38-year-old HDB maisonette in Bishan sold for a record $1.6 million

An HDB executive maisonette in Bishan has changed hands for an eye-watering $1.6 million, making it a new record in the area.

The price of the two-storey unit at Block 135 Bishan Street 12 is more than the $1.58 million logged in July in the same Bishan Green estate.

The unit, which is located between the 22nd and 24th floor, is now the most expensive flat in the Bishan area, according to checks by AsiaOne’s on HDB’s resale flat price records.

At 163 sq m, it has around 60 years left on its release.

It is less than two kilometres away from Bishan and Braddell MRT stations,and schools such as Raffles Girls’ School (Secondary), Raffles Institution and Pei Chun Public School are also located within the one kilometre radius.

According to figures released by HDB on Oct 1, the price of resale flats rose by 0.4 per cent in the third quarter of 2025.

The number of HDB flats sold for at least a million dollars also climbed during the same period, said Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist at Realion (Orange Tee Group and ETC) Group.

There were 480 of such units sold, more than the 415 in the second quarter of the year.

According to ERA data, 27.5 per cent — or 386 — of the 1,402 flats sold for more than a millions dollars as at November 2025 are older flats with lease commencing from 1995.

While this figure is more than the 19.6 per cent seen in 2017, their overall proportion has fallen since 2022. 

Eugene Lim, key executive officer of ERA Singapore, said that this may be because there are more newer flats that have reached their minimum occupation period in recent years, which gives buyers more choices. 

Out of the 386 million-dollars flats in 2025 so far, 99 per cent were five-room or larger flats that are centrally situated in Singapore. 

”Many buyers are willing to compromise on the remaining lease in exchange for more space,” said Lim. “Larger households, in particular, may find that older flats offer the size and layout options that newer ones cannot match.” 

Nicholas Mak, chief research officer at property portal Mogul.sg, pointed out that the towns with the most number of million dollar flats sold in 2025 are in mature estates including Toa Payoh, Bukit Merah and Queenstown. 

He said that these towns, where there is limited land space for new Build-To-Order flats, are already fully developed to provide residents with different transport nodes, as well as amenities such as dining, malls and schools,. 

“This combination of convenience and established infrastructure contributes significantly to the strong demand for homes in these locations, allowing older flats to fetch premium prices despite their age and lease decay,” said Mak. 

Both property experts, however, warned of the risks when purchasing older flats. 

For instance, buyers may not be able to secure a full loan if the remaining lease of the flat does not cover them for 95 years, said Lim 

With the Ministry of National Development announcing that there are no plans to continue its selective en bloc redevelopment scheme (Sers), he added that owners of older HDB flats that are depreciating in value cannot anticipate a “windfall” from the scheme. 

Buyers should also expect higher costs to maintain older flats as they may show more wear and tear due to their age, said Mak.

He added that common issues include water leakages, faults in electrical systems and cement falling from the ceiling or the walls due to the rusting or corrosion in reinforcement steel bars inside the concrete building — which all require professional inspection and repair. 
 

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chingshijie@asiaone.com