Housing and Development Board

History

Shortly after achieving self-governance in 1959, Singapore faced a serious problem of housing shortages; low construction rates and massive damage from World War II further exacerbated the prewar housing shortage. In 1947, the British Housing Committee Report noted Singapore had "one of the world’s worst slums -- 'a disgrace to a civilised community'", and the average person-per-building density was 18.2 by 1947. High-rise buildings were also rare. In 1959, the shortage problem remained. An HDB paper estimated that in 1966, 300,000 people lived in squatter settlements in the suburbs and 250,000 lived in squalid shophouses in the Central Area. In its election campaign in 1959, the People's Action Party (PAP) recognized that housing required urgent attention and pledged to provide low-cost housing for the poor if it was elected. When it won the elections and formed the newly elected government, it took immediate action to solve the housing shortage. The government passed the Housing & Development Act of 1960, which replaced the existing Singapore Improvement Trust with the Housing & Development Board.

Led by Lim Kim San, the HDB made first priority during formation to build as many low-cost housing units as possible, and introduced the Five-Year Plan. The housing that was initially built was mostly meant for rental by the low-income group. The Home Ownership for the People Scheme was also introduced to help this group of people to buy instead of rent their flats. While the new scheme acted as a hedge against inflation, it provided financial security to homeowners. Later, the people were allowed to use their Central Provident Fund money for down payments. These efforts were, however, not successful enough in convincing the people living in the squatter settlements to move into these flats. It was only later, after the Bukit Ho Swee Fire in 1961, that the HDB's efficiency and earnestness won the people over.

The HDB estimated that from 1960 to 1969, an average of 147,000 housing units—80,000 from the current deficit, 20,000 due to the redevelopment of the Central Area, and 47,000 due to population increase—would need to be constructed, or an average of about 14,000 a year. However, the private sector only had the ability to provide 2,500 per year, and at price levels out of reach of the low-income population. As many as 54,430 housing units were built between 1960 and 1965 by the HDB. Due to land constraints, high-rise and high-density flats were chosen.

The HDB's policies were largely in line with the manifesto set out by the Singaporean government: the government was promoting social cohesion and patriotism within the country. In 1968, citizens were allowed to use their pension fund (Central Provident Fund) to purchase and own the homes they were renting to give them a stake of the country and as an incentive to work hard. In 1989, the Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP) was introduced to promote racial integration. To prevent social stratification that may lead to social conflict, the housing of different income groups is mixed together in estates and new towns.

In the 1990s, the HDB concentrated on upgrading existing older flats, installing new facilities such as lifts that stop on every floor. Studio apartments were specially built to suit the needs of senior citizens in Singapore's ageing society.

On 1 July 2003, the Building & Development Division of HDB was corporatised to form HDB Corporation Pte. Ltd. (HDBCorp). HDBCorp was later renamed Surbana Corporation Pte. Ltd. HDB's headquarters were moved from Bukit Merah to its new premises at the HDB Hub at 480 Lorong 6 Toa Payoh on 10 June 2002.

The existing Bukit Merah premises, known as Surbana One, became the headquarters for Surbana Corporation Pte. Ltd.

Union

HDB employees are organised under a house union, HDB Staff Union (HDBSU). The union is an affiliate of the National Trades Union Congress.