Enter your flat's lease details to see how time erodes value, financing, and CPF eligibility.
Lease Overview
Value Projection Over Time
Financing & CPF Restrictions
When Should You Sell?
Guide
Understanding HDB Lease Decay in Singapore
What Is a 99-Year Lease?
All HDB flats in Singapore are sold on 99-year leases from the Singapore government. When the lease expires, the land and flat revert to the state. Unlike freehold property, an HDB flat is a depreciating asset — its value is intrinsically tied to the remaining lease.
How Does Lease Decay Affect Value?
Lease decay is not linear. Flats with more than 70 years remaining tend to hold their value well because buyers face no financing or CPF restrictions. The decline accelerates once the remaining lease drops below 60 years, as banks restrict loan tenures and CPF usage becomes limited. Below 40 years, the buyer pool shrinks dramatically — most buyers cannot get a mortgage, and CPF cannot be used. This creates a compounding effect: fewer eligible buyers means lower demand, which drives prices down further.
CPF Usage Rules and Remaining Lease
To use CPF for an HDB purchase, the remaining lease must cover the youngest buyer until at least age 95. For example, a 35-year-old buyer needs at least 60 years remaining on the lease. If the remaining lease is shorter, CPF usage is pro-rated. Below 20 years remaining, CPF cannot be used at all.
What Is SERS?
The Selective En Bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS) is a government programme where HDB acquires older flats for redevelopment. Selected residents receive compensation and priority to purchase new replacement flats nearby. However, only about 4% of HDB flats have been selected for SERS since the programme started in 1995 — so it should not be relied upon as an exit strategy.
What Happens When the Lease Expires?
When the 99-year lease expires, the flat reverts to HDB and the land returns to the state. Owners receive no compensation. The flat essentially becomes worthless as the lease approaches zero. This is why planning your exit well before the lease runs down is critical — waiting too long means selling into a market with almost no buyers.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
The most noticeable decline begins around 60 years remaining. Above 70 years, values hold relatively well. Between 50-60 years, financing restrictions start to bite and the buyer pool shrinks. Below 40 years, the decline accelerates sharply as most buyers cannot get bank loans and CPF usage is heavily restricted or unavailable.
Yes, but it becomes very difficult. Buyers must pay almost entirely in cash since banks generally will not provide loans for flats with less than 30 years remaining. CPF usage is also severely restricted. Your buyer pool is essentially limited to cash buyers — often investors or older buyers looking for a short-term home — and prices reflect this limited demand.
SERS selection is not guaranteed. Only about 4% of HDB blocks have been selected since 1995. While SERS offers attractive compensation (typically a new flat at subsidised prices), banking on it is risky. A practical approach is to plan as if SERS will not happen — sell while your flat still has enough lease for buyers to obtain financing. If SERS is announced, treat it as a bonus.
If you are selling an older flat to upgrade, lease decay directly impacts your sale proceeds and therefore your upgrade budget. A flat bought in 1990 has roughly 63 years remaining in 2026 — still within the financing window but approaching the zone where buyer hesitation increases. Use our upgrade planner to see how your sale proceeds translate into condo buying power. Selling sooner (while remaining lease is above 60 years) generally yields better proceeds.
When the 99-year lease expires, the flat reverts to HDB and the land returns to the state. Owners receive no compensation. The flat is essentially worthless at lease expiry. This is why planning your exit well before the lease runs down is critical — check your flat's current market value with our HDB valuation tool.
CPF usage is pro-rated when the remaining lease doesn't cover the youngest buyer to age 95. For example, a 30-year-old buyer needs at least 65 years remaining for full CPF usage. Below 20 years remaining, CPF cannot be used at all.
The sharpest decline begins around 40-50 years remaining. Above 60 years, values hold relatively well because full financing is available. Below 40 years, most banks won't lend and CPF is restricted — this dramatically shrinks the buyer pool and accelerates price drops.
No. SERS (Selective En Bloc Redevelopment Scheme) offers replacement flats and compensation. VERS (Voluntary Early Redevelopment Scheme) was announced in 2018 but no flats have been selected yet. VERS is meant for flats with 50+ years remaining. Neither should be relied upon as an exit strategy.
Thinking of selling and upgrading?
Plan your next move — see how your HDB sale proceeds translate into upgrade budget, or check what today's market values look like.