HDB has the option of selectively acquiring privately owned HDB shops if there is a need to meet demand in existing estates, Senior Minister of State for National Development Sun Xueling said in Parliament on Wednesday (Sept 24).She was responding to questions from MPs on efforts to keep rents of HDB shops affordable.Sun said that 90 per cent of units directly leased by HDB have remained largely unchanged over the last five years.But the median rental for heartland shops held by private landlords has doubled in the past year, according to Urban Redevelopment Authority’s Realis data released on Sept 1.From $3.51 per sq ft (psf) in the second quarter of 2024, it has gone up to $7.34 psf in the second quarter of 2025 — the highest rental for privately held HDB shops since 1999.There are about 740 privately-owned HDB shops sold on 30-year leases, of which more than 80 per cent have less than 10 years of lease remaining, and these shops will progressively be returned to HDB and tenanted out, Sun said.About 7,700 privately held HDB shops sold on 99-year leases still have more than 30 years of lease remaining. Read more