Prime HDB flats still oversubscribed under new framework but demand eases with higher supply

SINGAPORE - Demand for new flats in the choicest locations has eased in the year since the Housing Board rolled out its

Prime, Plus and Standard classification framework

, following a ramped-up flat supply.

Of the three categories, demand for Plus flats has been more uneven, with property analysts noting that buyers were perhaps more cautious about taking on stricter resale conditions without an equivalent location premium.

The new flat categories were introduced in the

October 2024 Build-To-Order (BTO) sales exercise

, replacing the old framework involving mature and non-mature estates.

Compared with Standard flats, Prime and Plus flats are located more centrally and closer to amenities such as MRT stations and town centres. However, they come with stricter resale conditions such as a 10-year minimum occupation period and a subsidy clawback of between 6 per cent and 14 per cent.

These measures aim to temper speculative demand and keep homes in attractive locations affordable to buyers across a wider range of incomes.

Since October 2024, HDB has launched 28,296 BTO flats, more than half of which are Standard flats.

Of the remainder, about three out of five are Prime flats, and the rest are Plus flats, said Mr Nicholas Mak, chief research officer at property portal Mogul.sg.

BTO flat application data shows that demand for Prime flats has eased over the past year, after supply in the most popular estates went up.

Ms Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist at Realion (OrangeTee & ETC) Group, pointed to central and city fringe locations such as Kallang/Whampoa, Bukit Merah and Queenstown, where new flats have been launched in recent years.

In November 2021, four-room flats in River Peaks I and II – a Prime Location Public Housing (PLH) project in the Central area – saw application rates of 5.3 for first-timers and 104.7 for second-timers, and nearly 7,000 applications.

The PLH model

was the first iteration of Prime flats

.

In February 2022, another PLH project, King George’s Heights in Kallang/Whampoa,

attracted strong competition

. Its four-room flats drew an application rate of 10.9 for first-timer families and 149.3 for second-timers, with 5,140 total applications.

Such flats in Bukit Merah Ridge,

launched in May 2022

, had application rates of 3.2 for first-timers and 45.9 for second-timers, with a total of 6,560 applications.

By comparison, more recent Prime launches have drawn slightly fewer applicants and lower application rates for both first- and second-timers, Ms Sun noted.

In the

June 2024 BTO exercise

, Tanjong Rhu Riverfront I and II in Kallang/Whampoa recorded application rates of 2.1 for first-timers and 22.3 for second-timers, with 3,963 total applications for its four-room flats.

And in October 2025, four-room flats in Bukit Merah Berlayar Residences and Redhill Peaks saw application rates of 3.1 for first-timers and 23.8 for second-timers, with 5,521 total applicants.

Mr Eugene Lim, key executive officer at ERA Singapore, noted that these differences in applications and application rates should be considered in the context of higher overall supply in recent launches.

He gave the example of how the February 2022 BTO exercise had 3,953 flats, while the July 2025 exercise included a

much larger supply of 10,209 flats

, comprising 5,547 BTO units and 4,662 Sale of Balance Flats (SBF).

“Although the headline application rates seem lower for the latest Prime launches, this reflects the Government’s deliberate strategy in 2024 and 2025 to increase both BTO and SBF supply to address public housing needs and stabilise price pressures,” Mr Lim said.

“The increased supply has successfully moderated application rates, even for well-located Prime projects.”

Analysts said application figures under the new flat classification framework suggest that many prospective home owners are still drawn by prime locations and convenience.

Ms Sun said: “The trend also indicates their commitment to long-term home ownership, rather than viewing well-located flats purely for investment.”

Mr Lim also noted that Standard projects in mature estates or near public transport nodes have also seen strong demand, in part because they offer larger five-room flats.

“For example, in the October 2024 BTO launch, the five-room flats in Costa Riviera I and II in Pasir Ris had an application rate of 6.7, significantly higher than those in Fernvale (2.3) and Bukit Batok (3.8),” he said.

By contrast, demand for Plus flats has been more uneven. Ana­lysts noted that while Plus projects sit above Standard flats in the classification framework, buyer interest depends more heavily on how strong the location is, given stricter resale conditions.

For instance, Oak Ville @ AMK, the latest Plus project in Ang Mo Kio from the October 2025 BTO sales exercise, posted an application rate of below 1.0 for first-timers.

PropNex chief executive Kelvin Fong had previously said some prospective buyers may be unconvinced that the Ang Mo Kio project justifies its Plus classification, given that it is some distance from the MRT station and has few amenities in its immediate surroundings.

By contrast, Plus flats have drawn healthy demand where location attributes are stronger.

Three Plus flat projects in Bedok

– one in Kembangan and two in Bayshore – were launched in October 2024. They collectively garnered an application rate of 4.2 times for three-room and larger flats.

Taken together, analysts said early application patterns suggest buyers are responding more selectively under the new framework. Location, flat size and resale flexibility appear to be playing a larger role in shaping demand.