55,000 BTO units to be launched from 2025 to 2027, will help moderate HDB resale prices: Minister

SINGAPORE – Some 55,000 Build-To-Order (BTO) flats will be launched between 2025 and 2027, 10 per cent more than the

earlier announced 50,000

.

Among these, about 3,100 will be launched in October 2025 as shorter waiting time flats – those with wait times of under three years.

The increased supply will not only help to meet demand for new Housing Board flats, but also moderate resale flat prices by reducing demand in the resale market, National Development Minister Chee Hong Tat said on Aug 5.

Setting out his ministry’s priorities in an interview with local media outlets, Mr Chee said the 55,000 flats will include more units with shorter waiting times.

Shorter waiting time flats offer a closer substitute for resale flats and can, hence, help to moderate resale prices, he added.

Acknowledging that there remains some public concern about resale flat prices, Mr Chee said it is reasonable for flats in prime locations with desirable attributes to sell at higher prices.

There are resale flats available at different price points, he noted.

He cited towns such as Tampines and Punggol, where four-room resale flats with leases of 70 years or longer go for around $650,000 to $700,000, or Sembawang and Yishun, where a similar flat could cost less than $600,000.

Mr Chee said there have been recent signs of price growth moderation. The quarter-on-quarter resale price index growth for the last quarter, for instance, was 0.9 per cent – the

lowest since the second quarter of 2020

.

“As more BTO flats reach their minimum occupation period starting from 2026, we expect the supply of resale flats to increase, and there could be further stabilisation of resale flat prices,” said the minister.

Mr Chee said that in addition to the 8,000 BTO flats that will reach the minimum occupation period in 2025, 13,500 will do so in 2026, 15,000 in 2027 and 19,500 in 2028.

He added that resale prices can move up and down like any other product that responds to market conditions.

“What we want is for prices to move in tandem with income growth, so that over time, the two move together,” he said. “We don’t want it to outpace income growth. We also want to avoid too much volatility in the market.”

In 2025, 4,500 shorter waiting time flats will be launched, up from the previous target of 3,800.

And in 2026 and 2027, about 4,000 shorter waiting time flats will be launched annually, up from the previous commitment of 2,000 to 3,000 flats per year.

Thus far, 10,579 flats have been launched over two BTO exercises in 2025, with 1,396 shorter waiting time flats among these.

This means that among the roughly

9,100 flats to be launched in October

, about a third – or 3,100 – will be shorter waiting time flats.

It also means that about 35,000 new flats will be launched in 2026 and 2027 – an average of about 17,600 per year.

The 55,000 flats will be built in different parts of Singapore, said Mr Chee, including new areas like Mount Pleasant, Woodlands North Coast, Sembawang North and the former Keppel Club along the Greater Southern Waterfront.

“Each of these estates will have different locational attributes to meet the housing needs of different flat buyers,” he said.

Resale flat prices are expected to stabilise in the coming years, Mr Chee said.

Once that happens, the Government

will consider removing the 15-month wait-out period

for private property owners to buy non-subsidised HDB flats, he added.

In addition, Mr Chee said more than 25,000 private residential units will be launched through the Government Land Sales programme from 2025 to 2027.

This adds to the more than 45,000 private homes that are already in the pipeline, he said, which means that more than 70,000 private housing units will be completed between now and around 2030.

The Urban Redevelopment Authority had said in June that about 9,800 private housing units will be launched in 2025.

Besides keeping public housing accessible and affordable, Mr Chee said his other priorities include making housing estates safe and liveable, as well as supporting businesses and partners in the built environment industry.

Asked about the potential impacts of American tariffs on housing affordability, Mr Chee said the Government is monitoring global supply chains closely, and will work to diversify Singapore’s supply sources.

For the built environment sector, he said that the Ministry of National Development is working with industry players on solutions to improve productivity, as well as to look for opportunities for companies to use government projects as a test-bed for new technologies.

Asked whether the new flat classification system –

launched in October 2024

– has met its intended outcome thus far, Mr Chee said it has allowed the Government to offer BTO flats in very attractive locations at prices that are more affordable, thanks to additional subsidies for Plus and Prime flats.

Without the framework, he said, flats in very attractive locations, including possibly downtown in the city area, may be priced too high for some groups of Singaporeans.