Silver Housing Bonus

The Silver Housing Bonus (SHB) is a housing-monetisation measure for eligible seniors who right-size to a 3-room or smaller HDB flat and commit part of the net sale proceeds toward CPF retirement payouts. The bonus is a cash payment linked to a housing transaction and CPF commitment; it is not an automatic payment for every senior, a general resale grant, or a replacement for CPF LIFE. HDB's enhanced rules took effect on 1 December 2025 (HDB, published 4 Mar 2025, accessed Aug 2026).

Core eligibility and right-sizing

From 1 December 2025, at least one owner must be a Singapore Citizen aged 55 or above, and gross monthly household income must be S$14,000 or less. The property being sold must be an HDB flat that has met its Minimum Occupation Period, or a private residential property with Annual Value (AV) of no more than S$31,000. The household must not concurrently own a private residential property or more than one non-residential property. The next property must be a 3-room or smaller HDB flat, including a short-lease 2-room Flexi flat or a Community Care Apartment (HDB, Annex A, accessed Aug 2026).

CPF retirement commitment

The enhanced SHB no longer requires the qualifying retirement contribution to be a cash top-up only. After right-sizing, the household must commit a net increase of up to S$60,000 in its CPF Retirement Account (RA) for retirement payouts; that commitment can include CPF housing refunds and/or cash top-ups, subject to the prevailing Full Retirement Sum. If net sale proceeds are below S$60,000, the committed amount equals the net sale proceeds and the bonus is pro-rated. The CPF commitment is therefore a household transaction condition, not a cash amount that every applicant receives (HDB, published 4 Mar 2025, accessed Aug 2026).

Bonus quantum from 1 December 2025

For seniors selling an HDB flat or a private property with AV of S$21,000 or less, the ordinary SHB remains up to S$30,000, with the bonus pro-rated at S$1 for every S$2 committed toward retirement payouts. An additional S$10,000 cash bonus applies when the senior right-sizes to a 2-room or smaller flat, including a CCA, bringing the maximum to S$40,000 for that route. The additional S$10,000 is not pro-rated, but the underlying SHB component remains subject to the CPF commitment and other conditions (HDB, published 4 Mar 2025, accessed Aug 2026).

Private-property extension

From the same effective date, seniors selling a private residential property with AV above S$21,000 and up to S$31,000 can qualify, but a lower bonus ceiling applies. HDB states that the maximum is up to S$10,000 when right-sizing to a 3-room flat and up to S$20,000 when right-sizing to a 2-room or smaller flat. The extension is not equivalent to the standard HDB-or-lower-AV band, and the amount remains subject to pro-ration and the applicable CPF commitment (HDB, published 4 Mar 2025, accessed Aug 2026).

Transaction timing and interpretation

The applicant must book a new HDB flat or submit a resale-flat application either before selling the existing property or within one year after completing that sale. The SHB application must be submitted within one year of completing the second housing transaction. “Net sale proceeds” means the selling price less the outstanding loan, next-property purchase price, resale levy, and any subsidy recovery for Plus or Prime flats. SHB should therefore be evaluated from the full transaction sequence and CPF commitment, not from the headline maximum alone (HDB, Annex A, accessed Aug 2026).