In 2026, Singapore’s resale flat market is breaking new records — and for some buyers, the difference between an HDB flat and a condo has never felt smaller. Four-room, five-room, and even Executive units are now regularly transacting above the million-dollar mark, with certain mature estates seeing prices that rival private housing.
Last year alone, nearly 40% of flats in Bukit Timah, over a quarter in the Central Area, and one in five in Bishan sold for more than $1 million. These figures are eye-opening because, at that price point, some buyers are starting to wonder: for a little more, could you already own a private condo instead?
This question is especially relevant in established towns such as Queenstown, Toa Payoh, Bukit Merah, and Bishan, where the average resale prices of larger HDB units are edging dangerously close to those of new Executive Condominiums (ECs) and even some mass-market condos. To understand how close these markets have become, we looked at transaction data from 2024 to mid-2026.
Across the island, new three-bedroom condo units currently average about $4.06 million in the Core Central Region (CCR), $2.7 million in the Rest of Central Region (RCR), and around $1.95 million in the Outside Central Region (OCR). The lowest entry point for a new three-bedder in the OCR hovers at about $1.16 million.
By comparison, the average price for a four-room flat in the Central Area — one of the priciest HDB zones — now stands at roughly $984,000. That means the gap between a prime resale flat and a brand-new condo unit in the OCR has narrowed to less than $200,000.
To put this in perspective, consider two newly launched ECs: Tenet and North Gaia. Units there transacted between $1.15 million and $1.18 million — only slightly above the cost of top-end resale flats in the Central Area or Queenstown. While ECs come with full condo facilities and a higher status, their entry-level prices are now being closely approached by certain resale HDBs.
When we move up the scale to five-room flats, the picture remains similar. The average five-room unit in the Central Area costs around $1.27 million, which is already higher than the cheapest new three-bedder condo in the OCR. Even towns like Bukit Timah, Toa Payoh, and Queenstown now see five-room flats priced between $1.08 million and $1.09 million, just a few hundred thousand dollars shy of comparable EC units such as Lumina Grand and Novo Place, where prices start from around $1.58 million.
Executive and multi-generation flats — the largest in the HDB category — tell the same story. Bukit Timah’s Executive flats now average about $1.33 million, while new four-bedroom condos in the OCR start from $1.58 million. The gap between the two tiers of housing has shrunk to around $250,000, a difference that would have been unthinkable a decade ago.
It’s important to remember that ECs and condos were originally intended to be a distinct step above public housing, offering private facilities, full ownership, and future capital appreciation potential. The fact that resale flats are now brushing against these prices underscores just how far HDB values have climbed, particularly in desirable central locations.
However, this rapid convergence may not last. The government has stepped up the supply of new flats, including the massive October 2026 BTO launch of over 9,000 units, which should help cool prices in the resale market. Meanwhile, the discontinuation of SERS means that even in mature towns, older flats may not enjoy the same long-term upside as before.
For now, though, the line between public and private housing has never been thinner. In towns like Bishan, Queenstown, Bukit Merah, and Bukit Timah, some HDB resale prices are now within striking distance of ECs and entry-level condos. While private properties will likely pull ahead again over time, 2026 marks a remarkable moment in Singapore’s housing market — where owning a million-dollar HDB flat is no longer a headline, but a new normal.
