Private property

99-Year Leasehold

A 99-year leasehold is a property you own for a fixed 99 years, after which the land and buildings generally return to the State.

En bloc (collective sale)

An en bloc, or collective sale, is when the owners of a strata development such as a condominium sell the whole development together, usually to a developer who will redevelop the land.

Freehold

A freehold property is owned with no time limit: the owner holds the land indefinitely, unlike a leasehold property, which returns to the State when its lease runs out.

GCB

A Good Class Bungalow (GCB) is a detached house in one of URA's designated Good Class Bungalow Areas, landed estates reserved for bungalows.

Lease Decay

Lease decay is the fall in a leasehold property's value as its remaining lease gets shorter, because the land returns to the State when the lease ends.

MCST

A Management Corporation Strata Title (MCST) is the legal body formed by all the unit owners in a strata development, such as a condominium.

RPA

The Residential Property Act limits which homes foreigners can buy in Singapore.

Sinking Fund

A sinking fund is the reserve that a condominium's management corporation (MCST) must keep for major, long-term costs, such as repainting, major repairs and replacing lifts or other common property.

Strata Title

A strata title is the form of ownership used for condominium units and other subdivided buildings in Singapore.