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Paper 2 · Lesson 6 — Sale of HDB Flats — Schemes, Eligibility, Monetisation and Estate Renewal

Income ceiling and first timer

The income ceilings for a new flat, first-timer vs second-timer status, and the priority / balloting advantages each carries.

2 questionsAnswers & explanations includedFree — no sign-up

Question 1

A family and a single applicant are each checking the income ceilings for their intended purchases. The family may add extended relatives to the household, while the single is looking at a two-room Flexi Build-To-Order flat. Each is quietly worried a high household income will shut them out, and wants to know exactly which ceiling, if any, bites on their intended purchase. Both parties have heard alarming talk that a single high earner in the household can sink an application, and each wants the real position on the income ceilings pinned down.

Consider the following statements.

  1. (i) The income ceiling for a Singles Scheme Build-To-Order flat is $7,000 a month.
  2. (ii) The income ceiling for most family Build-To-Order flats is $14,000 a month.
  3. (iii) A resale flat bought with no grant and no HDB loan is still subject to an income ceiling.
  4. (iv) The income ceiling for an extended or multi-generation family is $21,000 a month.
  1. A. (i), (ii), (iii) and (iv)
  2. B. (i) and (ii) only
  3. C. (ii) and (iv) only
  4. D. (i), (ii) and (iv) only
Show the answer and full explanation

Answer: D

The rule. Income ceilings: Singles Scheme BTO $7,000; most family BTO $14,000; extended/multi-generation family $21,000. A resale flat bought with no grant and no HDB loan has no income ceiling.

Why D is correct. (i), (ii) and (iv) are right; (iii) is false.

The other options.

  • A adds the false (iii), a resale income ceiling.
  • B drops (iv), the $21,000 extended-family ceiling.
  • C drops (i), the $7,000 singles ceiling.

Exam note. $7k singles, $14k family, $21k extended; no ceiling on a resale flat taken without grant or HDB loan.

A resale flat bought with no grant and no HDB loan has no income ceiling →

Question 2

Grace assesses the household's first-timer standing. Consider the following statements.

  1. (i) Mdm Nadia's 2019 transfer of her share to her brother erased the earlier subsidy from the household's record.
  2. (ii) Daniel, being only an occupier on his late father's flat, is not thereby a second-timer.
  3. (iii) Had Daniel instead taken over ownership of his father's directly-purchased flat, he would have become a second-timer.
  4. (iv) For subsidy purposes, the household is assessed as second-timers because of Mdm Nadia's earlier grant-assisted flat.
  1. A. (iii) and (iv) only
  2. B. (ii), (iii) and (iv) only
  3. C. (ii) and (iv) only
  4. D. (ii) and (iii) only
Show the answer and full explanation

Answer: B

The rule. A CPF-grant resale flat counts as a subsidy, so Mdm Nadia's history makes the household second-timers (assessed as one unit); transferring her share away did not erase it. Daniel, a mere occupier, is not a second-timer, but taking over ownership would make him one.

Why B is correct. (ii), (iii) and (iv) are right; (i) is false — the transfer did not erase the subsidy.

The other options.

  • A drops (ii), the occupier point.
  • C drops (iii), the take-over-ownership point.
  • D drops (iv), the household-second-timer conclusion.

Exam note. The wife's grant flat makes the household second-timer; her 2019 transfer changed nothing. Daniel, an occupier, is untouched.

Daniel, a mere occupier, is not a second-timer →

Practise it under exam conditions

Single questions test whether you know a rule. The paper tests whether you can find it in a scenario, at speed, with three plausible alternatives in the way. Start with the free 20-question half-paper.

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