The Singapore government has just issued several new measures affecting Executive Condominiums. Here we review the new measures, analyse why the government is doing this, talk about the reactions and impact to prices and what it means for you, whether you are a prospective buyer or a current owner.
What are Executive Condominiums
Executive Condominiums (ECs) in Singapore are a hybrid form of housing, bridging public and private property. Built by private developers but governed by HDB rules, they offer condo-style facilities (pools, gyms, security) to middle-class Singaporeans at a lower cost than fully private condos.
Introduced in 1995, the EC was designed to solve a very specific problem: the “Sandwich Class.”
The Intent was to cater to income families who earned too much to qualify for a new HDB flat (exceeding the income ceiling) but didn’t earn quite enough to comfortably afford a private condominium.
Back in the 1990s, property prices were soaring and the government wanted to provide a pathway for Singaporeans to enjoy a “condominium lifestyle” at a subsidized entry price. ECs are essentially private developments built on government-subsidized land. This allows them to be sold at roughly 20–30% less than comparable private condos.
Therefore, without ECs, the housing market would have a gap this group of families would feel stuck in the resale HDB market, unable to upgrade or fulfill their aspirations of private ownership. This was viewed as a potential social friction.
The cost of the EC can be made lower as the government sells the land at a cheaper price to private developers as compared to private condominiums (PC). Latest land sales for ECs top $800 psf ppr while land sales for PCs go for at least $1200 for the equivalent location.
In recent years, EC launches have all sold extremely well in Singapore.
What are the 4 new measures
These 4 new measures will apply to government land sale sites with tender closing dates from 8 May 2026.
1) Minimum Occupation Period (MOP) raised from 5 to 10 yrs
Buyers of new ECs will need to fulfil a MOP of ten years instead of five years before they can rent out their whole unit, purchase another home or sell their EC unit to Singapore citizens and permanent residents.
This is a significant impact as the unit cannot be sold or even rented out as a whole unit, reducing flexibility.
2) Full Privatisation now 15 years instead of 10 years
New ECs will also become fully privatised after 15 years, up from the current 10 years. This means that after the 15th year, EC homeowners can sell their unit to any buyer, including foreigners and corporate entities.
This is largely irrelevant now as the additional buyer stamp duty on foreigners buying any residential property is at 60% effective April 2023.
3) Removal of Deferred Payment Scheme (DPS)
Developers will no longer be able to offer a DPS, which allows buyers to pay 20% of the purchase price upfront and the remaining 80% when the project obtains its Temporary Occupation Permit.
Buyers who opt for this scheme generally incur a 3% premium over the EC unit purchase price.
The DPS grants homeowners more time before they make the remaining payment to the developer, typically via a Bank loan.
The key aspect of the DPS is that buyers do not have to secure a home loan (may require an In Principle Approval but the loan is not required to be disbursed) at the point of purchase. This is mainly beneficial for existing home owners who already have an existing mortgage as they would not be able to fully draw down on their second bank loan due to the mortgage servicing limits. They can wait until TOP to secure a home loan after they sell their current home.
In our opinion, this is the most significant measure of the day as developers will have issues selling bigger units such as 4 and 5 bedders. This is because many of the buyers of such bigger units are second timers opt to be on the DPS. They would sell their existing home just before the EC receives its Temporary Occupation Permit (TOP).
4) Increased quota for first-timer families
Currently, developers must reserve 70% of EC units for first-timer families during the first month from the project’s launch date.
This quota will be increased to 90%, and the priority period will be extended to two years.
Currently, most of the remaining EC units are sold very quickly to second timers once the priority period is over.
This means that ECs will be reserved for first timers from now on and there will be very few units leftover for second timers to buy an EC by the time the priority period is over.
The difference between a second timer and a first timer is that the second timer is an existing HDB owner who has benefited from HDB subsidies and have likely made financial gains from the first property. This means the second timer has stronger financial power.
The first timer with no prior property gains also has to fork out a 25% down payment, and with median EC prices hitting more than $1700 psf or $1.4m for the unit, coupled with existing MSR limits, means that the average first timer has to fork out around $400k in down payment (and another $30k or so for stamp duties). This is a tough endeavour for the first timer whose combined income has been less than $16,000 per month.
Why the measures?
In short, EC prices have been rising. Rules have already tightened around HDB BTOs and the rising EC prices of late have justified these measures.
Many home buyers who have liquidity are buying a new EC in spite of the loan restrictions as this is a cost-effective route to achieving condo ownership.
Now, potential new buyers may have some reprieve as the latest changes to the EC scheme
Minister for National Development Chee Hong Tat said the changes to the EC scheme will further support first-time home buyers and focus ECs on meeting occupation needs for homeowners.
He noted that the proportion of first-time EC buyers has decreased, relative to second-timers who have larger housing budgets from the sale proceeds of their first home.
In 2020, about half of EC buyers were first-timers. This dropped to between 30% and 40% in 2024 and 2025.
Mr Chee also said that he also hopes this will result in developers reducing their bids and the prices for their ECs.
Reactions from the ground
Obviously people love ECs due to the value it provides coupled with a relatively reasonable MOP of 5 years, which is the same as a HDB BTO. A MOP of 5 years is fine for families looking for a home and not for investment. In fact, a MOP of 10 years is also somewhat reasonable as a home, however many families have been conditioned to be able to flip and sell their property after 5 years and an additional 5 years holding period may come across as limiting their moves, whether due to necessity and requirements or purely out of profit.
First-Time Buyers are generally welcoming the increased quota (90%) for them, viewing it as a better chance to secure a unit as second-time buyers have to now wait longer. Obviously the second time buyers are less pleased, as it is much harder for them to purchase an EC now, due to the lowered quota and the removal of the DPS which also limits the affordability.
Perhaps also surprisingly to some, there is still no increase to the income ceiling from the existing $16,000 which has been in place since 2019. Before this, the income ceiling was refreshed every 5 or so years.
Discussions often highlight that while ECs are meant for middle-income families, prices have risen too fast, making them too expensive as a public housing. The 30% Mortgage Servicing Ratio (MSR) restriction combined with high prices means a high cash outlay for many.
Developers will also likely be much more careful about their future bids which would mean that income from EC land sales for the government will also decline.
Closing statements
Taking reference from HDB Prime BTO flats, the new flats were not getting cheaper as priced with additional subsidies.
No one expects a sharp fall in new EC prices. The likely result is a stemming of the price appreciation rather than causing a price decline.
These new measures will apply to government land sale sites with tender closing dates from 8 May 2026. As ECs can only be launched 15 months after the land sale date, this means that we will only see ECs sales affected by this measure after August 2027. In the mean time, projects who are pending launches will probably see elevated prices and robust sales.
This seems like a gentle measure, which is a trademark of the Singapore government when it comes to property prices. Our take, from a longer term policy standpoint, is that we think the EC policy should be completely removed — why should the government subsidise private housing by putting on public restrictions?
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