Seller's stamp duty rate for private residential properties raised
The latest changes will apply to all residential property purchased on and after 12am on July 4.
SINGAPORE - Sellers of private homes will have to pay higher seller's stamp duty (SSD) rates of between 4 and 16 per cent if they sell a residential property less than four years after the date of purchase.
The SSD is currently payable by those who sell a residential property within three years of purchase, at rates of between 4 and 12 per cent.
The Ministry of National Development , Ministry of Finance and Monetary Authority of Singapore announced the longer holding period and higher rates, which will kick in on July 4, in a statement late at night on July 3.
The authorities said that in recent years, the number of private residential property transactions with short holding periods has increased sharply.
'In particular, there has been a significant increase in the sub-sale of units that have not been completed,' they said. A sub-sale refers to the sale of a unit to another buyer before the unit is completed.
The SSD was introduced in 2010 as a deterrent against flipping property for profit.
It was relaxed in 2017, when sellers no longer had to pay SSD if they sell a residential property after a holding period of three years. Before that, SSD was payable if they sold a property after owning it for fewer than four years.
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The latest changes on July 4 will apply to all residential property purchased on and after 12am on July 4.
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