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Property and rental of homes near popular primary schools will likely see an increase in prices after MOE announced on Thursday (Sept 9) changes to the Primary 1 Registration framework to help more children secure a place in a school near their home.
Real estate professional Kiwi Lim from Huttons Asia believe that this move by MOE to favour Proximity versus Affiliation will mean that parents who are school alumni of good schools will no longer have a strong advantage over those who stay near the school when registering their children for Primary 1 admission at the respective schools if a school has more applications than vacancies in phase 2C of registration, priority will be given to Singaporeans living closer to the school.
This may see prices of homes near top schools soar even higher than their current high prices in the market right now after the Ministry of Education's (MOE) announcement on Thursday. However home prices within the area may not jump drastically as more homes will be in the new school radius (see diagram below).
Real estate professional Kiwi Lim from Huttons Asia believe that this move by MOE to favour Proximity versus Affiliation will mean that parents who are school alumni of good schools will no longer have a strong advantage over those who stay near the school when registering their children for Primary 1 admission at the respective schools if a school has more applications than vacancies in phase 2C of registration, priority will be given to Singaporeans living closer to the school.
This may see prices of homes near top schools soar even higher than their current high prices in the market right now after the Ministry of Education's (MOE) announcement on Thursday. However home prices within the area may not jump drastically as more homes will be in the new school radius (see diagram below).
Another change involved revising the methodology for calculating the distance between home and school. Currently home-school distance is calculated from a single reference point. With the change, home-school distance will be based on the school land boundary - from any point on the boundary around the school to the registrant's home.
It is believed that more parents would consider moving closer to their desired primary school since greater weight will be given to children living closer to the school. This increase in demand for homes in the vicinity is likely to drive rental prices up because most people might not be able to afford buying a home near popular schools. However, property prices might not jump drastically as the revised method of calculating proximity will encompass more homes within 1km and 2km of schools.
Under the latest changes, each primary school will have to allocate 40 spots to pupils with no links at the start of the next Primary 1 registration exercise. Therefore from next year, more Primary 1 places will be set aside from the next registration exercise to take in children who do not qualify for priority admission with the number of places reserved for this group to be doubled to 40. They are currently eligible for Phase 2C of the annual exercise - the open phase for those who have no links with the school and priority is given to those who live nearby.
While 40 places will be set aside for Phase 2C, Phase 2B will continue to have 20 places. This phase is for children of parent volunteers and those with links to clan associations. On top of this, applicants in Phase 2C will also be allocated two-thirds of the remaining vacancies from earlier phases while those eligible for Phase 2B, will be allocated one-third of the places. Previously, remaining vacancies from earlier phases were split evenly between both phases.
MOE said this decision is in line with its broader objective of setting aside more places for Phase 2C to ensure that more children with no prior connection to the school can go to a school near their home.
While 40 places will be set aside for Phase 2C, Phase 2B will continue to have 20 places. This phase is for children of parent volunteers and those with links to clan associations. On top of this, applicants in Phase 2C will also be allocated two-thirds of the remaining vacancies from earlier phases while those eligible for Phase 2B, will be allocated one-third of the places. Previously, remaining vacancies from earlier phases were split evenly between both phases.
MOE said this decision is in line with its broader objective of setting aside more places for Phase 2C to ensure that more children with no prior connection to the school can go to a school near their home.
News Extracted From MOE Online & Straits Times Online
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