Many Singaporeans spend nearly their entire life paying off their HDB flats. It is always a good investment to put your money into a property that will come good for retirement. However, a lot of HDB owners are not aware that there are ways to monetize the HDB flat which can be extremely rewarding when you reach retirement age instead of having to continue bearing the financial commitment.

Selling your HDB

The price of property in Singapore is always appreciating. If you have your own HDB flat and have got a new property, you can sell it off for a profit. This is the most common way of making money from your HDB flat and if you find the right buyer at the right market conditions, it can be highly lucrative.

Silver Housing Bonus Scheme

Known in short as SHB where you can downsize from your current HDB to a smaller one. This is where you can put a certain amount into your CPF’s Retirement Account (up to S$60,000). You will also be eligible for up to S$30,000 of a cash bonus. Singaporean citizens who are above 55 years of age with a household monthly income within S$14,000 and several other conditions must be met to be eligible for this scheme.

Renting the HDB

If you are a Singapore citizen and fulfilled the 5-year minimum occupancy period of your HDB flat, you can opt to rent it out. You also have the option to rent out any spare bedrooms if yours is a 3-bedroom flat. Renting part of your apartment might not be everyone’s preference unless you are staying alone. Renting the entire apartment will have its challenges as you might want to find a tenant who takes care of the place and who pays the rent on time.

Sell the lease back to HDB

This is provided under the Lease Buyback Scheme from HDB for unit owners who are above 65 years old. You can continue living in the flat while selling part of the remaining lease to HDB. This is where you will then be eligible for up to S$20,000 of a cash bonus. The condition is that you will have to retain up to 35 years of the lease that will be covered by the youngest owner until they are 95. HDB will come to an agreement with you on factors like family health history, support and financial health to ensure continuity of the lease.