99-to-1 Property Ownership in Singapore: Is It Legal, and What Does IRAS Claw Back?
What a 99-to-1 purchase is, why IRAS can treat it as one joint purchase, what its audits found, the lawful ways to handle ABSD on a second home, and what two agencies' filings say about the suits against them.
A 99-to-1 purchase splits one home purchase into two steps: someone who owns no home buys a residential property alone, then within a short time sells a 1% share to a co-buyer, usually a spouse, whose ABSD rate is higher, so ABSD falls on the 1% share instead of the whole price. Where IRAS finds tax avoidance, which turns on the facts of each case, section 33A of the Stamp Duties Act lets it assess the steps as one joint purchase and recover the ABSD, and it can add a 50% surcharge. By April 2024 it had found avoidance in 166 of 187 cases reviewed.
Buy a home in one name, sell 1% of it to your spouse soon after, and the ABSD on what is really a second home shrinks to almost nothing. That is the 99-to-1 arrangement. By April 2023 IRAS had begun auditing it, and where it finds tax avoidance it recovers the duty and can add a 50% surcharge.
This guide explains what the arrangement is, why the Stamp Duties Act catches it, what is at stake at today's median private price, and the lawful ways to handle ABSD on your next home. It also sets out what two agencies' own exchange filings say about five suits against them: none of the filings mentions 99-to-1. Rules are IRAS's, MOF's and the Act's as at 19 September 2026; prices are PropKaki's analysis of URA caveats to 30 August 2026.
What is a 99-to-1 property purchase in Singapore?
It is one home bought in two steps to cut ABSD. A buyer who owns no home buys a residential property alone, then within a short time sells a 1% share to a co-buyer, usually a spouse, whose ABSD rate is higher. ABSD then falls on the 1% share only: $3,760 instead of $376,000 on a median-priced $1,880,000 home.
MOF's description: "The “99-to-1” property purchase arrangements typically involve individuals without any prior property count buying residential properties in their name initially, and then within a very short period of time, selling the 1% interest to another individual who has a higher ABSD profile" (MOF, 21 April 2023).
Why the split matters comes down to one rule. "For purchases made jointly by two or more buyers of different profiles, the highest applicable ABSD rate will apply on the entire value of the property purchased" (IRAS). A couple where one spouse already owns a home pays the second-home rate, 20% for a Singapore Citizen, on the whole price. Split into two steps, "ABSD would be payable only on the one per cent share of the property, rather than on the full value of the property if the purchase was done jointly at the onset" (IRAS).
At the national median private price, $1,880,000 across 23,718 condo, apartment and EC sales in the 12 months to 30 August 2026:
| How the couple buys | ABSD |
|---|---|
| Jointly, at the outset | $376,000 (20% of the whole price) |
| In two steps: 100% in one name, then 1% ($18,800) to the spouse | $3,760 (20% of the 1% share) |
Who bought the 1%? MOF found they "were typically spouses or other immediate family members, with a higher ABSD profile, but with the ability to secure financing for the property" (MOF).
The name is about ownership shares, not the 99-year lease: a 99-to-1 split can happen on a freehold or a leasehold home.
The 1% was never about ownership: it was where the ABSD was meant to go.
Is 99-to-1 still legal in Singapore?
Owning a home in unequal shares is legal. Splitting one purchase into steps to cut ABSD is not safe: under section 33A of the Stamp Duties Act, IRAS can disregard the steps, charge ABSD as if you had bought jointly, and add a surcharge of 50% of the extra duty. Giving IRAS false or misleading information in an audit is a crime.
The law is section 33A of the Stamp Duties Act. Where the Commissioner is satisfied that "the purpose or effect of any arrangement is, directly or indirectly" to "reduce or avoid any liability" to duty, the Commissioner "must disregard or vary the arrangement and make any adjustment that the Commissioner considers appropriate". An "arrangement" "includes all steps by which it is carried into effect", and the only purpose-based exemption is for arrangements "carried out for bona fide commercial reasons" without avoidance as "one of its main purposes" (Singapore Statutes Online).
IRAS's own answer to "is this an offence?": "IRAS takes a stern view of any arrangements for the purpose of reducing or avoiding tax. This includes the scenario where buyers purchase properties under a contrived or artificial arrangement in order to reduce or avoid the Stamp Duties they have to pay. In cases of tax avoidance, the Commissioner of Stamp Duties will disregard or vary any tax avoidance arrangement, claw back the rightful amount of stamp duty and impose a 50% surcharge on the additional duty payable" (IRAS). Avoidance is recovered with a surcharge; lying about it is where the criminal law starts.
Where the line sits:
| What you do | Where it stands |
|---|---|
| Buy a home in unequal shares, for example 99:1, in one purchase | Legal: ABSD is charged on the whole price at the higher buyer's rate |
| Buy in one name, then sell 1% to a spouse with a higher ABSD rate | Tax avoidance if its purpose or effect is to cut ABSD, which IRAS decides on the facts: it recovers the duty and can add a 50% surcharge |
| Give IRAS false or misleading answers in an audit | A crime: a fine of up to $10,000, up to two years' jail, or both |
| Backdate an option to beat a rate change | Evasion, a crime: a fine of up to $10,000, up to three years' jail, or both |
Sources: the Stamp Duties Act (section 33A, section 33B); IRAS on audits (IRAS) and on backdating (IRAS).
Whether a case is avoidance turns on its facts: "Whether a “99-to-1” arrangement involves tax avoidance depends on the facts and circumstances surrounding the specific case" (MOF). The pattern IRAS audits is a sale of a small share "within a very short period of time" after the first purchase, to someone with a higher ABSD profile (IRAS).
Unequal shares are legal. A 1% share bought to dodge ABSD is a tax bill IRAS can send at any time.
What does IRAS do when it finds a 99-to-1 purchase?
Where it finds tax avoidance, it treats the two steps as one joint purchase, charges ABSD on the whole price at the higher buyer's rate, and can add a surcharge of 50% of the extra duty. On a median-priced $1,880,000 home bought by a citizen couple who already own one home, that is $372,240 of ABSD plus a $186,120 surcharge: $558,360.
MOF, in May 2024: "the Commissioner of Stamp Duties is empowered under Section 33A of the Stamp Duties Act to disregard the individual transactions and assess them as a single joint purchase, and to recover the rightful amount of ABSD due, along with a 50% surcharge" (MOF, 7 May 2024).
The surcharge is in section 33B: where the Commissioner makes an adjustment under section 33A, "a surcharge equal to 50% of the amount of … the additional duty payable" is imposed, for documents signed on or after 7 December 2020 (Singapore Statutes Online). Section 33C adds two rules: the extra duty and the surcharge must be paid "within one month after the date of the notice", even if you object, and "The Commissioner may, for good cause, remit wholly or in part the surcharge" (Singapore Statutes Online). That is why IRAS says it "may" impose it.
What that means at the median private price:
| Amount | What IRAS sees | |
|---|---|---|
| Bought jointly at the outset (a citizen's second home) | $376,000 | The whole price at the higher buyer's 20% |
| Two steps: one spouse buys 100%, then sells 1% to the other | $3,760 | 20% on the 1% share only |
| ABSD left unpaid by the steps | $372,240 | Recovered if IRAS treats it as one joint purchase |
| Surcharge: 50% of that additional duty | $186,120 | Stamp Duties Act s33B; IRAS may remit it for good cause (s33C) |
| Recovered in total | $558,360 | Plus up to 4 times any amount not paid on time |
Illustration on the national median: price = market value, the 1% share valued at 1% of the price, both buyers Singapore Citizens. IRAS assesses each case on its own facts. Source: PropKaki's analysis of URA caveats to 30 August 2026; IRAS rates; Stamp Duties Act sections 33A to 33C.
Three more things IRAS has said:
- No time limit. "There is no statutory time limit for stamp duty audits" (MOF).
- Pay on time, or it grows. "Further penalties of up to 4 times the outstanding amount may be imposed if the stamp duty and surcharge are not paid by the deadline" (IRAS).
- Coming forward counts. "Purchasers who entered into two-step “99-to-1” property purchase arrangements should voluntarily disclose their arrangements to IRAS. Depending on the circumstances, IRAS is prepared to consider such cases more favorably" (IRAS).
To see the duty on your own price and profile, PropKaki's property financial planner works out BSD and ABSD.
Once IRAS finds avoidance, a 99-to-1 is priced as the joint purchase it replaced, plus up to half the shortfall again.
How many 99-to-1 cases has IRAS caught?
By April 2024 IRAS had finished reviewing 187 cases and found tax avoidance in 166, or 89%, with about $60 million in ABSD and surcharges to be clawed back: roughly $360,000 a case on average. About 10 of those cases, with evidence that property agents may have been involved, were under review by CEA.
MOF's reply of 7 May 2024: "As of April 2024, IRAS has completed the review of 187 such “99-to-1” cases, of which 166 cases were found to have involved tax avoidance, and about $60 million in ABSD and surcharges will accordingly be clawed back." And: "Out of the 166 cases found to have involved tax avoidance, about 10 cases with evidence of potential involvement by property agents are currently under review by the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA)" (MOF, 7 May 2024).
What those numbers mean:
- Almost nine in ten. 166 of 187 is 89%: of the reviews IRAS had finished by April 2024, far more ended in a finding of avoidance than in a clean result.
- Big bills. About $60 million over 166 cases averages roughly $360,000 of ABSD and surcharge a case (our division of MOF's rounded total).
- A small corner of the market. "From 2018 to 2021, about 0.5% of private residential properties transacted involved such “99-to-1” or similar arrangements" (MOF, 21 April 2023).
These are the figures as at MOF's reply of May 2024. The audits have also produced a criminal case. In February 2025 IRAS announced "the first conviction involving taxpayers providing false and misleading information to IRAS during an audit of the two-step “99-to-1” property transactions": a buyer and the parent who bought the 1% share had told IRAS the second name was needed for a loan, when "the reason they did not purchase the property jointly at the outset was actually to avoid ABSD". Each was sentenced to two weeks' jail (IRAS, 28 February 2025).
Nine in ten finished reviews ended as avoidance: an audit is not a formality.
How much ABSD is at stake on a second home?
On a home at the national median private price of $1,880,000, ABSD is $376,000 for a Singapore Citizen's second home and $564,000 for a third, on top of $63,600 of buyer's stamp duty. A PR pays $94,000 on a first home; a foreigner without Free Trade Agreement treatment pays $1,128,000.
ABSD is charged on the higher of the price or the market value, at the rate for the buyer's profile on the day of purchase (IRAS). At the median private price, $1,880,000 across 23,718 condo, apartment and EC sales in the 12 months to 30 August 2026:
| Buyer | Buying | ABSD rate | ABSD | BSD | Total stamp duty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singapore Citizen | first home | 0% | $0 | $63,600 | $63,600 |
| Singapore Citizen | second home | 20% | $376,000 | $63,600 | $439,600 |
| Singapore Citizen | third or later home | 30% | $564,000 | $63,600 | $627,600 |
| Permanent Resident | first home | 5% | $94,000 | $63,600 | $157,600 |
| Permanent Resident | second home | 30% | $564,000 | $63,600 | $627,600 |
| Permanent Resident | third or later home | 35% | $658,000 | $63,600 | $721,600 |
| Foreigner (FTA nationals pay citizen rates) | any home | 60% | $1,128,000 | $63,600 | $1,191,600 |
| Entity | any home | 65% | $1,222,000 | $63,600 | $1,285,600 |
IRAS rates on or after 27 Apr 2023, on the higher of price or market value, rounded down to the dollar. In a joint purchase the highest applicable rate applies to the whole price. Nationals of the USA, and nationals and permanent residents of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, are treated as Singapore Citizens under Free Trade Agreements. Housing developers have their own rate (35%, plus 5% that cannot be remitted). Sources: PropKaki's analysis of URA caveats; IRAS rates; IRAS on FTA nationals.
Two rules explain most of the table:
- A share counts as a home. "As long as a buyer owns any interest in a property, that property will be included in the count of properties owned by him" (IRAS). A 1% share makes the next purchase a second property.
- A joint purchase pays the highest rate on the whole price. One spouse's existing home puts the couple's next purchase in the second-home row.
The median mixes new sales and resales of every size, and ECs; your own duty follows your own price. Run it on PropKaki's property financial planner, and see ABSD rates in Singapore for the rules by buyer type.
ABSD is priced on the buyer, not the home: the same unit carries a different bill in every row.
How can you legally avoid ABSD on your next home?
Only through IRAS's own rules. A citizen who owns only one home can sell it first: a contract to sell signed before you accept the next option means no ABSD. A married couple with a citizen spouse can buy jointly, pay the ABSD, and get it back by selling the first home within 6 months. Single citizens aged 55 and above have a similar refund when they buy a cheaper replacement. Decoupling is not one of them: section 33A covers any arrangement whose purpose or effect is to cut stamp duty.
The lawful routes, in IRAS's words:
- Sell first. For a Singapore Citizen who owns only one home: "If you have contracted to sell your only apartment before you execute the Acceptance to the Option to Purchase for the terrace house, you do not need to pay ABSD" (IRAS). The sale has to be real: if it falls through, "the Commissioner of Stamp Duties may invoke the anti-avoidance provision under Section 33A of the Stamp Duties Act if there is reason to suspect that the sale of your previous property was fictitious and was schemed to avoid or reduce payment of ABSD". A PR still pays 5% on a first home.
- A married couple's first home. "Full ABSD remission may be applicable to a married couple who purchases a residential property jointly. The couple must include a Singapore Citizen (SC) spouse and the property must be purchased under both names of the couple only. In addition, both the spouses must not own any residential property" (IRAS).
- A married couple's replacement home. Bought jointly, "under both names of the couple only", with a citizen spouse, and "ABSD has been paid on the second residential property". IRAS refunds it if all its conditions are met: the couple "did not own interest in more than one residential property each at the date of purchase of the second residential property"; the first home "is sold within 6 months after the date of purchase of the second property" (or of its TOP or CSC, whichever is earlier, if it was uncompleted); the couple "remains married and there is no change of ownership in the second residential property" when the first is sold; they buy no other home in between; and they apply within 6 months of the sale (IRAS). IRAS will not extend the six months, and suggests couples "secure a buyer for the sale of their first property before purchasing their next property to avoid incurring ABSD".
- Single citizens aged 55 and above. For purchases from 16 February 2024, a refund of the ABSD on a second home if the first is sold within six months and "The value of the second residential property is less than the value of each of the first residential property(s) sold", among other conditions (IRAS).
- Buying out a co-owner of your only home. A citizen who owns only that home pays no ABSD on the rest of it, only BSD; but "Your subsequent purchase of the private flat would be your second property which would attract the ABSD rate of 20%" (IRAS).
The married-couple refund is a refund: at the median price, $376,000 has to be paid up front and waits on the sale. Our guide to ABSD remission for married couples covers the timing.
Decoupling, where one co-owner buys out the other so that the other can buy again, is not on this list. It is a real transfer with stamp duty of its own, and section 33A covers any arrangement whose "purpose or effect" is to "reduce or avoid" a liability to duty (Singapore Statutes Online). We do not present it as a way to avoid ABSD.
The lawful routes all end with one home. Keep two, and ABSD is the price of the second.
Can you transfer your private property to your child?
Yes, but IRAS charges a gift like a sale: your child pays buyer's stamp duty on the market value of the share, plus ABSD by their own profile, and seller's stamp duty applies if you give it away within the holding period. The share then counts as your child's home, so their own next purchase is a second property. A 99-to-1 between parent and child is audited like any other.
IRAS lists acquisitions "By way of gift including a voluntary declaration of trust and settlement" among those on which "ad valorem stamp duty (i.e. BSD, ABSD and SSD, whichever applicable) is payable" (IRAS). On ABSD for a gift: "Yes, based on your profile, ABSD is still payable even on a transfer by way of gift. The calculation is based on the market value of the property since there is no consideration" (IRAS).
What that means at the median price:
- Today's duty. Give your child a half share of a $1,880,000 home and the share is worth $940,000: BSD on it is $22,800. A citizen child who owns no other home pays no ABSD on it.
- Tomorrow's duty. IRAS counts "properties acquired or transferred by way of gift" in your child's property count (IRAS). While a citizen child holds that share, their own first home is a second property: $376,000 of ABSD at the median price.
- Their HDB options. HDB counts property an applicant owns "or has an interest in", including property "Acquired by gift". A new flat, a resale Plus or Prime flat, a resale flat with CPF housing grants or an HDB loan needs none, and none disposed of in the 30 months before the HFE letter application; the rule is the same for singles and for families (HDB, singles; HDB, families).
- Your SSD. Giving the share away within the holding period brings SSD into play as a sale would: three years for homes bought from 11 March 2017 to 3 July 2025, and four years for homes bought on or after 4 July 2025 (IRAS).
Leaving property by will is different for the duty itself: "If your inheritance is in accordance with a Will, Intestacy Law or Muslim Inheritance Law, ABSD is not payable" (IRAS). But the inherited home still counts in the heir's property count for ABSD, and HDB counts property "Inherited as a beneficiary under a will". And a parent-and-child 99-to-1 is still a 99-to-1: IRAS's first conviction from its audits involved a son who bought alone and a mother who bought the 1% (IRAS).
A gift of property is a sale at market value with no money changing hands.
Can your spouse buy an HDB flat if you own a condo?
Not a new flat, a resale Plus or Prime flat, a resale flat with CPF housing grants, or a flat bought with an HDB loan: HDB counts property owned by you and/or your spouse, and those need no private home in the household, and none sold in the 30 months before the HFE letter application. A non-subsidised resale flat is allowed, but the condo must be sold within 6 months of completing the flat purchase.
HDB's test covers both spouses: "You are considered to own or have an interest in a property if you and/ or your spouse have acquired a property through purchase or when it is: Acquired by gift", "Inherited", owned "through nominees" or held on trust (HDB). Everyone listed in the HFE letter application must then meet one of two rules:
| What your household wants to buy | HDB's rule on private property |
|---|---|
| A flat from HDB; a resale Plus or Prime flat; a resale flat with CPF housing grants; or any flat with an HDB loan | "Must not own or have an interest in any local or overseas private residential property. Must not have disposed of any private residential property at least 30 months before HFE letter application" |
| A non-subsidised resale Standard or unclassified flat | "you must dispose of the interest in the private residential property … within 6 months of completing your flat purchase" |
Two details catch owners out:
- An EC counts as private. HDB's list of private residential property includes an "Executive Condominium (EC) unit" and a "privatised HUDC flat" (HDB).
- So does a 1% share. The test is whether anyone listed owns "or has an interest in" private property, so a 99-to-1 co-owner is a private property owner for HDB too.
For the opposite move, keeping a flat and buying private, see owning an HDB flat and private property at the same time.
For HDB, your spouse's condo is your condo.
What happened to the lawsuits against ERA Realty Network and PropNex Realty?
None of the filings mentions 99-to-1 or ABSD. The listed parents of ERA Realty Network Pte. Ltd. and PropNex Realty Pte. Ltd. disclosed five suits against the two agencies between February 2025 and February 2026, each claiming damages over alleged misrepresentation, conduct or advice by one of the agency's salespersons on property transactions. All five were later discontinued and withdrawn by the claimants, so no court made any finding. In one further, ongoing action, PropNex Realty received a third-party notice from a defendant in July 2026.
Every fact below is from the companies' own exchange filings, as published in their investor-relations newsrooms (PropNex Limited; APAC Realty Limited). ERA Realty Network Pte. Ltd. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of APAC Realty Limited, and PropNex Realty Pte. Ltd. of PropNex Limited; both parents are listed on the Singapore Exchange.
| Disclosed (filing date) | Agency | What the claim alleged, in the filing's words | Sought | Outcome, as announced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 Feb 2025 | PropNex Realty Pte. Ltd., one of three co-defendants | Vicarious liability for "alleged tortious conduct" of one of its salespersons and "purported advice" on "certain property transactions" | Damages; no amount stated | Discontinued and withdrawn (announced 2 Jan 2026) |
| 22 Feb 2025 | PropNex Realty Pte. Ltd., one of three co-defendants | Breach of duty of care or vicarious liability for "alleged negligent misrepresentation" by one of its salespersons "on a property transaction" | S$849,287 | Discontinued and withdrawn (announced 17 Oct 2025) |
| 5 Nov 2025 | PropNex Realty Pte. Ltd., one of three co-defendants | The same wording | S$586,172 | Discontinued and withdrawn (announced 23 Apr 2026) |
| 2 Feb 2026 | PropNex Realty Pte. Ltd., one of three co-defendants | The same wording | S$367,405 | Discontinued and withdrawn (announced 10 Jul 2026) |
| 4 Feb 2026 | ERA Realty Network Pte. Ltd., one of three co-defendants | The same wording | S$731,212 | Discontinued and withdrawn (announced 19 Jun 2026) |
| 1 Jul 2026 | PropNex Realty Pte. Ltd., as a third party, not a defendant | A third-party notice from a defendant in "an ongoing action" relating to claims by "purchasers of a property against their solicitors and one of" PropNex Realty's salespersons | Indemnity, costs and contribution; no amount stated | Ongoing at that filing |
Three things the filings do and do not tell you:
- No finding either way. A suit that is discontinued and withdrawn ends without a judgment: no court found the agency liable, and none cleared it.
- No link to 99-to-1 in the filings. They describe claims about "a property transaction" or "certain property transactions"; none mentions 99-to-1, ABSD or stamp duty, so nothing in the filings ties any of these suits to a 99-to-1 purchase.
- The S$731,212 figure is from APAC Realty's filing of 4 February 2026, which named ERA Realty Network Pte. Ltd. as "one of the three co-defendants"; its filing of 19 June 2026 reported that "the Claimants have discontinued and withdrawn the Suit."
A withdrawn suit decides nothing: not that an agency was at fault, and not that it was cleared.
What is the biggest mistake buyers make with a 99-to-1 split?
Treating the 1% as harmless paperwork. That share counts as a home for ABSD and for HDB, IRAS audits have no time limit, and a made-up reason for the split, given in an audit, is a crime.
A 1% share is small on paper and large in its effects:
- It is a home, for ABSD. "As long as a buyer owns any interest in a property, that property will be included in the count of properties owned by him" (IRAS).
- It is private property, for HDB. Anyone listed in an HFE letter application who owns "or has an interest in" private residential property is caught by HDB's rules (HDB).
- It never ages out. "There is no statutory time limit for stamp duty audits" (MOF).
- The cover story is the crime. IRAS's first conviction from its audits was for a false explanation of why the home was not bought jointly at the outset; each buyer was jailed for two weeks (IRAS).
If you would not explain the 1% to IRAS in writing, do not sign it.
What can salespersons tell you about 99-to-1 or ABSD?
They must get stamp duty facts right, and none of them can make an avoidance scheme safe. IRAS refers property agents who promote or facilitate such arrangements to CEA for investigation and discipline, and CEA has suspended and fined one for misstating the ABSD remission rules. Check the rule on IRAS's own pages before you sign.
MOF, in 2023: "the Government also takes a serious view against individuals who promote or facilitate such tax avoidance arrangements. IRAS will refer those identified of doing so to the relevant regulatory agencies." Property agents go to the Council for Estate Agencies "for investigation and disciplinary action", and "Depending on the severity of the breach, agents may face financial penalties and/or suspension of their registrations" (MOF, 21 April 2023). In May 2024, MOF said about 10 cases were "currently under review" by CEA (MOF, 7 May 2024).
CEA also disciplines salespersons who get stamp duty facts wrong. In a case it published in 2021, a married couple was told they would get ABSD remission if the wife bought in her sole name; in fact "the remission of ABSD would only apply if the property was purchased under both the buyers’ names". The couple lost their option fee and legal fees, and CEA's Disciplinary Committee imposed "a suspension of four months and a financial penalty of $3,000" (CEA).
What that means for you:
- The duty is yours. IRAS: the party liable for ABSD "is generally the purchaser (buyer) or transferee" (IRAS), whoever suggested the structure.
- Check the rule at source. The ABSD rules, reliefs and remissions are all on IRAS's pages. Our guide to conveyancing lawyers and fees explains what the lawyer acting for you does.
- Unhappy with the advice you got? The Singapore property laws guide sets out CEA's complaint and dispute routes.
A stamp duty tip is only as good as the IRAS page behind it.
Official sources
Check IRAS, MOF and the Act directly for current rules.
Methodology and sources
Where every figure comes from, and what we deliberately did not claim.
Official rules. The anti-avoidance rule, the surcharge and its remission are from the Stamp Duties Act 1929, sections 33A to 33C, on Singapore Statutes Online (current as at 19 September 2026). ABSD rates, the joint-purchase and property-count rules, gifts and inheritance are from IRAS's ABSD page (updated 27 August 2026); the FTA list from IRAS's FTA remission page (updated 30 January 2026); the married-couple refund from IRAS (updated 13 August 2026); the seniors' refund and BSD from IRAS (updated 7 August 2026); SSD from IRAS (updated 13 August 2026). The audit figures are from MOF's parliamentary replies of 21 April 2023 and 7 May 2024, and the first audit conviction from IRAS's release of 28 February 2025. HDB's private-property rules are from its couples and families and singles pages (both updated 23 August 2026); the disciplinary case is from CEA (2021). All were read on 19 September 2026.
Proprietary analysis. The median private price, $1,880,000, is PropKaki's analysis of 23,718 condo, apartment and EC sales in URA caveats over the 12 months to 30 August 2026, new sales and resales together. The ABSD, BSD and surcharge figures apply IRAS's rates and section 33B to that price, taking price as market value and a 1% share as 1% of the price; the per-case average divides MOF's rounded total by its case count. How we work: PropKaki methodology.
The lawsuits. Every fact about the suits is from the parent companies' exchange filings, read in their investor-relations newsrooms on 19 September 2026; we name no individual, and tie no suit to 99-to-1 because no filing does.
What we have not claimed: that any particular purchase is or is not tax avoidance (IRAS decides on the facts), how IRAS would compute your own case, or any way to reduce ABSD beyond IRAS's published rules. This is a practical explainer, not legal or financial advice.
Got a question this raised? Ask PropKaki.
Take any point from this analysis and apply it to your own project, budget or decision.
PropKakiFor most buyers this year, staying well within budget beats trying to time the market.