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Can Singles Buy an HDB Together? The Joint Singles Scheme and Orphans Scheme Explained

Published 20 November 2025

TL;DR / Summary:

Two HDB schemes let singles buy together: the Joint Singles Scheme for friends aged 35 and above, and the Orphans Scheme for siblings who’ve lost both parents and are at least 21. EHG grants apply to both.

Most singles assume they have to wait, save more, or figure it out solo before they can own a home in Singapore. But if you’ve got the right people around you, you don’t.

Ever watched the TV show “Friends” before? The whole living-with-your-people thing they had going on looked genuinely ideal. And at some point, most of us have wondered what it would feel like to actually live like that.

Well, good news! You can have a version of that here. The HDB Joint Singles Scheme lets you buy a flat with friends, and if you’re looking to buy with a sibling, the Orphans Scheme covers that too.

Here’s how both work:

HDB Joint Singles Scheme

With the Joint Singles Scheme, two to four single Singapore Citizens can buy a new 2-room Flexi or a resale HDB flat together. To apply for this scheme, you need to be:

Single (Duh)
35 years old or older (This is basic, guys)
Not married to each other (Keep it in your pants!)

HDB Orphans Scheme

On the other hand, you can also apply for the HDB Orphans Scheme, which allows Singaporean siblings to buy together a resale flat of any kind or a 2-room Flexi BTO. To be eligible for this scheme, you and your sibling(s) need to be:

Single
21 years old or older
Orphans (Both parents are deceased)
The child of at least one parent who had been a Singapore Citizen or Singapore Permanent Resident

Both these schemes are funded by the Enhanced CPF Housing Grant (EHG) and therefore have similar uses and general eligibility requirements as other EHG housing schemes.

Are you eligible to apply for EHG under these schemes?

Here’s a checklist for you to follow.

Income

Combined income should not exceed $9,000 for joint singles buying resale and orhpans buying BTO or resale flats. However, for joint singles who want a new flat, combined income should not exceed $7,000.

Employment

At least one of the applicants must have been employed for 12 months before your EHG application, and must still be working when the application is submitted.

Remaining Lease

The flat must have enough years left under its lease so that you and your co-applicants can live in it until the age of 95. If the remaining lease is shorter than that, you may get a prorated portion of the EHG you are eligible for. But the flat should have at least 20 years of remaining lease in general.

Property Ownership/ Interest

You or your co-applicants must not own any other property in Singapore or overseas, or have sold it in the 30 months before your flat application.

How much can you get?

The grant amount you will receive is based on the average gross monthly income of your household — the combined income of all working persons who will live there, both co-applicants and occupiers — for 12 months up to the date that you applied for the grant. The scheme is socialised, so those who earn less will receive a larger grant amount while those who earn more are eligible for less.

For example, if your average income only reaches $1,500 or less, you are eligible for a grant of up to $120,000. On the other hand, if you and your housemates are doing well and your combined average monthly income reaches $9,000, you will only get a grant of around $5,000.

How to apply for HDB Joint Singles or Orphan Schemes?

For whichever scheme you’re thinking of applying to, you can download and fill out the EHG application form and submit it with the necessary income documents to HDB at your booking appointment.

If you qualify and there are two of you who are co-applicants, the grant amount will be split equally between the two of you and credited to your CPF Ordinary Account. If there are more applicants, the grant will be credited to only two of you, with each receiving half of the grant.

With this scheme, you can finally have a place to call your own with your family — whether by blood or by choice.

However, if you prefer to go solo, you can apply for the Single Singapore Citizen Scheme.