Liu personally oversaw the development of more than half a million public housing units. — Glossy, cosmopolitan Singapore is playing host to a very unusual balancing act. The city is one of Asia’s most expensive property markets — and at the same time, boasts one of the highest home ownership rates in the world.As the chief architect of Singapore’s Housing Development Board, Liu was instrumental in establishing a housing model that has underpinned decades of astonishing economic growth.
In an interview, Liu explained how Singapore’s property market got to where it is now — and how he sees it going forward. I told myself even before I went overseas, that I want to upgrade myself. First of all, to speak English as well as anyone else. Second, I wanted to become one of the top students at the university. And third, to come back to help rebuild Singapore.Q: Three-quarters of Singapore’s population lived in overcrowded slums in 1960, when the HDB was formed. What was your vision for the city?
Q: Public housing often has a poor reputation, but that’s not the case in Singapore. Why is the city’s government-built housing so well-regarded? This is very important. Because if you don’t have a home, first of all, you cannot concentrate on your work. And second, our public housing [agency] is probably one of very, very few in the world that built housing not just to rent but to sell. When you own your own property, then you will feel that you have taken root in the society. And you will also want to defend the country and help build the economy. So, homeownership is another very important factor in the success story of public housing.
I would say, keep the housing price rising steadily and not in a crazy way. But how to make that transition — I think we need some economists’ advice. Because now it has gone crazy. If you suddenly control it, I don’t know what negative effect there could be. We need an economist to study it. But my wish is that we would go back to something more steady, so that our property price remain more predictable.
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