Good Class Bungalow (GCB) areas

What makes a bungalow a GCB

URA designates 39 Good Class Bungalow Areas and shows them on its Designated Landed Housing Area Plan. A bungalow in one of them must meet the GCB plot and building rules below, which are stricter than for a detached house elsewhere. A detached house outside these areas is a bungalow, but not a GCB.

GCB plot and building rules

• Minimum plot size: 1,400 m², about 15,070 sq ft. A detached house outside a GCB area needs 400 m².
• Minimum plot width: 18.5 m, and minimum plot depth: 30 m.
• Setbacks: 7.5 m from the front boundary in most cases, and 3 m from the side and rear boundaries, against 2 m for other detached houses.
• Site coverage: at most 35% under URA’s sub-control and 45% overall, against 40% and 50% for other detached houses.
• Height: the house must fit the building envelope for the area’s storey control. See the planning controls guide for how that works.

Conservation and approvals

• Some GCB areas include conservation areas, such as White House Park and Nassim Road, Chatsworth Park, and Holland Park and Ridout Park. Works on a conserved bungalow need URA’s Conservation Permission first.
• URA’s plan lodgment route, which lets a qualified person lodge simple works instead of applying for planning permission, is closed to plots in GCB areas. Additions, alterations and rebuilds there need a planning application.

Who can own a GCB

• Singapore Citizens can buy one without approval.
• A Permanent Resident or foreigner needs approval from SLA’s Land Dealings Approval Unit. The Minister for Law said in 2019 that homes in GCB areas and land over 15,000 sq ft face more stringent criteria than other landed homes.
• Buyers who are not Citizens also pay Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty. Who can buy landed property

How to check if a plot is in a GCB area

1. Open URA SPACE, search the address and turn on the Landed Housing Area layer under Control Plans. It shows URA’s Designated Landed Housing Area Plan, which marks the Good Class Bungalow Areas.
2. Or download URA’s “SDCP Good Class Bungalow Area” dataset from data.gov.sg, which maps each area’s boundary (last updated 15 November 2025).
3. Ask your lawyer or architect to confirm the plot’s controls before you buy or plan works.

Before you rely on this

This guide sums up the official rules and is not legal advice. The authority named decides each case, so check your own plot and plans with it or with a professional.

Questions

Sources

• URA: Good Class Bungalow locational criteria (opens in a new tab)
• data.gov.sg: SDCP Good Class Bungalow Area (URA) (opens in a new tab)
• URA: Prevailing planning controls for land-titled homes (opens in a new tab)
• URA: Plan lodgment for additions and alterations to a landed house (opens in a new tab)
• URA: Conservation guidelines (opens in a new tab)
• SLA: Foreign ownership of property (opens in a new tab)
• MinLaw: Written answer on landed property owned by PRs (2 Sep 2019) (opens in a new tab)

Rules and fees change. Check the linked official pages before you commit, and ask a lawyer about your own sale or purchase.

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