We’re glad to learn of a recent amendment to the eligibility criteria of HDB’s ASSIST scheme, which provides assistance for divorced or widowed parents of children below 16. Where previously it stated that “the parent must not have owned or disposed of a flat or private residential property after the date of divorce or separation or the demise of the spouse“, the condition has since been relaxed to say that “the parent must not have acquired any interest in an HDB flat or private residential property (except for their matrimonial flat/ property) after the date of divorce/ separation or demise of their spouse.”​

This change is a step in the right direction. Our in-depth research on single parents’ access to housing suggests that the previous conditions were too stringent, causing low uptake. As part of our recommendations in this study, we encouraged HDB to do more to increase not only the uptake but the scale of this priority scheme.

We hope that this amendment reflects plans to expand the scheme so that more single parents in need are assisted.