Lukewarm demand for some BTO flats at Ang Mo Kio, Sembawang in June 2026 sales exercise

EdgeProp Singapore

/ EdgeProp Singapore

June 24, 2026 7:18 PM SGT

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Across projects offering two-room flats, Kebun Baru Breeze (pictured) received the lowest interest from first-timer singles. (Image: HDB)

In the latest Build-To-Order (BTO) exercise, applications for certain flat types at the two Plus projects in Ang Mo Kio came in below expectations, while the Standard projects in Sembawang saw softer take-up.

HDB’s June 2026 sales exercise offered 6,952 new BTO flats across seven projects in Ang Mo Kio, Bishan, Bukit Merah, Sembawang and Woodlands.

Applications will close at 11.59pm on June 24. The overall application rate was 3.3 as at 5pm on June 24, with 22,634 prospective buyers eyeing the available flats.

Tepid interest in Ang Mo Kio, Sembawang

In Ang Mo Kio, back in August 2020, the application rate among first-timer families for a four-room flat at Kebun Baru Edge was 8.6. In contrast, the rate for the two projects this time round — Kebun Baru Breeze and Kebun Baru Ridge — is only slightly more than one, as at 12pm on June 24 based on data from Huttons Asia.

Mark Yip, Huttons chief executive, said “it is plausible” that some may have applied for Lakeview Cascadia in Bishan, which is a short distance away.

Across projects offering two-room flats, Kebun Baru Breeze received the lowest interest from first-timer singles. Within this segment, the two-room flats were 3.8 times oversubscribed as of 5pm on June 24. This is well below the overall median of 7.3 times, according to ERA key executive officer Eugene Lim.

As for three-room and larger flats, demand was likewise tepid for both Plus projects in Ang Mo Kio, given their 10- to 15-minute walking distance from Mayflower MRT Station. This is on top of the tighter resale conditions for Plus flats, Lim noted.

That said, at Kebun Baru Ridge, three-room flats were significantly oversubscribed, at 22.9 times, by second-timer families. Lim reckoned this likely reflects interest from families with young children, who were drawn to its proximity to CHIJ St Nicholas Girls School. “The shorter waiting time of about three years and one month may have added to the appeal,” he continued.

Meanwhile, in Sembawang, the first-timer family application rates for both Sembawang Portico and Sembawang Brook fell below one across all three-room and larger flat types, as of 5pm.

ERA’s Lim described the measured demand as “not unexpected”, with buyers likely prioritising location over shorter waiting times. This is considering the longer distance of both projects from Sembawang MRT Station and the fact that amenities nearby are still limited at present.

Yip from Huttons pointed out that the shorter waiting times for both projects “did not sway applicants’ decisions towards them”, with many opting to give them a miss.

Besides, the steady influx of new HDB housing in Sembawang has effectively tempered near-time demand, Lim noted. Including the BTO supply in February, 3,985 flats have already been launched in the town this year.

“With another 1,310 units announced for October, homebuyers without pressing needs can easily afford to take a more considered approach,” he added.

For first-timer families who prioritise a higher probability of success in the ballot exercise, Mohan Sandrasegeran, SRI’s head of research and data analytics, reckoned that the Sembawang projects may present an attractive opportunity as the competition levels have been lower than previous launches.

Bukit Merah and Bishan BTOs prove popular

Bishan’s 1,221-unit Prime project, Lakeview Cascadia, received 5,799 applications as at 5pm on June 24. That works out to an application rate of 4.7 times.

PropNex chief executive Kelvin Fong attributed the healthy turnout for the project to its “attractive locational attributes” and pent-up demand for new flats in the Lakeview area. It is the first BTO launch in the area in over 40 years.

Applicants seemed undeterred by the 10-year minimum occupation period (MOP) and additional restrictions that these Prime flats are subject to, Fong said.

New BTO opportunities in Bishan are relatively uncommon compared to other housing estates.

As a mature and well-established town, it also offers residents access to a wide range of amenities, including malls, recreational facilities, healthcare services and dining options, according to Sandrasegeran.

He also highlighted Bishan’s longstanding reputation as one of Singapore’s most desirable residential towns, and Lakeview Cascadia’s proximity to Marymount MRT Station as well as several educational institutions.

In absolute terms, the highest number of applicants flocked to Berlayar Rise — the second BTO at the former Keppel Club area — in Bukit Merah.

The 1,976-unit Prime project, which is in the upcoming Greater Southern Waterfront precinct and near Telok Blangah MRT Station, pulled in 8,824 applications as at 5pm. That reflects an application rate of 4.5 times.

“The applicants for Berlayar Rise made up nearly 40% of the total applications in the June 2026 BTO exercise,” Fong shared.

Huttons’ Yip commented that the applicants are likely planning to live in this coveted location for the long term and were hence undeterred by the subsidy clawback.

Among the Bukit Merah town’s three-room and bigger BTO flats, which include Berlayar Rise, the four-room flats drew the most applicants at 4,943. That is the highest across all flat types and towns in this sales exercise, according to Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist of Realion (OrangeTee & ETC).

The first-timer application rate was similar to Berlayer Residences, where the four-room flats similarly yielded an application rate of 3.1 in October last year.

This indicates that interest remained strong for flats in the area despite their higher prices as compared to other projects and the high clawback rates for Prime flats, Sun said.

In Woodlands, Sun found it surprising that the Woodgrove Acres project saw stronger demand as compared to the Ang Mo Kio projects, given that the latter two are in more favourable locations.

The Woodlands project is not near an MRT station or amenities, whereas Kebun Baru Ridge and Kebun Baru Breeze are within walking distance to an MRT station and near a primary school.

“Perhaps buyers were deterred by the long MOP for the two Ang Mo Kio projects while their prices are substantially higher than Woodgrove Acres,” Sun said.

She added that families prioritising cross-border accessibility may be keen to stay near Woodlands, as it is close to Malaysia.

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