Two-room flexi flats at Tampines Nova drew 2,481 applicants, which works out to an application rate of over 20 times, PropNex says. (Image: HDB)
The two Build-To-Order (BTO) projects in Tampines saw the hottest demand in the Housing Board’s (HDB) latest sales exercise, followed by the Prime project in Bukit Merah.
Meanwhile, demand for the Toa Payoh and Sembawang projects paled in comparison.
As at 5pm on Feb 11, the launch had attracted 14,052 applicants vying for 4,692 new flats across six projects. That works out to about 3.0 applicants for each available flat. The sales exercise closes at 11.59pm on Feb 11 on the HDB Flat Portal.
The median first-timer family application rate stood at 0.8 for three-room and larger flats, moderating from the 1.9 recorded in last October’s exercise. This signals a more favourable balloting environment for applicants in the current launch, said SRI head of research and data analytics, Mohan Sandrasegeran.
Read also: Tallest HDB project in Pearl’s Hill, new supply in Toa Payoh with Caldecott BTO: COS 2026
For second-timer families, the median application rate was 13.3 for three-room and larger flats.
“With the application rate for first-timer families easing below 1, and the median income of households rising above $12,000 per month, it may be timely to consider adjusting the income ceiling for BTO upwards,” said Huttons Asia CEO Mark Yip.
The present overall application rate of 3.0, as at 5pm, is lower than in previous exercises, which stood at 3.6 times and 4.2 times in the October 2025 and July 2025 launches, respectively.
“Against this backdrop, a larger proportion of homeseekers can be expected to secure a balloting opportunity in the February BTO exercise. The lower application rates reflect the combined effects of increased flat supply and a broader range of housing options made available in this round,” Sandrasegeran said.
The lower overall application rate could be attributed to prospective buyers holding back, as many attractive sites are slated for launch in the June 2026 sales exercise, said Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist of Realion (OrangeTee & ETC) Group. Some of these sites include Bishan, Ang Mo Kio, and Bukit Merah, with the latter being the second project to be launched in the Greater Southern Waterfront.
Moreover, established estates like Tampines had fewer units available for sale in the current BTO exercise, whereas similarly well-located projects later in June will be bigger and offer more units. “This means that applicants will likely have a higher chance of success should they apply in June,” Sun added.
The concurrent release of Sale of Balance Flats (SBF) also played an important role in shaping demand patterns, said Sandrasegeran. Some households with more immediate housing needs appear to have channeled interest towards SBF flats instead, which helped to further moderate application pressure in the BTO exercise.
Read also: Over 9,000 flats launched for sale in February BTO and SBF exercises
In the latest launch, Tampines Nova and Tampines Bliss together recorded a strong application rate of 11.6 times, with 6,277 applicants competing for just 539 flats. Demand for these two projects made up about 45% of the total applicants in the February 2026 sales exercise.
While the application data does not provide a detailed breakdown by project, PropNex CEO Kelvin Fong expects that the interest may be stronger for flats in Tampines Nova, a Plus project, given its proximity to the Tampines MRT station and amenities in Tampines Central.
As a reference, the 122 units of two-room flexi flats at Tampines Nova drew 2,481 applicants, which works out to an application rate of over 20 times, Fong added.
With demand for two-room flexi flats largely driven by single applicants and heavily concentrated at Tampines Nova, it reflects “a clear preference among singles for well-connected and amenity-rich locations, particularly within mature regional centres, SRI’s Sandrasegeran.
A similar pattern was observed in the four-room segment, where first-timer family application rates were largely concentrated at the two Tampines projects. This could be due to the projects’ positioning within the heart of the town and the fact that they are surrounded by established retail and lifestyle hubs, which will appeal to households that prioritise convenience and accessibility, Sandrasegeran added.
Over in Bukit Merah, Redhill Peaks, a Prime project, also drew healthy interest with 3,656 applicants gunning for its 1,052 flats (3.5 times).
Read also: HDB to launch three BTO projects at Lakeview and Shunfu from June
In October 2025, another project — also called Redhill Peaks — and Berlayar Residences collectively achieved an application rate of 4.7 times. Both are Prime projects.
The present Redhill Peaks launch’s application rate of 3.5 times “is quite decent”, said PropNex’s Fong.
“It is possible that some would-be applicants may be holding out for the upcoming Bukit Merah project in the June 2026 BTO exercise,” he added. That project is situated at the doorstep of the Telok Blangah MRT station and in the Greater Southern Waterfront precinct.
ERA Singapore key executive officer, Eugene Lim, described the response in Bukit Merah as “relatively lukewarm”, in what is normally a popular estate for BTO flats due to its city fringe location and status as a mature estate full of amenities.
In Lim’s view, the measured demand could be attributed to the large number of BTO projects on offer in recent times. “With such a high saturation of BTO supply in Bukit Merah recently, there could be fewer people in the market for a new home in the estate,” he said.
Kim Keat Crest, a Plus project in Toa Payoh, saw an application rate of 1.7 times with 1,934 applications as at 5pm on Feb 11.
This may be one of the lowest application rates for a BTO launch in Toa Payoh, at least since 2020 based on data tracked by PropNex Research, Fong said.
Realion’s Sun reckons it suggests some market saturation and slower demand for this area, as there have been many projects launched in Toa Payoh, with more planned for nearby Mount Pleasant.
Moreover, earlier Toa Payoh launches, like Toa Payoh Ascent and Mount Pleasant Crest, drew stronger interest as they are closer to the MRT station, whereas Kim Keat Crest in this exercise is primarily accessible by bus. Some buyers may also be deterred by noise from the nearby expressways and the longer minimum occupation period (MOP), Sun added.
In Sembawang, the two Standard-classified projects, which can yield a combined 1,950 new flats, posted the weakest application rates in the present BTO exercise at 1.1 times, as at 5pm.
Both Sembawang Deck and Sembawang Voyage recorded first-timer family application rates of 0.6 and 0.4, respectively, for their four-room and five-room flats. “This is despite them being the only projects in this round offering five-room units, which are traditionally oversubscribed,” said ERA’s Lim.
Analysts noted that the modest turnout for Sembawang Voyage and Sembawang Deck may potentially be due to the projects’ location near to industrial properties, limited range of amenities in the immediate surroundings, and being some distance from the Sembawang MRT station and Sembawang town centre.
The moderated response may also reflect Sembawang North’s status as an emerging estate, where amenities are still being developed, said Lim from ERA. “Moreover, with more flats scheduled to launch in Sembawang during June 2026’s BTO exercise, buyers may have felt little urgency to aplpy this round due to ample supply,” he added.
Realion’s Sun pointed out that there are ample units available in Sembawang, as two more projects in the area with about 2,000 units will be launched in June.
In the present SBF exercise, the 4,320 units offered attracted 15,830 applicants, translating to an overall application rate of about 3.7 times.
It is lower than that of the July 2025 SBF exercise, when the 4,662 SBF units offered drew an application rate of 4 times.
Still, the consistently high number of SBF applications highlights their desire to buy a flat as quickly as possible, Yip from Huttons noted. “Hence, the government may want to consider building more BTO flats with a shorter waiting time (SWT) to meet demand,” he added.
Among the SBF flats offered this time, the 523 units of two-room Flexi flats are the most popular, garnering an application rate of 11.4 times, followed by the 245 units of larger flat types (five-room, 3Gen, and Executive) which achieved an application rate of 9.2 times.
“Perhaps some applicants went for the larger flats offered under the SBF instead of the BTO projects in Sembawang,” said PropNex’s Fong.
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