13 Hidden Costs when Buying or Selling HDB Flat in Singapore

Buying or Selling HDB Flat in Singapore - 13 Costs You Should Be Aware of Before You Start

We all know you'll need to prepare a 2% fee to pay your agents when selling, and a 1% fee to your agents when purchasing a flat.

But there are so many fees involved which are not very well documented - from legal fees, an extension of stay fees, and even account closures pertaining to the property.

When you're in the process of selling or buying an HDB flat in Singapore, there are so many hidden fees involved that aren't well documented. As consumers, you would like to know all these necessary fees. No matter how small it is.

Administrative Cost - First, the cost starts when a buyer buys your unit and after you have received all deposits. We need to register your transaction with HDB so they can start processing your documents. This registration fee will be S$80.

On top of this, you will also have to pay for legal fees for the paperwork done such as name transfers, discharge of mortgage, title search, and more. Basically these are all the 20-30 pages of documents that you sign on completion day. Usually, if you're using an HDB loan or fully paying off a purchase, you can engage HDB solicitors for 300 to 500 payable in cash. And if you're using a bank loan you have to engage a law firm that has been appointed in the bank's panel of approved lawyers, expect to pay around 2000 to 3000 Dollars depending on the flat type and the loan amount you'll need to pay for this fee for both your selling and buying.

So if you're selling and buying a property at the same time you'll have to pay these legal fees twice for sellers. HDB will require you to pay up your property tax till the end of the calendar year. That means if you happen to complete your sales in January you will have to pay up till December. Don't worry the buyer will be required to refund you this amount on the completion day. So you're not going to overpay your property tax.

You also have to close your town council account in person, which means you need to clear and pay up your service and conservancy charges till the last day you are the owners of the flat. Whatever amount you owe the town council is prepared to clear the entire amount otherwise you won't be able to complete the sales.

Since you're talking about closing accounts don't forget to close your utilities account especially with many owners tied up with third-party utility providers. Do check on how to close your accounts in advance.

When you get an extension of stay from your buyers, HDB will charge the buyers an administrative fee of S$20 to officially register this extension. So don't forget to refund this fee to the buyers on the completion day.

Now don't forget the person working so hard to make your sales happen. The agency fees for selling would be a minimum of 2% plus GST and a 1% fee plus GST when you commit to purchase through a professional agent. This is a huge fee so make sure you engage a qualified agent, who will protect and fight for you whenever any complication arises throughout the entire sales process. And someone who plans your selling and purchase of your property like it's their own.

When you have decided on a unit you have to place a deposit. This deposit ranges from S$1 to S$1000. So that no one else can offer the unit. This deposit is called an option fee. Once the seller accepts the option fee seller cannot back up from the transaction.

Watch the full video properly so that you don’t miss any single point.

Salwa Dean
HeroHomes
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