If you've been putting off a BTO application because of the multi-year wait, this one's for you. About 1,200 flats with waiting times of under three years are heading to two mature-town locations — Toa Payoh and Sin Ming.
National Development Minister Chee Hong Tat announced the plans on Aug 30, saying both developments will come with waiting times of less than three years. Their launch dates and estimated waiting times will be released when ready.
Two Projects, Two Mature Towns
The bigger of the two is in Sin Ming Street, part of Bishan town. It's a roughly 1,076-unit project that will include a childcare centre and a supermarket, and it's going up across the road from Sin Ming Residences — a 984-unit project that is itself nearing completion.
The other is in Lorong 4 Toa Payoh: a 40-storey block with 193 units, plus a multi-storey carpark with a roof garden, a precinct pavilion and community facilities. It's being built on the site of a former open-air carpark squeezed between existing blocks — a sign of how HDB is digging into every available space in built-up towns.
Why the Shorter Wait?
Under HDB's Shorter Waiting Time model, construction is typically well underway by the time applicants book a flat — which is why successful buyers can move in much sooner than with a regular BTO. Both new sites are brownfield, meaning they were previously developed: the Sin Ming site used to hold a rental block and industrial buildings, while the Toa Payoh plot was a carpark. HDB says it prefers to redevelop vacant or suitable brownfield sites for housing before touching other land zoned for homes.
The Straits Times reports that construction is already underway at both sites, with completion slated around mid-2030 — suggesting the flats could go on sale from mid-2027 at the earliest. HDB itself has only said the launch dates and waiting times will be announced later.
Part of a Bigger Supply Push
These two projects sit within a wider plan to keep injecting new housing into established towns. Mr Chee pointed to earlier plans for 1,600 new homes across three projects in the Lakeview and Shunfu area — the first was launched in the June 2026 BTO exercise — and noted that more than 10,000 public and private homes are planned across Toa Payoh West and Mount Pleasant over the next decade.
The upshot for buyers? More options in central, well-connected locations — including for those who want to live closer to their parents or loved ones. With waiting times that undercut most BTO launches, demand for these flats could be brisk when they finally drop.
A Note for Nearby Residents
The minister acknowledged that residents living near the sites may face temporary inconvenience during construction. He said measures will be taken to keep disruption down — hoardings, low-noise machinery, and noisy work confined to daytime hours.
For anyone waiting on a shorter-wait flat in a mature town, these two projects are worth keeping on your radar. We'll know more once HDB releases the launch dates.