HDB issued new data to show that new flats are within the budget of first-time home buyers in different income groups. Hear what people on the ground have to say.

Opposition parties have called for new flat prices to be further reduced, with some suggesting that they are pegged to the median incomes of Singaporeans or to the cost of building them.

Meanwhile, the HDB provided new data that supports National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan’s claim on Sunday that most first-time buyers of new flats will need to fork out little or no cash to pay for their new HDB flats.

His comments add to a debate on public housing that has become one of the hottest topics this General Election.

He cited the example of how a couple below the age of 30, who earn a combined $4,000 a month, need to work for only half a year to buy a new four-room HDB flat with no cash upfront and less than $50 in cash in monthly home loan payments.