Can a Foreigner Apply for a Home Loan in Singapore?
To clear your doubts, foreigners can take out a housing loan and secure their dream home in Singapore. So if you’re intending to invest in a residential property in this side of the world, you might be overwhelmed by the rates and packages offered by different banks. At MoneySmart, we simplify things by giving you a bigger picture of home loans for foreigners that are currently available in the market. There’s no need for you to individually check rates from multiple banks. Everything you need to know will be collated to help you save time and make the right decision.
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List of Banks Offering Home Loans for Foreigners
- OCBC
- UOB
- DBS
- Standard Chartered
- Citibank
- Maybank
- CIMB
- Hong Leong Finance
- Bank of China
- RHB
Eligibility and Documents Required
Not sure if you’re eligible? Having a good credit standing is what’s most important. We can help in assessing your eligibility and checking various home loan packages that are best for you.
Eligibility
Documents Required
Other Fees and Charges
Purchasing a home entails fees and charges on top of the property’s purchase price. The cost varies on a case-by-case basis.
- Buyer’s Stamp Duty (BSD) Buyer’s Stamp Duty is a tax you pay when you acquire property in Singapore. You’ll have a higher tax rate when the property is more expensive. Right now, residential properties are taxed at 1% for the first $180,000; 2% for the next $180,000, 3% for the next $640,000; and 4% for the remaining amount.
- Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD) Additional Buyer’s Stamp is another kind of tax on top of BSD. However, it only applies to Singapore Permanent Residents and foreigners, or Singaporean Citizens intending to buy more than one residential property in Singapore. Unless you’re a Citizen or Permanent Resident of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, or USA, you need to pay an additional 20% for each property that you buy. Curious about how much you need to pay? Use our Stamp Duty Calculator to find out.
Things to Consider When Applying for a Home Loan
- In-Principal Approval You’ll need to obtain an In-Principal Approval from the bank, which indicates the maximum amount of loan you can borrow and the tenure.
- Loan-to-Value (LTV) Ratio Loan-to-Value is defined by how much mortgage loan you can take up from a financial institution in relation to the property’s market value. If you don’t have an outstanding mortgage loan, you can borrow as much as 75% of the purchase price. If you already have an outstanding loan, which means you’ll have 2 loans at the same time, only 45% will be granted. Then if you have 3 or more loans at a time, you can only borrow 35%.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the benefits of applying for a home loan through MoneySmart?
- At MoneySmart, we do all the homework and give you a consolidated, unbiased housing loan recommendation based on the current market rate.
How much loan can I borrow as a foreigner?
- If you’re an expat, non-citizen or a foreigner, the maximum amount you can borrow depends on the number of housing loans you’ll be taking or already have. If it’s your first time, your LTV entitlement is 75%.
What will be the maximum tenure I can get?
- The maximum tenure for freehold and leasehold property for foreigners is up to 35 years or 75 years of age by the end of loan tenure.
What is the difference between freehold and leasehold property?
- Freehold property is usually more expensive because it has no time limit on ownership compared to a leasehold property. Typically, leasehold property in Singapore has a 99-year or 999-year tenure.
