• The Singapore Government established the Housing & Development Board (HDB) on 1 February 1960 to build public housing. In 1964, HDB implemented the Home Ownership Scheme so that Singaporeans could own their own homes.
• The term of lease of HDB flats is 99 years because of limited land space in Singapore. This allows land to be “recycled” after the lease ends, thus ensuring that future generations of Singaporeans can afford quality housing.
• Leases for private property, on the other hand, typically fall into three categories: freehold, 999-year leasehold and 99-year leasehold.

Mr and Mrs Lei Guorui, who have lived in their Bukit Batok HDB flat for over 20 years, wish to spare their children the burden of dealing with their flat after they pass away. They have thus decided to apply for the Lease Buyback Scheme and sell part of their flat’s remaining lease back to HDB, while retaining enough of the lease for them to live there until they are almost 100 years old. (Lianhe Zaobao, 7/11/2019)

• To help low-income elderly homeowners receive a stable retirement income, HDB launched the Lease Buyback Scheme, which enables eligible homeowners to sell part of their lease back to HDB, thus providing them with funds for their remaining years.