HDB BTO renovation, Singapore
BTO renovation in Singapore, priced and permitted properly
Every cost band on this site carries a date and a source. Every rule links to HDB. You get the scope, the permit path and the number before you commit.
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01 PERMIT
Hacking always
needs oneAll demolition and hacking of walls, partial or complete, needs HDB’s prior written approval before anything starts.
hdb.gov.sg · read 2026-08-31
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02 HOURS
Mon to Fri
9am to 5pmRestricted works only. General works such as painting and screed run Monday to Saturday until 6pm.
hdb.gov.sg · read 2026-08-31
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03 DEADLINE
3 months for
a new blockFrom the date the permit is granted. Existing blocks get 1 month.
hdb.gov.sg · read 2026-08-31
What it costs
Sourced cost bands, not a guess
Published renovation costs for an HDB BTO flat vary far more than any single average suggests. The bands below are third-party datasets, each named and dated. They are ranges, not quotes: your number comes from a scope, and a scope comes from the flat.
- 3-room BTO S$25k to 50k
- 4-room BTO S$51k to 62k
- 5-room BTO S$40k to 115k
Ranges as published by each source, not averaged together. Where two sources disagree, both are shown rather than reconciled.
Sources interiordiary.com.sg 2026-08-31qanvast.com 2026-08-31moneysmart.sg 2026-08-31
There is no 2-room row above because no source we hold publishes one. The 2 room BTO renovation page gives the itemised line costs that are documented instead.
How it runs
Four steps, and what HDB wants at each
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Scope and measure
We walk the flat after key collection, measure every run, and write down what you want changed and what HDB will let you change.
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Permit and drawings
Your contractor files the electronic application. Wall demolition needs the flat’s floor plan submitted with it.
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Hacking and wet works
Demolition, tiling and anything touching the bathroom happen first, inside the restricted-hours window.
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Carpentry and finish
Kitchen and wardrobe carpentry is fabricated to a fixed specification, then installed, then painted.
By flat type
Renovating a 2, 3, 4 or 5 room BTO
The rules
What HDB allows, in plain words
Most of what decides a BTO renovation is not taste, it is the Housing and Development (Renovation Control) Rules 2006 and the guidelines under them. Only a firm on HDB’s Directory of Renovation Contractors may renovate your flat, and the penalty for using one that is not runs to a fine of up to S$5,000 on conviction, for the flat owner as well as the contractor.
Which works need a permit · When work is allowed to happen · What is banned outright
Guides
Before you commit to anything
Get a free quote
Tell us the flat and when you collect keys. We reply within one working day with a scope discussion and an indicative cost band.
Checked against primary sources · updated 2026-08-31