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(03-05-2011, 03:55 PM)Blackjack Wrote: My stand towards public housing policy is that it cannot be constituted as a revenue making machine.
The government acquired the land cheaply - that is true. This land can be construed as belonging to all Singaporeans. If you sell new HDB flats, you are only benefiting those who queue up for the flats. People who do not or can not buy new HDB flats are basically subsidizing those who do.
I don't know if you remember this or not, but in the early to mid 1990s, the queue for new HDB flats was very long. Whether or not you needed the flat, you queued up to get a bite of the cherry. I know of people who bought new HDB flats but continued to say with parents, just waiting for the 5 year waiting period to be up, sell off and make a profit. Not to mention the people who bought Pinnacle flats (huat ah!) and just round the corner from where I live there HDB built new flats in old airport road (very little activity - doesn't seem like people really living there).
(03-05-2011, 11:38 PM)Nick Wrote: The price of the HDB flat is merely a reflection of the cost of 'leasing' the flat till the expiry date of the lease. Subsequently, sale and purchase agreements reflects this. When you sell your flat, you are trading this 99 year leasing contract (and not the home). You are the owner of this contract. You are not the owner of the flat. If you choose to keep the flat, once the lease expires, your contract becomes worthless and you cease to be the owner of anything.
This is how I understand leasehold properties. Industrial REITs also have very short lease life-span hence the higher yield. Not to certain whether we can top up the lease ?
Please correct me if I am wrong.
(Not Vested in any Political Parties)
In today's world, you should be able to understand just because its a contract/piece of paper, it doesn't mean its not a real asset. If you can buy/sell it at a profit, its an asset.
To take it to its logical extreme, paper/electronic money cannot be an asset. It is after all an IOU by a government.
PS. Not vested in any political parties either.