SINGAPORE – The Housing Board will extend the validity of all existing and new HDB Flat Eligibility (HFE) letters from the current six months to nine months, to give new and resale flat buyers more time to secure their home.

The move will also reduce the number of subsequent applications after the existing HFE letters expire.

This extension of the validity period will take effect from Tuesday, HDB said in a statement on Saturday.

Existing HFE letters will have their validity stretched to nine months from the date of issuance of the letter. Applicants with a valid HFE letter will be informed of this automatic extension progressively via SMS.

The HFE letter informs HDB flat buyers if they are eligible to buy a new or resale flat, how much in Central Provident Fund housing grants they can use, and how much HDB housing loan they qualify for.

The HFE letter replaced the HDB Loan Eligibility letter, as HDB moves to streamline the flat-buying process and give buyers a clearer picture of their purchase costs and financing options.

Buyers of new flats will need this letter for their application during an HDB sales launch. Those buying resale flats need the letter to get an option to purchase from the seller, as well as when they submit a resale application to HDB.

Since the implementation of the HFE letter on May 9, HDB has processed more than 65,000 applications from both resale and new flat buyers. A total of 60,600 such applications were approved and issued with HFE letters.

About 11,000 buyers with valid HFE letters applied for a flat in the October 2023 Build-To-Order (BTO) sales exercise.

Flat buyers interested in applying for a flat in the December 2023 BTO sales launch are advised to apply for an HFE letter and submit all required documents by Nov 11, HDB added.

It takes around a month to process an HFE letter application after HDB receives all the required documents, and processing may take longer during peak periods like a BTO sales launch.

In October, HDB released details of eight projects that will be launched in its final sales exercise of 2023. It will offer about 6,000 flats in Bedok, Bishan, Bukit Merah, Bukit Panjang, Jurong West, Queenstown and Woodlands in December. These include two projects near Woodlands MRT station.

Flats on the grounds of the former Alexandra Post Office in Bukit Merah and the first new Sin Ming flats in more than 30 years will also be on offer.