What is the Option to Purchase procedure for selling an HDB flat?

Sellers must observe a seven-day cooling-off period before granting the Option to Purchase (OTP) to a potential buyer. Once the OTP is granted, no other OTP can be issued to a different buyer until the existing one expires. The document (Page 8) must be witnessed and signed; if engaging a salesperson, they will serve as witness.

Buyers then have 21 calendar days (including weekends and public holidays) from the date the OTP is granted to decide whether to proceed. If they wish to buy, they sign the bottom half of Page 8, pay the remaining deposit (total deposit must not exceed S$5,000), and return the signed OTP to the seller before the 21-day period ends. If financing through an HDB loan, they must have a valid HDB Loan Eligibility Letter; if financing through a bank, they need a valid Letter of Offer. If the buyer does not proceed, the OTP expires automatically, and only then can the seller grant another OTP to a different buyer.

Beyond this, sellers and their salespersons must complete HDB’s “Resale Checklist for Sellers who Engage Salespersons” and deposit a scanned copy of the checklist in HDB’s Resale Checklist Repository at https://www.hdb.gov.sg by the next day.