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Andrea Goh · New Launch

New Launch Reality Check

Key in the new launch you are looking at. See the cash you need before the keys. See when each payment falls due. Check whether the loan fits the debt-ratio test. See how long you wait. Get the questions the brochure does not answer. Rules as at 8 Oct 2026.

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Andrea Goh · New Launch

Your New Launch Reality Check

What else can I get for the same price?

Key in the unit type and the price you have in mind. I list other new launches with a close listed entry price. See which are bigger, which are in a different area, which wait longer, and whether the new floor area rules apply. Prices are list prices from 4 Oct 2026 and may change.

Harmonised or not? Why a bigger number on paper may not be a bigger home

What changed. URA, SLA, BCA and SCDF now use the same floor area definitions. They apply to development applications submitted to URA on or after 1 Jun 2023, and to government land sale sites launched on or after 1 Sep 2022 (URA circular DC22-09). The circular says all floor areas are measured to the middle of the wall, all strata areas are included as gross floor area, and all voids are excluded from the strata area.

What it means when you compare sizes. In a newer project, the stated square feet leave out void areas. So a home that feels the same can show fewer square feet than a similar older home. There is no single rule to turn an older number into a newer one. The gap depends on how much void and ledge area the home has. Compare floor plans, not just the number. Ask me for the like-for-like size of any two homes.

Reference points, with their sources. None of them is a rule for your home. A mezzanine-style unit with a small void was 155 sq m before and 150 after (3.2% smaller, an illustrative sample in SLA Circular 2/2023). PropNex Research's rule of thumb is about 7% smaller on paper. ERA Research found one named project's 3-bedroom going from 1,023 to 915 sq ft (10.6%) in its own published study. The same SLA circular has a strata bungalow example. It went from 1,560 to 1,035 sq m (33.7% smaller) because of a very large void. That is not typical for a condo.

Which projects use the new rule? It is based on the date the site was launched for sale (for government land sale sites) or the date the application was received (for other sites). I only mark a project 'harmonised' or 'not harmonised' when an official page or a dated record shows it. Where I could not find that, the project says 'not confirmed'. Ask me to confirm.

What a brochure does not tell you

Seven things to check on any new launch
  • The completion date is two dates. TOP (when you can move in) and legal completion (when the last payment falls due) can be a year or more apart. Ask for both, in the contract.
  • The shops and the train line may open later than your home. Ask for the opening date of each, and compare it with TOP.
  • Walking minutes are the seller's estimate. A distance on a map is a straight line. Time the walk yourself, at the hour you would use it.
  • The price is a list price on a date. It can change, and the unit you want may be gone. Ask for the price list and its date.
  • Sizes are by type, not by unit. A range does not tell you the size of the unit you are being offered.
  • The view claim covers a share of the homes. Ask which stacks and what is in front of them.
  • Stamp duties and legal fees are extra. ABSD, if it applies, is paid in cash and is not part of the loan.

Want my notes on a project?

Send me the project name and the unit type. I will send you my notes: the walks I have timed, the questions I would ask, and what I could not verify. Keyword: use the project name.

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Words used here, in plain terms
  • BSD (Buyer's Stamp Duty): the duty you pay on the price of the home.
  • ABSD (Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty): an extra tax. The rate depends on who you are and how many homes you own.
  • TOP (Temporary Occupation Permit): the paper that says the building is safe to move into.
  • Legal completion: when you take legal ownership and the last payment falls due.
  • TDSR (Total Debt Servicing Ratio): a bank rule. All your monthly loan payments must stay under 55% of your income. The bank tests this at a higher interest rate.
  • CPF: your retirement savings, part of which can pay for a home.
  • Loan limit (LTV): the share of the price the bank will lend.
Sources and the date each rule was checked

This is general information only. It is not tax, legal, money or investment advice. The rules and numbers come from the official pages listed above, checked on the dates shown. They can change. The results are a guide. The authorities, your bank and your lawyer have the final say. If a page does not say, or your facts are not clear, the tool says "ask". It does not guess. How I explain things is my own opinion. Nothing here predicts prices or rents.

Verify me: search 9693 7787 on the CEA Public Register. If an advert for this property shows a different number, it is not me.

Andrea Goh · PropNex Realty Pte Ltd (L3008022J) · CEA R000289H