PROXIMITY EFFECT OF INTEGRATED COMMUNITY HUBS ON HDB RESALE PRICES

Abstract

In view of land scarcity, Integrated Community Hubs (ICHs) are being built as one of Singapore’s key land use intensification strategies. Although ICHs are not readily available in all regions of Singapore today, there is an upcoming wave of ICHs to be built in the next few years. The growing popularity of ICH, a complex Mixed-Use Development (MUD), has fuelled research interest on these futuristic developments. Unlike the conventional MUD, ICH is a product of public engagement and co-location of multiple government services, bringing a new level of convenience to residents living nearby.

While the advantages of the ICHs are apparent, ICHs can also impose unintended consequences on the residents living nearby. It is therefore crucial to analyse and quantify the impact of ICHs on nearby HDB Resale flats. A quasi-experiment design was used to investigate the proximity effects brought about by the announcement and implementation of the two recently completed ICHs (Our Tampines Hub and Heartbeat@Bedok) on HDB Resale prices.

Based on the HDB Resale data obtained from January 2010 to December 2019, the study found that the average prices for flats located within 400 metres radius from the ICHs increased significantly by 2.35% after the announcement and there was a significantly larger increase of 3.12% after the implementation. On average, there was a larger price increase for HDB Resale flats in the treatment group for Our Tampines Hub as compared to Heartbeat@Bedok after the announcement and after the implementation.