Singapore Estate Law – Can You Will Your HDB to Siblings?

Here’s another interesting snippet from Sunday Times. Agent friends should flip up Sunday Times and look out for the Invest Section – Your Personal Adviser: Finance

hdb

Question:

I would like to know if I can make a will and name my siblings as beneficiaries so they can inherit my HDB flat when I die. I am single and registered as the sole owner of the flat. Two of my siblings already have their own HDB flats, while another has a private property.

If it is not possible to will the flat to them, what will happen to the property after my death? Would HDB buy back the flat and then distribute the funds to my estate, and would it pay the original price or the market rate?

Professional Answer from Amolat Singh, Amolat & Partners:

Any person is free to dispose of his property by way of a will, unless other laws apply that might restrict this freedom. Such laws would include HDB’s rules and regulations governing the eligibility of ownership.

In order to inherit the flat, your siblings would have to satisfy HDB rules and regulations prevailing at the time of your death.

An express trust is one way of allowing your beneficiaries to retain a property after your death. However, such trusts are specifically prohibited under the HDB Act, so you will not be able to create one for your HDB flat.

It would be a prudent move for you to set out in your will how sale proceeds from your flat should be divided among your siblings.

The executor and trustee of your will would step into your shoes upon your death and sell the flat at the best possible market price, as well as attend to all other legal formalities, such as executing the necessary documents upon sale. Trustees have a legal duty and obligation to distribute the sale proceeds in the manner dictated by you and set out in your will.

You won’t be able to will your HDB to your siblings should they not satisfy the criteria list of HDB (you could still if they do).

But should anything unfortunate happen to you and if you would have a executor and trustee appointed, they could sell and distribute the sales proceed dictated by your will.

16 thoughts on “Singapore Estate Law – Can You Will Your HDB to Siblings?

  1. If I die without a will, can my son listed as an occupier of the HDB flat I own, be able to inherit. Can my other family members like parents and siblings contest it?
    I am the sole owner of the 3 room HDB property.

  2. Is the purchase under joint tenancy with your wife? If anything unfortunate happens to you, the flat will be passed to your wife.

    If your flat is bought under solely your name, it would be best to fix a proper will of how you want your flat’s proceeds to be distributed.

  3. My husband and i owned a 3 room HDB flat. Since we don’t have any kids, we intend to write a will under our nephew so that he can inherit our flat upon our death. We heard from a friend that the Syariah Court won’t permit us to do so. How true is this and pls give your advise. Thanks.

  4. The distribution of a deceased Muslim estate is based on Muslim laws or Inheritance or Faraid as set out in the Administration of Muslim Law Act. Under Muslim law, a Muslim may not dispose of more than one-third of his estate by will and the beneficiaries under the will must not be his legitimate heirs or the gift will be invalid.

    If the HDB property is owned jointly then the survivor will inherit the property upon the death of the other. In that case property law overrides Muslim law. However, upon the death of the survivor Muslim law applies. In that case, the estate (or assets) of the deceased will be distributed according to Faraid as follows:
    (Assuming you have no children of your own)

    Parents (father 2 share and mother 1 share);

    If none of the above survives the deceased, then to the deceased siblings in the ratio male (brother):2 shares and 1 share to female sister). Please contact me if you wish to know more or other possible beneficiaries.

    Your nephew may be a possible beneficiaries but as this may be remote (because as a class all your siblings must not survive you before nephews are entitled), you may leave 1/3 of your estate to your nephew by will whilst the rest will be distributed according to Muslim law based on the Inheritance certificate issued by the Singapore Syariah Court according to the survivors then existing before your death.

    I hope the above clarifies somewhat the issues troubling you but please write to me directly if you have more questions.

  5. I would like to check if i’m already a owner of a flat can i still inherit a paid HDB flat from my aunt? I heard that each person can only be an owner of 1 hdb flat. Thanks for answering to my qns

  6. Hi ger,

    In order to inherit the flat, you would have to satisfy HDB rules and regulations prevailing at the time of your aunt’s death.

    An express trust is one way of allowing your beneficiaries to retain a property after your death.

    However, such trusts are specifically prohibited under the HDB Act, so your aunt will not be able to create one for her HDB flat.

    It would be a prudent move for your aunt to set out in her will how sale proceeds from your flat should be passed on to you.

    The executor and trustee of her will would step into your shoes upon your aunt’s death and sell the flat at the best possible market price, as well as attend to all other legal formalities, such as executing the necessary documents upon sale. Trustees have a legal duty and obligation to distribute the sale proceeds in the manner dictated by your aunt and set out in her will.

  7. Hi, I would like to know if I can create a will, that when I die, to pass my HDB flat to my son (who is married). Can I will that he cannot sell this flat? And also in case he divorce, that only my son would get this flat and not his wife?

    1. This would potentially be possible for private property through the means of a trust, but not possible with HDB since you can’t place a property in an express trust. In this case, ownership will have to be passed on to your son, after which he can do whatever he deems fit with the flat including changing to JT with his wife. Alternatively, you may just want to sell the flat, and distribute the sales proceeds to your beneficiaries, unless you have other concerns that are not shared here.

  8. Hi, I would like to ask about the conditions, procedure and fees involved to inherit my mum’s HDB flat. I am staying in a private property and if my mum wills her hdb flat to me, is it possible for me to stay in the hdb flat without disposing my private property under the current law. I heard from one of my friend, that has to pay a sum of money (like a $100K) in order for her to inherit a HDB flat. Appreciate your advice and any information on inheriting HDB flat would be helpful. Thanks.

  9. Hi, I would like to check,
    My mums just past away not long, left my dad alone in a 3 room hdb flat.
    I got 2 silbing still unmarried, but v curious there only one sibling in the occupier.. Will there be any affect. If my any sibling name is not in. When my dad dies?..

    And or if my dad make a will, will the will enforce. Even the It not the occupier?

    Any one can help me…

  10. Hi,
    I currently own a private property while my sister is staying in a HDB flat. If my mum left her flat through intestate inheritance, that means myself and my sister will own 50% each. Since my sister cannot inherit another HDB flat, can she sell her 50% to me so that I can own the HDB flat fully?

    Thanks.

  11. My parents are owners of their current 4-Rom premium flat in Sengkang. My father has fully paid up for the flat. My parents have this worry if anything unfortunate happens to them, will the flat automatically be divided among we three children. 2 of my siblings are currently HDB unit owners. I’m living with my parents in this 4-rm flat. Do they need to write a will to state teh proportions as to who get how much of the house?

  12. I have 4 children, one son and 3 daughters.if I didn’t make a will and after I die will my only son can inherit my HDB flats or divided among my 4 children ?

  13. Hi, My brother and mum co-own a 2-rm HDB flat. They would like to will this flat to one of e sibling after death. Can this arrangement be done and how. They still have some outstanding loan with HDB. The beneficiary is a co-owner of a pte condo. Does not own any HDB flat.
    Appreciate to receive an early reply.
    Thanks!

    1. Hi Wondertan,

      The arrangement of willing the HDB flat to the sibling is not allowed, as the full ownership of the flat will go to the surviving party, according to the rules of Joint Tenancy.

      Johnny

  14. My husband is a foreigner (not PR) and listed as an occupier in my 3 room HDB Flat. If something happens to me, will he be eligible for the ownership of the flat? Who will the flat go to?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *