How to Buy a Home in Singapore: The Steps, the Cash and Who Can Buy What

Start with the money, not the viewing. For an HDB flat, HDB tells you to "Apply for an HDB Flat Eligibility (HFE) letter on My Flat Dashboard for a holistic understanding of your housing and financing options before you embark on your home buying journey" (HDB), and you must hold a valid one to apply for a new flat, to take an option on a resale flat and to submit the resale application (HDB). For a private home, the bank's loan offer plays that role.

The five routes, side by side:

The laws behind each step, and who enforces them, are mapped in Singapore property laws explained.

Buy in the order the paperwork runs: eligibility and financing first, the home second.

HDB flats. HDB lends only if "At least 1 applicant is a Singapore Citizen", with household income up to $16,000 a month for families, $8,000 for singles and $24,000 for extended families. Its loan covers "Up to 75% of the lower of the resale price or value of the flat" where the remaining lease covers the youngest buyer to age 95, and "A lower loan limit pro-rated from 75%" where it does not (HDB). You pay the other 25% with "cash and/ or CPF Ordinary Account savings (including CPF housing grants if eligible)" (HDB), except that "the option fees cannot be paid using your CPF" (CPF): the option fee and exercise fee together can reach $5,000. HDB also takes the stamp duty from CPF (HDB). With a bank loan instead, at least 5% must be cash, or 10% on a 55% loan (HDB). At the median resale prices for 2026 H1:

The table assumes citizen buyers, a price equal to HDB's value, a full 75% loan and a lease that covers the youngest buyer to 95. A PR household cannot take an HDB loan, so it borrows from a bank, and it pays ABSD on a first resale flat at the completion appointment (HDB). First-timers may get CPF housing grants towards the downpayment; see first-timer and second-timer grants.

Private homes. A first bank loan can reach 75% of the value, with a minimum cash downpayment of 5%, if it runs for up to 30 years and ends by age 65; MAS says to "Apply the lower LTV limit if the loan tenure exceeds 30 years (or 25 years for HDB flats), or the loan period extends beyond the borrower's age of 65 years": 55%, with 10% in cash (MAS). At the median condo, apartment and EC price of $1,880,000 (sales lodged so far from 30 August 2025 to 30 August 2026), a 75% loan means a $470,000 downpayment, at least $94,000 of it in cash, plus $63,600 of buyer's stamp duty (IRAS): $533,600 before legal fees. On a 55% loan the downpayment is $846,000, with at least $188,000 in cash. For a completed home, CPF says you "can pay cash first and get reimbursed from your CPF account later" for the stamp duty (CPF), so the cash to have ready at the median is the $94,000 minimum plus the $63,600: $157,600.

A PR buying a first home pays 5% ABSD ($94,000 at that price) (IRAS), unless they buy jointly with a citizen spouse and neither owns a home, which can get full remission (IRAS), or they qualify for citizen treatment under a free trade agreement (IRAS).

Which loan? HDB sizes its loan at the higher of a 3.0% floor rate and its prevailing rate (HDB). For bank loans, MAS's LTV limits and the 55% total debt servicing ratio apply, and for an HDB flat or an EC the repayments on all property loans must also stay within 30% of gross monthly income, the mortgage servicing ratio (MAS). The two are compared in HDB loan vs bank loan. The PropKaki financial planner works out stamp duty and monthly instalments, and how much cash you need for a condo goes further on private homes.

Count the cash apart from the CPF: option fees, the cash minimum and, on a completed private home, the stamp duty all need cash first.

Worked through for a $300,000 purchase (an illustration, not a median):

Sources: HDB's loan limit (HDB); CPF on option fees (CPF); MAS's 75% LTV and 5% cash minimum for a first bank loan (MAS); IRAS's BSD bands, 1% on the first $180,000 and 2% on the next $180,000 (IRAS).

The lease decides the loan on an older flat. HDB lends up to 75% only where the remaining lease covers the youngest buyer to age 95, and "A lower loan limit pro-rated from 75%" otherwise (HDB); how much CPF you may use also depends on the "Remaining lease of the property" (CPF). Flats near $300,000 are mostly old: the 204 HDB resales priced $270,000 to $330,000 in 2026 H1 had a median 43.9 years of lease left, and 80% had under 50 years. At the median lease, a full 75% HDB loan needs the youngest buyer to be over 51; younger buyers get a smaller loan and pay a bigger downpayment. The loan also depends on income and age, which the HFE letter or the bank's offer will set.

The lease rules, and how much lease today's resale flats carry, are in 99-year leasehold explained.

On an older flat, check the remaining lease against the youngest buyer's age before counting on a 75% loan.

Can a single PR buy an HDB flat alone? No. HDB's singles rules require that "You must be a Singapore Citizen (SC)" (HDB). Can a PR buy a landed house? Only with approval: SLA counts anyone who is not a citizen (or a Singapore company, limited liability partnership or society) as a "foreign person" (SLA).

Can a foreigner buy a house? Only with approval. "A foreign person who wishes to purchase a landed residential property, in Singapore, including at Sentosa Cove, is required to seek approval", and SLA looks for, among other things, permanent residence "for at least five years" and an "exceptional economic contribution to Singapore" (SLA). Foreigners pay 60% ABSD (IRAS), except that nationals and PRs of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland, and US nationals, get citizen treatment under free trade agreements (IRAS). More in foreigner property rules.

Eligibility is set by who is on the application, so settle the names before you settle the home.

HDB's own sequence (HDB):

1. HFE letter. It tells you "upfront of your eligibility to purchase a new or resale flat, as well as the amounts of CPF housing grants and HDB housing loan you are eligible for", and every buyer needs one: "You must have a valid HFE letter before you obtain an Option to Purchase (OTP) from a flat seller, and when you submit your resale application to HDB". Processing takes "up to a month" once HDB has all the documents (HDB); see the HFE letter guide.
2. Option to purchase. "With a valid HFE letter, obtain an Option to Purchase (OTP) from the flat seller after you have agreed on the flat price", and the seller "must have registered an Intent to Sell for more than 7 days". The option fee and exercise fee, up to $5,000 together, are paid in cash, not CPF (CPF); the option period is in our HDB OTP guide.
3. Request for Value. "Submit a Request for Value by the next working day after you get the OTP" if you pay with CPF or a loan. With a bank loan, "you must have a valid Letter of Offer (LO) before you exercise the OTP".
4. Resale application. "After you exercise the OTP, you and the sellers must submit the respective portions of the resale application"; HDB will "accept the resale application within 28 working days" of a complete one.
5. Documents, fees and approval. Documents are ready "about 3 weeks after the application has been accepted"; after they are endorsed and the fees paid, "HDB will grant an approval".
6. Completion. "Resale completion is about 8 weeks from the date of HDB’s acceptance of the resale application."

HDB says you can manage the purchase on your own or engage a property agency's services for a fee (HDB); who handles the legal work, and what it costs, is in conveyancing lawyers and fees. The minimum occupation period, 5 years for a Standard flat, "starts from the legal completion date of your flat purchase" (HDB).

An HDB resale runs on HDB's clock: two months from acceptance to keys, if the paperwork is ready.

The new-flat route, from CPF Board's summary (CPF) and HDB's own pages:

1. "Check eligibility to buy flat and grants available"; HDB: "You must have a valid HFE letter when you apply to buy a flat from HDB" (HDB).
2. "Apply for flat online at HDB's website during sales launch or open booking".
3. "Book a flat based on queue position" and "Pay the option fee".
4. HDB: "You will be invited to sign the Agreement for Lease within 9 months after booking an uncompleted flat", and "You must pay the downpayment when you sign the Agreement for Lease, and the balance when collecting keys to your new flat" (HDB).
5. "When the flat is ready, collect the keys" and "Pay balance purchase price".

"BTO projects tend to have a longer waiting time of 3 to 5 years on the average", while completed Sale of Balance Flats units can be collected "within 3 months" (CPF). The launch calendar, the process in detail and how long recent projects have taken are in our BTO guides: BTO launch schedule, the BTO application process, step by step and BTO construction progress and wait times.

A new flat trades time for price: you wait years, and you buy at HDB's price.

1. Check before you pay. CEA's checklist asks buyers to verify, before paying for the option, the "Name of seller(s)", their identity, "Ownership of property and property specifications (e.g. address, tenure, area, etc.) and restrictions, especially caveats lodged against the property by third parties", the "Approved Property Use", any "Outstanding property tax unpaid by seller", your "Buyer’s stamp duty liability", MCST charges, your loan, CPF and cash, and the "Seller’s bankruptcy status" (CEA). How to check ownership is in check property ownership.
2. Option to purchase. The seller grants you the option for "the Option Money"; the amount is agreed between you, not fixed by law. CEA's standard option "remains open for acceptance … before the expiry of two weeks from the date of this Option" unless another date is written in, and its use "is not mandated" (CEA).
3. Exercise. You accept by signing and paying the balance of the deposit (a percentage you agree); then "there shall be constituted between the Purchaser and the Vendor a valid and binding agreement for the sale and purchase". If you don't exercise, "the Option Money will be forfeited to the benefit of the Vendor" (CEA).
4. Stamp duty. Buyer's stamp duty, and ABSD if it applies, on the higher of price or value (IRAS), paid "within 14 days after the date of the signed Contract or Agreement" (IRAS). On a completed home you pay it in cash and CPF reimburses you later (CPF); see when to pay stamp duty.
5. Caveat and completion. Your lawyer can lodge a caveat, "a legal document lodged with the Singapore Land Authority by a purchaser to protect his/her interests after an option to purchase is exercised", though "the lodgement of caveats is voluntary" (URA). Completion runs through the lawyers; see conveyancing lawyers and fees.

Everything in a private resale is negotiable except the checks; do them before the option money leaves your account.

The developer must be licensed. A developer "developing a housing project with more than four units" must comply with the Housing Developers (Control and Licensing) Act, and URA lets you "check if a developer holds a valid housing developer's licence" (URA).

The payments are set by law. Under the Housing Developers Rules (Singapore Statutes Online):

• Booking fee: "not less than 5% but not more than 10% of the purchase price of the unit", paid into the developer's project account, which the rules regulate (URA).
• Option period: the option "will expire 3 weeks after the date of the delivery" of the title documents and the sale and purchase agreement, which the developer must send "within 14 days after the Option date".
• On exercise: you pay "20% of the Purchase Price less the Booking Fee" on exercise or "within 8 weeks after the date of this Option".
• If you walk away: "the Vendor will refund to the Intending Purchaser 75% of the Booking Fee".

At the median new-launch price of $2,257,000 (8,197 new sales of condos and apartments lodged so far for 30 August 2025 to 30 August 2026), a 5% booking fee is $112,850, 20% is $451,400, and buyer's stamp duty is $82,450. The median resale sold for $1,710,000 (11,734 resales) over the same period.

New ECs are sold by developers but only to eligible buyers under HDB's rules: you apply to the developer, borrow from a bank (HDB asks buyers to check they are "Able to obtain a housing loan from a financial institution"), and the conditions after purchase (MOP, renting out) are HDB's (HDB, HDB, HDB). The median new EC sold for $1,825,000 (1,493 sales lodged so far) over the same 12 months. Every project is on PropKaki's new-launch pages.

Who wins the government land that new launches are built on: Singapore's biggest property developers, ranked.

A booking fee buys you three weeks to read the contract; read it.

The MOP. "EC units in projects where the land sales tender closed on or after 8 May 2026 can only be sold on the open market after the 10-year MOP has been met. The MOP is computed from the date of the Temporary Occupation Permit (TOP). For EC units in other projects, the MOP is 5 years" (HDB).

Who can buy it from you. For an EC with a 5-year MOP, a buyer within 10 years of TOP "must be either a Singapore Citizen (SC) or Singapore Permanent Resident (SPR)"; for an EC with a 10-year MOP, that applies within 15 years of TOP; after that "there is no citizenship requirement. Foreigners and corporate bodies can buy such properties" (HDB).

Before the MOP, you may rent out bedrooms (registered with HDB within 7 days) but not the whole unit, and you may not buy private property (HDB).

Check the tender date of the land, not the launch date of the project: it decides your MOP.

• Buyer's stamp duty (BSD): on the higher of price or market value, from 1% on the first $180,000 to 6% on the part above $3 million (IRAS); $13,500 on a median 4-room flat and $63,600 on a median private home. See how to calculate BSD.
• Additional buyer's stamp duty (ABSD): nil for a citizen's first home; 20% on a citizen's second, 5% on a PR's first and 60% for foreigners, with citizen treatment for the free-trade-agreement nationalities (IRAS, IRAS), and full remission possible for a married couple with a citizen spouse buying their first home jointly (IRAS). See ABSD rates.
• Legal fees: your conveyancing lawyer's, or HDB's where HDB acts; see conveyancing lawyers and fees.
• Property tax: every year you own the home, lower if you live in it; see property tax for HDB, condo and landed homes.

When stamp duty is paid. It is due "within 14 days after the date of the signed Contract or Agreement" (IRAS). On an HDB resale, HDB takes it from your CPF, or at the completion appointment if you pay cash or lack the CPF (HDB). On a completed private home you pay it in cash and CPF reimburses you later; on one still being built, CPF can pay it directly (CPF). CPF can pay "stamp and legal fees" as well as the downpayment (CPF).

Stamp duty falls due within 14 days of signing, so line up the cash or CPF before you sign.

PropKaki figures. HDB medians are PropKaki's analysis of HDB resale records for 2026 H1, the latest complete half-year; the 4-room figures match our HDB option to purchase guide. Private medians are from URA sale caveats lodged so far for 30 August 2025 to 30 August 2026 (condos, apartments and ECs; the new-launch, resale and new-EC medians split the same caveats by sale type). The latest months are still being lodged: URA notes "a time-lag of a few months" between a purchase from a developer and its caveat (URA), so new sales are under-counted most. The downpayments, cash minimums and stamp duty apply HDB, MAS, CPF and IRAS rules to those medians; the $300,000 example is an illustration, not a median, and the lease figures beside it are from HDB resale records for 2026 H1. How we work: PropKaki methodology.

Rules. HDB, CPF Board, MAS, IRAS, SLA, URA, the Housing Developers Rules and CEA's templates, read on 19 September 2026. Verify them with the agency before you commit.

What we have not claimed: how much you personally can borrow, what any particular home is worth, or which route suits you. This is a practical guide, not legal or financial advice.