Government Tightens EC Rules: 10-Year MOP, 90% First-Timer Quota, Deferred Payments Scrapped

The first and most impactful change doubles the Minimum Occupancy Period from five to 10 years. EC owners will now need to live in their units for a full decade before they can sell to Singapore citizens and permanent residents, rent out their entire unit, or purchase another residential property. Full privatisation, which allows sales to any buyer including foreigners and corporate entities, will only occur after 15 years, up from the current 10.

Second, the deferred payment scheme (DPS) has been scrapped entirely. Under DPS, buyers paid 20 per cent upfront and deferred the remaining 80 per cent until the project obtained its temporary occupation permit, typically at a 2 to 3 per cent premium. At the last two EC launches, Rivelle Tampines and Coastal Cabana in Pasir Ris, more than 75 per cent of buyers opted for DPS. All EC buyers must now use the normal progressive payment scheme, paying at construction milestones.

Third, the first-timer quota has been raised from 70 to 90 per cent of units, and the priority booking period has been extended dramatically from one month to two years. This means developers can only sell 90 per cent of their units to first-time buyers during the first 39 months from site award, before the developer ABSD clawback kicks in at the five-year mark.

The measures follow a review prompted by growing concerns over rising prices and the flipping of ECs for substantial gains. Median prices of new ECs surged 120 per cent from S$797 psf in 2015 to S$1,754 psf in 2025, outpacing the 96 per cent increase in new OCR 99-year non-landed private homes over the same period. As at 26 April 2026, median prices stood at S$1,843 psf for new ECs and S$2,278 psf for new OCR 99-year non-landed homes.

The proportion of first-time EC buyers has fallen sharply, from about 50 per cent in 2020 to between 30 and 40 per cent in 2024 and 2025. Second-timers, who typically have larger budgets from the sale proceeds of their first homes, have been increasingly crowding out genuine first-time buyers. Between 2021 and 2025, about 75 per cent of ECs were sold within five years after their MOP, up from 45 per cent in the preceding five-year period, confirming that speculative flipping had intensified.

Industry experts expect these measures to cool land bidding significantly. EC land prices had climbed to record highs, with bids for two Woodlands plots reaching S$782 psf per plot ratio in August 2025 and S$794 psf ppr in January 2026. With the expanded first-timer quota and extended priority period, developers will face a longer sales timeline and a narrower buyer pool, which should lead to more conservative bidding.

The first two sites affected by the new measures are located at Canberra Drive (tender to be released in May) and Sembawang Drive (June). However, five upcoming EC launches will not be affected as tenders for their plots have already closed. These are located in Senja Close, Woodlands Drive 17, Sembawang Road, and Miltonia Close. PropNex chief executive Kelvin Fong noted that demand could be strong for these unaffected launches as buyers rush to secure units under the old rules.

For first-time buyers, the changes are broadly positive. The 90 per cent quota and two-year priority window give them a significantly better chance of securing an EC unit without competing against second-timers with larger budgets. Developers may also price more competitively, knowing that 90 per cent of their units must be sold to first-timers within the ABSD clawback window.

However, the scrapping of DPS could dampen demand from HDB upgraders who still have an outstanding loan on their current flat. As Huttons Asia CEO Mark Yip noted, these buyers would now need to service two loans simultaneously during the construction period, rather than deferring the EC loan until completion. The 10-year MOP also means buyers must commit to a much longer holding period, reducing the attractiveness of ECs as a medium-term investment vehicle. The income ceiling remains unchanged at S$16,000.