[Bigiron]

Couple bought a 3-room Bukit Merah BTO flat for $460k+, but lost $20k+ after they broke up 

https://www.asiaone.com/money/couple-bou...they-broke

[Tee tiong huat]

BTO they applied for was for Bukit Merah’s Telok Blangah Beacon in the May 2021 exercise. As a single-block project, 

it offered 105 3-room units and 70 4-room units for sale and was due to complete in Q1 2027. The price range (excluding grants) for a 3-room unit was between $419k and $504k. For 4-rooms, it was $602k-$710k.

The BTO project is within a 10-minute walk of Telok Blangah MRT and Labrador Park MRT. Being at the city fringe, it is near the Greater Southern Waterfront and VivoCity.

Furthermore, Prime Location Public Housing (PLH) had yet to be introduced until November 2021. Notably, the subsequent Bukit Merah BTO launch in May 2022 was PLH-based (eg. minimum 10-year MOP).

[Tee tiong huat]

Balloting surpris “BTO location was a 10-minute walk away from my partner’s home. So her mother asked her to try BTO. After all, as we’ve read in the news, it was not always a guaranteed success,” 

Indeed, by the end of the sales launch on May 31, 2021, application rates at Telok Blangah Beacon were 5.8 for 3-rooms and a whopping 49.6 times for 4-room flats!

Telok Blangah Beacon’s (application) rates were the highest in the HDB May 2021 BTO exercise, with many first- and second-timers vying for the 4-room flats.

[Tee tiong huat]

Unexpectedly, or surprisingly, we managed to get a good ballot number due to its location being near her parents’ home. They went ahead with option fee in 2021 ($1k) and then the downpayment in 2023,” Javier said.

“The 3-room BTO flat was $460k+. After paying our option fee,  both pay a downpayment that’s 5per cent of e price, which came up to about $20k+. @stamp duty plus other fees came up to $8k+.”

Initially, Javier’s girlfriend wanted him to use all of his CPF savings to pay for the downpayment. Fortuitously, Javier and his girlfriend used the CPF housing grant they got (about $20k+), which was split 50:50 between to make the downpayment.

[zzzzzzz]

jin envey him buyed cheap city finge bto for only 460k

[Tee tiong huat]

The stakes and split-up (Unfortunately)
For the couple, several months after signing lease agreement, Javier’s girlfriend wanted for them to part ways🤣

However, she told him that she wanted to retain the flat. The idea is that they’ll hold on to the flat as long as possible but live separate livesWhen Javier made the decision to cancel the purchase, he’d initially thought that he would need to fork out cash to pay back the CPF used to pay for the HDB loan.

So he called HDB to verify this. “Thankfully, they told me I will only lose the downpayment, while the stamp duty, after some other deductions, can be refunded. So I went ahead to cancel the purchase.” There was however a penalty for cancelling his purchase.

Javier (and his now former girlfriend) will need to wait at least a year before they can apply and buy a BTO/resale flat again.

“At the back of my mind, I knew I’d want to apply for a BTO with my own partner eventually, and I can’t wait for another year after the cancellation. So I went ahead and cancelled the flat purchase immediately after we broke up.”

All in all, Javier lost slightly over $10k from his downpayment plus additional fees (his stamp duty was refunded) while his former partner lost about the same amount from her CPF savings.

Javier, however, wasn’t too keen on doing that. “I don’t want to wait for her to find another partner and then transfer my name over.” 


When Javier made the decision to cancel the purchase, he’d initially thought that he would need to fork out cash to pay back the CPF used to pay for the HDB loan.

So he called HDB to verify this. “Thankfully, they told me I will only lose the downpayment, while the stamp duty, after some other deductions, can be refunded. So I went ahead to cancel the purchase.”

There was however a penalty for cancelling his purchase. Javier (and his now former girlfriend) will need to wait at least a year before they can apply and buy a BTO/resale flat again.

“At the back of my mind, I knew I’d want to apply for a BTO with my own partner eventually, and I can’t wait for another year after the cancellation. So I went ahead and cancelled the flat purchase immediately after we broke up.”

All in all, Javier lost slightly over $10k from his downpayment plus additional fees (his stamp duty was refunded) while his former partner lost about the same amount from her CPF savings.

[Tee tiong huat]

ALSO READ: Record number of 4-room HDB resale flats sold for at least $1m in Q1 2023: Here's where to find them

Lessons learned
In hindsight, Javier says it’s better to cancel the BTO purchase and lose that money than be with the wrong person for life.

“It’s never too late to start afresh. Just because you paid for a house that has yet to be built does not mean you must remain knee-deep committed to the purchase all the way through.”

Javier feels that through this experience, he’s become a much more mature individual now and he’s confident he’ll find a better partner in time.

[Tee tiong huat]

jin envey him buyed cheap city finge bto for only 460k

Lessons at least S$28,000 loss no problen.

[Tee tiong huat]

Telok Blangah Beacon in the May 2021 exercise.

As a single-block project, it offered 105 3-room units and 70 4-room units for sale and was due to complete in Q1 2027. The price range (excluding grants) for a 3-room unit was between $419k and $504k. For 4-rooms, it was $602k-$710k.

[zzzzzzz]

Lessons at least S$28,000 loss no problen.

28k divide by 2 is 14k each for an adults is not consider as very bad sine nowadays gradualtes many 5k starting celery and above

[p1acebo]

More than a decade ago, one of my friends didn’t manage to get her partner to take the keys for the EC flat in YCK for the same reason above.  They lost over $100k. Developer took back the unit.

She wanted the guy to proceed with the “sham” marriage and purchase as they were under the fiancée and fiancé scheme but he refused.

[zzzzzzz]

if got success marry and buyed the 460k bto can earned 400 to 500k by MOP, so considered the potential upside losed combined 28k in the gamble was worth it

[Tee tiong huat]

28k divide by 2 is 14k each for an adults is not consider as very bad sine nowadays gradualtes many 5k starting celery and above

With $$$ is cheap... . To them.

[p1acebo]

More than a decade ago, one of my friends didn’t manage to get her partner to take the keys for the EC flat in YCK for the same reason above.  They lost over $100k. Developer took back the unit.

She wanted the guy to proceed with the “sham” marriage and purchase as they were under the fiancée and fiancé scheme but he refused.

I suggested she ask her fiancé to get the keys show marriage certificate and then get annulment.  But he die die rather lose his 50k+.  

He must have met someone new while waiting for the EC completion.

[Tee tiong huat]

With $$$ is cheap... . To them.

Compare to ... Dover.

[Tee tiong huat]

Telok Blangah Beacon in the May 2021 exercise.

As a single-block project, it offered 105 3-room units and 70 4-room units for sale and was due to complete in Q1 2027. The price range (excluding grants) for a 3-room unit was between $419k and $504k. For 4-rooms, it was $602k-$710k.

What caught our eye during this round of BTO launches were the prices. Specifically, Ulu Pandan Glades – a project located in the mature estate of Queenstown – was the most expensive across the board. 3-room units range from $372,000 to $498,000, and 4-room units are priced from $541,000 to an eye-watering $711,000.
https://uchify.com/first-bto-launch-2023/

[Tee tiong huat]

More than a decade ago, one of my friends didn’t manage to get her partner to take the keys for the EC flat in YCK for the same reason above.  They lost over $100k. Developer took back the unit.

She wanted the guy to proceed with the “sham” marriage and purchase as they were under the fiancée and fiancé scheme but he refused.

Not cheap....lehh. S$100k. Got money no problem.