The First HDB Appointment

HDB's resale unit at Toa Payoh Hub.

We had anticipated this day ever since we signed the Option To Purchase (OTP) and received the date for the first HDB appointment. This is the crucial meeting where all documentation is received from both seller and buyer and the wheels of the resale process officially accelerates.
They remind us that we have to be on time for the appointment, otherwise we have to wait for an open slot which is unpredictable. They also remind both parties involved to be sure to follow a checklist to bring along all the documents that are required for the appointment. 
I'd diligently made copies of all of it weeks before the appointment and was going through the checklist again two days prior to it to make sure I had everything that was needed. Then I realised that one crucial document was missing not just from my compiled documents, but had been missing from my sight for years. I hadn't seen it for a long time and I'd never needed it for more than a decade...my original Birth Certificate (BC). However, I desperately needed it now because I was applying for the HDB proximity grant and they want to verify that I'm my mother's daughter. The BC is the only means of verification. The proximity grant gives us a rebate of $20,000 if we live within 2km from our parents. In our case, our new apt sits right at the perimeter of the 2km radius from my mum's home so we qualify for the grant which is by no means a small amount.
So on Tuesday night, just hours before our appointment at 9.15am, I was frantically looking for my missing birth certificate. I had a vague idea of its last known whereabouts but I needed to actually find it. I started looking in the general vicinity where I thought I might have stored it, but after going through two of the three sections of the cupboard and coming up with nought, I started entertaining the possibility that I might not be able to obtain the grant after all, just because I couldn't find the evidence of my birth.
By then, I was sweating profusely and praying hard as I embarked on the last section of my search.
Well as the bible says: Ask and you shall receive...My prayers were answered when I laid eyes on an old, familiar looking stained brown enveloped which had the words "Important Documents" written on the front. I shuddered moments before I opened the flap, hoping that what I needed was contained inside. It was, and more. My PSLE and "O" Level certs were alongside it. I had struck gold! God is kind. I would be getting the grant after all. The morning of the appointment was a blur. I knew we had to wake up early as I had to drop the girls off at mum's place and at the same time, pick mum up as she had to come along for the appointment. It's a massive exercise getting the entire family ready. It starts with me. If I wake up late, it triggers a chain reaction because everyone relies on me to wake them up, much to my annoyance. Well I woke up on time but everyone else didn't. We ended up rushing and I was very rattled because I didn't want to be late for the appointment and I was afraid that finding parking would be a problem. I decided to take the CTE knowing that it was peak period and the ERP charges were high. But I knew traffic would be smooth as well. So I prepared myself for the sting of the ERP charge. It was $6. Ouch. 
We arrived at the 2nd floor of HDB hub at around five mins to 9 to find Mr Ling already there. The sellers were on their way. We chatted with Mr Ling in the meantime and I took the opportunity to ask him some questions about the selling process in case we decide to DIY the sale as well. 

Did not manage to buy 4D with this queue number.

The resale office is like a retail department store having a sale. The first thing you do when you arrive is to take a queue no. from the machine. I thought it best to wait for the sellers to arrive before taking one and Mr Ling agreed. We waited for the sellers for more than 10 minutes and started to get a little anxious as the clock approached 9.10. At 9.13 the wife appeared and said her husband was on the way. Mr Ling and I immediately pressed the button for queue ticket and at 9.15am on the dot, our number was called. The husband still hadn't arrived by this time and the HDB officer told Mr Ling that she would tend to us first and if he didn't arrive by the time she was finished us, then all of us would have to re-queue. Luckily he arrived soon after.   
The first appointment consists of two parts. First is the verification of documents by the first HDB officer. If you don't have all the relevant documents provided at this juncture, then you can't proceed. You should bring photocopies of all the documents required as well as the original. The officer compares the original with the photocopy before accepting the latter. They do not provide any photocopying service there but there is a shop that offers photocopying services on level 1 at 15cts per sheet. So best to have everything ready beforehand.
After the first part of verifying the documents was done, we went back out to the waiting area to await our queue no. to be flashed again for the second part: The interview. We had to wait at least a good 15 minutes for this. During this time, we chatted with the sellers and we got to know each other better. 
The interview rooms are actually cubicles where a second round of verification happens. Since I applied for the proximity grant, the second officer had to verify the relevant documents. She checked on her computer system for my mum's marriage date and amazingly, it was there. She got married in the early 60s! So the government computer data systems go back a long way. We're all documented whether we like it or not. In this case, it was a good thing as my mum didn't bring along her marriage certificate. Luckily my mum did manage to find and bring along my dad's death certificate. We needed that too. That part was over and done with in about 10 minutes. In both instances, the buyer was 'processed' first before the seller. 

Buyers are given a goody bag which contain the above, a very useful poster with info for the services required when you move into a new home, a set of postcards which you can give to your neighbours to introduce yourself and to let them know you're their new neighbour and a keychain with the dragon icon of the playgrounds found at some older HDB estates. This was a nice touch and a useful service.

We said our goodbyes to the seller and Mr Ling and reconfirmed our appointment to go over to their apartment for our IDs to take measurements and for us to photograph the space properly. We didn't take any photos during our first viewing.

Goodies in a tote bag with a HDB facade printed on it. Quite cool!

The entire process took about 1.5 hrs so allocate that amount of time for your first appointment. 
We collect the keys in 8 weeks' time on July 26. There was the option to complete the sale earlier, at 6 weeks but the sellers asked for 8 so that they have more time to move out.
The deal was done. We officially became new owners of the flat on paper.