At a recent wedding event, I was seated beside a young gentleman, talking about him trying for BTO more than five times but still unable to get his choice unit.

Upon knowing that I was in the real estate field, he began asking many questions and questioning the price movements of the property market.

He became very curious about what he should do and why the property market behaves as such.

Firstly, let’s address the main reason he’s unable to get his BTO. It is because he is only aiming for the prime estates, which are very high in terms of competition in the first place.

Once one misses, but to wait another three months for the next BTO opening.

For People in their 20s, I think it’s still ok for them to keep trying.

Let’s say they have finally managed to get their BTO; it will probably take 3-4 years for the building to be completed.

And then, another five more years for the minimum occupation period MOP before they can sell away their HDB.

And, of course, ten more years if they choose to go for the Prime Location Housing (PLH) HDBs.

The primary purpose of getting BTO is to take advantage of every Singaporean’s lower-priced option.

Given their current financial situation, they have to settle for a more far-off location if they want to go for a resale HDB.

Both of their parents are living in prime areas, and it makes no sense for them to do that.

They aim to stay near their parents to have the social support needed when they start having their children.

The next question he asks is how long more he should try before giving up. To which I have no clear answer to it.

Because it’s all about balloting luck at the end of the day, some people are successful on their first try and can get what they want. They have done a lot of good deeds in their previous lives. Some can’t even get a queue number and have to keep trying until they get it or give up.

The housing issue is a thorny one with no clear answer; the authorities must refrain from rushing to flood the market by releasing too many housing sites out to fulfil the demand, as that will cause a sudden surge of builders’ competition for labour and materials resources.

And, of course, the resale hdb market will be severely affected if there is a sudden oversupply in the market.

Remember, when this large batch of HDB MOP is in the future, the same thing will happen with the oversupply issue.

Right now, the advice I’m sharing with him and more potential readers is that if you want to settle quickly and get a BTO, you have to accept going for non-mature estates where competition is lower.

If you intend to reap the most profits out of the BTO, consider at what cost.

Were you delaying your family plans, being stuck with staying with your parents?

Housing needs more factors to think about and strike a good balance.