CPF for Home Loan: Complete 2025 Guide by Homejourney

Executive Summary: Your Definitive Guide to Using CPF for Home Loans

If you are buying a home in Singapore, understanding how to use your CPF for home loan is just as important as choosing the right property or bank. For most Singaporeans, CPF Ordinary Account (OA) funds will pay a large part of the CPF housing down payment, legal costs and monthly instalments, whether you are buying a BTO in Punggol, a resale flat in Bedok, or a private condo in Sengkang.

This guide brings together official CPF, HDB and MAS rules, real examples based on current price levels, and practical strategies I see Singapore buyers using every week. It is written from the perspective of a local who has gone through HDB booking, resale exercise, and refinancing cycles, and who knows the real trade-offs between using CPF vs cash in today’s high-interest environment.

You will learn:

• Exactly what your CPF OA can and cannot be used for when buying property
• The differences in CPF rules for HDB loans vs bank loans
• How CPF down payment works for BTO, resale and private property
• How to calculate your CPF usage limits, accrued interest, and impact on retirement
• Whether you should use CPF for mortgage instalments or preserve it for retirement
• How to use Homejourney’s tools to safely plan your loan and CPF strategy

At Homejourney, safety and trust come first. That means:

• We follow and reference official CPF and HDB guidelines whenever we talk about CPF housing rules[3][5][7][8].
• We show you risks (like over-using CPF OA) as clearly as benefits, so you can decide confidently.
• We verify data and keep our mortgage tools updated so that your numbers reflect current policy and market conditions.

Important disclaimer: This article is for general education and does not constitute financial advice. CPF and housing rules can change, and your situation is unique. Always cross-check key rules on the official CPF and HDB websites and consult a licensed financial adviser or banker where needed.

Table of Contents

• Chapter 1: CPF OA Basics for Home Buyers
• Chapter 2: What You Can Use CPF For When Buying a Home
• Chapter 3: CPF Rules for HDB vs Bank Loans
• Chapter 4: CPF Down Payment Scenarios (Real Examples)
• Chapter 5: CPF Housing Grants and How They Work
• Chapter 6: Usage Limits, Valuation Limits & Accrued Interest
• Chapter 7: CPF vs Cash – How Much CPF Should You Use?
• Chapter 8: Refinancing, Switching Loans & CPF Considerations
• Chapter 9: Step-by-Step – How to Use CPF for Your Mortgage Safely
• Chapter 10: How Homejourney Helps You Plan & Optimise Your CPF Usage
• FAQ: Common Questions About Using CPF for Home Loans

Chapter 1: CPF OA Basics for Home Buyers

1.1 What is CPF OA and why it matters for home loans

Your CPF Ordinary Account (OA) is the workhorse for housing. Every month, a portion of your salary contributions goes into OA, which can be used for:

• Buying HDB flats (BTO, resale) or private residential property[7].
• Paying housing-related costs such as stamp duties and legal fees (within CPF rules).[5]
• Servicing monthly housing loan instalments[7][8].

CPF OA pays a base interest of 2.5% p.a. (at the time of writing), which is one key benchmark for comparing against your mortgage rate when deciding how much CPF to use.[8][9]

1.2 Key CPF housing terms explained simply

Here are essential terms you must understand before using your CPF for home loan decisions:

1.3 Singapore regulatory framework you must know

When using CPF for property, you are operating under three main frameworks:

• CPF Board – Sets rules on how CPF OA can be used, CPF limits, accrued interest and refunds[3][5][7][8][9].
• HDB – Sets rules for HDB eligibility, HDB loans, grants and minimum occupation periods (MOP).[5][7]
• MAS (Monetary Authority of Singapore) – Regulates banks and sets Total Debt Servicing Ratio (TDSR) and Mortgage Servicing Ratio (MSR) frameworks that affect how much you can borrow.[10]

These rules interact – for example, you may have enough CPF OA to pay a big down payment, but TDSR and MSR calculations can still limit how much loan you can take for an HDB or condo.

Chapter 2: What You Can Use CPF For When Buying a Home

2.1 Allowed uses of CPF OA for property

According to CPF Board’s home ownership guidelines, members can typically use CPF OA for these purposes when buying a property[5][7][9]:

• Option fee and down payment (subject to minimum cash requirements for bank loans).[7]
• Stamp duties – Buyer’s Stamp Duty (BSD) and, where applicable, Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD), up to CPF usage limits[5].
• Legal and conveyancing fees related to the purchase.
• Monthly mortgage instalments (principal and interest) for both HDB and bank loans, up to CPF housing usage limits[7][8].

2.2 What CPF cannot be used for

There are also clear restrictions:

• You cannot use CPF OA to pay renovation costs (e.g. carpentry, flooring, lighting).
• You cannot use CPF OA for furniture, appliances, or general living expenses.
• You cannot use CPF OA to buy property solely for short-term speculation – CPF is meant to support home ownership and retirement, not flipping.
• CPF usage is subject to property lease conditions and your age; older resale flats with short leases will see reduced CPF eligibility.[5][9]

2.3 Insider tip: How locals really use CPF in practice

On the ground, many Singaporean couples I’ve seen in new HDB estates like Punggol, Sengkang and Tampines do the following:

• Use almost 100% CPF OA for the down payment to minimise cash outlay when starting a family.
• Set monthly instalments to be paid mostly or fully from CPF OA, targeting around 25–30% of combined income so they still have buffer for childcare, car and parents’ allowances.
• After a few years, when salaries rise, some intentionally start paying part of the instalment in cash to rebuild CPF OA for retirement.

This is not the only strategy – later chapters will show different options and how to assess what is safest for you.

Chapter 3: CPF Rules for HDB Loans vs Bank Loans

3.1 HDB concessionary loan – CPF usage

For an HDB loan, CPF rules are relatively straightforward:

• Down payment is generally 15% of the purchase price, which can be fully paid with CPF OA (no minimum cash portion).[7]
• Monthly instalments can be fully paid from CPF OA, subject to usage and lease limits.[7][8]
• HDB loan interest is usually pegged at 0.1% above CPF OA interest (thus 2.6% p.a. if OA is 2.5% p.a.), making CPF OA vs HDB loan a relatively simple comparison.[10]

Because the HDB loan rate is closely tied to CPF OA rate, many buyers see less urgency to conserve CPF, and more focus on keeping cash for emergencies.

3.2 Bank loans – CPF usage & minimum cash requirement

For bank loans, CPF and cash rules are stricter. CPF Board states that if you take a bank loan for your property[7]:

• You must pay at least 5% of the purchase price in cash as part of the down payment.
• The next 20% of the price can be paid with CPF OA and/or cash.
• The maximum loan-to-value (LTV) from banks is generally up to 75%, subject to MAS rules and your profile.[10]

Monthly instalments for bank loans can also be paid using CPF OA, up to your individual CPF usage limit and the Withdrawal Limit where applicable.[9]

3.3 MSR and TDSR – How they limit your CPF + loan combination

Even if you have a large CPF OA balance, you are constrained by:

• Mortgage Servicing Ratio (MSR) – For HDB and ECs, your monthly mortgage cannot exceed 30% of gross monthly income, regardless of whether you pay by CPF or cash[10].
• Total Debt Servicing Ratio (TDSR) – For all property types, all your monthly debt obligations (housing, car, personal loans, credit cards) generally cannot exceed 55% of gross monthly income under MAS guidelines[10].

These caps are there to keep you from overstretching – something Homejourney strongly supports as part of a safe and sustainable housing journey.

Chapter 4: CPF Down Payment Scenarios (Real Examples)

4.1 Example 1 – Young couple buying 4-room BTO in Tengah using CPF OA

Imagine a young couple in their early 30s booking a 4-room BTO in Tengah for $480,000, using an HDB loan.

• Purchase price: $480,000
• Down payment (15% HDB loan): $72,000 – fully payable via CPF OA[7].
• Loan (85%): $408,000
• CPF OA used for monthly instalments: Suppose $1,700 per month combined for 25 years.

If both earn a combined $8,000/month, the instalment is around 21% of income, well within MSR. They may pay everything from CPF OA initially, while keeping cash to manage future childcare and parents’ allowance.

4.2 Example 2 – Executive buying $900,000 resale HDB in Queenstown with bank loan

Now take a single 38-year-old buyer purchasing a 4-room resale flat near Queenstown MRT for $900,000 with a bank loan.

• Max LTV (assuming first housing loan and good credit): 75% = $675,000[10].
• Minimum cash (5%): $45,000 – must be cash, cannot be CPF[7].
• Next 20% ($180,000): can be paid by CPF OA and/or cash.

If the buyer has $200,000 in CPF OA and $70,000 in savings, a common strategy is:

• Use $180,000 from CPF OA for the 20% portion.
• Use $45,000 cash for the mandatory 5%.
• Keep remaining cash (~$25,000) as emergency buffer.

References

1. Singapore Property Market Analysis 3 (2025)
2. Singapore Property Market Analysis 5 (2025)
3. Singapore Property Market Analysis 7 (2025)
4. Singapore Property Market Analysis 8 (2025)
5. Singapore Property Market Analysis 9 (2025)
6. Singapore Property Market Analysis 2 (2025)
7. Singapore Property Market Analysis 10 (2025)