As of 5pm on 11 November, the final day applications were open for the November 2026 Build-To-Order (BTO) sales exercise, over 35,600 hopeful homeowners were vying for 7,964 flats in this month’s sales exercise.
This translated to an overall subscription rate of 4.5, the highest since Aug 2022 and the most number of applications since October 2024. In addition, the total applicant numbers also surged by 46.4% compared to the 23,894 applications submitted during the June 2026 BTO sales exercise.
The November sales exercise consisted of seven projects in Bedok, Geylang, Sembawang, Tengah, Toa Payoh and Yishun. Aspiring BTO owners still have until 11:59PM today to submit their application.
For a full list of the new BTO projects, and a comprehensive review, check out our article here.
November 2026 BTO Application Rates
| Number of Flats | Number of Applications | Application Rate | |
| Aug 2022 | 4,993 | 39,136 | 7.8 |
| Nov 2022 | 9,655 | 22,495 | 2.3 |
| Feb 2023 | 4,428 | 16,993 | 3.8 |
| May 2023 | 5,495 | 20,778 | 3.8 |
| Oct 2023 | 6,800 | 10,935 | 1.6 |
| Dec 2023 | 6,057 | 13,414 | 2.2 |
| Oct 2024 | 8,573 | 35,678 | 4.2 |
| Feb 2025 | 5,032 | 13,223 | 2.6 |
| Jul 2025 | 5,547 | 23,161 | 4.2 |
| Oct 2025 | 9,144 | 31,095 | 3.4 |
| Feb 2026 | 4,692 | 14,052 | 3.0 |
| Jun 2026 | 6,952 | 22,634 | 3.3 |
| Nov 2026 | 7,964 | 35,603 | 4.5 |
The spike in the number of applications has been attributed to the revised income ceiling, which increased to $16,000 per month for families and $8,000 for singles, says Lee Sze Teck, senior director of data analytics at Huttons Asia.
Another reason for the strong turnout was the attractive and highly desirable locations for the two projects in Bayshore and one in Toa Payoh.
Lee notes that despite having the most expensive four-room BTO flat in this sales exercise - priced at $832,000 - Toa Payoh Hillside attracted the highest number of applicants in this round, with almost 6,000 applicants vying for a home at the Prime BTO development.
He says that this showed buyers’ willingness to pay top dollar for the rare attributes in this project, which includes sports facilities, a polyclinic, a public library, and a new town park.
“Residents will also benefit from upcoming amenities in the nearby Toa Payoh Integrated Development that is opening in 2030. Some of the four-room flats will have a balcony, which is rare and units on the higher floors will have unblocked views of MacRitchie Reservoir," says Lee.
Meanwhile, Christine Sun, Chief Researcher & Strategist at Realion (OrangeTee & ETC) Group points to a few standout points in this BTO sales exercise, namely the contrast in application rates for five-room flats in Tengah and Sembawang, as well as the renewed interest in Community Care Apartments (CCAs).
She notes that the application rate for five-room flats in Tengah is much higher than those in Sembawang, at 3.8 times for first-timer families, and 21.3 for second-timer families. Meanwhile, the same flat type in Sembawang saw application rates of 0.3 times for first-timer families and 2.5 times for second-timer families.
It is also possible that the novelty of white-flats could be one of the key factors drawing more applicants to the Tengah project, says Sun, adding that white flats offer more design flexibility which tends to be attractive for buyers who want to create their own layout plans.
CCA Application Rates
Location | Number of Flats | Number of Applicants | Application Rate |
| Harmony Village @ Bukit Batok | 169 | 706 | 4.2 |
| Queensway Canopy | 245 | 368 | 1.5 |
| Chai Chee Green | 250 | 194 | 0.8 |
| Merpati Alcove | 265 | 243 | 0.9 |
| Fernvale Plains | 207 | 152 | 0.7 |
| Toa Payoh Hillside | 256 | 509 | 2.0 |
This latest BTO offering saw Toa Payoh Hillside, the only Prime BTO development, also stand as the only development with Community Care Apartments (CCAs). These senior-friendly flats attracted 494 applicants who are competing for 296 flats, translating to an application rate of 2.0 times.
Most market watchers attribute the robust take-up rate to the lowered age eligibility, which fell from 65 years old to 55 years old, as well as an 18% reduction in the monthly fees.
Lee says another possible reason for the popularity of CCAs this time around may be a high proportion of seniors who already reside in Toa Payoh. The application rate among seniors for a two-room flexi flat in Toa Payoh Hillside was 6.1, higher than the rate recorded for such flats at Toa Payoh Ascent in July 2025. According to the latest population data, 43,610 seniors aged 55 and above live in HDB flats in Toa Payoh, making up nearly 36% of the area's total HDB residents.
More singles and seniors vying for two-room flats
The two-room flexi flats received 12,670 applications, the highest number of applicants for this flat type in any BTO sales exercise in the past three years. The previous high was in October 2025 with 11,188 applicants.
The spike in applications could be due to the number of Shorter Waiting Time (SWT) flats and locations which will see upcoming growth including transport hubs and more flats.
Among first-timer singles competing for a two-room Flexi flat, the highest application rate of 17.9 times was observed at Tengah’s Plantation Dew.
Other popular BTO projects with two-bedroom flexi units were Yishun’s Chencharu Acres, which was 8.7 times oversubscribed, and Merpati Meadow at Geylang which was 8.3 times oversubscribed. The first two developments are Standard category flats, while Merpati Meadow is a Plus development.
Shortly after this BTO sales exercise launched, Plantation Dew’s popularity was evident, with the 178 two-room flats about 15.5 times oversubscribed. In total, there were 1,585 applicants comprising seniors, first-timer families, first-timer singles and second-timer families. After first-timer singles, seniors accounted for the second highest group of applicants for this development at 6.4 times.
Eugene Lim, Key Executive Officer (KEO) of ERA Singapore, thinks the strong response to Plantation Dew may have been due to pent-up demand in Tengah, which has not seen any BTO launches since Plantation Edge I & II in October 2023. He adds that the shorter waiting time of three years and two months and lower price points compared to earlier projects could also be a draw.
“Prices for two-room Flexi flats at Plantation Dew start at $11,000 after factoring in grants. This is significantly lower than the previous $34,000 starting price (including grants) for two-room Flexi flats at Plantation Edge I & II, as well as nearby resale prices of $322,500 to $388,000, offering buyers a much lower entry point into Tengah," says Lim.
Meanwhile, Mohan Sandrasegeran, Head of Research & Data Analytics at SRI, notes that as Tengah shapes up as a new neighbourhood, with more residents and amenities such as Plantation Plaza and Parc Point, its popularity could surge further.
“These developments may provide prospective homebuyers with greater confidence in the town's continued growth and residential appeal," says Sandrasegeran. He adds that the upcoming Jurong Region Line and the planned relocation of ACS (Primary) to Tengah in 2030 could have boosted its attractiveness, particularly among young families who value transport connectivity and access to educational institutions.
First-time homeowners came out in force, driving up demand for three-room and bigger sized flats
Meanwhile, the three-room flats in Bayshore Sails (a Plus development) saw the highest application rate among first-timer families at 2.8 times, while the application rate among second-timer families was 54.9 times. At 5pm today, there were 718 applications for the 90 three-room flats at Bayshore Sails.
There was also strong demand for the 84 three-room flats at Chencharu Acres, which saw 560 applications as of 5pm today, translating to an application rate of 2.3 times for first-timer families and 25.3 times among second-timer families.
Chencharu Acres has strong locational attributes, with the future development located one bus stop from Khatib MRT station and Khatib Polyclinic. It will also be adjacent to Yishun Stadium and a future civic and community centre.
Meanwhile, in the four-room category, Toa Payoh Hillside, the only Prime project in this exercise, emerged a clear favourite among second-timer families with an application rate of 42.7 times and 6.7 times for first-timers. There were 5,980 applications recorded for the 584 four-room units.
Lim points out that the proximity of this project to nearby primary schools like CHIJ Primary (Toa Payoh) and Marymount Convent School may have been a key draw, along with the accessibility to Caldecott MRT station.
“At $558,000 without grants, the starting price for a four-room flat at Toa Payoh Hillside also compares favourably with nearby resale units, which sold for between $820,000 and $1.2 million,” he says.
Plantation Dew also resonated strongly with families, attracting an application rate of 23.8 times among second-timer families and 5.3 among first-timers. In total, it received 1,191 applications for 168 four-room flats.
For Bayshore Sails and Bayshore Oasis, there were 5,213 applicants competing for the development’s 1,165 four-room BTO flats. These flats are 17.2 times oversubscribed among second-timers, and 3.1 times oversubscribed among first-timers.
The least number of applicants was for Sembawang Anchor, which saw the highest demand for its three-room units at 5.5 times among second-timer families for three-room flats. This was followed by 3.7 for four-room flats and 3.5 times for the two-room flats.
Sandrasegeran observes that Sembawang’s historically low BTO application rates suggest manageable competition among first-timer families applying for four room flats.
“Previous projects such as Sembawang Deck and Sembawang Voyage recorded application rates of 0.6, while Sembawang Beacon registered a rate of 1.2.
Nevertheless, he points out that Sembawang Anchor has several attributes, including five-room flats and shorter waiting times of under three years. These factors may appeal to families seeking larger living spaces and earlier access to their new homes.
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