Basic Retirement Sum figure: 2026 cohort
How much CPF can I use for my home?
There are two ceilings on CPF use, and the second one is set by your lender, not by whether you are buying a flat or a condominium. Getting that backwards is the most common error in this topic.
The rule
There are two ceilings, and the second one depends on who lends you the money — not on what you are buying.
The Valuation Limit is the lower of the purchase price and the valuation at the time of purchase. Your CPF Ordinary Account can be used up to that figure as of right.
What lies beyond the Valuation Limit is scoped by loan type. This is the part most summaries get wrong: they attach the 120% cap to private property. It is not a private-property rule. It is a bank-loan rule, and it applies to an HDB flat bought with a bank loan just as much as to a condominium.
| What you are buying | Loan | Up to the Valuation Limit | Beyond it |
|---|---|---|---|
| New flat bought direct from HDB | HDB housing loan | No Valuation Limit applies. CPF Ordinary Account may cover the full purchase price, including the housing loan. | |
| Resale HDB flat | HDB housing loan | CPF Ordinary Account usable up to the Valuation Limit | May continue for the remaining housing loan, once the Basic Retirement Sum is set aside. CPF publishes no dollar ceiling for this. |
| HDB flat or private property | Bank or finance company loan | CPF Ordinary Account usable up to the Valuation Limit | Usable up to 120% of the Valuation Limit, once the Basic Retirement Sum is set aside. |
The Basic Retirement Sum gate
On both routes that have a beyond-the-limit tranche, the tranche only opens once the respective Basic Retirement Sum (BRS) has been set aside. For members turning 55 in 2026 the Basic Retirement Sum is S$110,200. Until the set-aside is established, the money above the Valuation Limit is not usable CPF — so it should not appear in your affordability sum as though it were.
From age 55 the set-aside also reduces what is available in the first place: the Basic Retirement Sum comes out of your Ordinary Account balance before anything is applied to the property.
The lease cap sits above all of it
If the remaining lease does not cover the youngest owner to age 95, CPF use is pro-rated or withheld — and that cap overrides the Basic Retirement Sum gate.
Setting the Basic Retirement Sum aside does not restore a tranche the lease has already cut. CPF publishes no formula for the combination, so no reduction is computed here or anywhere else that is being honest about it. Every figure on this page assumes a lease that covers the youngest owner to age 95. On a short-lease or older property, check with CPF before you count on any of it.
Worked example
- BuyingA condominium at S$1,500,000
- Valuation at purchaseS$1,520,000
- LoanBank loan
- Buyer’s age40
- Remaining leaseCovers the buyer past age 95
- Valuation Limit = the lower of price and valuation = lower of S$1,500,000 and S$1,520,000 = S$1,500,000
- CPF Ordinary Account usable as of right, up to the Valuation Limit = S$1,500,000
- Bank loan, so the 120% ceiling applies: 120% × S$1,500,000 = S$1,800,000
- The tranche above the Valuation Limit = S$1,800,000 − S$1,500,000 = S$300,000
- That S$300,000 is conditional: it opens only once the Basic Retirement Sum of S$110,200 is set aside
- What this buyer can actually reach is the smaller of S$300,000 and whatever Ordinary Account savings remain after the first S$1,500,000 — the rule sets the room, your balance sets the reality
The answer S$1,500,000 of CPF as of right; a further S$300,000 only after the Basic Retirement Sum is set aside, for a lifetime ceiling on this property of S$1,800,000. Change the loan to an HDB housing loan and the 120% ceiling does not apply at all — a different rule takes over.
Note the difference between three numbers that are easy to blur: the ceiling the rule sets (S$1,800,000), the room the rule leaves above the Valuation Limit (S$300,000), and what you can actually reach given your own Ordinary Account balance. Only the last one is money you will really have.
What changes this answer
- Whether you take a bank loan or an HDB housing loan. This, not the property type, selects the beyond-the-limit rule. An HDB flat on a bank loan gets the 120% ceiling; a private property cannot be bought with an HDB housing loan at all.
- Whether it is a new flat direct from HDB. On an HDB housing loan there is no Valuation Limit on that route.
- Whether the Basic Retirement Sum has been set aside. Unknown is not the same as yes. Until it is established, the tranche above the Valuation Limit is not usable CPF.
- Your age. From 55 the Basic Retirement Sum is set aside out of your Ordinary Account before anything reaches the property.
- The remaining lease, against the age of the youngest owner. If it does not reach age 95, CPF use is pro-rated or withheld, and no set-aside buys it back.
- The valuation, if it comes in below the price. The Valuation Limit takes the lower of the two, so a low valuation lowers every figure above it.
- Whether this is a second or subsequent property. Different CPF rules govern that case, and they are not the ones on this page.
Sources
Every figure above comes from these official pages. We link them so you can check the number yourself rather than take ours on trust.
Common follow-up questions
What is the Valuation Limit?
The lower of the purchase price and the valuation of the property at the time of purchase. Your CPF Ordinary Account can be used up to that figure.
Does the 120% withdrawal limit apply to HDB flats?
It applies to any property bought with a bank or finance company loan, including an HDB flat. It does not apply on an HDB housing loan. The rule is scoped by loan type, not by property type.
Can I use CPF beyond the Valuation Limit?
Only once the respective Basic Retirement Sum has been set aside. On a bank loan you may then use up to 120% of the Valuation Limit. On an HDB housing loan for a resale flat, CPF may continue to be used for the remaining housing loan, and CPF publishes no dollar ceiling for that. Until the set-aside is established, the amount above the Valuation Limit is not usable CPF.
How much is the Basic Retirement Sum?
For members turning 55 in 2026 the Basic Retirement Sum is S$110,200.
Does a short remaining lease affect how much CPF I can use?
Yes. If the remaining lease does not cover the youngest owner to age 95, CPF use is pro-rated or withheld, and that cap overrides the Basic Retirement Sum gate. CPF publishes no formula for the combination, so the figure has to come from CPF for your specific property.
This page explains the published rules and shows the arithmetic so you can check it. It is general information, not financial or legal advice, and it cannot know your full circumstances. Rules change — the effective date above tells you which version this page states. Confirm anything you are about to act on with the official source, or ask Dex with your own numbers.
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