This press release provides information on the upcoming flat supply and the HDB resale and rental markets in 3rd Quarter 2023.

Upcoming Flat Supply in December 2023

2 HDB has launched about 16,700 flats till date and remains on track to launch up to 23,000 flats in 2023. In December 2023, HDB will offer about 6,000 Build-To-Order (BTO) flats in towns/estates such as Bukit Panjang, Jurong West, Woodlands, Bedok, Bishan, Bukit Merah and Queenstown. More details on the launch numbers and project details will be provided closer to the launch date. HDB will consolidate available SBF supply and conduct the next SBF exercise in 2024. Details on the next SBF exercise will be released when ready. 

3 Home seekers need a valid HDB Flat Eligibility (HFE) letter to apply for a flat in the sales launches.  Those who wish to apply for a flat in the upcoming BTO exercise in December 2023 are advised to apply for an HFE letter by 11 November 2023. It takes about a month to process an HFE letter application after HDB receives all the required documents, and processing may take longer during peak periods like a BTO sales launch. 

HDB Resale Market 

4 We are seeing some moderation in the rate of increase in resale prices since the Government’s implementation of a strong pipeline of supply, as well as the cooling measures to promote a stable and sustainable property market. These include the measures to moderate demand in the HDB resale market and encourage prudent borrowing, such as a wait-out period of 15 months before private property owners¹ are allowed to purchase a non-subsidised HDB resale flat, as well as the lowering of the Loan-to-Value (LTV) limit for HDB housing loans from 90% to 85%, and further to 80%. 

5 HDB’s Resale Price Index (RPI) for 3rd Quarter 2023 is 178.5, an increase of 1.3% over that in 2nd Quarter 2023 (see Annex A). This is lower than the 1.5% growth in 2nd Quarter 2023 and lower than the average quarterly growth of 2.5% in 2022.

6 Resale transactions for 3rd Quarter 2023 rose by 2.8%, from 6,514 cases in 2nd Quarter 2023 to 6,695 cases (see Annex B). Compared to 3rd Quarter 2022, resale transactions in 3rd Quarter 2023 were 11.3% lower. In fact, last quarter’s resale volume is the lowest 3rd Quarter volume compared to the last three years since 2020.

7 The median resale prices in the various towns in 3rd Quarter 2023 are tabulated in Annex C. 

HDB Rental Market 

8 The median rents in the various towns in 3rd Quarter 2023 are tabulated in Annex D. 

9 The number of approved applications to rent out HDB flats rose slightly by 0.1% from 9,842 cases in 2nd Quarter 2023 to 9,852 cases in 3rd Quarter 2023 (see Annex E). Compared to that in 3rd Quarter 2022, the number of approved applications in 3rd Quarter 2023 was 20.3% higher. As at the end of 3rd Quarter 2023, there were 57,797 HDB flats rented out, an increase of 1.7% over the previous quarter (56,858 units).

¹ Except for senior aged 55 and above (and their spouses) who are moving from their private property to a 4-room or smaller resale flat.