When co-owners refuse to sell their HDB flats

It's prudent to have enough retirement funds to avoid possible destitution if your property has to be sold

- Tan Ooi Boon

The sale of a Housing Board flat that has almost doubled in value would normally be a happy affair for its owners, but not so for an elderly woman and her son, who got embroiled in a dispute over it.

They were equal owners of the $700,000 flat in Toa Payoh, but the 90-year-old woman had been living elsewhere with her eldest daughter for the past two decades.

So her son, a 69-year-old retired artist, lived in the flat and had rented out two bedrooms for a total of $1,500 a month, which he used for his living expenses.

All was well until 2023 when the daughter asked the High Court for an order to sell the flat because her mother, who has dementia, needed money for medical and nursing care as her condition was worsening.

The daughter, 71, and also a retiree, had insufficient savings and so told the court that the proceeds from the sale of the flat would come in handy for her mother's long-term care.

But the son objected to the sale, as it would render him homeless. He argued that he was no longer working, had suffered a stroke, and had no means to move out as he would lose his rental income.

High Court Judge Choo Han Teck noted that the son's main point was that he would not have sufficient resources for his upkeep if the property were to be sold.

"This, however, must be balanced against the best interests of his ailing and aged mother. She cannot be kept out of the property and have the (son) taking over the benefits of ownership entirely. Nothing can be more inequitable," the judge said.

So Justice Choo approved the application to sell the flat, noting that it would be the equitable solution in the circumstances.

As the flat was estimated to be worth over $700,000, mother and son would receive lump sums of at least $350,000 each as they were equal owners.

While the son would need to look for a new home, the judge noted that his share of the sale proceeds would allow him to find a suitable new home.