Divorce, on its own, is a bitter pill to swallow for any married couple. And for Singaporean HDB homeowners, this unfortunately also comes with the added blow of potentially losing that long-awaited BTO flat.
If you and your spouse are considering a divorce after collecting the keys to your BTO flat, there are several housing rules to navigate and financial costs to consider. Whether it’s during the Minimum Occupancy Period (MOP) or after, options are available to retain or sell your unit. Here’s a quick guide on the possible steps to take for your BTO flat.
Getting a divorce before your Minimum Occupancy Period (MOP) ends
As long as you’re buying an HDB flat, regardless of its BTO or resale status, you’re going to have to tide through the Minimum Occupancy Period (MOP). If life just so happens to throw your marriage a curveball, and you find yourself facing the possibility of separation while you’re still bound by your flat’s MOP, here are your options:
1. One party taking over the flat
Does divorce mean that you’ll lose your precious BTO? Not necessarily. So long as you meet HDB’s criteria for flat ownership below, you might be able to convince your partner to have the flat transferred under your name.
You’ll need to:
- Be a Singaporean citizen
- Be at least 35 years old (to take over the flat under the Singles Scheme); or have legal custody of children (to take over the flat under the Single Parent Scheme)
- You cannot separately own an HDB flat or private property
Do note that HDB will only process any transfer or appeal applications after the divorce has been legally finalised and supported with court documents.
Even if the stars aren’t aligned and you don’t check all the boxes, there is one more caveat that might help you plead your case. This means forming a “new” family nucleus to replace the “old”—think having your parents as co-owners!
And in the event you do succeed in gaining full ownership, you’ll need to prove that you’re able to finance the loan repayments on your own. If there’s an outstanding bank loan, you’ll also need an Approval-in-Principle from the bank.
When one party gives up home ownership, they’ll need to fully repay the CPF principal used to pay for the flat, plus any accrued interest. For example, if your ex-spouse used $70,000 from their CPF Ordinary Account to pay for the BTO flat, and the interest rate was 2.5% annually, you’d have to refund $70,000 along with an additional $5,446 in interest after just 3 years. It’s all about keeping things fair and making sure the numbers add up!
2. Appeal to sell on the open market
Understandably, your flat might become a damning reminder of your failed marriage, and you might want to rid yourself of it to wipe the slate clean. In this case, you can submit an appeal to HDB to sell it on the open market—even before the Minimum Occupancy Period (MOP) is up. The appeal process is reviewed case by case, so the outcome can vary.
Should the appeal be approved, the sale proceeds will first go towards settling any outstanding fees, like the mortgage loan and refunding the CPF money used to purchase the flat. Any remaining funds? Those will be split based on the court’s decision or a mutual agreement between the parties.
3. Surrendering the flat to HDB
If both parties are ineligible to retain the flat and HDB doesn’t approve a sale, the last option is to surrender the flat back to HDB. However, this often results in a loss, as the flat is often valued below the open market value and 10% of the purchase price is usually forfeited by HDB.
To make matters worse, you’ll also need to pay legal fees and conveyance fees, and any downpayment will be forfeited. Imagine this scenario, Shi Min and Wei Jie are going through a divorce, and they’ve come to a consensus on who gets to keep the flat.
- Divorce lawyer fees: $800 – $3,500
This will cover everything from consultation to filing court documents. - Conveyancing / HDB legal fees: $252.77
If they decide to surrender the flat to HDB, she’ll need to pay a conveyancing fee of $188.32 and a caveat registration fee of $64.45. These fees are standard and can be confirmed using HDB’s online calculator tool. - Forfeiture fee: $57,000
Surrendering their flat before the MOP is up means you’ll be slapped with a forfeiture fee, which is 10% of your flat’s purchase price. If their BTO cost them $570K, this fee would amount to $57,000.
After evaluating your options, it’s best to speak with a divorce or property lawyer who can provide personalised advice on retaining or selling your BTO flat before your MOP ends.
Getting a divorce after the Minimum Occupancy Period (MOP) ends
Once you’ve cleared your MOP and finalised your divorce, there are fewer restrictions with what you can do with your BTO. The process is much more simplified and flexible—you can either sell it on the open market without needing special approval, or transfer ownership to one party.
1. Selling the flat on the open market
Image credit: HDB on Facebook
Once the MOP is over, the flat is all yours to sell whenever you’re ready. You will need to register your Intent to Sell with HDB’s My Flat Dashboard and come to an agreement on the division of sale proceeds with your ex-spouse, either through mutual agreement or according to the court order.
Not sure whether selling or keeping the flat is the best move? The Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) has a handy Housing Options Explorer Tool to help you explore your eligibility for different housing choices.
If you’ve sold the BTO flat at or above market value, but the sale proceeds (after paying off the outstanding housing loan) aren’t enough to fully refund the CPF monies used by both you and your ex, you won’t need to top up the shortfall in cash. Instead, the remaining proceeds will be refunded proportionately to both you and your ex’s CPF accounts, based on respective payment contributions.
For example, if you contributed 70% of the CPF used and your ex contributed 30%, the remaining proceeds from the sale of the flat will be split accordingly—70% going to your CPF account and 30% to your ex’s CPF account. This ensures that both parties are refunded in line with their respective contributions, without requiring any additional out-of-pocket payment.
Image credit: CPF
2. Transferring ownership to one party
After your MOP ends, you can choose to transfer ownership of the BTO flat to one party, or buy your ex’s share at an agreed price. The retaining party must still meet HDB’s eligibility criteria, such as being 35 or older to retain ownership under the Singles Scheme.
Your ex must also consent to the transfer via HDB’s portal. Any outstanding payments, such as CPF refunds with accrued interest, will be settled with remaining sale proceeds, helping both of you close this chapter smoothly.
Divorce after collecting your BTO keys
Whether you’re looking to keep the BTO flat or sell it, there are plenty of housing options to help you move forward after your divorce.
If you’re feeling unsure about your next steps, consider chatting with a divorce lawyer or reaching out to HDB for advice. They can guide you on the best options, giving you that peace of mind to start the next chapter.
Read other HDB-related articles here:
- HDB Orphans Scheme guide
- How divorce pushed one Singaporean to upgrade from HDB to a condo
- Where are the HDB landed terrace houses in Singapore?
Cover image adapted from: The Smart Local
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