HOUSING & DEVELOPMENT BOARD
URBAN REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY

Dear KEO / Estate Agencies

Extension of Temporary Relaxation of Occupancy Cap for Rental of HDB Flats and Private Residential Properties

The Housing & Development Board (HDB) and the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) announced on 16 January 2026 that the temporary relaxation in the occupancy cap for the rental of larger HDB flats and private residential properties will be extended for another two years, until 31 December 2028. This extension remains a temporary measure which seeks to meet sustained rental demand.

2 Amid a sharp increase in residential rents and a robust rental demand in 2024, the rental occupancy cap was first relaxed on 22 January 2024 to allow up to eight unrelated persons (up from the previous cap of six) to rent the following types of residential properties:

        a) Larger private residential properties of at least 90sqm
        b) 4-Room and larger HDB flats
        c) Living quarters of HDB commercial properties (where the living quarters are equivalent to or larger than a 4-room flat)

3 Over the last few years, the Government has ramped up the supply of public and private housing to meet housing demand. While the increase in housing supply has helped to alleviate the tightness in the rental market and moderate the rental growth, overall rental demand remains strong. HDB and URA will continue to monitor the situation in the rental market closely and review the need to extend the relaxation of the occupancy cap beyond 2028.

4 With the extension, property owners can apply to HDB (via HDB’s e-services or GoBusiness Portal) or URA* (via URA’s e-services) to include up to a total of eight unrelated persons per accommodation if the rental end date is on or before 31 December 2028.

5 You may find further details of this extension in the attached HDB-URA joint press release. More information on HDB’s policies on renting out a flat or bedroom can be found on the HDB InfoWEB (www.hdb.gov.sg), while information on renting out private residential properties can be found on URA’s website (www.ura.gov.sg).

6 We would appreciate it if you could inform your salespersons of this update. Thank you.

Yours sincerely,

Lim Lea Lea
Director (Lease Administration and Management)
Housing Management Group
Housing & Development Board

Martin Tan
Director (Development Control, Enforcement)
Development Control Group
Urban Redevelopment Authority

*Owners of all private residential properties can continue to rent out their properties to up to six unrelated persons without the need for registration with URA.