10 free questions on mortgage maths, LTV, TDSR and MSR, CPF usage, property tax, BSD, ABSD, SSD and GST. Try each one, then tap “Show answer” for the answer and why the other options are wrong.
Besides banks and finance companies, which public body grants housing loans to eligible buyers of HDB flats?
Answer: A. HDB
HDB grants concessionary housing loans to eligible flat buyers. The CPF Board does not lend: members use their own Ordinary Account savings. MAS regulates bank lending, and SLA deals with land.
A borrower pays the same monthly instalment throughout his loan. As the years pass, the interest portion of each instalment __________.
Answer: A. falls, while the principal portion rises
Interest each month is charged on the outstanding balance. As the balance is paid down, less of each fixed instalment goes to interest and more goes to repaying principal.
A buyer who already has one outstanding housing loan takes a bank loan for another home, with a tenure within the normal limits. What is his LTV limit?
Answer: A. 45%
With one outstanding housing loan the LTV limit is 45% (or 25% if the tenure is longer than the normal limit or runs past age 65). It drops to 35% with two or more outstanding loans.
The Mortgage Servicing Ratio (MSR) of 30% applies to loans for __________.
Answer: A. HDB flats and executive condominiums
MSR applies only to loans for HDB flats and for ECs bought from the developer (within the EC’s minimum occupation period): no more than 30% of the borrower’s gross monthly income may go to repaying all property loans. TDSR applies to all property loans.
The interest rate on an HDB concessionary housing loan is currently __________ a year.
Answer: A. 2.6%
HDB loans charge 2.6% a year, pegged at 0.1 percentage point above the CPF Ordinary Account rate of 2.5%. The 3% and 4% figures are floors used for assessing loans, not rates charged.
A buyer may use CPF savings up to the full Valuation Limit if the remaining lease of the property covers the youngest buyer to at least age __________.
Answer: A. 95
If the remaining lease covers the youngest buyer to age 95, CPF can be used up to the VL (subject to the other limits). If not, CPF usage is pro-rated according to how far the lease covers the youngest buyer towards 95.
Mr Tay Boon Keng, 46, a Singapore Citizen who divorced three years ago and now owns no residential property, agrees to buy a resale condominium unit in Bishan in his sole name. His salesperson negotiates the price down from $1,280,000 to $1,200,000, and his bank later values the unit at only $1,180,000, which Mr Tay says should be the figure used for all his taxes since it is lower. He plans to pay the down payment partly from his CPF savings, and his son will stay with him on weekends. The seller, a Singapore Permanent Resident, is moving to Perth and wants completion within ten weeks. Mr Tay exercises the option to purchase in Singapore and asks his salesperson to estimate the duty he must budget for.
How much Buyer’s Stamp Duty must Mr Tay pay on his purchase?
Answer: A. $32,600
BSD is computed on the higher of the price and the market value, so the $1,200,000 price is used, not the lower $1,180,000 valuation that Mr Tay prefers. Residential rates: 1% × $180,000 = $1,800; 2% × $180,000 = $3,600; 3% × $640,000 = $19,200; 4% × $200,000 = $8,000; total $32,600. $31,800 wrongly uses the $1,180,000 valuation, $24,600 stops at the first $1,000,000, and $36,000 applies a flat 3% to the whole price. As a Singapore Citizen with no other residential property he pays no ABSD, and neither the seller’s residency nor his use of CPF affects the BSD.
Mr Lee Chong Wei, 58, and his wife Mdm Ng Siew Ling, 55, both Singapore Citizens, own and live in a 4-room HDB flat in Sengkang with an annual value of $24,000. It is the only property either of them owns. Since January they have let one bedroom to a polytechnic student for $700 a month, and Mr Lee worries that this means the whole flat is now taxed as a let property. Their son, who works in Hong Kong, has offered to pay the bill, which was due on 31 January. Mdm Ng, who has just retired, also wonders whether the student will affect their rebate, but for now the couple want to know only the tax itself.
What is their property tax on the flat for 2026, before any rebate?
Answer: A. $480
Letting out part of a home the owners live in does not take away owner-occupier rates, so the rates effective 1 Jan 2025 apply: 0% on the first $12,000 and 4% on the next $12,000 = $480. $960 applies 4% to the whole annual value, $640 uses the older bands with only the first $8,000 at 0%, and $2,880 wrongly applies the 12% non-owner-occupier rate because of the room rental. The tax is based on the annual value, not the $700 monthly rent, and who pays the bill does not change the amount.
Ms Chong Hui Min, 35, a Singapore Citizen and senior nurse, has never had a housing loan; her car loan of $600 a month has two years to run. She agrees to buy a resale condominium unit in Hougang for $1,600,000 after a bidding contest with two other buyers, but her bank values the unit at only $1,550,000. She wants a 25-year loan, which would end when she is 60, and plans to pay the balance from her CPF savings and cash. Her father, who owns a 5-room HDB flat with a small HDB loan still outstanding, offers to help with the down payment. She asks her salesperson how much the bank can lend her at most.
Under the LTV limits, what is the maximum bank loan Ms Chong can obtain on the purchase?
Answer: A. $1,162,500
The LTV limit is applied to the lower of the price and the valuation, here $1,550,000. With no outstanding housing loan and a 25-year tenure ending before age 65, the limit is 75%: 75% × $1,550,000 = $1,162,500. $1,200,000 wrongly applies 75% to the higher price, $852,500 uses the 55% limit for longer tenures, and $697,500 uses the 45% limit for a second housing loan. Her car loan matters for TDSR, not for the LTV limit, and her father’s flat and loan are not hers.
Ace Precision Pte Ltd, a contract manufacturer owned by Mr Balakrishnan and Mr Chew, exercised an option to buy a B2 factory unit in Woodlands on Monday, 2 March 2026 for $1,800,000. A large order from a customer in Germany then fell through, and the directors decide to sell. Their buyer exercises the option on Tuesday, 1 December 2026 at $2,000,000, which is the market value, and completion is set for February 2027. Mr Chew believes that SSD is a residential-only tax introduced to cool the housing market, while Mr Balakrishnan thinks any duty will be based on the company’s $200,000 gain.
All of the following statements about SSD on this sale are correct EXCEPT:
Answer: A. No SSD would be payable at all if the company had waited to sell the unit until more than 2 years after acquiring it on 2 March 2026.
Industrial property acquired on or after 12 Jan 2013 attracts SSD if disposed of within 3 years, at 15%, 10% and 5% for the first, second and third year, computed on the higher of price and market value. The sale here (1 Dec 2026) is within the first year, so SSD is 15% × $2,000,000 = $300,000, not a percentage of the gain. The incorrect statement is the one saying no SSD would apply after 2 years: a sale in the third year would still attract 5%. Mr Chew is also wrong that SSD is limited to residential property.
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