# Redeveloping Mega En Bloc Sites Just Got Easier — But Developers Still Face One Major Problem - **Source:** Stacked Homes - **Published:** 2026-07-28T11:08:13.000Z - **Author:** Timothy Tay - **Original:** https://stackedhomes.com/developers-face-easier-time-selling-large-enbloc-projects-but-not-sure-win-for-en-bloc-hopefuls/ - **Topics:** Government & Policy, Transactions & Deals ## Featured rationale Longer timelines could revive developer interest in large ageing estates by reducing execution risk, but high costs, owner expectations and ABSD clawbacks may constrain transactions. ## AI summary For enbloc sites bought from July 29, qualifying projects receive six years to complete and sell 700–1,399 units, while projects with at least 1,400 units receive seven years. ## Original article In a move that could lead to a revival of Singapore’s enbloc market, the government has announced a series of changes that make redeveloping large collective sale sites more financially viable to property developers. The Minister for National Development, Chee Hong Tat, announced major changes to the sales deadline for enbloc redevelopment projects, as well as an adjustment to the Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD) regime faced by developers undertaking large-scale enbloc projects. For any collective sale site purchased by developers on or after July 29, developers will have six years to complete and sell all of the units in the project – on the condition that the new development has at least 700 residential units but less than 1,400 residential units – up from the previous 5.5 year limit. For mega-size collective sale redevelopment projects, where the new project consists of at least 1,400 residential units, developers will have seven years to complete and fully sell all units. This is a significant jump compared to the 5.5 years imposed on developers before this. But this doesn’t mean developers can compress their sales period. They must sell a minimum of 50% of the residential units at the end of six years. Failure to do so means that developers incur the full 35% clawback on the upfront remittable component of the ABSD – with interest at the end of six years. The government is imposing an additional condition for these extended sales timelines. The number of new residential units being developed must be at least 1.5 times the number of residential units in the enbloc property. What caused the enbloc market to stall after its previous peak in 2018? The imposition of strict property cooling measures in 2018 caused the exuberant collective sale market to grind to an abrupt halt nearly overnight. For property developers, they found themselves hit with a 30% ABSD (comprising a 25% unfront remittable component and a 5% non-remittable component) on any purchase of residential land. This ABSD rate went up to 40% (comprising a 35% unfront remittable component and a 5% non-remittable component) after the government tightened the rates in 2022. This effectively slammed the door on residential collective sales, as developers baulked at the high upfront cost and heightened financial risk. Developers could clawback the 35% remittable component if they fulfilled certain conditions: Starting construction within two years of purchasing the site Completing the new residential development within five years of the site acquisition Selling all of the residential units with the five year timeline Table: MND It took the government three years to loosen these conditions. In 2025, with the aim of encouraging more developers to undertake large-scale urban transformation projects – like mega-sized mixed-use developments or complex integrated projects – the ABSD remission timelines were extended. Enbloc projects of at least 700 units and where the redevelopment yield is at least 1.5 times the original development Projects with complex technical or infrastructure requirements (such as MRT connections or Integrated Transport Hubs) Projects approved under the Strategic Development Incentive (SDI) scheme Projects that aim to achieve higher construction productivity targets (like improvements to construction technologies) Any developments which met one of these criteria were eligible for a six-month extension to the ABSD remission timeline, or a 12-month extension if any project met more than one of these criteria. Developers generally shied away from residential enbloc deals These adjustments to the ABSD remission weren’t enough to lure most developers back to the collective sale market. In fact, we saw a surge in commercial, industrial, and hotel collective sales and transactions. The collective sale of Delfi Orchard, a prime freehold strata-titled commercial building, fetched $439 million after it was purchased by City Developments Ltd (CDL) in 2024. But the largest collective sale of 2024 was the $821 million acquisition of Concord Hotel & Shopping Mall to Hotel Properties. Meanwhile, just a few days ago, Chinese developer Kingsford Group put in a $950 million offer to buy out all of the owners of Tan Boon Liat Building, a landmark industrial building on Outram Road. This may be the largest collective sale deal in 2026. And as Wong Shanting, head of research, Singapore at Newmark, points out, the success rate for large en bloc attempts has been relatively low in recent years. Moreover, developers have had ample opportunities in the GLS programme, which typically carries lower execution risk given the clearer parameters and greenfield nature of these sites. It would be inaccurate to say that the residential enbloc market has been completely dead over the past two years. In fact, several developers have ventured back and a handful of residential collective sales have closed. The most recognisable may be the redevelopment of the former Thomson View Condo, after the owners successfully sold the freehold Upper Thomson Road condo to UOL Group, Singapore Land, and CapitaLand Development for $810 million. It’s not just freehold developments that some developers are chasing. SingHaiyi is set to redevelop Loyang Valley, the 99-year leasehold condo in District 17, after it purchased the 41-year old development for $880 million in April this year. Wong observes that what the latest changes really mean, is that the government is easing timing pressure without removing ABSD discipline altogether. “This should reduce the ‘size disadvantage’ previously associated with such sites and could reopen the window for older projects in need of renewal, while still keeping the broader cooling measures intact,” she says. Will the latest changes to the ABSD regime and sales period spur more en bloc deals? Most market analysts agree that the changes are a long time coming. Leonard Tay, head of research at Knight Frank Singapore, points out that it is only logical that a sense of proportion-to-scale should be adopted into the policy, so that differences in size for each redevelopment project are recognised on a realistic and practical level. “Large to very large redevelopment projects face materially different execution, construction and sales risks compared with conventionally-sized residential projects,” says Tay, adding that “the policy adjustment primarily reduces execution risk for very large redevelopment projects rather than stimulating the en bloc market broadly”. He reckons that an immediate effect of this policy change will cause some developers to relook at certain enbloc sites currently on the market, and reconsider the landbanking of some. “This is especially so for very large ageing estates where redevelopment potential can be substantial, but execution risk has typically constrained appetite,” says Tay. One of the largest and most prominent collective sale opportunities on the market right now is People’s Park Centre, which launched its third enbloc attempt – at a lower asking price of $320 million – on July 15. The public tender is set to close on Sept 16. Tricia Song, CBRE Head of Research, Singapore and Southeast Asia, says that extending the ABSD remission timeline for large enbloc sites should have a more significant impact on encouraging developers to consider large-scale enbloc opportunities. “Larger sites, in our opinion, are more efficient in reaping economies of scale during construction. They are also more transformational and thus better able to achieve “rejuvenation effects” on the precinct and ultimately offer better value to end-buyers with more facilities spread over lower maintenance costs,” says Song. She adds that this might lead to more opportunities for new homes to sprout in scarce, mature locations and pave the way for more homeowners to purchase freehold condos. Enbloc owners still have to be realistic in order for deals to close Just because the government makes it easier for developers to consider larger enbloc opportunities, it doesn’t make closing these deals that much easier. The key hurdles to any successful enbloc deal has been divergent owner interests and uncertain deal completion timeframe. “Developers generally prefer GLS sites due to greater transaction certainty with the government as the only seller and thus a more straightforward and faster process. GLS sites are currently providing about 7,500-8,000 private condominium units in annual supply,” says Song. In addition, enbloc owners have to face the reality that the cost of replacement homes has significantly increased in recent years, says Nicholas Mak, chief Research Officer of Mogul.sg. “As the prices of the new and resale homes continue to rise, these owners would be forced to raise the asking prices for their existing properties, which would pose a challenge to a successful enbloc sale,” he says. There is another rarely covered hurdle faced by enbloc hopefuls. This is the fact that the plot ratios of almost all the ageing residential non-landed properties have not increased for more than 25 years, even though the Master Plan has undergone several rounds of revision. “If the plot ratio remains unchanged for decades, the growth in the land value would be significantly slower, which would not incentivize the property owners to support the enbloc sale,” says Mak. He also warns against lowering the owners consensus level from the current 80%. Such a change would gravely erode the property rights of almost one-third of the owners in a residential development. It would lead to the tyranny of the majority. Tay also cautions that the revision in the ABSD regime and sales period does not fundamentally alter the economics of redevelopment of large and complex projects. Developers are still exposed to significant clawback risk if they are unable to meet the specific conditions. “Construction costs, financing costs, land prices and achievable selling prices remain the main elements of redevelopment viability. As such, the change is unlikely to trigger a broad resurgence in enbloc activity,” says Tay. ## Chinese translation > Translation model: grok_cli ### 大型集体出售地块重建变得更容易——但开发商仍面临一大难题 自7月29日起，在修订后的额外买方印花税（ABSD）规则下，开发商完成并售出大型集体出售重建项目的期限最长可获七年。以下是新的销售期限与单位配比要求对开发商及集体出售地块业主的影响。 在一项可能推动新加坡集体出售市场复苏的举措中，政府宣布了一系列调整，使大型集体出售地块的重建对房地产开发商在财务上更具可行性。 国家发展部长徐芳达宣布，对集体出售重建项目的销售期限作出重大调整，并调整了从事大型集体出售项目的开发商所面对的额外买方印花税（ABSD）制度。 凡开发商于7月29日或之后购入的集体出售地块，在新建项目至少有700个住宅单位但少于1,400个住宅单位的条件下，开发商将有六年时间完成并售出项目中的所有单位——较此前5.5年的上限有所延长。 对于超大型集体出售重建项目，即新建项目至少包含1,400个住宅单位的，开发商将有七年时间完成并全部售出所有单位。与此前对开发商规定的5.5年相比，这是显著延长。 但这并不意味着开发商可以压缩销售节奏。他们必须在六年结束时至少售出50%的住宅单位。若未能做到，开发商将在六年结束时按全额35%追回预缴可退还部分的ABSD——并加计利息。 政府还对这些延长的销售期限附加另一条件：新建住宅单位数量必须至少为集体出售物业原有住宅单位数量的1.5倍。 是什么导致集体出售市场在2018年上一轮高峰后陷入停滞？ 2018年严格的楼市降温措施出台后，一度火热的集体出售市场几乎一夜之间戛然而止。 对房地产开发商而言，任何购入住宅用地都须缴纳30%的ABSD（其中25%为预缴可退还部分，5%为不可退还部分）。 政府在2022年收紧税率后，该ABSD税率升至40%（其中35%为预缴可退还部分，5%为不可退还部分）。这实际上关上了住宅集体出售的大门，因为开发商对高昂的前期成本与升高的财务风险望而却步。 开发商若满足特定条件，可追回35%的可退还部分： 在购地后两年内开工建设 在购地后五年内完成新建住宅项目 在五年期限内售出所有住宅单位 表格：国家发展部 政府花了三年时间才放宽这些条件。2025年，为鼓励更多开发商承接大型城市更新项目——例如超大型综合用途发展或复杂的综合项目——ABSD减免时限得以延长。 至少700个单位的集体出售项目，且重建单位产出至少为原发展的1.5倍 具有复杂技术或基建要求的项目（例如地铁接驳或综合交通枢纽） 获战略性发展奖励（SDI）计划批准的项目 旨在达到更高建筑生产力目标的项目（例如改善建筑技术） 凡符合上述任一条件的发展项目，可获六个月的ABSD减免时限延长；若同时符合一项以上条件，则可获12个月延长。 开发商总体上仍对住宅集体出售交易却步 这些对ABSD减免的调整，并不足以把多数开发商重新吸引回集体出售市场。事实上，我们看到商业、工业和酒店类集体出售及交易大幅增加。 位于乌节路核心地段、自由hold分层产权的商业大厦Delfi Orchard的集体出售，在2024年由城市发展有限公司（CDL）以4.39亿新元购入。但2024年最大的集体出售是Concord Hotel & Shopping Mall以8.21亿新元被酒店置业收购。 与此同时，就在几天前，中国开发商金斯福集团（Kingsford Group）以9.5亿新元出价，拟收购位于欧南路地标性工业大厦陈文烈大厦（Tan Boon Liat Building）的全部业主单位。这或将成为2026年最大的集体出售交易。 正如Newmark新加坡研究主管Wong Shanting所指出，近年来大型集体出售尝试的成功率相对较低。此外，开发商在政府售地计划（GLS）中已有充足机会，而GLS通常因参数更清晰、属绿地开发而执行风险更低。 若说过去两年住宅集体出售市场完全沉寂，并不准确。事实上，已有几家开发商重新入场，少数住宅集体出售也已成交。 最广为人知的或许是前汤申景苑（Thomson View Condo）的重建：业主成功将该位于上汤申路的自由hold公寓，以8.1亿新元售予华业集团（UOL Group）、新地（Singapore Land）及凯德发展（CapitaLand Development）。 开发商追逐的也不只是自由hold项目。昇海置地（SingHaiyi）拟重建位于第17区、地契99年的罗央谷（Loyang Valley）——该公司于今年4月以8.8亿新元购入这座已有41年历史的发展项目。 Wong认为，最新调整的真正含义，是政府在缓释时间压力的同时，并未完全取消ABSD纪律。“这应能减轻以往与此类地块相关的‘规模劣势’，并可能为亟需更新的较旧项目重新打开窗口，同时仍维持更广泛的降温措施不变，”她说。 对ABSD制度与销售期限的最新调整，会否刺激更多集体出售交易？ 多数市场分析师认为，这些调整早已呼之欲出。莱坊新加坡研究主管Leonard Tay指出，将“与规模成比例”的理念纳入政策合乎逻辑，以便在现实且务实的层面上承认各重建项目在规模上的差异。 “大型至超大型重建项目，在执行、建设与销售风险方面，与常规规模的住宅项目存在实质性不同，”Tay表示，并补充说，“此次政策调整主要是降低超大型重建项目的执行风险，而非全面刺激集体出售市场”。 他估计，这项政策变化的即时影响，将促使部分开发商重新审视目前在售的某些集体出售地块，并重新考虑其中一些的土地储备。“尤其是对重建潜力可观、但执行风险历来抑制兴趣的超大型老化屋苑而言，”Tay说。 目前市场上最大、也最受瞩目的集体出售机会之一是珍珠坊（People’s Park Centre），该项目于7月15日启动第三次集体出售尝试——叫价下调至3.2亿新元。公开招标定于9月16日截止。 世邦魏理仕（CBRE）新加坡及东南亚研究主管Tricia Song表示，延长大型集体出售地块的ABSD减免时限，应对鼓励开发商考虑大型集体出售机会产生更显著影响。 “在我们看来，较大地块在建设过程中更能发挥规模经济。它们也更具转型意义，因而更有能力在片区层面实现‘更新效应’，并最终以更多设施分摊更低的维护成本，为终端买家提供更好价值，”Song说。 她补充说，这或许会在稀缺的成熟地段带来更多新房供应机会，并为更多屋主购买自由hold共管公寓铺路。 集体出售业主仍须务实，交易才能成交 政府让开发商更容易考虑大型集体出售机会，并不意味着成交就会容易许多。任何成功集体出售的关键障碍，始终是业主利益分歧，以及交易完成时间表的不确定。 “开发商一般更偏好GLS地块，因为卖方是政府，交易确定性更高，流程也更直接、更快。GLS地块目前每年约提供7,500至8,000个私人共管公寓单位供应，”Song说。 此外，集体出售业主必须面对置换住房成本近年来显著上升的现实，Mogul.sg首席研究官Nicholas Mak表示。“随着新房与转售房价持续上涨，这些业主会被迫提高现有物业的叫价，从而对成功集体出售构成挑战，”他说。 集体出售寄望者还面临另一项较少被提及的障碍。 那就是：几乎所有老化的非有地住宅物业的容积率，在超过25年里都没有提高，尽管总体规划已历经多轮修订。 “若容积率数十年维持不变，土地价值增长会显著放缓，从而难以激励业主支持集体出售，”Mak说。 他还警告不要将业主同意门槛从目前的80%下调。这样的改变将严重侵蚀住宅发展项目中近三分之一业主的产权，并导致多数人暴政。 Tay也提醒，ABSD制度与销售期限的修订，并不会从根本上改变大型复杂项目的重建经济性。若无法满足特定条件，开发商仍面临重大的税款追回风险。 “建筑成本、融资成本、地价与可达售价，仍是重建可行性的主要要素。因此，此次调整不太可能引发集体出售活动的全面复苏，”Tay说。