HDB Selling Costs in Singapore: Fees, CPF Refund and Cash Proceeds

HDB selling costs include more than an agent's commission. Your sale proceeds repay the housing loan, return CPF principal and accrued interest, and cover the resale and legal fees before cash reaches your bank account.

Use the current amounts from HDB, CPF Board and IRAS for your flat. A rough percentage can misstate the cash available for your next home.

Separate costs from money returned to you

Some deductions are transaction costs. Others move your own money from the sale back into CPF or repay debt.

Deduction	Cost or balance-sheet movement?
Agent commission and applicable GST	Cost
HDB resale application fee	Cost
Legal, registration and discharge fees	Cost
Seller's Stamp Duty, if applicable	Tax
Outstanding housing loan	Debt repayment
CPF principal and accrued interest	Refund to owners' CPF accounts

The distinction matters for an upgrader. A CPF refund can fund eligible parts of the next property after it returns to the Ordinary Account, but it is not cash. Owners aged 55 or above may have part of the refund directed to the Retirement Account.

Property agent commission is negotiable

Singapore does not set a fixed commission for an HDB sale. The Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) tells consumers to negotiate the rate and record it in a prescribed Estate Agency Agreement.

Confirm:

• the rate or fixed amount;
• whether GST is included or added;
• the scope of marketing and viewing work;
• when the commission becomes payable; and
• what happens if the transaction does not complete.

Only a GST-registered property agency may charge GST. Pay the agency named in the agreement, not the salesperson in a personal capacity. CEA's consumer guidance on engaging a property agent sets out these checks.

You can sell without an agent. Budget for your own pricing research, photography, listings, viewings, negotiation and paperwork rather than treating the commission saving as free.

HDB charges a resale application fee

The seller and buyer each submit a portion of the resale application and each pay the applicable administrative fee:

Flat type	Seller's HDB resale application fee
1- or 2-room flat	$40
3-room or larger flat	$80

The fee includes GST and is non-refundable. Both parties must submit their respective portions within seven calendar days of each other or the first submission lapses.

HDB requires sellers to register an Intent to Sell at least seven days before granting an Option to Purchase. The HDB resale procedures cover the sequence and fees.

Legal and conveyancing fees depend on who acts

HDB can act in eligible HDB sale matters, or you can appoint a private lawyer. The amount changes with the flat price, mortgage discharge and registration work.

Where HDB acts, its published seller charges include:

• transfer legal fees based on the resale price;
• a mortgage-discharge fee where required;
• title-search and registration charges; and
• a small miscellaneous fee.

HDB publishes the transfer fee scale as 6.75 cents per $100 for the first $30,000, 5.40 cents per $100 for the next $30,000 and 4.50 cents per $100 for the remainder, subject to the stated minimum and rounding. Check the estimate shown in My Flat Dashboard because your mortgage and title work affect the total.

A private lawyer sets their own fee and disbursements. Ask for a written quote that states GST, CPF work, mortgage discharge and registration charges. HDB's seller approval and legal-fee page lists the current HDB scale.

Check Seller's Stamp Duty against the acquisition date

Seller's Stamp Duty (SSD) taxes a residential property sold within the applicable holding period. For residential properties acquired on or after 4 July 2025, the current schedule is:

Holding period	SSD rate on higher of price or market value
Up to 1 year	16%
More than 1 year and up to 2 years	12%
More than 2 years and up to 3 years	8%
More than 3 years and up to 4 years	4%
More than 4 years	0%

Properties acquired between 11 March 2017 and 3 July 2025 use the earlier three-year schedule. Check the acquisition rules rather than counting from physical move-in.

Most standard HDB sellers will have completed a five-year MOP before sale, which puts them outside a four-year SSD period. Cases involving changes in ownership, inheritance, divorce or an approved early sale can need a separate legal and tax check. Use the IRAS SSD guidance for the dates and exemptions.

CPF refund can be the largest deduction from cash

If you used CPF for the flat, you must refund:

• the CPF principal withdrawn;
• accrued interest on that amount;
• housing grants used and their accrued interest; and
• any property pledge amount that applies after age 55.

Check each owner's amount under “What happens if” in the CPF Home ownership dashboard. Do not combine both owners into one estimate because the refunds return to their respective accounts.

CPF Board states that the sale proceeds first repay the outstanding housing loan, then make the required CPF refund. If a market-value sale leaves too little for the full refund, the remaining proceeds after the loan are refunded and no cash top-up is needed. A below-market sale can produce a different result.

Read CPF Board's refund guidance and our CPF property guide before using the expected cash proceeds for another purchase.

Build a net-proceeds worksheet

Use a lower and target selling price.

Net-proceeds line	Lower case	Target case
Selling price	$_	$_
Outstanding housing loan	($_)	($_)
CPF refund, owner 1	($_)	($_)
CPF refund, owner 2	($_)	($_)
Agent commission and GST	($_)	($_)
HDB application fee	($_)	($_)
Legal and other completion fees	($_)	($_)
SSD, if applicable	($_)	($_)
Estimated cash proceeds	$_	$_

HDB also requires the seller to pay the flat's property tax through the end of the year and present the receipt at completion. Ask HDB or your lawyer how that payment appears in your completion account.

Moving, storage, cleaning and repairs sit outside the legal completion account but still reduce the money available for the next move.

Check the proceeds before setting the asking price

An asking price should come from comparable HDB transactions and the unit's condition. Your desired cash proceeds do not determine market value.

Run the worksheet using recent transactions from HDB's resale-price service, then decide whether the remaining cash and CPF support the next step. If you plan to buy a condo, compare the timing choices in sell first or buy first. Our HDB-to-condo upgrade guide adds ABSD, downpayment and the timing of both completions.

The most expensive error is committing to the next property using gross sale proceeds. Get the outstanding loan, individual CPF refunds and written fee quotes before you exercise another option.

Sources: HDB resale procedures, HDB seller legal fees, CPF refund on sale, IRAS Seller's Stamp Duty, CEA commission guidance.