Government may require condo management teams to submit, publish sinking funds for essential works

One area they are looking into is enhancing the safety of older lifts and escalators to keep pace with modern safety standards. 

“We are also exploring providing co-funding support for select essential safety features to eligible private building owners and operators. We will share more details when ready,” she added. 

As buildings in strata developments age, it is increasingly important for MCSTs to have adequate sinking funds for maintenance and improvement works, the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) said.

According to the authority, more than 1,000 of Singapore’s 3,750 strata developments are at least 30 years old.

Some ageing strata-titled developments have struggled to maintain adequate sinking funds to upkeep essential facilities such as lifts, which require retrofitting over their lifespan to meet modern safety standards, BCA added.

Ms Indranee said: “Today, many MCSTs only start collecting funds for lift replacement when the ageing lifts start to experience wear and tear and parts become obsolete. 

“If the MCSTs do not have sufficient sinking funds, they will need to collect special levies from unit owners, which may not be an insignificant sum, and for which the owners may not be prepared. 

“This can be avoided if the MCSTs start building up the funds earlier.”