Indeed, the necessity to fulfill their demands grows more urgent as the population ages. It goes without saying that older people find it harder to maintain a good standard of living as their overall health declines. In response, various government agencies in Singapore work to improve the care and support offered to the country’s elderly population in order to make life more convenient and efficient for them by providing assisted living and bedroom spaces.
Many families lacked the funds or resources necessary to provide their aging loved ones with the care they needed, and the patient’s health is being compromised, in turn. In order to deal with each of these issues, several measures are being taken. For one, the Ministry of National Development (MND) of Singapore worked with the Ministry of Health (MOH) and the Housing Development Board (HDB) to increase the availability of sufficient housing for the elderly, leading such a fundamental housing program.
The Rise of Community Care Apartments — What It Is?
The Ministry of National Development (MND), the Ministry of Health (MOH), and the Housing and Development Board (HDB) collaboratively devised the idea for Community Care Apartments, an assisted living public housing initiative. The apartments, generally, will have care services that may be catered to elders’ needs and are designed to broaden the number of accommodation facilities for seniors. Additionally, the community care apartment provides an opportunity for the elderly to age in place and freely in a community environment by combining senior-friendly housing with quality healthcare.
HDB’s government webpage is dedicated to the explanation of community care apartments.
What Does Community Care Apartments Comprise?
Inside the Community Care Apartments, the HDB has established an assisted living alternative for the aging population. In contrast to traditional retirement communities or healthcare facilities, assisted living apartments to offer a variety of necessary services. It asserts that senior citizens who meet the requirements for this housing are also qualified for government-funded nursing care, basic health checks, housing subsidies, and support.
Community Care Apartments, in general, are the first form of public housing in the assisted living apartments industry. In order to assure their comfort and safety, the elders would relocate to a home with senior-friendly facilities and services. Together with other elderly folks, they can take part in social and wellness activities, an active ageing centre, and leisure activities in communal spaces, community garden, or community living rooms.
Basic Service Package Inclusions
Residing in community care apartments, essentially, has the convenience of delivering a variety of services to support residents on a daily basis. Based on which plan your older relative is eligible for, the services vary, but the patients can also choose from a few optional services. The basic service package, in addition to a studio apartment, includes 24-hour emergency monitoring and response, necessary health checks, technologies or senior-friendly gear (such as slip resistant flooring), quick house maintenance, and activities in communal areas.
Additional necessary features include carpeting, a sliding wall separating the living and sleeping areas, built-in closets and cabinets, and a furnished common area. If they so wish, the elderly might also choose to upgrade their service plan. The residents’ choices also include caregiving, cooperative daycare services, housekeeping and laundry, food delivery services, home, and personal care alternatives, and medical escort and transportation.
Pricing
Depending upon the chosen lease term, the cost of the Community Care Apartments varies. Provided that the lease covers the candidate and spouse, if there are any, until 95, the elderly are free to sign a lease for a period of time between 15 and 35 years, in 5-year increments. The entire payment for Community Care Apartments consists of the flat rate, which can be paid immediately, and the Basic Service Package cost unless there are no optional services, which can be paid monthly, with a 1-year security deposit at the beginning of the lease or every three years.
The Basic Service Package inside the HDB community care apartments currently when paid at the beginning of the lease costs $164 (paid for the first month) or $6,200 (paid for the first 3 years). If payments are spread out over the remainder of the lease, the fees will remain the same. However, they will be re-evaluated on a continuous basis by the MOH.
Eligibility
The elderly are the target market for HDB assisted living facilities and community care units. Though not the only factor to take into account, this is one. If your senior wants to be eligible for HDB assisted living and community care apartments, they must fulfill the following criteria:
- At the time of application, 65 years of age or older
- Singaporean Citizen
- Has a $14,000 maximum monthly income
- Should not have previously leased or acquired a studio apartment or a 2-room Flexi flat
- The lease duration is between 15 and 35 years, in 5-year increments
- The applicant and their spouses, if any, are covered by the lease until they are 95 years old or older
- Includes a set of essential services that are required and will continue throughout the lease
- Retirees in need of immediate care have been given priority
How to Apply & Process
Priority programs are available to applicants who are applying for the first time or who have particularly immediate housing needs to increase their chances of being granted a flat for the Sale of Balance Flats (SBF) exercise and Build-To-Order (BTO) exercise.
Under the terms of the Basic Service Package Agreement to be executed by the applicants and the service operator chosen by MOH, all candidates are required to enroll in and pay for a Basic Service Package. For the purpose of purchasing an apartment under the BTO or SBF, applications must be completed online through the HDB InfoWEB. By using one of the authorized mobile payment applications, you can also scan the QR code to pay the $10 administrative fee with a credit card, MasterCard, or Visa only.
After the application period closes, HDB will electronically vote for all qualified applications to decide the order in which people will stand in line to reserve apartments. After that, HDB will let everyone understand what transpired with their application. The ballot results for BTO applications will be made public around three weeks after the application deadline. Consequently, the results for SBF applications will be made public approximately 1 and a half months following the submission of the application.
Discover the Best Among Viable Housing Options with Retiregenie’s accommodation options
Although each of us hopes to live and grow old happily, presumably in our old age, there remains the risk of dying by ourselves and rapidly declining. Retiregenie, together with HDB’s options, provide exceptional assisted living services and facilities that will benefit tremendously the elderly in Singapore and help them survive and succeed. Retiregenie provides assisted living options, which are relatively new in the Singaporean scene.
The notion that somebody watches after your needs is a major appealing factor of the HDB community care apartments. Additionally, the perceived sense of community would contribute to easing the majority of the various undesirable mental health issues that the elderly face. In contrast, Retiregenie provides a fresh business model in terms of Senior Group Homes.
For those who are interested in more typical options, Retiregenie also has partnerships with nursing homes in Singapore and dementia care facilities to provide quick and easy signups.
