Housing for Seniors: Community Care Apartments, the Lease Buyback and Silver Housing Bonus

By The Address desk · Last verified 4 October 2026

Older Singaporeans have three main housing options for later life. A Community Care Apartment (CCA) is an HDB flat for seniors with care services built in, bought on a 15- to 35-year lease with a Basic Service Package of $164 a month. The Lease Buyback Scheme (LBS) lets owners aged 65 or older stay put and sell the tail end of their lease to HDB, with the proceeds topping up their CPF Retirement Account for CPF LIFE payouts. The Silver Housing Bonus (SHB) rewards right-sizing to a 3-room or smaller flat with a cash bonus of up to $30,000 when you top up your CPF from the sale.

Home is where the memories are, and also where much of a retiree’s wealth sits. These schemes let you unlock some of it without losing the roof over your head.

Quick facts

• CCA lease: 15 to 35 years in 5-year steps, long enough to cover you and your spouse to age 95.
• CCA service package: $164 a month, or $6,200 every three years, with a refundable deposit.
• CCA resale: not allowed on the open market; the flat goes back to HDB, which refunds the value of the remaining lease.
• LBS eligibility: all owners 65 or older, household income of $14,000 a month or less, lived in the flat at least five years, at least 20 years of lease to sell.
• SHB bonus: $1 for every $2 topped up into CPF, up to $30,000 for a $60,000 top-up per household.
• All three are designed to turn housing value into care or lifelong income, not a windfall.

Which option fits whom?

	Community Care Apartment	Lease Buyback Scheme	Silver Housing Bonus
You move?	Yes, to a new senior-friendly flat	No, you stay in your flat	Yes, to a 3-room or smaller flat
Main benefit	Care services and community on site	CPF LIFE income from part of your lease	Up to $30,000 cash, plus a CPF top-up
Key condition	Sell any existing flat or private home within 6 months of taking possession	All owners 65+, income cap $14,000, at least 20 years of lease to sell	Top up net sale proceeds into CPF and join CPF LIFE; current home’s Annual Value no more than $13,000
What you give up	Open-market resale and the right to rent out	The later years of your lease, so less to pass on	Space

Community Care Apartments: housing with care built in

CCAs are compact studio flats with senior-friendly fittings, sold through HDB’s sales exercises. The Basic Service Package includes a community manager who helps arrange care and home repairs, communal activities, basic health checks, a 24-hour emergency response and keycard access, plus access to an adjacent Active Ageing Centre and priority for nursing home admission. Optional services are paid as used: HDB lists housekeeping at $20 an hour, meal delivery at $5 to $7 a meal, social day care at $50 a day and home personal care at $20 to $31 an hour, with subsidies for some. Seniors who need high levels of medical or nursing care are not a fit. You cannot rent out a CCA, and there is a five-year minimum occupation period before you can buy another HDB flat.

The Lease Buyback Scheme: stay put, unlock income

1. Check eligibility: all owners 65 or older, at least one a Singapore Citizen, household income of $14,000 or less, no second property, at least five years living in the flat, and at least 20 years of lease left to sell. Short-lease flats, HUDC flats and executive condominiums are excluded.
2. Choose how much lease to keep: the length you keep depends on the age of the youngest owner.
3. HDB buys the rest: the proceeds go first to topping up your CPF Retirement Account, and you join CPF LIFE for monthly payouts for life.
4. Receive any balance and bonus: remaining proceeds, and an LBS bonus where eligible, are paid as set out in HDB’s current rules.

The trade-off is legacy: once part of the lease is sold, there is less value to pass on. Our explainer on the 99-year lease shows why the remaining lease matters.

The Silver Housing Bonus: a worked example

HDB’s own example: a couple sell their flat and buy a 3-room flat. Their net proceeds (selling price minus outstanding loan, the new flat’s price and any resale levy) are $60,000. They top up all $60,000 into CPF and receive the full $30,000 cash bonus. Had their net proceeds been $35,000, a full top-up would earn $17,500. With no net proceeds, there is no bonus. The top-up is also capped by the prevailing Full Retirement Sum.

The WahLiao Verdict

Start with how you want to live, not the cheque. If you love your flat and your neighbourhood, the Lease Buyback lets you stay and draw a steadier income. If the home is now too big and the stairs too many, right-size and take the Silver Housing Bonus. If you want support close at hand as you age, put your name down for a Community Care Apartment. Sit down with your children first, because each choice changes what you pass on, and run the numbers with HDB and CPF before you sign.

Questions people ask

Can I sell a Community Care Apartment later?

Not on the open market. You return it to HDB, which refunds the value of the remaining lease.

Do I lose my flat under the Lease Buyback?

No. You keep living there for the lease you retain; HDB only buys back the later years.

Is the Silver Housing Bonus only for HDB sellers?

HDB’s rules refer to selling a property with an Annual Value of no more than $13,000 and buying a 3-room or smaller flat. Check your case with HDB before you sell.

Does this affect Silver Support?

Silver Support has its own housing and income tests. See our guide to Silver Support and the Majulah Package.

Sources: HDB, Community Care Apartments, Lease Buyback Scheme and Silver Housing Bonus. LBS bonus amounts and CPF top-up thresholds change with the retirement sums; check HDB for current figures. The Address explains; it does not advise.

Read next: Silver Support and the Majulah Package · CPF Accounts Explained · Back to The Address

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