An HDB to condo upgrade is paid for in three parts: what your flat’s sale leaves after the loan and CPF refund, the bank loan your income supports, and whatever cash and CPF you add. For a Singapore Citizen couple who sell before they buy, there is no Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty, a bank will lend up to 75% of the price, and at least 5% must be paid in cash.
Below is how each part works in 2026, then one illustrative couple taken from a S$650,000 flat sale to a $1.5 million condo, with every number shown.
Step 1: What Your HDB Sale Really Leaves You
The sale price is not the money you get to spend. CPF Board sets the order: the outstanding housing loan is repaid first, then the CPF you used for the flat, plus accrued interest, goes back to your CPF accounts. Only what is left comes to you in cash, before the agent’s commission and legal fees.
That refund is still yours. If you are under 55, it lands in your Ordinary Account (OA) and can pay for the condo. From 55, CPF Board tops up your Retirement Account first, so less of it is free to spend. Our explainer on CPF accrued interest shows why the refund grows each year you own the flat.
So split your proceeds in two from the start: cash and CPF. They pay for different things.
Step 2: How Much the Bank Will Lend
Two limits apply, and the lower one wins.
- Income (TDSR). All your monthly debt repayments, including the new loan, may not exceed 55% of gross monthly income. Banks test the new loan at a 4% medium-term rate (or the loan’s own rate if higher), not the rate you will pay, according to MAS. Variable income such as bonuses is counted at no more than 70%.
- Loan-to-value (LTV). With no other housing loan outstanding, a bank may lend up to 75% of the price or valuation, whichever is lower, if the tenure is within 30 years and does not run past age 65. Otherwise the limit is 55%. With one housing loan still outstanding, it drops to 45%, per MAS’s LTV table.
That second point is why many upgraders sell first or make sure the HDB loan is repaid before the bank loan is granted. Our TDSR, MSR and LTV explainer covers the rules in detail.
Step 3: Cash vs CPF for the Downpayment
On a 75% loan, the downpayment is 25% of the price. MAS requires at least 5% in cash; the other 20% can come from CPF, cash or both.
CPF Board also lets OA savings pay Buyer’s and Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty and legal fees. It does not cover maintenance charges or property tax. Renovation is not on CPF’s list of payable fees, so budget it in cash or a renovation loan.
Two CPF caps matter on a condo. Your CPF use is limited to the lower of price or valuation, and going up to 120% of that is allowed only once you have set aside your Basic Retirement Sum, according to CPF Board. Any price above valuation is cash only.
The short version: Sell first and a Citizen couple pays no ABSD and keeps the 75% loan limit. Your flat’s sale splits into cash and a CPF refund; the condo needs at least 5% in cash, plus renovation, plus any part of the downpayment and stamp duty your CPF does not cover.
An HDB to Condo Upgrade, Worked Through
An illustrative Citizen couple, both 40, earn S$14,000 a month in fixed salary between them and have no other debts. They have $80,000 in cash savings and $60,000 in their OAs. Our own figures; commission is assumed at 2% plus GST for the example only. Illustration only.
The sale of their 4-room flat
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Sale price | $650,000 |
| Less outstanding HDB loan | -$200,000 |
| Less CPF refund ($220,000 principal plus $40,000 accrued interest) | -$260,000 |
| Less commission at 2% plus 9% GST, and $2,500 legal fees | -$16,670 |
| Cash proceeds | $173,330 |
The condo: $1.5 million, 25-year bank loan
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Loan at 75% LTV | $1,125,000 |
| Most TDSR allows at 4% over 25 years ($7,700 a month) | about $1,459,000 |
| Downpayment, 25% | $375,000 |
| of which cash, at least 5% | $75,000 |
| Buyer’s Stamp Duty | $44,600 |
| Legal fees (assumed) | $3,000 |
| Renovation (assumed) | $60,000 |
Paying for it
- CPF available: $60,000 in the OA plus the $260,000 refund, so $320,000. It pays the $300,000 non-cash part of the downpayment and $20,000 of the stamp duty.
- Cash needed: $75,000 minimum cash, $27,600 of stamp duty and legal fees CPF no longer covers, and $60,000 renovation. Total: $162,600.
- Cash available: $80,000 savings plus $173,330 proceeds, so $253,330.
- Surplus: about $90,700 in cash. OA left: nil.
The loan, not the price, is the long-term story. At an assumed 3% the instalment is about $5,335 a month over 25 years, against the $1,100 they pay on the flat. At the 4% test rate it is $5,938, or 42% of their income: inside TDSR, but with little room for a new car loan.
Run your own numbers in our HDB upgrade calculator, which does this sum end to end.
What This Example Leaves Out
- Timing. HDB completes a resale about eight weeks after it accepts the application, and the condo’s dates are set by its contract. Our guide to selling first or buying first covers the gap and the ABSD refund.
- Your retirement. Their OA is empty after the purchase and every future OA contribution goes to the loan. See upgrading and your CPF retirement.
- The smaller costs. Valuation fees, mortgage duty, moving, maintenance fees and a higher property tax all add up; our list of hidden costs of upgrading prices them.
- Rules before you start. You and your spouse cannot buy private property until your flat’s minimum occupation period is met, says HDB. Check yours in our MOP guide.
What To Do Next
- Check your CPF refund on the Home ownership dashboard (Singpass), then run the HDB sale proceeds calculator.
- Test the loan with the home affordability calculator and the stamp duty with the stamp duty calculator.
- Put the whole plan through the HDB upgrade calculator at a higher rate as well as today’s.
- Get a bank’s in-principle approval before you grant an Option to Purchase on your flat.
- Set your ceiling with how much home you can afford to upgrade to, compare the sums for keeping your HDB and buying a condo, and read our Q3 2026 private home prices report for the market you are moving into.
