Waiting for the completion of your HDB BTO flat? And living temporarily with your in-laws is not an option (to avoid discord)? HDB’s Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS) is an excellent alternative to leasing from a landlord due to the substantially lower monthly rent. This can save you hundreds of dollars that can be put towards paying your monthly loan instalments for your upcoming BTO flat or even a couple more for your renovation.
Household composition
Do not let the name trick you. You do not need to be a parent to qualify for the Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS). You only need to have booked an unfinished HDB flat from the Housing Board, and be among any of the following:
- Married couples (both first-timers, or a first-timer and a second-timer)
- Widowed or divorced parents with children
- Those buying a BTO flat under the Fiancé/Fiancée Scheme. Note that you must submit your marriage certificate within three months after collecting the keys to your PPHS flat (both first-timers, or a first-timer and a second-timer).
What’s the eligibility criteria to rent through Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme?
Apart from the aforementioned, you must also comply with following prerequisites:
- You need to be a Singapore Citizen, and there is another Singapore Citizen or Singapore Permanent Resident in your family.
- The co-applicants that you listed in the application for the BTO flat must also be included in the application to rent a PPHS flat.
- You and the other would-be occupants of the PPHS flat currently do not own an HDB flat. If any of you presently co-own an HDB flat with your siblings or parents (who are not registered in your sales application), you can apply for a PPHS unit and then surrender ownership of the HDB flat within six months of getting your keys to PPHS flat.
If you plan to share the PPHS flat with another family member, the maximum number of occupants per unit must not go beyond the following limits:
| Unit type | Maximum number of occupants permitted |
| 2-room | Flat sharing not allowed |
| 3-room, 4-room flat | 6 |
Type of HDB flats you can rent
As shown in the above table, you can only rent 2-room, 3-room or 4-room HDB flats under the Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS). That means you cannot apply for a larger flat if there are more than six people in your family.
On the other hand, the plus point is that you can share a PPHS flat with another eligible family and split the cost. If you know another qualified family applying for a PPHS flat, you can jointly apply with them. If you need help in finding another family to share the flat with, HDB can assist you. An important point to note is that you’re not allowed to sublet the flat.
What’s the monthly rent for the Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS)?
Even though you can choose between three different types of flats, most of the units under PPHS are 3-room flats. Nonetheless, the scheme offers attractive rental rates that can go as low as S$600 per month for a 3-room. It’s a steal as renting an HDB flat from a homeowner can cost more than S$1,500 monthly!
To help with your financial planning, we’ve listed down the monthly rental rate of the flats under the PPHS.
| Location | Monthly rent per unit type | ||
| 2-room | 3-room flat | 4-room flat | |
| Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3 | – | S$800 | – |
| Ang Mo Kio Avenue 4 | |||
| Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10 | |||
| Bukit Batok West Avenue 5 | S$500 | – | – |
| Bedok North Street 1 | – | S$700 | – |
| Bedok Reservoir Road | |||
| Bukit Merah Lane 1 | – | S$700 | – |
| Jalan Bukit Merah | |||
| Lengkok Bahru | |||
| Redhill Lane | |||
| Telok Blangah Rise | – | S$900 | – |
| Tiong Bahru Road | – | S$900 | S$1,500 |
| Choa Chu Kang Ave 7 | S$400 | – | – |
| Jalan Berseh | – | S$800 | – |
| Jalan Kukoh | |||
| Jalan Minyak | |||
| Clementi West Street 2 | – | S$900 | – |
| Circuit Road | – | S$600 or S$800 | – |
| Eunos Crescent | |||
| Old Airport Road | |||
| Sims Place | |||
| Aljunied Avenue 2 | |||
| Hougang Avenue 5 | – | S$600 | – |
| Hougang Avenue 7 | |||
| Thomson Road | – | S$700 | – |
| Marine Parade Central | – | S$800 | – |
| Commonwealth Drive | – | S$700 | – |
| Stirling Road | |||
| Toa Payoh | – | S$700 or S$800 | – |
| Upper Aljunied Lane | |||
| Boon Lay Drive | – | S$600 or S$700 | – |
| Ho Ching Road | |||
| Yuan Ching Road | |||
| Yung Kuang Road | |||
| Sumang Lane | S$500 | – | – |
| Canberra Street | S$400 | – | – |
| Sembawang Drive | |||
| Marsiling Drive | S$400 | S$600 | – |
| Marsiling Lane | |||
| Woodlands Street 31 | |||
| Woodlands Rise | |||
| Yishun Ring Road | – | S$600 or S$700 | – |
Note: Rental rates may change. Visit this link for the latest rates.
Payment of rent and stamp duty
Note that you must pay a one-month deposit when you ink the tenancy contract. Moreover, you can only lease a unit for up to three years. But the tenancy must end within four months of the expected completion date of your BTO flat or the availability of use of the PPHS site, whichever is earlier. If your HDB flat is not yet completed by then, HDB may renew your tenancy on an annual basis subject to the PPHS site’s availability of use.
Unlike the HDB Public Rental Scheme which has many rental payment methods, the monthly rent for the Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS) can only be paid via GIRO. As such, you need to submit an Interbank GIRO (IBG) form via the HDB portal.
Locations of the flats
As of writing, the Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS) flats are scattered across two towns, namely Sembawang and Choa Chu Kang. Details are shown in table below:
| Town | Address | Available Unit Types | Site Expiry | Town Council Overseeing PPHS Site’s Common Area |
| Sembawang | Blk 106A Canberra Street | 2-room | Q2 2026 | Sembawang Town Council |
| Sembawang | Blk 462 Sembawang Drive | 2-room | Q2 2026 | Sembawang Town Council |
| Choa Chu Kang | Blk 813A Choa Chu Kang Avenue 7 | 2-room | Q2 2026 | Choa Chu Kang Town Council |
Note: Details may change over time. Visit this link for the latest information.
In addition, you can lease furniture and/or electrical appliances from suppliers such as Esco Leasing Pte Ltd and WTP Furniture Solutions.
How to rent from HDB?
Step 1: Submit application for Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS) flat
If you are a first-timer, you may submit your application through the My HDBPage. Take note to submit the application in person if you:
- Do not have internet access
- Intend to share a PPHS flat
- Are a second-timer. This includes widowed or divorced parent with at least one child, and married couples or Fiance/Fiancee Scheme applicants consisting of a first-timer and second-timer
Moreover, you can contact HDB’s Rental Housing Department if you require assistance in finding another family to share the flat with. Also, do not forget that:
- Both households must submit a single joint application
- The applicant and the head of the family you will share a PPHS flat with must be present during the application
- You need to finalise the co-sharing arrangement prior to submission. It is recommended that both households should have a similar waiting period for their BTO flat (e.g. same project).
When submitting the application to HDB’s Rental Housing Department, you must pay a non-refundable administrative fee of S$10 via credit card (Visa or Mastercard). If you are paying in cash, it should be made within seven days from the submission date or within the month of submission, whichever is earlier. Otherwise, your application will not be processed.
Step 2: Choose a PPHS Flat
If your application is approved, HDB will invite you to choose a PPHS flat in the following month after your application. Just like BTO, your queue position will be determined by a computer-generated ballot number.
Qualified married couples who have booked an uncompleted HDB flat, as well as families sharing a PPHS flat with a married couple, will enjoy higher priority.
Remember that everyone listed in the application is required to attend the flat selection.
Step 3: Sign the tenancy contract
Upon signing the rental agreement, you must settle the first month’s rental and the one-month deposit, along with the stamp fees. Once you’ve selected the unit, you won’t be able to request for a change. So we encourage you to inspect the flat thoroughly before inking the tenancy contract. Also, do not forget to check the flat’s location and duration of use (i.e. PPHS site’s expiry).
Comparison between Public Rental Scheme vs Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS)
To sum it up, the Public Rental Scheme is meant for lower-income families who have no other housing options. On the other hand, the Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS) caters to BTO flat buyers in need of an affordable interim home.
| Public Rental Scheme | Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme | |
| Target tenant | Low-income families without housing options | Families awaiting completion of BTO flat |
| Available flat types | 1- and 2-room flats | 2-, 3- and 4-room flats |
| Monthly rent | S$26 to S$275 | S$400 to S$1,500 |
| Towns | Woodlands | Various locations |
| Ang Mo Kio | ||
| Bedok/Tampines | ||
| Bukit Merah/Jurong |
Renting through PPHS? Let us know your experience in the comments section below.
If you found this article helpful, 99.co recommends 3 Things About the Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme That Might Interest You and BTO is delayed: What are your housing options in the meantime?
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