However, I think the govt made a bigger mistake. They should have kept transport coy under their wing and should have privatise HDB instead. My colleague was shocked when he heard that.
I laid it out to him. Private coy always look at their bottom line. If they were to build something, they have to ensure they sell it and make money. If HDB goes private, all developers out there will panic. HDB will go into building not just HDB, but Condos, landed, industrial, commercial etc.
It be the biggest developer out there. As such, all the other developers will have to drop their price in order to compete.
Of course, with HDB being in the private sector, the mass market low cost HDB will be priced higher. BUT the other sectors will drop owning to their entry.
In time to come, some developers will enter into the mass market HDB in order to protect their bottom line. This will create competition that is healthy for the first time buyers.
I guess in the short term, we will see lots of panic and price fluctuation. In the long run, we should see a better controlled property market.
Till then, I guess the govt will have to see if they are willing to let go of this golden goose.
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