Higher occupancy cap for HDB, private home rentals extended until end-2028 to meet strong demand

[SINGAPORE] The rental occupancy cap, which currently allows eight unrelated tenants to reside in larger Housing & Development Board (HDB) flats and private residences, will be extended until Dec 31, 2028, to meet sustained rental demand.The extension is a temporary measure to lengthen the relaxation period of the occupancy cap by an additional two years from its initial Dec 31, 2026, deadline, said HDB and the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) on Friday (Jan 16).It comes amid government measures to progressively ramp up public and private housing supply, said the authorities. “While the increase in housing supply has helped to alleviate the tightness in the rental market and contributed to the moderation in the increase of residential rents, overall rental demand remains strong.” The occupancy cap was first relaxed in January 2024 to allow four-room and larger HDB flats and private residential properties of at least 90 square metres (sq m) to house a maximum of eight unrelated people, from the previous cap of six. Unrelated persons are individuals not from the same family unit. The move comes on the back of rental growth and lower vacancy rates in Q3 2025, based on URA data from October. The quarter recorded a 1.2 per cent increase in private home rents, up from an increase of 0.8 per cent in Q2 2025. Vacancy rates inched down to 6.9 per cent as at end-Q3 from 7.1 per cent in Q2. CBRE’s head of research for South-east Asia, Tricia Song, said in October that the cumulative 2.4 per cent increase in rents over the first nine months of 2025 point to rents reversing from 2024’s correction of 1.9 per cent. Approvals required for tenancy HDB flat owners, as well as owners and tenants of HDB commercial properties with living quarters, must seek HDB’s approval before commencing tenancy. Applications to rent out HDB flats or bedrooms may be submitted online via HDB’s e-services, whereas owners and tenants of HDB commercial properties wishing to commence tenancy must apply via the government’s GoBusiness portal. Owners of larger private residential properties of at least 90 sq m who intend to qualify for the raised occupancy cap and rent out their properties to up to eight unrelated tenants must register their properties with URA via its website.Upon successful registration, they will be informed that they are authorised to rent their property to a maximum of eight unrelated persons. The authorities noted that approval to make use of the raised occupancy cap may be revoked or ceased in the event of serious dis-amenities. “HDB flat owners, as well as owners and tenants of HDB commercial properties with living quarters and private residential property owners, including their tenants, are required to adhere to the occupancy cap and minimise dis-amenities to the public,” said HDB and URA. The situation in the rental market will be monitored closely, and the need to extend the temporary relaxation period of the occupancy cap beyond 2028 will be reviewed, they added.