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New Launch vs Resale Home in Singapore: Which Suits You? (2026)

New launch or resale home in Singapore? How payments, loans, legal protection, defects, SSD and ABSD timing differ in 2026, and who each option suits.

By Propwise EditorialUpdated 5 October 20267 min read

Neither option wins by default. A new launch spreads your payments over the build, comes with standard contracts and a 12-month defects warranty, and gives upgraders time to sell their old home. But you pay a premium and wait years for the keys. A resale home lets you see exactly what you are buying and what similar units sold for, and you can move in or rent it out within months. In return, you take on its age, its lease and its flaws.

At a glance

  • Cash timing: a new launch needs a 5–10% booking fee and 20% of the price at signing. A private resale home typically needs about 1% for the option and 5% in total when you exercise it, with the rest at completion a few months later.
  • Loan: a new-launch loan is drawn in stages as the building goes up, so early interest is small. A resale loan is drawn in full on day one.
  • Protection: developers must use the standard option and sale contracts, give a 12-month defects liability period, and pay damages if they deliver late. Resale homes are sold “as is”.
  • Tax timing: the 4-year Seller’s Stamp Duty runs from when you buy, not when you get the keys. For married upgraders, the ABSD refund window on a new launch runs from TOP.
  • 2026 context: supply is high. URA reported 15,810 unsold units with planning approval at end-June 2026, and the 2026 land sales programme is more than 50% above the 10-year average. Buyers have choice.

How the money flows

The rules for buying from licensed developers are set out in URA’s home buyers’ guide. Resale deals usually follow the standard CEA option template and the Law Society’s conditions of sale.

StepNew launch (from the developer)Private resale
Secure the unitBooking fee of 5–10% for the option to purchase (OTP)Option fee, commonly 1%
ContractDeveloper sends the sale and purchase agreement within 14 days; you have 3 weeks to sign itYou exercise the OTP within the option period (two weeks in the standard template)
Payment at contract20% of the price in total, including the booking fee (developer may allow up to 8 weeks)Commonly up to 5% of the price in total
If you walk awayDeveloper may keep 25% of the booking feeYou lose the whole option fee
Rest of the pricePaid in stages as construction progresses; 25% when TOP is issued; the balance at legal completionPaid at completion, usually a few months after exercise
Stamp dutyDue within 14 days of signingDue within 14 days of exercising

Stamp duty is due within 14 days in both cases. On a S$1.8 million home, that is S$59,600 of Buyer’s Stamp Duty for a first-time citizen buyer.

The stage payments are the main financial draw of a new launch. You pay your own 25% (cash and CPF) first. After that, the bank pays each later instalment, and you pay interest only on what it has paid out so far. In the first years of a three- to four-year build, your instalments are small. The catch: you still need somewhere to live in the meantime, so you may be paying rent or your current mortgage at the same time. Model both scenarios in the Propwise mortgage calculator before you assume the new launch is cheaper to carry.

What you pay for “new”

Developers price new launches off land costs, construction costs and their margin. A new unit therefore usually costs more per square foot than an older one on the same street. Some of that premium buys real things: a full lease, modern layouts, new facilities and no repairs for years. Some of it is just newness, which fades.

You can measure the gap yourself. Look up the developer’s price per square foot, then compare it with recent resale deals within a kilometre on URA’s private transaction search. An old Propwise rule of thumb still works. When an older project sells for far less per square foot than a new launch next door, the gap can be larger than the cost of putting up the building. In that case, you are close to buying the older unit at land value.

Median price per sq ft: new sales and resalesPrivate non-landed homes, by quarter. S$ per sq ft.
  • New sales (from developers)
  • Resales
Median price per sq ft: new sales and resales. Median prices per square foot for new sales sit above resale prices in every quarter shown and swing more from quarter to quarter. Resale medians rise more steadily from late 2021.S$0S$500S$1,000S$1,500S$2,000S$2,500S$3,00020222023202420252026New S$2,341 psfResale S$1,793 psfMedian price per sq ft: new sales and resales. Median prices per square foot for new sales sit above resale prices in every quarter shown and swing more from quarter to quarter. Resale medians rise more steadily from late 2021.S$0S$500S$1,000S$1,500S$2,000S$2,500S$3,00020222023202420252026

Latest: New S$2,341 psf (Q2 2026); Resale S$1,793 psf (Q2 2026).

Medians of URA caveat prices divided by floor area, calculated by Propwise. A quarter appears once it is complete. New-sale medians depend on which projects launch in the quarter, so the two lines compare different mixes of homes.

Table view
PeriodNew sales (from developers)Resales
Q2 2026S$2,341 psfS$1,793 psf
Q1 2026S$2,664 psfS$1,766 psf
Q4 2025S$2,817 psfS$1,768 psf
Q3 2025S$2,511 psfS$1,767 psf
Q2 2025S$2,768 psfS$1,748 psf
Q1 2025S$2,433 psfS$1,723 psf
Q4 2024S$2,568 psfS$1,684 psf
Q3 2024S$2,226 psfS$1,663 psf
Q2 2024S$2,257 psfS$1,662 psf
Q1 2024S$2,274 psfS$1,626 psf
Q4 2023S$2,436 psfS$1,623 psf
Q3 2023S$2,416 psfS$1,566 psf
Q2 2023S$2,535 psfS$1,575 psf
Q1 2023S$2,579 psfS$1,547 psf
Q4 2022S$2,744 psfS$1,485 psf
Q3 2022S$2,198 psfS$1,476 psf
Q2 2022S$2,284 psfS$1,445 psf
Q1 2022S$1,970 psfS$1,358 psf
Q4 2021S$2,070 psfS$1,366 psf

Source: URA. Data to Q2 2026. Licences and notices

For the market as a whole, prices are not running away. URA’s flash estimate put the change in private prices at +1.4% in Q3 2026. Prices rose 2.2% in the Outside Central Region and fell 0.1% in the Core Central Region. Supply is ample: URA counted 15,810 unsold units with planning approval at end-June 2026, and the 2026 Government Land Sales programme confirms 9,320 more homes for 2026. So check how many units a launch has left, and how many nearby projects will complete at the same time as yours. Those owners may compete with you for tenants or buyers.

Private homes in the supply pipelineUncompleted private units, under construction and planned, at the end of each quarter. Excludes executive condominiums.
  • Non-landed (condos and apartments)
  • Landed
Private homes in the supply pipeline. Columns show how many private homes are in the pipeline each quarter. The total was about 47,000 in 2005, peaked at about 96,000 at the end of 2012, fell to about 43,000 in 2017, and stood at about 53,000 in the second quarter of 2026.020,00040,00060,00080,000100,00020052010201520202025Private homes in the supply pipeline. Columns show how many private homes are in the pipeline each quarter. The total was about 47,000 in 2005, peaked at about 96,000 at the end of 2012, fell to about 43,000 in 2017, and stood at about 53,000 in the second quarter of 2026.020,00040,00060,00080,000100,00020052010201520202025

Latest: Non-landed 51,677 (Q2 2026); Landed 1,109 (Q2 2026).

This is a wider count than URA's headline figure of homes with planning approval (42,472 at Q2 2026, which includes ECs): it also counts projects with provisional permission and sites that are only planned.

Table view
PeriodNon-landed (condos and apartments)Landed
Q2 202651,6771,109
Q1 202648,1111,332
Q4 202547,3581,322
Q3 202546,7871,336
Q2 202548,4741,316
Q1 202544,1341,335
Q4 202445,9341,337
Q3 202444,9971,368
Q2 202449,5981,370
Q1 202446,3351,369
Q4 202347,1911,370
Q3 202346,146980
Q2 202353,472823
Q1 202351,703887
Q4 202253,846946
Q3 202254,171934
Q2 202253,879962
Q1 202252,802970
Q4 202152,602953
Q3 202151,176925
Q2 202151,3861,004
Q1 202149,910996
Q4 202051,449954
Q3 202051,514940
Q2 202052,116939
Q1 202051,222863
Q4 201952,514899
Q3 201953,757788
Q2 201954,737864
Q1 201956,130998
Q4 201856,6021,000
Q3 201857,1561,034
Q2 201854,402921
Q1 201850,9071,180
Q4 201749,6181,234
Q3 201741,8581,196
Q2 201743,4651,199
Q1 201743,4571,255
Q4 201647,0161,352
Q3 201647,7021,383
Q2 201650,3391,507
Q1 201656,0151,582
Q4 201557,8672,292
Q3 201561,7152,462
Q2 201564,4372,774
Q1 201569,5202,823
Q4 201472,2792,909
Q3 201476,3832,981
Q2 201480,4763,157
Q1 201483,0443,355
Q4 201386,5413,477
Q3 201386,9813,744
Q2 201390,9483,825
Q1 201391,4083,804
Q4 201292,3703,860
Q3 201288,0843,785
Q2 201289,0873,784
Q1 201285,9543,885
Q4 201185,7243,807
Q3 201182,4603,872
Q2 201183,2414,001
Q1 201176,1284,044
Q4 201075,5143,963
Q3 201069,0543,933
Q2 201068,5443,914
Q1 201063,7293,942
Q4 200962,2404,186
Q3 200957,8804,209
Q2 200958,1894,423
Q1 200959,8804,614
Q4 200861,3574,872
Q3 200862,4814,982
Q2 200866,5165,127
Q1 200868,9605,248
Q4 200769,0665,056
Q3 200765,8684,853
Q2 200761,1594,453
Q1 200753,5564,352
Q4 200649,0534,452
Q3 200649,4024,357
Q2 200647,7534,498
Q1 200644,6654,397
Q4 200543,4484,458
Q3 200542,1214,737
Q2 200541,2274,684
Q1 200542,3494,350

Source: URA (via SingStat). Data to Q2 2026. Licences and notices

Protection and risk

Buying new from a licensed developer gives you:

  • Standard contracts approved by the Controller of Housing. The developer cannot slip in its own terms.
  • Your payments go into a project account. The URA guide warns that this protection does not apply to small developers of four units or fewer, so check the developer’s licence.
  • A promised date for vacant possession, with liquidated damages if the developer is late.
  • A 12-month defects liability period. The developer must fix reported defects within one month of your notice. If it does not, you can hire your own contractor and deduct the cost from money held by the Singapore Academy of Law.
  • A price cut if the final surveyed area is more than 3% smaller than the contract area.

The risks: you are buying a plan. The views, the neighbours and the finish quality are unknown. The show unit may not match your unit type. The market can fall before TOP. Our guides to new launches and developer defects cover these traps in detail.

Buying resale gives you: certainty. You can inspect the actual unit, check the real view at different times of day, read the management corporation’s accounts, and see what neighbours paid. Motivated sellers (estate cases, divorces, owners who have already bought elsewhere) can mean real discounts that a developer with deep pockets rarely offers.

The risks: there is no defects warranty, so inspect before you exercise. Older condos need more upkeep and may face special levies. The lease matters too. If the remaining lease does not cover the youngest buyer to age 95, CPF usage is pro-rated, and that also shrinks your pool of future buyers. Do not pay for en bloc hopes. The proposed lower consent thresholds for older developments have no start date yet. See our checklist for older developments.

Tax timing: SSD and ABSD

Two tax rules can decide the choice for you.

Seller’s Stamp Duty. For homes bought from 4 July 2025, SSD applies for four years, at 16% / 12% / 8% / 4%. The clock starts when you buy. On a new launch that completes three to four years after you sign, you may still owe SSD if you sell at TOP. The old trick of “buy at launch, sell before completion” now costs real money.

ABSD for upgraders. A married couple (at least one citizen) who buy a second home pay 20% ABSD upfront. They get it back only if they sell the first home within six months. For a completed resale home, those six months run from the purchase. For a new launch, they run from TOP or the certificate of statutory completion. This gives a couple years to stay in their old home while the new one is built. But it ties up 20% of the price in ABSD for that whole time. Singles do not get this refund (except citizens aged 55 and above buying a cheaper home). HDB and EC owners must also finish their minimum occupation period before they can buy private property at all.

Which suits you?

You are…Often a better fit
A couple upgrading from an HDB flat or condo, with ABSD cash to tie upNew launch (time to sell the old home)
Needing to move in within a yearResale
Wanting to rent it out immediatelyResale
Stretching to afford, and counting on pay rises during the buildNeither: this is the classic overcommitment trap
Valuing certainty about the exact unit, view and priceResale
Valuing a full lease, a warranty and modern facilitiesNew launch
Hunting for a below-market priceResale (motivated sellers)

Bottom line

Decide on cash flow and timing first, then on preference. A new launch suits buyers who can carry a home they cannot live in yet, and who value contract protection and a warranty. A resale suits buyers who want to see and verify everything, and use the home now. Whichever you choose, check recent transacted prices, get your loan approved before you pay anything, and read the contract with a lawyer. For more on this trade-off, see completed vs under-construction homes.

new launchesresale propertyprivate propertydefects liability periodbuying a property
3 reader commentsArchived — comments are closed

  1. Kelvn Kong

    Hi,

    Correct me if I’m wrong… I’m assuming you are referring to buying buildings under construction and not buying TOP projects from developers.

    In the case of a resale transaction, the buyer normally pays a 1 per cent option fee and 4 per cent more to exercise. However, the buyer still have to pay the remaining 15% within 6-8 weeks normally as required by most sellers. Which is almost the same as the “5+15” u mentioned. But that’s in the case of an 80/20 loan.

    However, for a 60/40 loan it is drastically different! If the buyer has an existing housing loan, then he can only loan up to 60% from banks. Which means the buyer has to fork out 40% within 6-8 weeks under normal circumstances.

    Whereas for buyers who buy from developers under normal progressive payment schemes, they need to pay a 5 per cent option fee and 15 per cent more eight weeks later. Subsequently, the next 10% is only required to be paid 6-12 months after exercising the option. And the last 10% is only required to be paid after 12 months from the exercising of the option.

    That means buyers buying from developers need only to pay 40% in approx 12-18 months.

    In short,

    Buying resale properties:
    Buyers have to pay 40% in 6-8 weeks.

    Buying new properties from developers:
    Buyers have to pay 20% in 8 weeks.
    The next 10% in 6-12 months.
    The last 10% after after 12 months.

    So, I don’t really agree that investing in tenanted apartments has a lower upfront commitment than buyer from developers. In fact, it’s on the contrary.

  2. Augustine Guo

    Good Comment.

  3. Stephen

    Kudo kelvn on the upfront payments for resale. Writer miss out on the rental collected for tenanted purchases which will help towards the loan payment by the investor. Maintenance of the resale property may be hefty too if it is tenanted for long period of time.

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