HDB should push on with tough task of addressing affordability while serving groups with widely varying buying power

POLICYMAKING can be tricky. Give bigger grants to some buyers of Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats, and resale flat sellers may hike prices, thereby negating the effect of the higher grants.

Sell new HDB Build-To-Order (BTO) flats in choice locations with tighter restrictions to curb the size of windfall gains, and some buyers may make a beeline for existing HDB homes in sought-after locations, which have fewer restrictions.

Then there is the housing affordability question. Many older Singaporeans worry if the young can afford to own their homes, while younger locals fret over how far they can or should stretch their finances to become homeowners.