Singapore Property Ultimate Buying Guide 2022
Singapore Property Buying Guide
Buying property is one of the very important life event and a big decision you have to make some point in your life. Property is most likely one of your biggest asset and it is a medium to long term commitment, a home where you will spend the next 5 to 15 years of your life with your love ones. As a result of the level of importance you may wish to learn more before diving into it.
There are tons of information online about buying property in Singapore, we like to provide you with a summarised process, so that you won’t be overloaded with information and at the same time find this guide practical, precise and to the point.
We realised some of our clients thoughts are running all over the place and hence wasted lots of time and energy to find their home when they started off in the wrong foot. In our Singapore Property Ultimate Home Buying Guide 2022, we will look into the process, to give you an idea of the correct sequence of the processes that should be taking place in this particular order.Â
To jump into process details, you may click on the process title.
Singapore Property Buying Process
Let’s work backwards to derive at property price you can afford, find out:
CPF Ordinary Account amount
Cash on hand amount
With Your Current Monthly Income What is the Property Price You Can Afford -> Refer to table below
Â
Follow the timeline agreed during the offer, prepare your finances 2-3 weeks before completion day.
When do you need to move?
- Within 6 months – Look for renovated unit
- Time is on your side – Can consider new launch
Do your homework:
- Average transacted price
- Rejected last offer
- Bank valuation
- Decide on offer price with terms & conditions
- Get proof of ownership, ensure you are paying to the rightful owner
With budget and timeline in mind, you have to decide:
- How many bedrooms you need?
- Where and what is ideal location? Idea location is where a healthy appreciate grow over the years. Analyse property market trend and historical data to decide on ideal location.
1. Work Out Your Finance
A sneak preview on the property price you can afford basing on your per month salary.Â
Property Price You Can Afford
| Property Price | Combined Income <=35yo | 5% Cash | 20% Cash Or CPF | BSD Cash Or CPF |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000,000 | 6,124 | 50,000 | 200,000 | 24,600 |
| 1,200,000 | 7,350 | 60,000 | 240,000 | 32,600 |
| 1,500,000 | 9,186 | 75,000 | 300,000 | 44,600 |
| 1,700,000 | 10,411 | 85,000 | 340,000 | 52,600 |
| 2,000,000 | 12,248 | 100,000 | 400,000 | 64,600 |
| 2,500,000 | 15,310 | 125,000 | 500,000 | 84,600 |
| 3,000,000 | 18,371 | 150,000 | 600,000 | 104,600 |
Get an In-Principle Approval (IPA) or Approval in Principle (AIP) from your banker to confirm the loan amount you are able to obtain before committing to the purchase to avoid any hiccups.
In compliance with (MAS) Monetary Authority of Singapore requirements:
- 55% Total Debt Service Ration (TDSR)
- 25% Minimum Downpayment, 5% Cash and 20% Cash or CPF
- 75% Loan to Valuation (LTV), assuming you do not have any outstanding housing loan, any other loan
Assumptions made:
This is your first property and you do not have any other housing loan and or car loan etc
2. Timeline to Follow
When you have the luxury of time because you planned way ahead or there are no strong reasons to move immediately, new launch will be good choice. Why?
- You are buying directly from developer which is the base price and not a marked up price from resale seller.
- Progressive payment means you are paying according to construction stages and not the full instalment immediately.
You have strong reasons and need to move within 6 months, you can have a look at the resale houses. Choose between renovated or non renovated houses
- Renovated houses, main benefit is save time as you don’t need to find renovation company and plan the details. Downside is you may not be able to find a house with the renovation you wanted.
- Non renovated houses, usually priced lower than renovated houses. Need to put in time to plan out renovation details, but you do save some money as it’s generally priced lower.
3. Find Your Property
With the timeline and budget in mind, categorise your wants and needs:
Size or Number of Bedroom
This is a need – Minimally you will need X number of bedroom, for e.g. you are a family of 4, minimally you need 3 bedrooms and not 2 bedrooms. For long-term planning, your kids will want their own bedroom when they grow up.
Location
Need – Ideal location will be the best. Ideal location will be one that appreciate so that when it’s time to sell you can make a healthy gain. You get to stay and enjoy your house while it appreciate. Contact us to learn more about where is ideal location.
Want – location near kids’ school or 1km within specific primary school or near your workplace. Please remember your kids’ will grow up and move on to secondary school, and actually renting is an option for gaining entry to kid’s school instead of buying a location you don’t really like. You may change job, which means changing of work location.
4. Make An Offer
How do you know how much to offer? How much is under offer or how much is over offer? Ask us. We have access to property data to help you with your decision.
Latest property data are used find out the average prices around the vicinity. It is beneficial to obtain bank valuation, so that you know how much cash over valuation you have to fork out and also this is the most appropriate indicative value of the house accessed by the bank.
We will have a thorough discuss with you to get you covered as well as come up terms and conditions to be submitted together with the offer. Necessary checks will be done to ensure you are in good hands and offer will be submitted to rightful owner. Finally we negotiate with seller or seller’s agent and achieve win-win deal for you.
5. Complete the Purchase
Prepare your finances in advance alongside with timeline agreed upon during the offer stage.Â
The usual timeline as follows:Â
- Make an offer – expire in 3 days
- Offer accepted – Option to Purchase (OTP) issued
- 2 weeks to exercise OTP at the law firm
- 2 weeks from exercise OTP date to pay Buyer Stamp Duty (BSD)
- 10 weeks from OTP exercised date to complete the purchase
Private property terms and conditions everything is negotiable, as long as agreed by both parties in writing.
Follow us on wordpress or facebook to receive Singapore Property updates and or developer’s special promotions.
If there is any questions do feel free to contact us.
Anything You like to Know About Singapore Property?
We love to hear from you! Comment on this article or contact us directly to let us know what other buying property topics you like to see in our website.
Follow us on wordpress or facebook to receive Singapore Property updates and or developer’s special promotions.
If there is any questions do feel free to contact us.
