio but the parents have to cope with a smaller living space.

Scenario 2 - Parents with only child. Parents own private housing(s).
This will be very hard as HDB requires the parents to sell off the private housing if they were to buy a HDB.

Scenario 3 - Parents with more than one child. Parents own HDB flat.
This will depend on whether this is the youngest child to get married. If yes, the parents have an easier choice to make. Otherwise they cannot apply.

The key thing is the parents have to sell off the existing HDB flat when they apply under MGPS. It is not an easy task. Some parents want to leave behind a legacy.

Another thing to note - buyers of these 3Gen flats have to sell them to another 3Gen family in the future. Will there be more 3Gen families in the future? No one can tell. So buyers have to consider this when they apply.

The same policies and restrictions under MGPS will most likely apply to the 3Gen flats otherwise there will be loopholes to be exploited. So applicants for 3Gen flats will have to sell of their existing HDB flats or private housing.


The dual key concept in the private housing segment is very popular because people can rent out the studio and use the rental to pay for the installment yet retain their privacy. It means that not many people will "invite" their parents to stay with them.

So it may not be successful in the HDB market.


I hope this new 3Gen flat will not replace the MGPS .