Different Housing Types in Singapore

Being a small red dot in Asia, Singapore does have its unique housing types to counter our small geographical space. Here are some common housing options in Singapore:

1) Public HDB

Our public HDB houses more than 80% of the population and with 90% of them owning the unit. These flats are heavily subsidized and regulated by government and certain requirements have to be met to be eligible for purchase.

The more common HDBs generally range from 2 to 5 room flats. A 2 room flat measures about 45 sqm, a 3 room flat measures about 60-65 sqm, a 4 room flat measures about 90-100 sqm and a 5 room flat measures about 110 sqm. To decide on which flat is the most ideal, you can consider the size of your family, your finances and also the location of the flat. Generally flats that are larger will be costlier and flats that are located at the central tend to cost more.

Amenities around the flats should also be taken into account, for example, the convenience of an MRT station or a market nearby for ease of grocery shopping. Many factors come into play in determining the cost of your flat and the loan you may need.

2) Public-Private Hybrids

Public-private hybrids are housing that share both public and private characteristics. They are a cross between public and private housing.

One of the more common public-private hybrids are executive condominiums. Executive condominiums are ideal for new couples who can afford more than public housing but might not want to stretch their finances too far into private housing. They share the same amenities and facilites as with private condominiums but there are eligibility requirements to purchase.

3) Private Housing

Private housing are housing with a “freehold” status with some exceptions. There are 2 main categories in private housing, namely landed and non-landed.

One of the more common non-landed housing will be the condominiums. These are similar to the ECs mentioned above and are equipped with a wide range of amenities such as swimming pool, gyms, function rooms etc.

As for landed private housing, the more common types will be terrace houses, semi-detached houses and detached houses. Terrace houses are medium density private properties joined by the shared side walls on both sides. They have their own roofs and each unit is linked to another. Semi-detached houses are pairs of properties built side by side and separated with a wall partition. Each house has the same measurement as well as layout. Detached houses, commonly known as bungalows, spans between 400 sqm to 1400 sqm and stands alone with no linkages to other properties. Bungalows offer utmost privacy and exclusivity.

In a land scarce location such as Singapore, the wide range of housing serves to accommodate the different needs of everyone.