There may be many reasons why you wish to change your HDB flat ownership. Typically, selling your HDB flat is the most common method of transferring ownership to another party.
However, this might be a costly affair, especially if the transfer is intended to be among immediate family members and there is no intention of changing the use of the property itself. In such cases, where there is no transfer of money between the parties involved, HDB allows you to transfer your flat without having to sell it.
How You Can Transfer Your HDB Flat Ownership
Current HDB flat owners can change the ownership of their flat either through the resale of a part-share or without a sale.
For the resale of part-share, it refers to a partial sale/purchase between family members at a mutually agreed price provided the buyers meet the HDB’s eligibility schemes and criteria. This can be applicable in divorce cases, where one party buys over the ex-spouse’s share of the flat. However, this cannot be used by married couples to transfer ownership to the other party.
As for the transfer of ownership without a sale, there has to be a change in the existing family structure (such as divorce, marriage, or demise of an owner). This also includes situations where the current owner may need to change the ownership to retain the flat. However, the difference is that there is no exchange of money for the transfer of ownership.
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Who Is Eligible For HDB Flat Ownership Transfer Without Sale
The transfer can only be made to immediate family members of the current owners (such as spouse, parents, children, or siblings). The new owners must be at least 21 years old and can be either Singapore citizens or Singapore Permanent Residents (SPRs).
Furthermore, the new owners should not be current owners or essential occupiers of an HDB flat, a DBSS, or an Executive Condominium (EC) unit (within its 5-year Minimum Occupation Period) bought from a developer.
The new owners must also meet the requirements under one of the eligibility schemes while not infringing any HDB/government rules or being debarred by HDB.
5 Circumstances Where You Can Change Ownership Without A Sale
You can request a change in HDB flat ownership in the following circumstances:
#1 Addition Of A New Co-Owner
A transfer of ownership can be made to include new co-owners who are immediate family members. For example, if the parents are existing co-owners, they can include one of their children (i.e., a son or daughter) as a co-owner of the flat.
This could be in situations where the parents might be unable to finance the HDB flat and might require the income of the child to support the financing.
Another reason for adding a new co-owner is also to comply with existing HDB rules for each family unit to own only 1 HDB flat. This means singles who own their own HDB flat have to add in their spouse’s name as a co-owner or essential occupier in the same flat. If you and your spouse both own an HDB flat before getting married, you will have to sell or transfer one of your HDB flats away.
#2 Removal Of Existing Co-Owner
Similarly, an existing co-owner can be removed from the current list of HDB homeowners. For example, if a child was co-owning the property with one or both the parents, they could be removed as a co-owner.
This could be in situations where the child get married and wants to own a separate HDB flat. Another situation could be in divorce cases, where one party agrees to transfer ownership to the other without any monetary consideration.
#3 Replacing Existing Co-Owner With A New Co-Owner
The existing co-owner can transfer his ownership to another immediate family member, like a spouse, child, or sibling.
This could apply in situations where one of the co-owners (e.g., an elder child upon marriage) substitutes his ownership of the current HDB flat with a younger sibling to buy a separate flat on his own, while enabling the younger sibling to continue paying for the HDB flat.
#4 Total Change Of Flat Ownership
The full ownership of the HDB flat can also be transferred completely to the new owners.
This could apply where the sole owner (i.e., the father) passes away and the spouse or child has to do an ownership transfer to retain the flat.
#5 Change In Manner Of Holding (Joint Tenancy And Tenancy-In-Common)
HDB flat owners have to ability to change the way they hold their flat – from joint tenancy to tenancy-in-common (equal or unequal shares) and vice versa – without any monetary consideration.
If you are already holding your HDB flat under a tenancy-in-common, you can also apply to change the proportion of shares held under each owner.
What You Need To Prepare Before Transferring Homeownership
The change in homeownership is a conveyancing procedure, which can take up to 4 months to complete. As it involves both legal and financial considerations, here are the steps you would need to ensure before you apply for a transfer of homeownership.
Step 1: Check The Eligibility Of The Proposed Homeowner
As mentioned earlier, the proposed homeowners in the transfers must be immediate family members of the current homeowners. They must also meet the eligibility criteria and fulfil one of the eligibility schemes, such as the fiancé and fiancée, married couple and/or parent(s) with child(ren), multi-generation family, or orphaned siblings.
Step 2: Calculate How The Amount Required To Take Over The Flat Ownership
While transferring the ownership of a home can be done without a sale, it does not mean there are not financial considerations. In fact, many of the same financial considerations may apply, such as calculating the amount required to discharge the existing mortgage loan (if any), the CPF refund (including accrued interest) of the outgoing owner and the fees involved in the transaction, such as administrative and stamp & registration fees.
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Step 3: New Co-Owner Must Determine The Need For A Mortgage Loan And Mode Of Financing
Should a mortgage loan be required, the proposed owner could choose to either obtain a loan from HDB or from a financial institution. For the HDB loan, the amount granted is subject to the lower of the prevailing loan ceiling or credit assessment and the proposed owner’s full utilisation of CPF monies. Any shortfall would have to be paid in cash.
Step 4: Settle Other Outstanding Miscellaneous Fees/Payments
Before applying for a transfer of ownership, the current owners must settle any outstanding payments owed to HDB. This includes fire insurance premium, late payment charges, or bill charges.
Additionally, the exiting co-owners may need to pay resale levy if they were to buy another subsidised HDB flat or an EC unit directly from the developer.
Step 5: Appoint A Lawyer
Finally, both the current and proposed owners would need to engage their own lawyers to carry out the change in ownership, including discharging the existing mortgage loan (if any).
The applicants can choose to appoint either HDB or private lawyers to act on their behalf. However, HDB reserves the discretion to act for the parties. In the event it is not approved, the parties would need to engage private lawyers to complete the transfer process.
Once Ready, Submit The Online Application
Once you have all the supporting documents prepared, you can submit the application through the My HDBPage. Once the application is submitted, all the relevant parties (both existing and proposed owners) must give their consent to the change in ownership.
It would take around 2 to 6 weeks after the application to receive HDB’s approval, including the estimated fees payable. From there, it will take another 2 to 3 months for the completion of the change in ownership to take place, where all the relevant parties must be present.
Read Also: 5 HDB BTO Application Tips For Young Singaporean Couples To Get Their Homes
The post When (And How) Can You Change Your HDB Flat Ownership Without Selling? appeared first on DollarsAndSense.sg.
