For Executive Condo (EC) buyers in Singapore, loan approval depends on two layers of rules: HDB’s EC eligibility (including the EC income ceiling of $16,000) and the banks’ loan criteria such as MSR 30%, TDSR 55%, age and credit profile.
This EC Loan Eligibility Income Ceiling and Requirements: Bank Rate Comparison Guide explains, in simple terms, who can buy an EC, what executive condo criteria banks use, how much you can realistically borrow, and how to compare bank rates safely through Homejourney.
This article is a focused cluster within our full EC financing framework. For a step‑by‑step overview of EC loans from booking to key collection, refer to our main pillar guide: Homejourney EC Financing Guide 2026: Executive Condo Loans .
EC eligibility and income ceiling: who can buy an EC?
Before any bank will issue you a loan, you must first meet HDB’s executive condo criteria for a new launch EC.
In practice, this means answering four questions clearly:
- Are you forming an eligible family nucleus? (e.g. Public Scheme with spouse/children, Fiancé/Fiancée Scheme, Orphans Scheme, or Joint Singles Scheme for 35 and above)[1][2]
- Do you meet the EC income ceiling? Your gross monthly household income must not exceed $16,000 for new ECs[1][2].
- Have you owned subsidised housing before? You cannot have taken more than one housing subsidy or bought more than one new HDB/DBSS/EC previously[1][2].
- Do you meet property ownership rules? You must not own or have disposed of private property (local or overseas) in the last 30 months, and you must have fulfilled any Minimum Occupation Period (MOP) on existing HDB/EC units[1][2].
As someone who has walked buyers through actual launches like Parc Greenwich (Seletar) and Piermont Grand (Punggol), most disqualifications we see come from buyers crossing the $16,000 income ceiling or still being within their HDB MOP, even though their bank loan would otherwise be strong.
Key loan requirements for EC buyers
Once you clear HDB’s EC eligibility, banks apply a second layer of checks. For ECs, only bank loans are allowed – no HDB loans are permitted[2].
Here are the main criteria banks like DBS, OCBC, UOB, HSBC, Standard Chartered, Maybank, CIMB, RHB, Public Bank, Hong Leong Bank and Citibank will look at.
1. Income types: employed vs self‑employed vs variable income
Employed (fixed salary)
Typical documents:
- Latest 3 months’ computerised payslips
- 12 months’ CPF contribution history
- Latest NOA (Notice of Assessment) from IRAS
Self‑employed / commission / variable income
Banks usually apply a haircut (often 20–30%) to variable income for prudence. For example, if your average commission is $5,000/month, the bank may recognise only $3,500–$4,000 as eligible income.
Documents typically include:
- 2 years’ NOA from IRAS
- 6–12 months’ bank statements (for business or commission flows)
- ACRA business profile (for self‑employed)
This is where Homejourney’s Singpass/MyInfo integration is useful: a large part of this income data is auto‑pulled securely, reducing errors and back‑and‑forth requests.
2. MSR and TDSR for EC loans
Two national rules cap how much of your income can go into debt servicing:
- Mortgage Servicing Ratio (MSR): For HDB flats and ECs still within their 5‑year MOP, your monthly mortgage instalment must not exceed 30% of your gross monthly income[3].
- Total Debt Servicing Ratio (TDSR): Across all debts (home loans, car loans, credit cards, renovation loans, education loans), your monthly instalments must not exceed 55% of your gross monthly income, based on MAS rules[3].
For new launch ECs, both MSR 30% and TDSR 55% apply concurrently. In practice, most EC buyers are constrained by the stricter MSR cap.
3. Age limits and loan tenure
For bank loans on ECs, typical tenure rules are:
- Maximum property loan tenure usually 30 years for ECs (some banks may allow up to 35 years depending on profile).
- The sum of your age and loan tenure usually cannot exceed 65–70 years (varies slightly by bank policy).
For example, if you are 40 years old, a 30‑year tenure may still be allowed, but a 35‑year tenure may breach some banks’ internal rules and trigger a shorter allowed tenure and lower Loan‑to‑Value (LTV).
4. Credit score and existing debts
Banks will pull your credit report from Credit Bureau Singapore (CBS). Key factors include:
- Timeliness of past repayments (on credit cards, instalment plans, other loans)
- Total unsecured credit limits and current usage
- Number of recent loan applications
A clean repayment history and low utilisation of your credit cards (ideally <30% of limit) can meaningfully improve your approval odds and sometimes your offered rate spread.
Income vs borrowing capacity: real‑world EC loan examples
Below are simplified calculation examples to illustrate the interaction of EC income ceiling, MSR and TDSR. These are estimates for educational purposes only and do not constitute financial advice. Actual bank offers depend on each bank’s latest policies and your full financial profile.
Example 1: Couple earning $12,000, no other loans
Profile:
- Combined income: $12,000/month
- No car loan, no personal loans, modest credit card usage
- Age: both 32, purchasing a new launch EC
Step 1 – Check EC income ceiling:
- $12,000 < $16,000 → Pass EC income ceiling.
Step 2 – Apply MSR 30%:
- Maximum monthly EC instalment = 30% × $12,000 = $3,600[3].
Step 3 – Apply TDSR 55%:
- Maximum total debt servicing = 55% × $12,000 = $6,600[3].
- Since they have no other loans, the full $6,600 could go to the EC loan, but MSR of $3,600 is the stricter cap.
Step 4 – Translate $3,600 instalment into loan quantum (approximate):
Assume:
- Interest: 3.3% p.a. (blended estimate for floating SORA packages in 2025; check live rates on Bank Rates )
- Tenure: 25 years
Using a standard amortisation formula, a $3,600 monthly repayment at 3.3% over 25 years corresponds to a loan size of roughly $780,000–$820,000 (varies slightly by bank’s exact rate and compounding assumptions).
If they secure 75% LTV, this suggests an EC purchase price in the ballpark of ~$1.04M–$1.09M, which is similar to 3‑bedroom units we’ve seen in non‑prime ECs outside central areas like Sengkang or Punggol.
Example 2: Household at income ceiling with car loan
Profile:
- Combined income: $16,000/month (right at EC income ceiling)
- Car loan: $1,000/month
- Credit card instalments: $500/month
- Age: 38 and 36
Step 1 – EC income ceiling:
- $16,000 ≤ $16,000 → still eligible for EC, but any further increment will breach the cap.
Step 2 – MSR 30%:
- Maximum mortgage under MSR = 30% × $16,000 = $4,800[3].
Step 3 – TDSR 55%:
- Maximum total debt servicing = 55% × $16,000 = $8,800[3].
- Existing debts: $1,000 (car) + $500 (instalments) = $1,500.
