With BTO application rates increasing over the years, buying an HDB resale flat in 2022 is a surefire way to fast-track your journey to becoming a homeowner.
However, HDB prices have been hovering at an all-time high – prices of resale flats were up for the 20th straight month in February and steadily climbing for the eighth consecutive quarter.
When compared with February 2021, prices were up by 12%, according to flash data from 99.co and SRX.
Should you buy an HDB resale or BTO flat in 2022?
There are many pros to buying a resale flat vs a BTO.
One huge advantage is the fact that you can collect your keys and move in or start your renovation journey almost immediately, instead of waiting out the three to five years for a BTO flat to finish construction.
You also get to choose from all estates instead of being limited to the latest BTO project launches. (Also, not to mention skipping the stressful balloting process entirely).
Resale flats also give you the option of viewing and shortlisting specific units. You can have a better idea of who your neighbours are and how the noise levels change throughout the day.
HDB resale flats in 2022: How much does it cost?
Being the most popular flat type amongst Singaporean HDB dwellers, we’ll be looking mainly at the quintessential 4-room unit.
Here are the HDB resale flat prices for 4-room units in Q1 2022.
| 4-room HDB resale flat price 2022 (median) | ||
| Ang Mo Kio — S$475,000 | Clementi — S$703,000 | Punggol — S$520,000 |
| Bedok — S$450,000 | Geylang — S$530,000 | Queenstown — S$820,000 |
| Bedok — S$450,000 | Hougang — S$487,000 | Sembawang — S$466,500 |
| Bukit Batok — S$480,000 | Jurong East — S$450,000 | Sengkang — S$510,000 |
| Bukit Merah — S$750,000 | Jurong West — S$440,000 | Serangoon — S$492,500 |
| Bukit Panjang — S$455,000 | Kallang/Whampoa — S$755,000 | Tampines — S$498,000 |
| Bukit Timah — N/A | Lim Chu Kang/Tengah — N/A | Toa Payoh — S$622,500 |
| Central Area — S$811,000 | Marine Parade — N/A | Woodlands — S$450,000 |
| Choa Chu Kang — S$470,000 | Pasir Ris — S$490,000 | Yishun — S$450,000 |
Source: HDB
Tools: HDB resale price index portal
One tool that’ll come in handy when shopping for resale flats is the HDB resale price index portal.
It lets you check the exact price of HDB resale flat prices in 2022 and gives you specific results about the latest transacted flats in all estates within the past two years, with information such as the block, floor area and remaining lease.
Grants: HDB resale vs BTO
More grants are available to couples buying a resale flat than buying a BTO, depending on eligibility.
| HDB resale flat grant amount | HDB BTO flat grant amount | |
| Enhanced CPF Housing Grant (EHG) for first-timer applicants | Up to S$80,000 | Up to S$80,000 |
| Step-Up CPF Housing Grant for second-timer applicants | N/A | S$15,000 for eligible applicants |
| Family Grant (FG) | Up to S$50,000 | N/A |
| Proximity Housing Grant (PHG) | Up to S$30,000 | N/A |
| Singles Grant | Up to S$25,000* | Up to S$40,000 |
| *Aside from the Singles Grant, singles can get up to $40,000 for the EHG and up to $15,000 for the Proximity Housing Grant. | ||
If you manage to max out all the grants available to you, you might be able to snag a resale flat at a pretty good price.
Not sure whether to get a resale flat or BTO as a first-timer? Read this article.
HDB flat prices: May 2022 BTO
When we look at the prices of 4-room flats in the latest May 2022 HDB BTO launch, we can immediately see that they’re more affordable than 4-room resale flats.
| May 2022 HDB BTO launch (4-room) | Median resale flat price (excluding grants) | |
| Town | Price (excluding grants) | Town |
| Bukit Merah (mature) – Bukit Merah Ridge | S$540,000 – S$737,000 | Bukit Merah — S$750,000 |
| Queenstown (mature) – Ghim Moh Ascent | S$511,000 – S$691,000 | Queenstown — S$820,000 |
| Toa Payoh (mature) – Kim Keat Heights | S$420,000 – S$559,000 | Toa Payoh — S$622,500 |
| Yishun (non-mature) – Yishun Beacon | S$328,000 – S$418,000 | Yishun — S$450,000 |
| Jurong West (non-mature) – Lakeside View | S$320,000 – S$393,000 | Jurong West — S$440,000 |
For example, in the mature estate of Queenstown, the price of Ghim Moh Ascent starts at S$511,000. In contrast, the median price of a 4-room resale flat in Queenstown is S$820,000. That’s a whopping 60.4% increase!
In the non-mature estate of Yishun, the price of a 4-room BTO versus that of a resale is much lower, at 37.2%.
Flats in mature estates are usually much pricier than their non-mature counterparts. This is due to the well-developed infrastructure and amenities such as schools, supermarkets and malls that have sprung up over the years to serve its residents.
Resale HDB 2022: Price appreciation
Over the last decade, the price appreciation for flats of all types has been pretty much the same in mature and non-mature estates.
The average price psf gap widened between mature and non-mature estates, jumping drastically from a 1.6% gap in 2017 to a 52.4% gap in 2022.
Are mature estates better? Read this article to find out.
| S$/PSF | ||||||
| Estate | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 |
| Mature estates | S$489 | S$485 | S$474 | S$482 | S$536 | S$570 |
| Non-mature estates | S$481 | S$449 | S$398 | S$377 | S$369 | S$374 |
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For 4-room flats, the units in mature estates have had a 6.6% increase over the past decade, compared to the same flat type in non-mature estates.
Over the past five years, the average price psf price gap has been slowly closing, with a 36.8% gap in 2017 to a 25.2% gap in 2022.
| S$/PSF | ||||||
| Estate | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 |
| Mature estates | S$513 | S$518 | S$504 | S$514 | S$573 | S$605 |
| Non-mature estates | S$375 | S$369 | S$377 | S$399 | S$451 | S$483 |
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However, the prices don’t account for the plethora of grants available to resale flat buyers, so do factor in your eligibility when deciding whether to buy a resale or BTO flat.
Thinking of buying a HDB resale flat in 2022? Let us know in the comments section below or on our Facebook post.
If you found this article helpful, check out HDB resale grants: How much can you get? and HDB Open Booking of Flats: Is it better and cheaper than resale?
The post How much should you pay for a resale HDB flat in 2022? appeared first on 99.co.
