HDB Sale Proceeds Calculator: Cash, CPF Refund and Resale Timeline
Your flat
HDB or bank, from your latest statement.
CPF to refund
Each owner's CPF goes back to their own Ordinary Account, with accrued interest.
Used to estimate monthly CPF used and interest.
Owner 1
Downpayment, stamp duty and legal fees paid from CPF.
Refund due: S$171,992 (S$144,000 principal + S$27,992 interest)
Owner 2
Downpayment, stamp duty and legal fees paid from CPF.
Refund due: S$119,194 (S$100,000 principal + S$19,194 interest)
Costs of selling
Negotiable. Set 0 if you sell on your own.
- Selling priceS$600,000
- Repay outstanding loan−S$150,000
- Refund to CPF (principal + accrued interest)−S$291,186
- Agent commission incl. GST−S$6,540
- Legal and HDB fees−S$416
Resale timeline
Day 0
Register an Intent to Sell on the HDB Flat Portal.
Day 7
Cooling-off ends: you can grant an Option to Purchase.
+21 days
Buyer has 21 calendar days to exercise the option.
+3 weeks
Resale documents ready to endorse after HDB accepts the application.
+8 weeks
Resale completion. Cash in your bank by the next working day.
+7 to 14 working days
CPF refund credited to your Ordinary Account.
Cash you walk away with
S$151,859
- After repaying the loan
- S$450,000
- CPF refund, owner 1
- S$171,992
- CPF refund, owner 2
- S$119,194
- Of which accrued interest
- S$47,186
- Fees, levy and recovery
- S$6,956
How this works
When you sell, the price first repays your outstanding housing loan. What is left goes back to each owner's CPF Ordinary Account: the CPF principal you used for the flat (downpayment, monthly instalments, stamp duty and legal fees) plus accrued interest. Only the balance after that is paid to you in cash.
Accrued interest is the interest your CPF would have earned had it stayed in the Ordinary Account: 2.5% a year, computed monthly and compounded yearly. It runs from each withdrawal until the sale, which is why the refund can be far larger than the CPF you used. If you sell at market value and the proceeds are not enough to refund everything, you do not have to top up the shortfall in cash.
From the cash, deduct the resale levy if HDB is collecting it from this sale (you are buying a second subsidised flat and collected its keys first), the subsidy recovery on a Plus or Prime flat bought from HDB, your agent's commission (negotiable, plus 9% GST if the agency is GST-registered) and legal fees. HDB's own conveyancing fee is about S$0.45 per S$1,000 above the first S$60,000.
Timeline: register an Intent to Sell, wait 7 days, then grant an Option to Purchase, which the buyer has 21 calendar days to exercise. Resale completion is about 8 weeks after HDB accepts the resale application. Cash is credited the next working day and the CPF refund within 7 to 14 working days.
FAQs
How much CPF do I need to refund when I sell my HDB flat?
All the CPF principal used for the flat plus accrued interest at 2.5% a year. For example, S$100,000 used upfront and left for 10 years becomes a refund of about S$128,000.
What if my sale proceeds are not enough to refund my CPF?
If you sell at market value, CPF Board does not require you to top up the shortfall in cash. You still receive no cash proceeds, because everything after the loan goes back to CPF.
How long does it take to sell an HDB flat?
About 8 weeks from HDB accepting the resale application to completion, after a 7-day wait from your Intent to Sell and up to 21 days for the buyer to exercise the Option to Purchase. Allow roughly 3 months end to end once you have a buyer.
When do I receive the cash from selling my flat?
HDB credits the cash proceeds to your bank account by the next working day after resale completion. The CPF refund is made within 7 to 14 working days.
Is the resale levy deducted from my sale proceeds?
Only if you sell this flat after collecting the keys to a second subsidised flat. Then HDB deducts the levy (for example S$40,000 for a 4-room bought as a family) from the net proceeds. If you sell first, you pay the levy in cash at key collection instead.