How much are HDB legal fees for sellers?

If HDB acts, the transfer fee is 6.75 cents per S$100 on the first S$30,000, 5.40 cents on the next S$30,000 and 4.50 cents on the rest, with a S$21.80 minimum. HDB lists it as inclusive of GST. That comes to S$280 on a S$600,000 sale.

Can I appoint HDB as my lawyer if I have a bank loan?

HDB says a seller with an existing housing loan from a bank or other financial institution must engage private solicitors to act for redeeming that loan. Ask the firm and HDB how the sale itself will be handled before you declare your choice in the resale application.

Are legal fees deducted from HDB sale proceeds?

HDB’s own legal fees are not. You pay them online after endorsing the resale documents, before HDB approves the sale. A private firm’s billing depends on its terms, so ask it in writing.

Does the buyer pay the seller’s legal fees in an HDB resale?

No. HDB’s resale terms say the seller and buyer each bear their own legal costs. If HDB is acting and the resale is aborted, each side pays half of HDB’s conveyancing fees.

HDB resale legal fees for sellers: HDB’s rates and when you need a law firm

If HDB acts for you, its transfer fee is about S$280 on a S$600,000 sale, plus a S$32 title search and small charges, paid online after you endorse the documents. With a bank loan, HDB says you must use a private law firm to redeem it.

Jump to the worked example

6 min read · Figures checked 22 October 2026 · By Michelle Lee Ling Ching, CEA R009798I

How much are legal fees when you sell an HDB flat?

If HDB acts for you, its legal fee for transferring the flat is a sliding rate on the resale price, with a minimum of S$21.80. HDB lists it as inclusive of GST. That works out to S$280 on a S$600,000 sale and S$370 on S$800,000, plus small fixed charges. A private law firm sets its own fee, so ask for a written quote.

You make the choice when you submit your portion of the resale application. HDB says you must state whether you are appointing HDB as your solicitor or engaging private solicitors for the conveyancing. Conveyancing is the legal work of transferring the flat to the buyer. HDB’s fee table also covers discharging an HDB mortgage on the flat.

How HDB works out its conveyancing fee

HDB’s resale terms and conditions, updated 7 September 2026, set the legal basis. Clause 6 says that where HDB is appointed to act, “HDB’s conveyancing fees shall be calculated in accordance with the Housing and Development (Conveyancing Fees) Rules”. HDB publishes the rates a seller pays for the transfer of ownership on its page about approval of the resale application.

First S$30,000 of the resale price: 6.75 cents per S$100 or part of S$100.
Next S$30,000: 5.40 cents per S$100 or part of S$100.
The remainder: 4.50 cents per S$100 or part of S$100.
Minimum fee: S$21.80, inclusive of GST. The total is rounded up to the nearest dollar.

HDB labels these legal fees as inclusive of GST. The transfer fee depends on the resale price, not on your flat type. HDB also runs an online estimator for the legal fees you would pay if it acts for you. Use it to check your own figure close to the time, because published rates can be revised.

Worked examples at S$600,000 and S$800,000

Here is the arithmetic for two sale prices, with HDB acting and no outstanding loan on the flat. The title search and miscellaneous fees come from the same HDB fee table for sellers.

Swipe to see all columns. Keyboard: focus this table and use the arrow keys.

HDB legal and related fees for a seller who appoints HDB, no outstanding loan (HDB rates checked 22 October 2026)
Item	Sold at S$600,000	Sold at S$800,000
First S$30,000 at 6.75 cents per S$100	S$20.25	S$20.25
Next S$30,000 at 5.40 cents per S$100	S$16.20	S$16.20
Remainder at 4.50 cents per S$100	S$243.00	S$333.00
Transfer fee, rounded up to the dollar	S$280	S$370
Title search fee (Registry of Land Titles and Deeds)	S$32	S$32
Miscellaneous fee to HDB	S$5.45	S$5.45
Total	S$317.45	S$407.45

These are HDB’s charges only. They sit beside your loan repayment, your CPF refund and any agent fee, which are much larger. Our seller costs calculator shows the legal fee as one line among those deductions, so we do not repeat that arithmetic here.

Smaller charges that sit beside the legal fee

Resale application fee: S$40 for 1- and 2-room flats, or S$80 for 3-room and bigger flats. You pay it when you submit your portion of the application. HDB says it is non-refundable and includes GST.
Discharge of an HDB mortgage, if you still have an HDB loan: S$47.95 for a 3-room flat, S$59.95 for a 4-room flat, S$71.90 for a 5-room flat and S$83.90 for an Executive flat or maisonette. HDB lists this fee whether HDB or a private firm acts in the sale.
Registration of the mortgage discharge: S$38.30 to the Registry of Land Titles and Deeds, which HDB says applies only in lease-issued cases.
Government Survey Fee: HDB’s resale terms put this on the buyer, where it applies, not on you.

When you will need a private law firm

HDB states one clear case. If you have an existing housing loan from a bank or other financial institution, you must engage private solicitors to act for the redemption of that loan. HDB suggests asking your lender for its panel of solicitors and checking with them for an estimate of the legal fees.

Before you submit your portion of the resale application, ask the firm whether it will act in the sale as well as the loan redemption. The application is where you declare who acts for you, so settle this first rather than on the day.

If you plan to sell and buy at the same time with HDB’s Enhanced Contra Facility, the choice is made for you. HDB’s FAQ says applicants must appoint HDB to act in the sale and purchase of both flats. They must also have no outstanding bank loan on the flat being sold, and must not take a bank loan for the purchase.

Private firms set their own fees, and we do not quote market ranges. Ask each firm for a written quote that lists its professional fee, GST and disbursements, and anything not included. Compare it with HDB’s published rates at the same sale price.

What changes depending on who acts for you

With HDB acting, you give HDB a DBS/POSB, OCBC or UOB bank account within 3 calendar days of submitting your application. With a private firm, you give your bank details to your solicitor instead.
With HDB acting, you attend the completion appointment in person at the HDB Resale Office, HDB Hub. With a private firm, a representative from the firm may attend for you. Confirm that arrangement with the firm.
With a private firm, your solicitor arranges the refund to your CPF account.
With a private firm, the documents you endorse on the HDB Flat Portal may differ from those for sellers who appoint HDB.
With a private firm, HDB does not charge its transfer fee. It still charges for discharging any HDB mortgage.

When and how you pay the legal fees

HDB’s own legal fees are not left until completion day. About 3 weeks after HDB accepts the resale application, the documents for you to endorse appear on the HDB Flat Portal. After you endorse them, the portal directs you to pay the conveyancing fees online. HDB says you must pay within the notice period it gives.

Credit card (Visa or Mastercard).
NETS through AXS, for payments below S$9,999.
PayNow, for supported banks.

There is no instalment plan, so HDB asks for one payment. Approval follows about 2 weeks after both sides have endorsed the documents and paid. Completion comes after approval. Plan to pay HDB from your own funds before any sale proceeds arrive.

A private firm bills under its own engagement terms. Ask in writing when it will bill you and whether anything is paid out of the sale proceeds at completion. Our guide on when HDB sale proceeds are paid covers the timing of the money that comes back to you.

If the sale is aborted or cancelled

Clause 6 of HDB’s resale terms lets HDB stop acting for any party if a dispute arises, or for any other reason it sees fit. If the resale is aborted, or HDB is discharged from acting, the seller and buyer each pay half the conveyancing fees.

If HDB has accepted the application and it is then cancelled, clause 17.4 makes both sides liable for the stamp, conveyancing and other fees that HDB or other authorities require. Outside these cases, clause 8.1 says the seller and buyer each bear their own legal costs.

Legal fees are separate from the agent fee. Fairnest’s fixed fee is S$2,178.91 incl. GST and pays for agency work, not conveyancing.

Before you declare who acts for you

Check whether the flat still has a bank or HDB loan on it.
If it is a bank loan, ask your lender for its panel of solicitors and get a written estimate.
Run HDB’s legal fee estimator at your expected sale price.
Decide whether you need the Enhanced Contra Facility, which requires HDB to act.
Set aside cash for HDB’s fees, which fall due after you endorse the resale documents.

Common questions

Sources

Written by

Michelle Lee Ling Ching

Michelle Lee Ling Ching · CEA Registration Number: R009798I · ERA Realty Network Pte Ltd · CEA Licence Number: L3002382K · Tel: +65 9680 1106

We are a fixed-fee HDB agent, non-exclusive and paid on completion. See our HDB seller fee and what it covers.

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