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Home Improvement Programme (HIP) by HDB: A Makeover for Mature Flats

Published 22 August 2025

Is an older resale HDB flat less desirable? While it’s true that most buyers prefer properties with a longer remaining lease, older resale HDB flats (with a shorter remaining lease) are still in demand.

According to The Business Times, the number of older resale HDB flats sold in 2022 more than doubled over the last decade: in 2012, the proportion of older flats sold was only 15% out of all the HDB flat types sold, and it jumped to 37% in 2022.

As the data shows, buyers are, in fact, interested in older flats, despite the common fear about their reduced property value as a result of a shorter remaining lease. Older flats still have value, most especially when they are located in mature estates and are typically larger, as the government continues to improve the quality of resale HDB flats through the Home Improvement Programme (HIP).

Your Guide to the HDB Home Improvement Programme (HIP)

Introducing the Home Improvement Programme (HIP)
How Does the HDB HIP Work?
What's Included in the HIP?
HIP Enhancements in 2025
How Does HIP Benefit You?
Upswing in Value of Older Resale Flats

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Introducing the Home Improvement Programme (HIP)

The Home Improvement Programme (HIP) was introduced in 2007, replacing the previous Main Upgrading Programme (MUP), to maintain the quality and design of older HDB flats, with a focus on upgrades within the flat. The HIP also addresses homeowners’ common maintenance problems with ageing flats.

How Does the HDB HIP Work?

The HIP will only proceed if at least 75% of a block’s eligible Singapore Citizen households have voted in favour of it. Singapore Permanent Resident households are not eligible to poll. To find out if your block has been shortlisted for polling, go here.

If your block votes in favour of HIP, you will enjoy essential improvements for public health and safety. At the same time, you can add Optional and Enhancement for Active Seniors (EASE) improvements.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the general time taken for HIP to be completed for an estate of 8-10 blocks is about 1.5-2 years. Each flat unit will take 10 working days or less, depending on the improvements chosen.

What’s Included in the HIP?

The scope of HIP consists of 3 components: Essential, Optional, and EASE improvements.

As of February 2025, the EASE scheme will extend to seniors living in private property for the next 3 years until 2028. Previously, it was only for those in HDB flats.

The 3 Components of HIP

Essential Improvements

– Repair of spalling concrete and structural cracks
– Replacement of waste/soil pipes
– Replacement of pipe sockets with a new clothes drying rack
– Upgrading of electrical load

Optional Improvements

– Toilet/bathroom upgrading (wall/floor tiles and sanitary fittings)
– New fire-rated or non-fire-rated main door
– New metal grille gate
– New refuse chute hopper, where applicable

EASE Improvements

– Slip-resistant treatment for bathroom tiles
– Grab bars
– Single-step ramp for a single-step entrance; or portable/customised ramp for a multi-step entrance
– Wheelchair lifter

HIP Enhancements in 2025

Close to 494,000 HDB households have been selected for HIP since its launch in 2007, with over $4 billion spent on upgrading works. Of these, close to 381,000 flats have been upgraded.

As of February 2025, about 29,000 HDB flats in 13 towns have been selected for HIP, with $406 million allocated for the latest round of upgrades.

Town

Location of Selected Flats

Bedok

Blks 633 – 649 Bedok Reservoir Road/Jalan Tenaga

Bukit Batok

Blks 623 – 628 & 297 – 299 Bukit Batok Central/Street 22

Bukit Merah

Blks 6, 122, 123 & 125 Kim Tian Road

Bukit Panjang

Blks 501 – 512 Jelapang Road

Chua Chu Kang

Blks 429 – 441 Choa Chu Kang Ave 4; Blks 601 – 616 Choa Chu Kang Street 62; Blks 617 – 621 & 625 – 627 Choa Chu Kang Nth 7/Street 62; Blks 784 – 792 Choa Chu Kang Drive/Nth 6

Hougang

Blks 567 – 580 Hougang Street 51/Ave 4

Jurong West

Blks 345 – 355 Kang Ching Road/Corporation Drive; Blks 701 – 710 Jurong West Street 71; Blks 854 – 866 Jurong West Street 81; Blks 687 – 696 Jurong West Central 1

Pasir Ris

Blks 130 – 137 Pasir Ris Street 11; Blks 252 – 257 & 266 – 275 Pasir Ris Street 21; Blks 138 – 161 Pasir Ris Street 11/13; Blks 626 – 633 & 642 – 651 Pasir Ris Drive 3/10; Blks 634 – 641 Pasir Ris Drive 1; Blks 601 – 615 Elias Road; Blks 570 – 586 Pasir Ris Street 53

Queenstown

Blks 80 – 83 Strathmore Avenue

Sengkang

Blks 133 – 141 Rivervale Street

Tampines

Blks 324 – 337 Tampines Street 32; Blks 842B, 842C, 842D, 842E, 842F, 842G, 842H, 856B, 856C, 856D, 856E & 856F Tampines Street 82; Blks 338 – 343 & 345 – 351 Tampines Street 33; Blks 497A, 497B, 497C, 497D, 497F, 497G, 497H, 497J, 498A, 498B, 498D, 498E, 498F, 498G, 498H, 498J, 498L & 498M Tampines Street 45

Toa Payoh

Blks 153A, 153 – 156, 171, 172, 172A, 97, 99A, 99B, 99C, 101A & 101B Lor 1/2/3 Toa Payoh

Woodlands

Blks 891A, 891B, 892A, 892B, 893A, 893B, 893C, 893D, 894A, 894B, 894C & 894D Woodlands Drive 50; Blks 728 – 743 Woodlands Circle; Blks 721 – 727 Woodlands Circle/Ave 6

There was a notable enhancement included in the 2024 HIP when they introduced the Corrosion Resistant Repair (CRR) method for addressing spalling concrete, particularly in high-moisture areas like toilets. This new method significantly reduces the recurrence of spalling concrete, further improving the long-term durability of upgraded flats.

In August 2025, National Development Minister Chee Hong Tat announced that a second round of improvements is planned for flats that had undergone HIP as they reach 60 or 70 years of age. The HIP II upgrades will reportedly be “more extensive” to ensure the flats will last until the end of their 99-year lease, but more details will be announced during the ministry’s Budget debate next year.

How Does HIP Benefit You?

1: Improving Quality of Life

The purpose of the HIP is to assist residents to have a better quality of life in their aging flats by ensuring that common maintenance problems are resolved. This includes issues such as spalling concrete, ceiling leaks, and damaged pipes.

2: Catering to the Needs of the Elderly

The EASE improvements enhance the mobility for senior citizens. For instance, if you have selected grab bars and slip-resistant tiles in the toilet as an option, this will allow the elderly to move around more easily and reduce the risks of falling.

3: Affordable Payment Scheme

Furthermore, the HIP is affordable as it is heavily subsidised. For instance, the essential improvements are fully funded by the government for Singaporeans. Up to 95% of the optional and EASE improvement cost is subsidised, so eligible Singaporean households need only pay a small fraction for the upgrading works.

Upgrading Cost for Optional Improvements

Owners will pay between 5% and 12.5% of the cost for any chosen Optional improvements, depending on the flat type.

Flat Type

1/2/3-Room

4-Room

5-Room

Executive

You Pay

$599.50 (5%)

$899.25 (7.5%)

$1,199 (10%)

$1,498.75 (12.5%)

Government Pays

95%

92.5%

90%

87.5%

Upgrading Cost for EASE Improvements

Flat Type

1/2/3-Room

4-Room

5-Room

Executive

Cost-sharing ratio

7.5%

10%

12.5%

Amount Payable*
(Full EASE package with single-step ramp)

$286.65

$430

$573.30

$716.65

Amount Payable*
(Full EASE package with portable ramp)

$310.65

$465.95

$621.30

$776.60

Amount Payable*
(Full EASE package with customised ramp)

$359.70

$539.55

$719.40

$899.25

*Maximum if all the items are opted for. All amounts stated are estimates and inclusive of 9% GST. The final amount will be determined only upon completion of the upgrading works.

For elderly residents living in HDB rental flats, the improvement items will be fully funded by the government.

EASE is also highly subsidised by the government. If a resident selects all the EASE items, the cost would be about:

$2,500 (with single-step ramp at main entrance)
$2,940 (with portable ramp at main entrance)
$3,840 (with customised ramp at main entrance)

You can go here to calculate how much you’ll need to pay for HIP, and go here to check if you’re scheduled to make a payment for the HIP.

Upswing in Value of Older Resale Flats

Addressing the wear-and-tear of HDB flats is pivotal in the long run, as maintaining the quality will improve the value as well. For example, in 2015, the HIP was announced for blocks 166 and 169 at Bedok South Avenue 3 and was completed in 2021. If we look at the resale prices of the 4-Room flats in these two blocks, there was a price surge after the HIP was completed.

For instance, the transacted price of the 4-Room flat (1,119 sqft) before the HIP was $428.9K in 2011. But upon the completion of HIP, the same flat was transacted at $470.0K in 2021. This was a 9.6% increase in the value of the flat.

Let’s take a look at another example:

Block 145 at Bishan Street 11 was earmarked for HIP in 2012, with upgrading subsequently completed around 2017. If we look at the resale prices of both the 4-Room and the 5-Room flats in block 145, resale prices increased after the HIP was completed. For instance, the transacted price of the 4-Room flat (904 sqft) was $420.0K. But upon HIP completion, the same flat was transacted at $458.0K in 2018 — a 9.0% rise in the flat’s value.

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