OWNER-occupiers of residential properties will receive a one-off property tax rebate in 2025, to help mitigate cost-of-living concerns, said the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (Iras) on Friday (Nov 29).
Owners of Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats will be given a rebate of 20 per cent, while those of private residential properties will be given a 15 per cent rebate, capped at S$1,000.
Additionally, the annual value (AV) bands of the owner-occupied residential property tax rates will be raised with effect from Jan 1, 2025.
“Homeowners can thus expect to pay the same or lower property taxes at each band, assuming that there is no change in their AVs and before any rebates,” said the statement.
All owner-occupied HDB flats and more than 90 per cent of owner-occupied private residential properties will hence see lower property taxes in 2025.
Property taxes are calculated based on AVs, which are revised yearly based on the estimated annual rent if the property was rented out. With market rentals of public housing on the rise since 2022, AVs have risen in tandem.
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The government had announced during this year’s Budget that all AV bands of owner-occupied residential property tax rates would be adjusted from Jan 1, 2025.
The raised AV thresholds mean more people can be eligible for social support schemes, with more than one million residential properties covered, said MOF.
The social support schemes currently provide benefits based on two AV tiers. The first tier has a threshold of up to S$21,000, while the second has a threshold of more than S$21,000 and up to S$25,000. Individuals living in properties with lower AVs receive more support.
But from Jan 1, 2025, the second AV tier’s threshold will be bumped up to between S$21,000 and S$31,000.
“More than three in four residential properties, including lower-value private properties, can be eligible for social benefits,” said MOF and Iras.
The first AV tier of up to S$21,000 remains unchanged, and all HDB flats will continue to be covered.
Following the revision of the first AV band from S$8,000 to S$12,000, owners of all one and two-room HDB flats will continue to pay no property tax next year.
Owners of three, four and five-room flats, as well as executive flats will continue to be taxed at the marginal rate of 4 per cent.
With the tax rebate and revision of AV bands, all HDB owner-occupiers can expect lower property tax bills in 2025, said the authorities.
The monthly average property tax payable in 2025 for owners of three, four and five-room flats will be S$1.90, S$11.95 and S$15.40, respectively. This is down from the current S$4.10 for three-roomers, S$12.80 for four-roomers and S$17.90 for five-roomers.
For executive flats, the average property tax payable will be S$17.15 a month, down from the current S$22.30.
