Singapore Property Glossary: What Lease, Tenant, Sublet, HDB and 50 More Terms Mean
The words on your tenancy agreement, OTP, HDB letters and stamp-duty bill, defined from the official sources, with today's prices and rents beside them.
In Singapore property, a lease means either a tenure (HDB flats and most private homes are sold on 99-year leases, after which the land returns to the State) or a tenancy agreement with a landlord. A tenant is the person renting, and the law that regulates property agencies counts a subtenant as a tenant; to sublet is to rent out a home, or part of it, that you rent or own, which an HDB tenant may not do. HDB is the Housing & Development Board, the public housing authority, and a flat's room count includes the living room, so a 4-room flat has three bedrooms. WALE is the weighted average time left on a REIT's leases.
Singapore property talk runs on words that mean something different here: a lease can be ownership or a rental, a 4-room flat has three bedrooms, and the law that regulates property agencies counts a subtenant as a tenant.
This glossary defines the terms people search for most, from lease, tenant and sublet to MOP, ABSD and weighted average lease expiry, in the words of HDB, URA, IRAS, MAS, CPF and the statutes, read on 19 September 2026. Where a number helps, PropKaki's own data sits beside the definition: HDB resales to 2026 H1, private sales to 30 August 2026. Each term links to the page that goes deeper.
What does lease mean in Singapore property?
In Singapore, "lease" means two different things. As a tenure, it is the right to own a home for a fixed term: HDB flats and most private homes are sold on 99-year leases, and when the lease ends the land goes back to the State. In a rental, a lease is simply the tenancy agreement between a landlord and a tenant.
The tenure meaning: ownership for a fixed term. The Government puts it plainly: "HDB flats are sold with 99-year leases. A leasehold system ensures fairness to future generations. After 99 years, the land is returned to the State, and we can recycle it to build new homes for future generations" (Ministry of National Development, September 2025, MND). A leaseholder is still an owner: "HDB flat buyers who purchase a typical new 99-year lease flat own the rights to their flats for 99 years", and "buyers of a 99-year leasehold private property own the rights to their property for the duration of their lease" (gov.sg). Under common law, "ownership of the land and the buildings erected on it reverts to the lessor at the expiry of the lease", and the Government's general policy "is to allow leases to expire without renewal" (SLA).
That meaning covers most of the market. Of the 25,935 private home sales dated 30 August 2025 to 30 August 2026 whose caveats have been lodged so far (condos, apartments, landed homes and 3,143 ECs), 72.9% were on 99-year leases and 23.2% were freehold:
| Tenure | Sales | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 99-year leasehold | 18,895 | 72.9% |
| Freehold | 6,014 | 23.2% |
| 999-year and other very long leases | 889 | 3.4% |
| Other leases (60 to 115 years) | 137 | 0.5% |
On the HDB side, flats resold in 2026 H1 had a median of 71 years of lease left, and 29% had under 60 years. How the clock runs, and what happens at the end, is in our guide to freehold vs leasehold.
The rental meaning: a tenancy agreement. When IRAS charges stamp duty on "documents relating to leases of immovable properties", it means the tenancy agreement you sign to rent a home (IRAS). A two-year lease on a condo is a rental, not ownership.
How much lease is left on the homes that sell today, and what happens when it runs out: 99-year leasehold explained.
Same word, two contracts: one decides how long you own, the other how long you stay.
What do tenant and tenancy mean in Singapore?
A tenant is the person who rents a home and pays rent to live in it; a tenancy is that arrangement, usually set out in a written tenancy agreement for a fixed term. Under the law that regulates property agencies, "tenant" includes a subtenant. Joint tenancy is different: it is a way to co-own a home, not to rent one.
Tenant and tenancy. A tenancy gives a tenant the right to occupy someone else's home for a term, in return for rent; the tenancy agreement sets the rent, the term, the deposit and who fixes what. The Estate Agents Act 2010 spells out that "“tenant” includes a subtenant" and that a "purchaser" "includes a prospective tenant" (Singapore Statutes Online). What to check before you sign is in our guide to tenancy agreements.
What a tenancy changes for the owner. Property tax follows who lives in the home. IRAS taxes "condominiums, HDB flats or other residential properties where the owner lives in ("occupies") the property" at owner-occupier rates, and a home the owner does not live in at higher non-owner-occupier rates (IRAS). HDB says it plainly: "The property tax will be revised when you rent out your flat" (HDB). In HDB's own vocabulary an "occupier" is also a person listed in the flat application; our guide to owners vs occupiers explains that meaning.
How common it is. HDB approved 37,352 whole-flat rentals from September 2025 to August 2026, and a 4-room flat rented for a median $3,300 a month.
Joint tenancy is ownership, not renting. CPF Board explains the two ways to co-own a home: under joint tenancy "all co-owners have equal interest in the property", and "when a joint tenant dies, their share automatically goes to the remaining co-owner(s)"; under tenancy in common "each co-owner holds a separate and definite share in the property" (CPF). See joint tenancy vs tenancy in common.
A tenancy is a right to live somewhere; a joint tenancy is a way to own it.
What does sublet mean, and who is a subletter?
To sublet is to rent out a home, or part of it, to someone else: a tenant who re-lets becomes the subletter, and the person moving in is the subtenant. In Singapore the word is also used for owners renting out a room. An HDB owner may rent out the flat or its bedrooms with HDB's approval, but an HDB tenant may not re-let: the owner must make sure tenants "do not further rent out the flat to others".
The chain of rent. A sublet adds a link: the owner rents to the tenant, and the tenant rents to a subtenant. The subletter is still bound by the original tenancy, and the Estate Agents Act counts a subtenant as a tenant ("“tenant” includes a subtenant", Singapore Statutes Online). "Sublease" is the same arrangement seen as a contract. IRAS also uses the word for owners: "Some property owners may choose to rent out a portion of their property (i.e. subletting). For example, they rent out a spare room while still dwelling in their home" (IRAS).
HDB flats: no subletting by tenants. HDB makes the owner responsible for ensuring "Your tenants do not further rent out the flat to others, create nuisance, or misuse the flat", and adds: "You are responsible for all infringements (if any) committed by them" (HDB). Only the owner may rent out, and only on HDB's terms:
- The whole flat: "Singapore Citizens who have fulfilled the Minimum Occupation Period can rent out their flats"; PR owners may not, and "Owners of Prime and Plus flats are not allowed to rent out the flat even after the 10-year MOP" (HDB).
- Spare bedrooms: "You can rent out your spare bedrooms if you own a 3-room or bigger flat", one bedroom in a 3-room flat and two in a 4-room or bigger flat, with HDB's approval first (HDB).
- For how long: "The minimum rental period for each tenant must be 6 months per application", and short-term lets are not allowed (HDB).
The full rules, fees and tenant limits are in our guide to renting out an HDB flat or room. For a private home, the tenancy agreement you sign decides whether you may sublet, so read its clause before you do.
In an HDB flat, the owner answers for every occupant, including one a tenant brought in.
What is the difference between a lease and renting?
Owning a home on a lease makes you its owner for the term: you can live in it, renovate it, rent it out or sell it and keep the proceeds. Renting means paying rent to live in someone else's home for the term of a tenancy agreement, with no right to sell. In a rental, "lease" and "tenancy agreement" mean the same document, and "rental" means the arrangement or the monthly rent itself.
Owner on a lease vs tenant on a rental. The Government draws the line itself: "During your period of ownership, you can decide to live in the flat, renovate it, rent it out or even sell it. You can decide on the selling price or rental rate of the flat, and you get to keep the proceeds", whereas "people who are renting an apartment can live in the flat, but they have to pay rent throughout their stay. The rent they pay may be periodically revised based on market conditions. They are also unable to sell or benefit from the sale of the flat" (gov.sg).
Rent vs rental. Rent is the payment. "Rental" is the arrangement, or the figure URA publishes: "The gross rent per month including service charge but excluding Goods and Services Tax (GST)" (URA). Here is what that came to for private homes in the 92,478 rental contracts dated July 2025 to July 2026:
| Private home (condo, apartment or EC) | Median monthly rent |
|---|---|
| 1 bedroom | $3,300 |
| 2 bedrooms | $4,200 |
| 3 bedrooms | $5,350 |
| All sizes | $4,300 |
A rental lease costs stamp duty. IRAS charges 0.4% of the total rent on a lease of 4 years or less, and 0.4% of four times the average annual rent on a longer one; a lease whose average annual rent is $1,000 or less is exempt, and the duty is rounded down to the dollar (IRAS). On a two-year lease at the median $4,300 a month ($103,200 of rent), that is $412. How to file and who pays is in our guide to tenancy stamp duty.
Rent pays for the stay; a 99-year lease pays for the years.
What does HDB mean, and what is an HDB flat?
HDB is the Housing & Development Board, Singapore's public housing authority since 1 February 1960. An HDB flat is a public flat it builds and sells, usually on a 99-year lease; HDB says it has built over 1.25 million flats, housing close to 80% of the resident population. A flat's room count includes the living room, so a 4-room flat has three bedrooms.
The authority. "As Singapore’s public housing authority, we plan and develop towns and estates, providing homes for Singaporeans"; HDB's story "began on 1 February 1960", and "we have built over 1.25 million well-designed flats, housing close to 80% of Singapore’s resident population" (HDB).
The flat types. HDB names flats by rooms, counting the living room (and, in 5-room and Executive flats, a study space), so the bedroom count is lower than the name suggests. HDB's own layouts, with the size and price of flats resold in 2026 H1 (12,227 resales in all, including a handful of 1-room and multi-generation flats left out of the table):
| Flat type | Bedrooms (HDB's own layout) | Median floor area | Median resale price | Resales |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2-room | 1 | 47 sqm (506 sqft) | $375,000 | 380 |
| 3-room | 2 | 67 sqm (721 sqft) | $443,000 | 2,925 |
| 4-room | 3 | 93 sqm (1,001 sqft) | $630,000 | 5,379 |
| 5-room | 3, plus a suggested study | 116 sqm (1,249 sqft) | $740,000 | 2,793 |
| Executive | 3, plus space for a study | 146 sqm (1,572 sqft) | $910,000 | 741 |
HDB adds that "Some features such as household shelter and master bedroom with attached bathroom may not be available in resale flats" (HDB). The median 4-room resale price per square foot was $616.
The words around an HDB flat.
- BTO (Build-To-Order): a new flat bought from HDB in a sales exercise before it is built (HDB); see the BTO launch schedule.
- Resale flat: a flat bought from its owner on the open market.
- MOP (minimum occupation period): the years you must live in a flat before you may sell it on the open market, rent out the whole flat or buy private property: 5 years for a Standard flat, 10 for Plus and Prime flats (whose owners may never rent out the whole flat) and 20 under the Fresh Start scheme (HDB, HDB); see what MOP means.
- HFE letter: HDB's letter that 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" (HDB); see the HFE letter guide.
The schemes, grants and rules behind all of this are in our guide to public housing in Singapore, and every town's prices are on PropKaki's HDB pages.
The room count includes the living room, so read the floor plan, not the name.
What does weighted average lease expiry (WALE) mean?
WALE is a measure REITs and commercial landlords use for how long a portfolio's leases have left to run on average, with bigger leases counting for more. MAS requires a property fund such as a REIT to report it for its portfolio and for the new leases it signed in the year.
What MAS requires. Under the Monetary Authority of Singapore's Code on Collective Investment Schemes, a property fund's report must show "the tenant profile of the property fund’s real estate assets", including a "lease maturity profile, in terms of the percentage of total gross rental income, for each of the next five years" and the "weighted average lease expiry of both the property fund’s portfolio and new leases entered into during the year (and the proportion of revenue attributed to these leases)". MAS adds that WALE "should be calculated based on the date of commencement of the leases" and that "Rent-free periods should be included in the calculation" (Code on CIS, Appendix 6, MAS).
How the weighting works. Take each lease's remaining term, weight it by that lease's share of the rent, and add them up. As an illustration: one lease with 1 year left pays 25% of the rent, another with 5 years left pays 75%; the WALE by rent is 0.25 × 1 + 0.75 × 5 = 4.0 years. A long WALE means the income is locked in for longer; a short one means many leases come up for renewal soon.
Where you meet it. In REIT reports and results, not in a home purchase: a flat or condo you rent out has one lease, and its "expiry" is simply the end of the tenancy agreement.
WALE tells you how long the rent is locked in, not how good the tenants are.
Does Singapore have studio apartments?
Not among HDB's current flat types: they run from 1-bedroom homes (the 2-room flat, the 2-room Flexi and the Community Care Apartment for seniors) up to the Executive flat, with no "studio". In the private market "studio" is a layout name developers use for a one-room unit, so check the floor area, not the label.
HDB. HDB's current list of flat types has no studio. Its smallest homes each have one bedroom: the Community Care Apartment ("1 bedroom 1 bathroom Living/ dining/ kitchen", sold "From HDB only" to seniors), the 2-room Flexi, and the older 2-room flat ("1 bedroom 1 bathroom Living/ dining Kitchen", "From open market only") (HDB).
Private homes. URA's property-market glossary defines no unit layouts, studio or otherwise (URA). In the 92,478 URA rental contracts dated July 2025 to July 2026 that record a bedroom count, none has fewer than 1; the smallest group, 1-bedroom homes, has a median size of 550 sqft and a median rent of $3,300 a month. A developer's "studio" may be recorded as a 1-bedroom, so compare floor areas, not names.
"Studio" is a marketing word; the floor area is the fact.
What does residential mean in Singapore?
Under the Residential Property Act, residential property is land and buildings meant for living in: any land zoned residential in the Master Plan and any building that may lawfully be used as a dwelling, leaving out land zoned industrial or commercial and registered hotels. A residential area is land the Master Plan zones for homes.
The Act's definition. For the purposes of the Residential Property Act 1976, "residential property" includes "any house, building or other premises or any part thereof which is permitted to be used pursuant to the Planning Act 1998 or any other written law as a dwelling house or which is lawfully so used" and "any land zoned for residential purposes in the Master Plan", but not "any land, whether or not vacant, which is zoned for industrial or commercial purposes or both such purposes in the Master Plan" or "any hotel registered under the provisions of the Hotels Act 1954" (Singapore Statutes Online).
Why the label matters. It decides which rules apply to you. Residential property carries a higher top rate of buyer's stamp duty than non-residential (IRAS), and ABSD rates are set for residential property purchases (IRAS). The same Act restricts foreigners: it keeps landed homes "the primary preserve of Singapore Citizens" (MinLaw).
Landed and non-landed. URA splits homes in two: landed property "refers to detached houses, semi-detached houses, terrace houses, townhouses, strata bungalows and cluster housing"; non-landed property "refers to apartments and condominiums" (URA).
To see how a particular plot is zoned, use the PropKaki zoning checker.
Zoning, not décor, decides what counts as a home.
What do the buying and paperwork terms mean?
The key buying terms are the HFE letter (HDB's statement of what you may buy and borrow), the option to purchase (a paid right to buy at an agreed price), exercise (taking up that right, which makes the sale binding), the caveat (a buyer's notice lodged with SLA), completion (the day the home and the money change hands) and the MOP.
| Term | What it means | Go deeper |
|---|---|---|
| HFE letter | HDB's HDB Flat Eligibility letter, telling 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" (HDB) | HFE letter |
| Option to purchase (OTP) | A seller's paid offer to sell you the home at an agreed price, open for a set time. For an HDB resale you "obtain an Option to Purchase (OTP) from the flat seller" once the price is agreed (HDB); CEA's standard private-home option stays open "before the expiry of two weeks from the date of this Option" unless the parties set another date (CEA) | HDB OTP |
| Option fee and exercise | The option fee buys the right; exercising the option turns it into "a valid and binding agreement for the sale and purchase", and if you do not exercise it, the option money "will be forfeited to the benefit of the Vendor" (CEA) | HDB OTP |
| Request for Value | Asking HDB to value the flat, due "by the next working day after you get the OTP" if you pay with CPF or a loan (HDB) | HDB OTP |
| Booking fee | What you pay a developer for the option on a new-launch unit: "not less than 5% but not more than 10% of the purchase price of the unit" (Housing Developers Rules, Singapore Statutes Online) | Laws explained |
| 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 or a Sales & Purchase Agreement is signed" (URA) | Check ownership |
| Conveyancing | The legal work of transferring the home to you, done by a lawyer (or by HDB for some HDB resales) | Conveyancing |
| Completion | The day the balance is paid and the home becomes yours; for an HDB resale "about 8 weeks from the date of HDB’s acceptance of the resale application" (HDB) | HDB OTP |
| TOP | Temporary Occupation Permit: the permit that lets a new project be occupied; URA reports "the year in which the whole project will be given the Temporary Occupation Permit" (URA) | — |
| MOP | Minimum occupation period: 5 years for a Standard or unclassified HDB flat, 10 for Plus and Prime flats, counted from the legal completion date (HDB); for an EC, 5 years from TOP, or 10 where the land tender closed on or after 8 May 2026 (HDB) | MOP |
| Balance units | Units in a launched project that are still unsold | Balance units |
The whole buying journey, route by route, with the cash at each step: how to buy a home in Singapore.
Every step you sign moves money, so know which document you are signing before you pay for it.
What do the money terms mean: stamp duty, loans and CPF?
BSD is the stamp duty every buyer pays (1% to 6%); ABSD is the extra duty on a citizen's second and later homes and on PR and foreign buyers (US nationals, and nationals and PRs of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, pay citizen rates); SSD is a tax on selling within 4 years of buying (3 years for homes bought before 4 July 2025); LTV caps a loan as a share of the price; TDSR and MSR cap repayments as a share of income; CPF OA savings can pay for a home and must be refunded, with interest, when you sell.
| Term | What it means (rates as of 2026; verify with the agency) | Go deeper |
|---|---|---|
| BSD (buyer's stamp duty) | "Tax paid on documents signed when you buy or acquire property", on the higher of price or market value: 1% on the first $180,000, rising in bands to 6% on the amount above $3 million for homes (IRAS) | BSD calculation |
| ABSD (additional buyer's stamp duty) | Paid "on top of the existing Buyer’s Stamp Duty": nil for a citizen's first home, 20% on a citizen's second, 5% on a PR's first, 60% for foreigners (IRAS); nationals and PRs of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland, and nationals of the United States, get citizen treatment under free trade agreements (IRAS) | ABSD rates |
| SSD (seller's stamp duty) | Paid when you sell a home within the holding period; for homes bought on or after 4 July 2025, 16% in the first year falling to 4% in the fourth, and none after 4 years (IRAS) | SSD |
| Property tax and Annual Value | Tax on owning property, charged on its Annual Value, "the estimated gross annual rent of the property if it were to be rented out, excluding furniture, furnishings and maintenance fees" (IRAS); a home you live in is taxed at lower owner-occupier rates (IRAS) | Property tax |
| LTV (loan-to-value) | "The loan amount as a percentage of the property’s value": up to 75% for a bank loan with no other housing loan outstanding (MAS), and up to 75% for an HDB loan (HDB) | Downpayment |
| TDSR | Total debt servicing ratio: "No more than 55% of a borrower’s gross monthly income should go towards repaying all their debt obligations" (MAS) | Financial planner |
| MSR | Mortgage servicing ratio: no more than 30% of gross monthly income on property loans, for HDB flats and ECs only (MAS) | MSR |
| CPF OA | Your CPF Ordinary Account, which can pay for "a HDB flat, or buy or build private and residential properties in Singapore", plus the downpayment, loan, stamp and legal fees; on sale "you will need to refund the amount that you have used plus the interest accrued" (CPF) | Cash and CPF |
| Lease stamp duty | Stamp duty on a rental lease: 0.4% of the total rent for a lease of up to 4 years (IRAS) | Tenancy stamp duty |
What these duties and loan limits mean for an investment home: Singapore property investing guide.
Duties are fixed by who you are and what you already own, so price them before you sign, not after.
What do the tenure and ownership terms mean?
Freehold means owning a home with no end date; leasehold means owning it for a fixed term, usually 99 years. A strata title is ownership of one unit (a lot) in a shared development, whose shared parts are common property run by the owners' management corporation (the MCST). Joint tenancy and tenancy in common are the two ways to co-own.
| Term | What it means | Go deeper |
|---|---|---|
| Leasehold | Owning for a fixed term: "buyers of a 99-year leasehold private property own the rights to their property for the duration of their lease" (gov.sg) | 99-year leasehold · Freehold vs leasehold |
| Freehold | Owning with no end date; 23.2% of private homes sold in the latest 12 months (ECs included) | Freehold vs leasehold |
| 999-year lease | A lease so long it is treated much like freehold, though it is still a lease | 999-year vs freehold |
| Lease renewal | Rare: "the Government’s policy is to allow leases to expire without renewal", considering renewals "on a case-by-case basis" (SLA) | Freehold vs leasehold |
| Strata title and lot | Ownership of one unit in a strata development; a lot is "a complete and separate unit" shown on the strata title plan (Building (Strata Management) Act, Singapore Statutes Online) | MCST |
| Common property | The shared parts of a strata development, "not comprised in any lot" and "used or capable of being used or enjoyed by occupiers of 2 or more lots" (Singapore Statutes Online) | MCST |
| MCST (Management Corporation Strata Title) | The management corporation that "comprises the subsidiary proprietors from time to time of all lots" in a strata development (Singapore Statutes Online) | What is an MCST |
| Joint tenancy | Co-owners with "equal interest in the property"; when one dies, the share "automatically goes to the remaining co-owner(s)" (CPF) | Joint tenancy vs tenancy in common |
| Tenancy in common | Each co-owner holds "a separate and definite share", and owners "can hold different ownership percentages" (CPF) | Joint tenancy vs tenancy in common |
| En bloc (collective sale) | Selling a whole strata development together by majority consent, under the Land Titles (Strata) Act (MinLaw) | Laws explained |
Tenure sets how long you own; the title sets what you own; the manner of holding sets who inherits it.
What do the home types and market terms mean: condo, apartment, EC, landed and psf?
A condominium and an apartment are both private, non-landed, strata-titled homes; URA's planning rules give a condominium a larger minimum site (4,000 sqm) for shared facilities. An EC is a private-built condo sold with HDB-style conditions. Landed homes are houses on their own land. Psf is price per square foot, and the market is split into three regions: CCR, RCR and OCR.
| Term | What it means | Go deeper |
|---|---|---|
| Condominium and apartment (flats) | Both are non-landed private homes. URA sets "the minimum site area for a flats and condominium development" at "1,000sqm and 4,000sqm respectively", because "Condominiums require larger site area to ensure that there is sufficient space for more communal and recreational facilities" (URA). In URA's sale records the label mostly tracks new launches: 60% of the 12,403 "Apartment" sales in the latest 12 months were new sales, against 9% of the 8,172 "Condominium" sales | Condo vs apartment |
| Executive condominium (EC) | "Strata-titled apartments built by the private sector" with "similar facilities to a private condominium", sold with "eligibility conditions similar to those for HDB flats, and a minimum occupation period" (URA); median price $1,710,000 in the latest 12 months | EC income ceiling |
| Landed property | "Detached houses, semi-detached houses, terrace houses, townhouses, strata bungalows and cluster housing" (URA) | Landed homes |
| CCR, RCR, OCR | URA's three market segments: the Core Central Region ("postal districts 9, 10, 11, Downtown Core Planning Area and Sentosa"), the Rest of Central Region, and Outside Central Region (URA). Of condo and apartment sales in the latest 12 months, 20% were in the CCR, 33% in the RCR and 47% in the OCR | District prices |
| Psf (price per square foot) | For houses, "calculated based on their land area"; for strata homes, "based on their strata floor area" (URA). Median: $2,129 for condos and apartments (latest 12 months), $616 for a 4-room HDB resale (2026 H1) | Price per square foot |
| Price | "The price agreed between the purchaser and the vendor", excluding "stamp duties, agency fees, legal and other professional fees" (URA) | Transaction data |
| Median | The middle value: half the sales were higher, half lower. It resists a few extreme deals better than an average | How much homes cost |
| Sold (new launch) | "A unit is considered sold when the developer has given the purchaser the option to purchase, after the purchaser pays a booking fee" (URA) | New launches |
| Developer | A company building homes for sale; one selling uncompleted projects "of more than 4 units" needs a housing developer's licence from the Controller of Housing (URA), which you can check on URA's site (URA) | Developers ranked |
| Estate agency and salespersons | An estate agency is a licensed business that does "estate agency work"; the salespersons registered under it do that work for it (Estate Agents Act 2010, Singapore Statutes Online) | Salespersons, brokers and realtors compared |
| GLS (Government Land Sales) | The programme that "releases State land for development by private developers", announced every six months, mostly by tender (URA). Of the 838 residential sites in URA's and HDB's sale records (1970 to 2026), 828 were sold on 99-year leases | GLS sites and tender results |
A label tells you the category; the site, the tenure and the psf tell you what you are buying.
What is the biggest mistake people make with Singapore property terms?
Reading a label as if it were a definition. "Lease" can mean owning or renting, a 4-room flat has three bedrooms, the Estate Agents Act counts a subtenant as a tenant, and in URA's sale records "Apartment" mostly means a new launch. Check the definition behind the word before you act on it.
Most expensive misunderstandings start with a word that means something narrower, or different, from what you assumed:
- "Lease." A 99-year lease is ownership; a two-year lease is a rental. The same word covers both.
- "4-room." It counts the living room: three bedrooms (HDB).
- "Tenant." The Estate Agents Act counts a subtenant as one (Singapore Statutes Online), and in an HDB flat the owner answers for every tenant's breaches (HDB).
- "Apartment" vs "condominium." URA's planning rules separate them by site size (URA), but in the sale records 60% of "Apartment" sales in the latest 12 months were new launches, against 9% of "Condominium" sales. The label tells you less than the site plan.
- "Annual Value." It is IRAS's estimate of a year's rent, not the rent you actually receive (IRAS).
Read the definition behind the label: the label is shorthand, the definition is what binds you.
Official sources
Check the agencies directly for the current rules and rates.
Methodology and sources
Where every definition and figure comes from, and what we deliberately did not claim.
Definitions. Every definition is quoted or paraphrased from the agency or statute that owns it: HDB, URA, IRAS, MAS, CPF Board, SLA, MinLaw, MND, gov.sg and Singapore Statutes Online, read on 19 September 2026. Rates and limits are as published on those pages on that date; verify them with the agency before you act. Where no official definition exists (freehold, median, conveyancing, balance units), the plain meaning is given without a quote.
PropKaki figures. HDB flat sizes, prices and remaining leases are PropKaki's analysis of HDB resale records for 2026 H1, the latest complete half-year (12,227 resales). Private tenure shares (condos, apartments, landed homes and ECs), psf, the EC median and the condominium / apartment split are from URA sale caveats for sales dated 30 August 2025 to 30 August 2026, as lodged so far; caveats are lodged voluntarily and late, so the latest weeks are under-counted. Private rents are URA rental contracts dated July 2025 to July 2026 with a recorded bedroom count (92,478 contracts). HDB rents are HDB's approved whole-flat rentals from September 2025 to August 2026. Government land figures are URA's and HDB's sale-site records. The lease-duty figure applies IRAS's rate to the median rent; the WALE figure is an illustration, not data. How we work: PropKaki methodology.
What we have not claimed: what any particular tenancy agreement, option or lease allows; that a home's label matches its layout; or what any REIT's WALE is. This is a plain-English glossary, not legal or financial advice.
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PropKakiFor most buyers this year, staying well within budget beats trying to time the market.