Some 48 per cent of Housing and Development Board (HDB) flat owners surveyed aspire to upgrade to a larger HDB flat or private property, a PropNex survey found.

According to a Jul. 22 release about the finding, 21 per cent of the 1,250 respondents reported wanting to move to a bigger HDB flat, while 27 per cent said they hoped to move to a bigger private property.

However, private property aspirants cited high home prices and the prevailing additional buyer's stamp duty (ABSD) as obstacles.

PropNex also noted that between 2017 and 2024, private property prices have climbed about 51 per cent cumulatively.

Meanwhile, resale prices of HDB flats rose by a cumulative 43 per cent between 2019 and 2024.

The survey, carried out from mid-March to April 2024, was to better understand the housing needs of HDB flat owners, their attitudes towards upgrading from public housing, sentiments on home prices, and the timeframe in which respondents perceive they might realistically be able upgrade to a private home.

Perceived as unaffordable

Despite their aspirations, many respondents felt that private property in Singapore remains unaffordable.

About a quarter felt that new private residential project launches and resale private homes were "extremely unaffordable".

Whereas 42 per cent said new private launches, and private resale properties were "unaffordable", and 38 per cent reported the same for resale private properties.

As for HDB resale flats, 33 per cent perceived them to be "unaffordable", and 12 per cent felt they were "extremely unaffordable".

The average transacted price of a HDB resale flat in the first half of 2024 was S$714,000 for a five-room flat and S$609,000 for a four-room flat, PropNex said.

HDB flats still a staple

Many Singaporeans also appear to believe they have been "priced out" of the private home market, the survey found.

Some 36 per cent of respondents believe they will never be able to purchase a private property.

Among those surveyed, 18 per cent felt they may require five to 10 years to acquire a private property, while 10 per cent felt it could take more than 10 years before they can make the upgrade.

Only 6 per cent of the respondents said they could upgrade to a private home in the next 12 months.

This is especially so as about six in 10 of HDB flat owners surveyed said they have a projected housing budget of below S$1 million.

The next largest group — 21 per cent — had a budget of S$1 to S$1.5 million, while 10 per cent had a budget of between S$1.5 and S$2 million.

In contrast, the average transacted price of non-landed new private homes (excluding executive condominiums) in the Outside Central Region (OCR) was about S$1.9 million in the first half of 2024, and S$1.5 million for resale properties, PropNex reported.

Ismail Gafoor, CEO of PropNex, added that while HDB flats remain "a staple of housing in Singapore", many Singaporean households continue to aspire to own and live in a private home.

However, "at these levels, it would seem that many of those polled may be priced out of the private housing market," the report concluded.

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