Buying a HDB resale flat comes with its perks–one of it being the generous HDB resale grants you can qualify for.
In 2019, HDB raised the income ceiling for the CPF Family Grant from S$12,000 to S$14,000 and launched the new Enhanced Housing Grant (EHG). This enables more resale buyers to qualify for housing grants and get a higher maximum grant amount of up to S$160,000.
These changes could mean that HDB resale flats may turn out to be cheaper than a Build-to-Order (BTO) flat after all, even though BTO flats are sold by HDB at a discount. After all, the Family Grant and Proximity Housing Grant are not applicable for BTO flats.
Plus, the key perks of buying a resale flat is an unlimited choice of locations and the fact that resale flats are already completed and ready for moving in. Resale flats also typically has well-developed amenities, such as schools and eateries, surrounding it.
Now, it’s time to know your HDB resale grants. This article will cover:
- Types of HDB resale grants
- For first-timer applicants, including couples/families, singles, and newly married singles with an existing flat
- For second-timer applicants
- How the resale grants work (the application process etc.)
- How to find your ideal resale flat
And we’ve created a chart to help you determine the grant amount you’ll get as well, if you’re a first-timer. Scroll down to see it.
Types of HDB Resale Grants
Get ready, it’s quite a long list. (There’s a handy infographic below, too.)
FOR FIRST-TIMER APPLICANTS
To be considered a first-timer applicant, you must:
- not be the owner of a HDB flat, Executive Condominium (EC) unit, Design, Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS) flat bought from a developer
- not have sold a HDB flat, EC, DBSS flat
- not have received any CPF Housing Grants for a HDB resale flat
- not received other forms of housing subsidy, e.g. benefitted under the Selective En bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS), HUDC estate privatisation
For Couples/Families
Family Grant (FG)
How much:
- S$50,000 if buying a two- to four-room HDB resale flat
- S$40,000 if buying a five-room or larger HDB resale flat
Income ceiling:
To qualify for the Family Grant, the buyers’ household income must not exceed S$14,000. The exception is when applying to live with extended families; for this, the income ceiling is S$21,000. The higher grant amount is to encourage older couples or working adults to live with their extended families–including siblings and parents.
Note: The income ceiling for this and other grants is calculated by taking the monthly average of your total household income for the past 12 months.
Who can qualify for the Family Grant:
- Married/engaged couples or families who are first-timer applicants buying an HDB resale flat, and do not exceed the income ceiling
If one party is a Singapore Permanent Resident (SPR), they will receive S$10,000 less (i.e. S$40,000 for two- to four-room; S$30,000 for five-room or larger)
Additional criteria:
- Remaining lease of flat must be 20 years or more
Enhanced CPF Housing Grant (EHG)
How much:
- A maximum of S$80,000
Income ceiling:
To qualify for the Enhanced Housing Grant (EHG), the buyers’ household income must not exceed S$9,000. This is also a tiered grant, meaning that the lower your income, the higher the EHG amount you may be eligible for.
(To know how much in EHG you can get for a specific household income, see our infographic below.)
You can qualify for the EHG if you meet all of the following criteria:
- You are already receiving the Family Grant but wish to receive additional grants, and do not exceed the EHG income ceiling
- At least one of the applicants must have worked continuously for the 12 months prior to the flat application and still be working at the point of the flat application
Additional criteria:
- Remaining lease of flat must be 20 years or more.
- The flat must have sufficient lease to cover the youngest buyer and spouse/fiancé(e) to the age of 95. Otherwise, the EHG will be pro-rated.
Proximity Housing Grant (PHG)
How much:
- S$20,000 if living near your parent’s/children’s home (within 4km)
- S$30,000 if living with your parents/children in the same resale flat
Income ceiling:
Good news, the PHG has no income ceiling restrictions!
Additional criteria:
- Applicants for this grant must not have previously received the PHG
- Read more about the PHG in this article
Here’s the breakdown for HDB resale grants in a handy infographic:
You can use the infographic to find out, at a glance, how much in HDB resale grants you may be eligible for. Here’s an example:
Let’s say you and your spouse are first-time applicants, and would like to buy a 5-room HDB resale flat near your parent’s home. With one child and a baby on the way, living near your parents will give you a peace of mind. You will receive:
- S$20,000 in PHG, as you are living within 4km of your parent’s but not with them.
You are earning S$5,000/month, and your spouse is earning S$3,500/month. The average gross monthly household income is S$8,500. This means:
- You have met the income ceiling and are therefore eligible for the Family Grant. As you are purchasing a 5-room flat, you will receive S$40,000 in Family Grants.
- You have also met the income ceiling and are eligible for the EHG. According to the S$8,500 household income, you will receive S$10,000 in EHG Grants.
In this scenario, you’re eligible for a total of S$70,000 in HDB resale grants. Not bad!
[Psst, there’s more about BTO/resale grants for couples in this article, which includes a flowchart to help you see what grants you may be eligible for.]
For Singles
First of all, you need to be aged 35 and above to buy a HDB flat as a single.
Singles Grant
How much:
- S$25,000 if buying a two- to four-room HDB resale flat
- S$20,000 if buying a five-room or larger HDB resale flat*
*Singles applying under the Single Singapore Citizen Scheme will not qualify for the Singles Grant if the flat size exceeds a five-room flat (e.g. an executive flat)
Income ceiling:
To qualify for the Singles Grant, your average household income for the past 12 months must not exceed S$7,000 if you’re buying under the Single Singapore Citizen Scheme (or S$14,000 if buying under other schemes such as Joint Singles Scheme).
Additional criteria:
- Remaining lease of flat must be 20 years or more
- Here are HDB’s full terms and conditions for the Singles Grant
Enhanced CPF Housing Grant (EHG) for Singles
How much:
- A maximum of S$40,000
Income ceiling:
To qualify for the Enhanced Housing Grant (EHG) for Singles, the buyer’s household income must not exceed S$4,500. This is also a tiered grant; the lower your income, the higher the EHG amount you may be eligible for.
You can qualify for the EHG for Singles if you meet all of the following criteria:
- You are already receiving the Singles Grant but wish to receive additional grants, and do not exceed the EHG for Singles income ceiling
- You must have worked continuously for the 12 months prior to the flat application and still be working at the point of the flat application
Additional criteria:
- Remaining lease of flat must be 20 years or more.
- The flat must have sufficient lease to cover you, the sole owner, to the age of 95. Otherwise, the EHG will be pro-rated.
Proximity Housing Grant (PHG)
How much:
- S$10,000 if living near your parent’s/children’s home (within 4km)
- S$15,000 if living with your parent’s/children in the same resale flat
Income ceiling:
Good news, the PHG has no income ceiling restrictions!
Additional criteria:
- Applicants for this grant must not have previously received the PHG
- Read more about the PHG in this article
For newly married couples
Previously received a grant as a single but got married? HDB lets you top up your grant!
Top-Up Grant
How much:
- The amount of the Family Grant amount you are eligible for currently, minus the Singles Grant amount you had previously received
Income ceiling:
The combined income of the household must not be more than S$14,000 a month, based on the average income for the past 12 months*.
*Exception: For Singapore Citizen/Singapore Permanent Resident (SC/SPR) households with the SPR spouse now obtaining Singapore Citizenship status, they are eligible for a Citizen Top-Up Grant of S$10,000 with no maximum household income restrictions, although they are subject to other criteria.
You can qualify for the Top-Up Grant if you meet the following criteria:
- You have previously received a Singles Grant to buy a resale or bought a 2-room BTO flat under the Single Singapore Citizen Scheme or Joint Singles Scheme
- You have previously received a Singles Grant to buy a resale flat or bought a 2-room BTO flat under the Non-Citizen Spouse Scheme, and your spouse or child is now an SC or SPR
- Here are HDB’s full terms and conditions for the Top-Up Grant
FOR SECOND-TIMER APPLICANTS
Yes, there are grants for you too.
Step-Up CPF Housing Grant
How much:
- S$15,000 grant based on your current and future flat types.
Income ceiling:
The combined income of the household must not be more than S$7,000 a month, based on the average income for the past 12 months.
For who?
- Only those currently living in public rental flats OR in a 2-room subsidised flats in a non-mature estate are eligible
Here are the full terms and conditions.
Half-Housing Grant
How much:
- S$25,000 if buying a two- to four-room HDB resale flat
- S$20,000 if buying a five-room or larger HDB resale flat
Income ceiling:
The combined income of the household must not be more than S$14,000 a month, based on the average income for the past 12 months.
For who?
- For couples where one spouse/fiancé/fiancee is a second-timer
This is basically half the amount of the Family Grant. It’s reserved for first-time applicants whose spouse/fiancé/fiancee has previously received a housing subsidy. Like the Family Grant, the average monthly income should not exceed S$14,000 or, for those applying to live with extended families, S$21,000.
Here are the full terms and conditions.
The maximum amount of HDB resale grants you can get is $160,000.
With the three main grants – Family Grant, EHG and PHG – available for resale flats, you may be eligible to receive a total of S$160,000. Pretty impressive, huh?
In comparison, the typical BTO applicants will be eligible for a total maximum of S$80,000 in grants, as they may only be eligible for the EHG. BTO applicants do not qualify for the Family Grant or the Proximity Housing Grant.
And if you are wondering why the large gap, it is because resale flats are sold at market value. On the other hand, BTO flats are sold by HDB at a discounted amount. The discount is mainly due to the additional waiting time involved for a BTO flat to be built.
For certain locations and towns, if you factor in the higher HDB grants available for a resale flat, the cost of buying a HDB resale flat can be even lower than a BTO flat. (Of course, the catch is that HDB resale flats have a lower remaining lease, whereas BTOs come with a fresh 99-year lease.)
How do HDB Resale Grants work?
Submitting the applications for HDB resale grants come after you’ve found a flat you like. Once you and the sellers have agreed on the asking price, and have submitted the Option to Purchase, you will then need to submit a resale application via the HDB Resale Portal (your agent may assist you).
On your resale application, you’ll be asked to specify which CPF Housing Grants you are applying for and to submit supporting income documents.
Once approved, housing grants are disbursed to your CPF Ordinary Account (CPF-OA) to pay for your HDB resale flat upfront. The grant amount is first used to cover any outstanding downpayment of the flat, before being used to reduce the amount you need to loan.
But here’s the catch. When you eventually sell the flat you received these grants for, you will need to return them, as well as a 2.5% per annum interest for every year you’ve had your flat.
To find out more about accrued interest, read this article: How your HDB sale proceeds might get “taken” by CPF
Next step, find your ideal HDB resale flat
Now that you’re all caught up with HDB resale grants, it’s time to start looking for a home. Property portal 99.co has a number of search filters to help you with your search:
- Travel Time lets you narrow down listings by travel time. If you hate commuting or want to find the sweet spot in between up to five locations, use this to find your ideal resale flat.
- Radius Filter lets you search for listings within 4km of an address. This is helpful if you want to qualify for the Proximity Housing Grant (PHG).
- School Filter lets you see listings with 1km of any primary school in Singapore.
- Video Viewing lets you see listings that are available for online viewings. You can view potential flats without having to leave the house—a must-have for home-searching during the Covid-19 pandemic!
Have a question on HDB Resale Grants? Ask us in the comments below!
If you found this article useful, 99.co recommends HDB Open Booking of Flats: Is it better and cheaper than resale? and If you’re choosing between a resale HDB and a condo, read this
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