Seeing as it’s the season of giving, it’s no wonder HDB has been very kind to announce that come 2020, there will be an additional 3,000 BTO flats up for grabs. That means there’s a higher chance that you, and the 26,369 unsuccessful applicants will finally be able to chope their first home.
Coupled with the increased housing subsidies in place (up to $80k in grants) and the increased income ceiling for both HDBs and Executive Condominiums ($2k increase for both housing options), there’s no better time than 2020 to secure your own BTO unit. So, if you want to ensure your success, you better be 100% sure of what you’re doing.
That’s what we at SRX are here for – to help you along in your house hunting journey, every step of the way.
Can even apply BTO?
Imagine getting all excited having asked your other half ‘BTO ai mai?’, only to realise, you can’t even apply for the BTO of your dreams? So, before you even jump the gun and propose in the most Singaporean fashion, do your prior research to find out about the various requirements set in place.
How to chope a BTO?
If only it was as easy as using a packet of tissue paper. It’s not going to be easy to strike gold and chope a BTO unit in your ideal location on the first attempt. But if you don’t succeed, try and try again #neversaydie.
Looking at HDB’s BTO page under Upcoming Sales Launch, there are 2 launches lined up at the moment in 2020, with the February 2020 launch featuring 1,400 units in Sembawang, and 1,620 units in Toa Payoh. The May 2020 launch will feature 570 units in Choa Chu Kang, 1,040 units in Tengah, 1,070 units in Pasir Ris and 1,070 units in Tampines.
Once you know which area you’d like to live at along with the size of the unit you’re after, it’s time to ballot for your dream unit. Then it’s all about the waiting game. Pray to the highest heavens every morning, afternoon and night for three weeks and at the end of that waiting time, hope you get a queue number! You will still need to pray hard if you have a very high queue number though as there will be more queue numbers than units so you may need to go through the whole process again!
Eh not enough money how to buy?
Despite the grants offered, a BTO unit (or any house in Singapore) will set you back quite a bit cost-wise. But fret not, there are always way to cover the cost of your home (other than begging your parents for cash). The other more common (and realistic) option is to get a loan to finance your dream home. With this option, you’ll have to decide whether to go with a bank or HDB loan (you can refer to our article here for more information on this).
If you’re lucky enough and do get to choose a BTO unit of your choice, you will then need to fork out an option fee ranging from $500 to $2,000 (depending on the size of your chosen unit).
Then it’s the down payment, which is dependent on whether you picked a HDB or bank loan. For HDB loans, the down payment is 10% and this can be paid off with your CPF or housing grant (yay to no cash). However, if you took out a bank loan, down payment is 20%, of which 5% will need to be in cash, while the remaining 15% can be from your CPF or housing grant.
Unfortunately, that’s not all; you will still need to pay and pay. Now it’s stamp duties. Here you’ll need to fork out a percentage value based on the valuation of your unit – 1% for the first $180k, 2% for the next $180k and 3% for the remaining amount.
Now what?
Once all your payments and paperwork is in, you will just need to wait for a long long time to get your keys to your new place!
All you need to know about BTOs
Now that you know what you need to get your very own BTO unit, head on over to SRX’s HDB BTO Launches, where you can easily access information about BTOs such as details about upcoming BTO launches, its pricing forecast as well as estimated monthly cash payments above CPF payments. With all that information easily available to you on a single platform, you’ll have a much easier planning process to choose which BTO flat is best for you!
Source: editorial