Why We Bought A Million-Dollar HDB Instead Of A Condo After Having A Baby: A Buyer’s Case Study

This case study is based on a recent consultation conducted by Royston (R059797C), a property agent and partner property consultant with Stacked. This write-up walks through the key decisions, trade-offs, and market considerations involved, with insights that buyers and sellers may find useful.

When this couple first approached the Stacked consultancy team, they were renting a two-bedroom condominium unit in the East. But their housing needs significantly changed after the birth of their newborn child, and they started to look for a home that could accommodate their growing family.

While their aspiration was to upgrade to another condo unit, they needed to resolve their immediate need for more living space without an excessive financial commitment. They also preferred to continue staying near the Bedok South area as they adjusted to their new role as parents.

Overall, this case study shows how upgrading your home doesn’t just mean buying a bigger unit. Oftentimes, it’s about upgrading in a sustainably prudent way that carefully considers your current lifestyle needs and future goals.

Plenty of million-dollar flats in their backyard

When the couple approached Royston, a property agent with the Stacked consultancy team, they wanted to purchase a HDB resale unit that would put them in a good position for future property progression.

After considering other mature estates in the East, they decided on Bedok South and specifically Bedok South Horizon, a Build-To-Order (BTO) development that was launched during the November 2016 BTO exercise.

Check out our review of Bedok South Horizon in this review written in 2023.

The public housing development benefitted from its direct connection to the upcoming Bedok South MRT station on the Thomson East Coast Line (TEL), and there were other factors that made this development stand out to the couple.

First, several flats in that estate had already started changing hands for over a million dollars since the start of 2026, including some four-room units, and two of these million-dollar deals were lodged at Bedok South Horizon.

In April 2026, a 1,001 sq ft four-room flat – a Model A unit between the 16th to 18th floor – sold for $1.17 million ($1,168 psf). This set a record resale price or a four-room flat in Bedok. Another four-room flat of the same size fetched $1.12 million ($1,118 psf) when it was sold that month.

The trend of these million-dollar transactions indicate that Bedok South Horizon is on track to establish itself as a highly sought-after HDB development in that area. These headline-grabbing transactions also added to the couple’s impression that resale prices of flats in the area may continue to trend upwards.

Next, the BTO development’s proximity to East Coast Park and the Bayshore precinct, which is emerging as the newest mixed-use neighbourhood in the East Coast, was another appealing factor for the family.

The Bayshore master plan includes about 12,500 new public and private homes taking shape in that waterfront neighbourhood, as well as tree-lined walkways and dedicated cycling paths to Bayshore and Bedok South MRT stations. These structural enhancements not only elevate the area’s liveability, they may also support future price growth for homes in the vicinity.

Balancing affordability with future upgrading plans

While Royston took the couple’s preferences and property considerations to heart, he was also mindful of the relative urgency of their first property purchase as well as the loan considerations they faced.

“During our initial conversations, I got the sense that this couple were conscious about not overpaying for their first property purchase. This prompted me to enquire with them if they would consider staying in an older flat instead. This is because resale prices for some older flats could be significantly lower than flats which recently attained their MOP, but older flats are spacious which addresses their space requirements,” says Royston. 

One of the added considerations was the requirement for the couple to use a private bank loan, as their combined income was above $14,000 per month – this prevented them from taking an HDB Concessionary Loan. 

Unlike an HDB loan, private bank loans can have a much more variable interest rate. For HDB loans, the interest rate is always 0.1% above the prevailing CPF rate, which has kept it at 2.6% for over decades. For private bank loans, the rate can be lower or higher over time, and the monthly loan repayments can change accordingly. As such, buyers may want to be more conservative with the amounts borrowed. 

“Given the couple’s income at the time, they could afford to get a two-bedroom unit in a condo. But being new parents, they wanted to stay conservative and pay a lower monthly installment in order not to financially overstretch themselves,” says Royston.

Since they were first-time buyers, their loan-to-value (LTV) ratio was at the maximum 75% of the property’s purchase price. After evaluating the buyers’ cash flow, their maximum loan quantum came up to approximately $1 million.

Based on an estimated purchase price of $1 million, on a loan tenure of 25 years, the installment would have worked out to about $3,200 per month. Thus, if they had opted for a two-bedroom unit in a condo that was sold for around $1.8 million, their mortgage repayment would be around $5,000 each month.

However, since the family’s priority was to settle their immediate housing needs, they opted for a resale HDB unit that they could comfortably afford and live in for the next five to 10 years.

Deciding on a high-floor corner unit and avoiding COV

Armed with a better understanding of the couple’s considerations, and their strong belief that the development of the nearby Bayshore neighbourhood would help uplift future prices in the area, Royston could see why they were confident in the potential price appreciation of the flats in  Bedok South Horizon.

Since they wanted to quickly decide on a shortlist of units to consider, Royston organised opportunities for them to view a few high-floor units at Bedok South Horizon over two weekends.

They eventually decided on a four-room corner unit that would only need minimal renovation. However, a wall separating one of the bedrooms from the master bedroom had been demolished to make space for a walk-in wardrobe. This meant that there was one less bedroom in the flat.

At the time, the couple rationalised that having one less bedroom wasn’t a major concern, and they would address the layout arrangement again in the future if they were fortunate to have a second child. But by then, they hoped to be able to upgrade to a private property.

After researching recent comparable transactions in the area, Royston estimated that the fair market value for this unit was around $1 million, and this was close to the seller’s asking price of $999,999.

Royston was confident in his estimation of the property value, since his method of price analysis had previously helped many of his clients acquire homes near or below valuation.

In general, he also advises buyers to avoid situations where they would have to pay high cash over valuation (COV). This occurs when the agreed purchase price of a resale flat is higher than HDB’s valuation, and when this happens, the buyer must pay the excess amount in cash.

While, it is not made public how HDB’s valuation figures are derived, indicators such as the property’s remaining lease and recently transacted prices can provide a fairly accurate estimate.

For this young family, after a series of negotiations with the seller, both sides agreed on the price and a valuation request was submitted to HDB. In the end, the buyers did not have to pay any excess amount in cash as the agreed purchase price matched HDB’s valuation.

The inherent challenges in buying and selling a million-dollar flat

Taking a step back, Royston points out that sellers should also be wary of stumbling into a ‘negative cash sale’ situation, especially when the property is sold during a period when market sentiment is riding high.

In general, negative cash sales are instances where buyers were left without any cash proceeds after accounting for deductions like fees and CPF refunds. These have become more common among HDB resale transactions since the end of the Covid-19 pandemic. For those using bank loans to finance the purchase of their flats, interest rate spikes may also contribute to a higher chance of stumbling into a negative sale.

Moreover, flats that crossed the million-dollar threshold may not be the easiest to sell since they tend to attract a smaller pool of prospective buyers. For example, older flats in prime mature estates such as Queenstown, Ang Mo Kio and Bishan – which tend to have less than 40 years left on their lease – face the negative impact of lease decay and financing issues for buyers.

But as a relatively new BTOproject, next to a landmark precinct rejuvenation taking place in Bayshore, Bedok South Horizon does not face these issues.

With these considerations in mind, the couple took the decisive step towards buying their first home. They exercised their option to purchase (OTP) on 24 May and purchased the flat for $1.01 million.

Final thoughts

Overall, the couple successfully bought a home that fit the needs of their growing family, while maintaining their financial comfort and flexibility for future property plans. Royston points out that the couple remained prudent while keeping an eye on their future plan to upgrade to a three-bedroom condo unit in order to accommodate their evolving lifestyle needs.

When it came to their choice of flat, a combination of factors played a part in their decision to purchase a million-dollar flat.

With new residential and commercial developments shaping up in the nearby Bayshore neighbourhood, plans for a more robust public transport infrastructure and other neighbourhood enhancements would improve the area’s liveability. This will contribute to a future uplift in property prices in the area.

In addition, since Bedok South Horizon was completed in 2021, it has a long way to go before the negative impact of lease decay becomes an issue on the value of the flats there. And if the new development continues to set higher transaction records, base prices for flats there may continue to increase.

In general, as more resale buyers continue to seek out their dream homes in popular HDB estates, crossing the million-dollar threshold might increasingly become the norm within these highly desirable public housing estates.