HDB Resale Levy 2026
- The levy is a fixed amount set by your first subsidised home, not the one you are buying: $15,000 for a 2-room up to $55,000 for an Executive Condominium.
- It is charged only when you buy a second subsidised home — a flat from HDB, or an EC from a developer.
- An HDB resale flat on the open market carries no levy. Neither does private property. That is the whole of the honest answer to how to avoid it.
- Singles Grant recipients pay half the applicable amount.
- If your first flat was sold before 3 March 2006, a percentage schedule applies instead, and a deferred levy carries 5% per annum interest.
What the resale levy is
The resale levy is a charge HDB applies when a household takes a housing subsidy for a second time. HDB's own framing is that it "maintains a fair allocation of public housing subsidies between first-timers and second-timers by reducing the subsidy enjoyed for the second HDB flat or EC". It is not a tax on selling, and it is not related to the cash proceeds of your sale. It is the price of a second bite at a subsidised home.
You are in scope if you previously bought a new flat from HDB, a Design, Build and Sell Scheme flat, or an Executive Condominium unit from a developer, or if you received a CPF Housing Grant on a flat. Any one of those makes your flat a subsidised flat for this purpose.
When you pay it, and when you do not
The levy attaches to the home you are buying, not the one you sold. HDB names two situations that trigger it and three purchases that do not.
| You dispose of a subsidised flat and then buy… | Resale levy? |
|---|---|
| A second subsidised flat from HDB | Yes |
| An Executive Condominium unit from a developer | Yes |
| An HDB resale flat on the open market | No |
| Private residential property | No |
Source: HDB — Resale Levy, HDB's own page as archived, stamped Last Updated 31 March 2022. See the sources block at the foot of this page.
This table is the answer to the question people actually search for. There is no waiver to apply for, no hardship route and no way to negotiate the amount down once it applies. The only decision that changes what you pay is which kind of home you buy next — and buying a resale flat on the open market moves the levy to zero, at the cost of the grants and the pricing that come with a flat bought from HDB. Our BTO versus resale comparison works that trade-off through in full.
How much: first flat sold on or after 3 March 2006
For flats sold on or after 3 March 2006 the levy is a fixed dollar amount, graded by the type of the first subsidised home. HDB's stated reason for the fixed form is that it "gives greater certainty for financial planning".
| First subsidised housing type | Households | Singles Grant recipients |
|---|---|---|
| 2-room flat | $15,000 | $7,500 |
| 3-room flat | $30,000 | $15,000 |
| 4-room flat | $40,000 | $20,000 |
| 5-room flat | $45,000 | $22,500 |
| Executive flat | $50,000 | $25,000 |
| Executive Condominium | $55,000 | Not applicable |
Source: HDB — Resale Levy, verified 21 August 2026 against HDB's own page, which carries its Last Updated 31 March 2022 stamp.
Two rows are widely got wrong. The Executive Condominium row exists and is $55,000 — higher than any flat — and it has no singles column, because an EC buyer was never a Singles Grant recipient. And the amount is set by the flat you sold: selling a 3-room and buying a 5-room from HDB costs $30,000, not $45,000.
How much: first flat sold before 3 March 2006
Before 3 March 2006 the levy was a percentage rather than a fixed sum, and that older schedule still governs anyone whose first subsidised flat was sold before that date. The percentage is charged on the resale price of the flat you sold, or 90% of its market valuation, whichever was higher.
| First subsidised housing type | Households | Singles Grant recipients |
|---|---|---|
| 2-room, seller upgrading to a larger flat type | 10% | 5% |
| 2-room, otherwise | 15% | 7.5% |
| 3-room | 20% | 10% |
| 4-room | 22.5% | 11.25% |
| 5-room and Executive | 25% | 12.5% |
Source: HDB — Resale Levy, verified 21 August 2026. The 2-room upgrader rate is HDB's own footnote: it applies only to 2-room sellers who move to a larger flat type.
If you deferred the levy rather than paying it at the time, interest accrues at 5% per annum until you buy your next flat from HDB. One relief exists: if you and your spouse are both 55 or older, sold the first subsidised flat before 3 March 2006, and right-size to a new 3-room or smaller flat from the November 2015 sales launch onwards, the interest is waived and only the percentage levy is charged. That levy is still subject to a floor equal to the fixed amounts above — $15,000 for a 2-room through $50,000 for an Executive flat.
The half levy for Singles Grant recipients
HDB states the rule plainly: a Singles Grant recipient "only needs to pay half the resale levy amount when you subsequently form a family and buy a second subsidised flat". It applies to both schedules, which is why every row above carries a singles column. The halves are exact — $20,000 on a 4-room, not a rounded figure — and they follow the flat that was sold, exactly as the household amounts do.
How and when you pay
The amount is locked at the point you book your second subsidised flat, not when you eventually complete. It applies regardless of whether you held the first flat as joint tenants or tenants-in-common, and regardless of the size of your share.
| Order of events | How the levy is paid |
|---|---|
| First flat disposed of after taking possession of the second | Deducted from the sale proceeds of the first flat; any shortfall paid in cash |
| First flat disposed of before taking possession of the second | Paid in cash on taking possession of the second flat |
Source: HDB — Resale Levy, verified 21 August 2026.
The constraint that catches people is the financing one: HDB will not lend you the levy. Mortgage financing is never extended to a resale levy, so it has to come out of sale proceeds or cash. Plan it as cash you must have, not as part of the loan.
A worked example
Take a couple who bought a 4-room BTO flat in 2012, sold it in 2026 for $600,000, and are booking a 3-room flat from HDB to right-size.
| Item | Amount | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Resale levy | $40,000 | Set by the 4-room flat they sold, not the 3-room they are buying |
| If they had been a Singles Grant recipient | $20,000 | Half the household amount |
| If they bought a resale flat instead | $0 | No levy is payable on an open-market resale flat |
The levy is deducted from the $600,000 of sale proceeds if the first flat goes after they take possession of the new one, and is a cash payment if it goes before. Either way it is $40,000 that cannot sit inside the mortgage. Set against that, buying from HDB rather than on the open market may bring grants worth far more — see every HDB grant amount in 2026 before deciding the levy settles the question.
Frequently asked questions
How much is the HDB resale levy in 2026?
If your first subsidised flat was sold on or after 3 March 2006, the levy is a fixed amount set by that flat's type: $15,000 for a 2-room, $30,000 for a 3-room, $40,000 for a 4-room, $45,000 for a 5-room, $50,000 for an Executive flat and $55,000 if your first subsidised home was an Executive Condominium. Singles Grant recipients pay half.
How do I avoid paying the HDB resale levy?
By not buying a second subsidised home. The levy is charged only when you buy a flat from HDB or an Executive Condominium unit from a developer after disposing of a subsidised flat. Buying an HDB resale flat on the open market, or private property, attracts no levy at all. There is no waiver to apply for and no way to reduce the amount once it applies.
Do I pay a resale levy when I buy an HDB resale flat?
No. HDB lists the resale flat and private residential property as the two purchases that carry no resale levy. The levy attaches to a second subsidised home, and a resale flat bought on the open market is not one.
How much is the resale levy for a Singles Grant recipient?
Half of the household amount, in HDB's own words: $7,500 for a 2-room, $15,000 for a 3-room, $20,000 for a 4-room, $22,500 for a 5-room and $25,000 for an Executive flat. The Executive Condominium row has no singles half, because an EC buyer was never a Singles Grant recipient.
What if I sold my first subsidised flat before 3 March 2006?
A different schedule applies: a percentage of the resale price of the flat you sold, or 90% of its market valuation, whichever was higher. It runs from 10% for a 2-room seller upgrading to a larger flat up to 25% for a 5-room or Executive flat, halved for Singles Grant recipients. A levy deferred until you buy your next flat carries 5% per annum interest.
When do I have to pay the resale levy?
The amount is fixed at the point you book your second subsidised flat. If you sell your first flat after taking possession of the second, HDB deducts the levy from the sale proceeds and any shortfall is paid in cash. If you sell first, the levy is paid in cash when you take possession. HDB will not lend you the money: mortgage financing is never extended to a resale levy.
Related pages
- The resale levy in context — how it lands inside the full sale-proceeds calculation.
- Every HDB grant amount in 2026 — what a second subsidised flat gives back.
- BTO versus resale in 2026 — the decision the levy is one input to.
- CPF grant calculator — pre-set to a second-timer household.
Sources for the figures on this page
Every figure above is taken from the source named here on the date shown. Figures marked as estimates are reconstructed, not published by the authority.
- Resale levy, first flat was 2-room; Resale levy, 2-room flat, Singles Grant recipient; Resale levy, first flat was 3-room; Resale levy, 3-room flat, Singles Grant recipient; Resale levy, first flat was 4-room; Resale levy, 4-room flat, Singles Grant recipient; Resale levy, first flat was 5-room; Resale levy, 5-room flat, Singles Grant recipient; Interest on a deferred resale levy; Resale levy, first subsidised home was an Executive Condominium; Resale levy, first flat was Executive; Resale levy, Executive flat, Singles Grant recipient; Percentage-graded resale levy, 2-room; Percentage-graded resale levy, 2-room, Singles Grant recipient; Percentage-graded resale levy, 2-room seller upgrading to a larger flat; Percentage-graded resale levy, 2-room upgrader, Singles Grant recipient; Percentage-graded resale levy, 3-room; Percentage-graded resale levy, 3-room, Singles Grant recipient; Percentage-graded resale levy, 4-room; Percentage-graded resale levy, 4-room, Singles Grant recipient; Percentage-graded resale levy, 5-room and Executive; Percentage-graded resale levy, 5-room and Executive, Singles Grant recipient — HDB — Resale Levy verified 2026-08-21