SINGAPORE — In nearly 12 years, up until March this year, the Government has spent S$2.9 billion on maintenance and repair works to spruce up or enhance the safety and sanitation facilities within older flats, under the Home Improvement Programme (HIP).

The Housing and Development Board (HDB) first launched the programme in 2007 and public housing units may undergo repairs for spalling concrete or structural cracks, upgrading of toilets and bathrooms, or be fitted with new doors or metal grille gates, for instance.

Out of the 320,000 HDB flats built up to 1986 which are eligible for the programme, about 170,000 flats have completed upgrading works and another 132,000 flats are getting similar treatments, the housing agency said in a media release on Saturday (Dec 21).

Upgrading works for the rest of the 31,000 flats will be implemented progressively.  

Apart from these, 230,000 more HDB households will be eligible for HIP now that it is extended to flats built between 1987 and 1997, as announced by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong during 2018’s National Day Rally. 

HIP will be carried out at an HDB block if at least 75 per cent of the householders who are Singapore citizens vote in favour of it. 

In another home improvement programme specifically catered to older Singaporeans, called the Enhancement for Active Seniors (Ease), HDB owners can apply to fix grab bars or get slip-resistant treatment for floor tiles in bathrooms, for example.

More than 206,000 households have made use of this scheme since its launch in July 2012 until October this year, HDB said. And up until March this year, it has spent about S$80 million in close to seven years for these enhancement and retrofitting works.

Homeowners who apply for Ease can choose from a range of elder-friendly fittings to help their older family members move around in their flats easily and safely. 

The Ease programme is offered under the HIP, but for households with a senior member living in the housing block that is not eligible for HIP, homeowners can apply directly to get works done under Ease. 

Depending on the flat type, subsidies can be up to 95 per cent of the total cost of works done.

MESSY BUT ‘WORTH IT’

Madam Kamariah Mohd, 52, a part-time Grab driver, lives in a housing block that has been selected for HIP and it underwent repair works last year.  

Her flat is in Bukit Batok Central, where she has been living for about 35 years. Her husband and one child are also living there. Three other children have married and moved out.

The renovation works lasted two weeks and Mdm Kamariah said that it was really noisy and dusty. She had to stay with her son temporarily, but the cost savings were worth it, she said.

With government funding or subsidy provided as part of the scheme, she paid more than S$1,000 to have the essential improvements done, such as those relating to structural cracks, and also to have optional works such as her two toilets renovated and new grille gate installed. 

“One toilet can cost about S$2,000 to S$3000 if I hire a private contractor for the renovation. I don’t even have to pay cash. They deduct from my husband’s CPF (Central Provident Fund),” she added.