The HDB resale market slowed slightly in February, possibly affected by the large supply of new flats offered under the latest build-to-order (BTO) and sale of balance flats (SBF) exercises in the month, as prospective buyers weigh their options.

In February, the HDB had launched a total of 10,622 flats under the BTO and SBF exercise, with 40% of the 5,590 SBF flats being completed units. Meanwhile, the HDB said that eight in 10 BTO flats on offer have waiting times of four years or less. It could have swayed some would-be buyers from the resale market to either the BTO or SBF options. The 5,032 BTO flats attracted 13,223 (2.6 times) applications, while the SBF flats achieved an application rate of 4.2 times, with 23,635 applicants.

Based on sales data, 2,102 resale HDB flats were transacted in February, reflecting a 9.5% decline from 2,322 units resold in the previous month. On a year-on-year basis, the resale volume was down by 1% from 2,123 units in February 2024 (see Chart 1). The top three towns that saw the highest number of resale transactions during the month were Sengkang, Tampines, and Woodlands.

Despite the decline in transactions, the average HDB resale price held steady, inching up by 1.2% month-on-month (MOM) from $636,265 in January to $644.050 in February (see Chart 1). Compared with February 2024, the average resale price was up by 10% from $585,636 a year ago.

Chart 1: HDB resale volume and average resale price

In mature towns, 5-room flats saw the sharpest increase in the average resale price which climbed by 4.6% MOM to $926,547, while the average price of 3-room flats rose by 3.6% MOM to nearly $487,000 in February (see Table 1). The faster clip of average price increase for 5-room flats in February can be partly be attributed to the larger number of million-dollar resale flats sold, with 50 units of 5-room flats in mature towns fetching at least $1 million during the month.

Over in non-mature towns, executive flats witnessed a steeper growth in the average resale price at 2% MOM, compared with the 1.3% MOM and 0.5% MOM increase for the 5-room and 4-room resale flats, respectively. Of note, the average price of 5-room resale flats in non-mature estates tipped over the $700,000-mark for the first time. With the strong competition for 5-room BTO/SBF flats, it is likely that many buyers have turned to the resale market for such units, and the resilient demand has helped to prop up 5-room resale flat prices in both mature and non-mature estates.

Table 1: Average HDB resale flat prices by flat type, by town classification

Based on the sales data, the proportion of HDB flats resold for under $500,000 in February was 24.5% compared with 24.2% in January, while the portion of resale flats sold at prices ranging from $500,000 to just under $1 million came in at 69.7% in February, a shade lower than the 70.7% in the previous month. Meanwhile, the proportion of million-dollar resale flats inched up from 5.1% in January to 5.8% in February (see Chart 2).

Chart 2: HDB resale flat transactions by price range

Chart 3: Number of HDB flats resold for at least $1 million by month

In February, there were a record 121 resale flats that fetched at least $1 million, surpassing the previous monthly record high of 120 units in July 2024. The 121 units sold represent a 1.7% MOM increase from the 119 units transacted in January. Of the past eight months, six of them have seen the monthly million-dollar resale flat sales volume crossing the 100-unit mark, except for November and December.

The 121 units of million-dollar resale flats transacted in February comprised 44 units of 4-room flats, 51 units of 5-room flats, and 26 executive flats. Notably, the 51 units is a new monthly high for the number of 5-room flats that were sold for at least $1 million. The million-dollar resale flat sales in February were led by Bukit Merah and Toa Payoh with 21 units each, and Queenstown and Kallang Whampoa with 14 units each. Of the 121 units of million-dollar resale flats, nine are located in non-mature towns of Hougang, Jurong East Yishun, Bukit Batok, and Bukit Panjang.

About 15% of the 121 million-dollar flats resold in January had a remaining lease of 94 years or more at the time of sale; these flats are situated in Bidadari Park Drive, Circuit Road, St. George's Lane, Alkaff Crescent, Dawson Road, and Strathmore Avenue. The oldest million-dollar flats resold in February were two 5-room flats in Marine Drive - each with a lease balance of around 51 years - that changed hands for $1.02 million and $1.08 million.

The top resale flat deal by price in February was for a 5-room flat at The Peak @ Toa Payoh in Lorong 1A Toa Payoh. The 117-sq m flat is located on a floor between the 31st and 33rd storey, and was sold for $1.558 million (see Table 2).

Table 2: Top 10 HDB resale flats sold in February 2025 by Transacted Price

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