Rejuvenation of Housing Development Through Collective Sales Legislation

Abstract

Real estate goes through a life cycle from the predevelopment to the redevelopment stages. However, with the building of more multi-owner residential communities in the form of strata-titled developments, it is difficult to consider redevelopment as it is necessary to secure the consent of all owners to proceed with the redevelopment exercise. This paper discusses the planning strategy adopted in Singapore to undertake the rejuvenation efforts to ensure that the city-state would continue to be built with vibrant and modern residential developments. The pros and cons of such a strategy using the collective sales legislation are discussed. The collective sales law allows a majority of residents rather than all the residents to agree to the sale and redevelopment of the existing old developments. The legislation has been a subject of much criticism, the main of which are the uprooting of existing owners, and the waste of building resources because of the demolition of fairly new buildings. This paper puts forth some recommendations for a modified strategy to ensure a more orderly and productive use of resources. The rejuvenation strategy, however, has useful relevance for speeding up urban development in a densely populated city.