Your beginner's guide to the Singapore property market

If you're here, it means that you're moderately keen on finding out about the real estate market in Singapore.

Property - or real estate in that matter, in Singapore's context refers to Residential, Commercial and Industrial properties.

Residential Properties

Your residential properties are split into the following

1. Public Housing
   HDB Flats
   The Housing & Development Board (HDB) is Singapore's public housing authority, providing affordable housing options for the majority of the population. These flats range from 1-room to 5-room units, executive apartments, and studio apartments, primarily aimed at meeting the needs of different family sizes and income levels.
   
   

2. Private Housing
   Condominiums
   These are private residential developments that are usually equipped with shared facilities like security services, swimming pools, gyms, and playgrounds. They are typically more expensive than HDB flats and cater to the middle and upper-middle classes.

Executive Condominiums (ECs)
ECs are a type of hybrid housing, blending public and private housing characteristics. They are built and sold by private developers but are initially offered at subsidized prices. After a minimum occupancy period, they can be fully privatized.

Apartments
Similar to condominiums but generally do not offer as many communal facilities. They are individually owned units within a building.

3. Landed Properties
   Terraced Houses
   These are houses connected in a row that share common walls between them. Each unit has its own roof and garden.
   
   Semi-Detached Houses
   Each building comprises two houses joined to one another by a common wall, but each still retains its own separate garden.
   
   Detached Houses (Bungalows)
   These are standalone houses that do not share any walls with other houses. They come with ample surrounding space and often include a private garden.

Good Class Bungalows (GCBs)
These are the pinnacle of landed homes in Singapore, located in prestigious areas and characterized by large grounds and strict planning conditions to preserve their exclusivity and low-density nature.

4. Shophouses
   Historical Shophouses: These are mixed-use buildings where the ground floor is typically used for commercial purposes, and the upper floors are residential. These properties are often conserved due to their historical and cultural significance.

5. Cluster Housing
   Cluster Houses: These are strata-titled landed properties which share communal facilities such as playgrounds, swimming pools, and gyms, similar to condominiums, but in a landed housing setting.

*Take note that while considered a private property, the launch and the rules surrounding eligibility of Executive Condominiums are under HDB's jurisdiction