Condo maintenance fees in Singapore
How the fee is actually calculated, who votes on it, and what to check before you buy, sourced to the Building and Construction Authority and the Building (Strata Management) Act 2004.
Share value, the rate, and who controls both
Almost every explanation of Singapore condominium maintenance fees online gets at least one thing wrong — the name of the Act, who approves the share values, or what happens to your share value in an en bloc. This page sets out the mechanic accurately, sources every rule, and lists the claims we found circulating that do not hold up.
The short version: your fee is not set for your unit. It is your share value multiplied by a rate that the whole development votes on once a year. Understanding both halves is what lets you predict the bill before you buy.
The formula
Total annual budget ÷ total share values in the development = rate per share value.
Rate per share value × your share value = what you pay.
Every subsidiary proprietor is required to pay levies, contributions and fees in proportion to the share value of the lot. That proportion never changes on its own. What changes each year is the budget, and therefore the rate.
Source: BCA Strata Management Guide 1, Concept of Strata Living.
Worked through with an illustrative rate of $55 per share value per month:
| Unit | Approx. floor area | Share values | Monthly at $55/share | Per sqm |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Compact 1-bedroom | 39 sqm | 5 | $275 | $7.05 |
| Large 2-bedroom | 77 sqm | 6 | $330 | $4.29 |
| Large 3-bedroom | 117 sqm | 7 | $385 | $3.29 |
| Large 4-bedroom | 192 sqm | 8 | $440 | $2.29 |
| Large 5-bedroom | 256 sqm | 10 | $550 | $2.15 |
Floor areas are the actual smallest and largest units on the 19 new-launch developer charts we hold; see our unit mix analysis. The $55 rate is illustrative — every management corporation sets its own. The relationship between the rows does not depend on the rate.
The five-bedroom owner has 6.6 times the floor area of the one-bedroom owner and pays twice as much. Per square metre, the one-bedroom owner pays about 3.3 times more for the same pool, lifts and security. In a development where every unit is the same size this is invisible, because everyone is in the same band. In a mixed-size development it is a permanent transfer from small units to large ones, written into the building at filing.
Where your share value came from
Share values are proposed once, before the first unit is sold, and then stay fixed for the life of the building.
| Step | Who | What they actually do |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The developer | Engages a professional surveyor to allocate share values and files a schedule of strata units. No unit may be sold until it is filed. |
| 2 | Commissioner of Buildings | Accepts the schedule — and only if satisfied that the proposed share values are allocated in a just and equitable manner. |
| 3 | Chief Surveyor | Approves the strata title plan. Does not approve share values. This is the step most often misattributed. |
Source: BCA, Guidelines for Filing of Schedule of Strata Units; Building (Strata Management) Act 2004; the Chief Surveyor’s role sits in the Land Titles (Strata) Act 1967.
The banding, and what it is not
For a single-user residential development, BCA’s filing guidelines band the proposal by floor area: 50 sqm and below carries 5 share values, and each further 50 sqm adds one — 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and onwards. Two points people get wrong:
- This banding sits in BCA guidelines, not in the Act. The Strata Units Regulations require only that the schedule states a proposed share value in whole numbers against each lot.
- It applies to single-user residential developments. Commercial, mixed-use and two-tier management corporation schemes use different methods, including proportional allocation and weight factors. If you are buying in a mixed development with retail below, do not assume this table applies.
Floor area excludes void
BCA states it directly: floor area in connection with share value means the floor area of the lot excluding void. So a unit with a double-volume living room can be filed in a lower band than a flat unit of the same advertised square footage — and pay less every month for the life of the building. If you are choosing between a high-ceiling unit and a flat one at similar sizes, ask for the filed floor area, not the brochure figure.
What sets the rate: the budget
The rate is the part that moves, and it is decided at the annual general meeting. A management corporation runs two funds and your contribution is split between them:
| Fund | Pays for | What to watch |
|---|---|---|
| Management fund | Day-to-day running — cleaning, security, landscaping, managing agent, utilities for common areas, routine servicing, insurance. | Scales with how much there is to run. Facilities are staff hours and service contracts, not one-off capital. |
| Sinking fund | Capital items with a life — repainting, lift replacement, waterproofing, chiller and pump replacement, re-roofing. | Underfunding here is invisible until a special levy lands. This is the single most important number to check. |
There is no legally required minimum percentage for the sinking fund. A figure of 25% circulates widely online; we could not find it in the Act, the Regulations or any BCA guideline, and BCA’s own published position on ageing developments and sinking funds sets out expectations without stating any percentage. Treat the 25% figure as unsourced.
Source: BCA on ageing condominiums and sinking funds.
Why facilities raise the rate but not your share value
This is the asymmetry that catches buyers out. Adding a 50-metre pool, a tennis court, a function room and a second gym does not change anybody’s share value — those are fixed at filing. It raises the budget, and therefore the rate everyone multiplies by. A development with elaborate facilities and few units spreads a large budget across a small pool of share values. A development with modest facilities and many units does the opposite.
So the question to ask about a facilities deck is not “will I use it”. It is “how many share values are paying for it”. Total units and total share values are the denominator of your monthly bill for as long as you own the unit.
Who decides — and why small-unit owners lose the vote
The budget is approved at the AGM, and how the vote is counted decides who controls it:
| Method | How votes are counted | Who this favours |
|---|---|---|
| Show of hands | Each lot carries one vote, regardless of size. | Owners of small units, who are usually more numerous. |
| Poll | Votes counted by share value. | Owners of large units, who hold more share values each. |
Source: BCA Strata Management Guide 4, Proceedings of a General Meeting — “when a poll is called, the voting will be based on share value of the lot as opposed to each lot carrying one vote”.
Calling a poll is therefore a tactical move, not an administrative one. If you own a one-bedroom unit in a development with a block of large units, understand that a poll shifts control of your monthly bill toward owners who pay less per square metre than you do.
What share value also governs
- Your share of the common property. The common property is held by all subsidiary proprietors as tenants-in-common in proportion to share value. Your share value is your ownership stake in the pool, the lobby and the land under the block.
- The collective sale threshold. Under the Land Titles (Strata) Act 1967, consent is measured by share value and total lot area together — not less than 80% of both where ten years or more have passed since the latest Temporary Occupation Permit, and 90% of share values for younger developments.
Source: Land Titles (Strata) Act 1967; thresholds as quoted by the Court of Appeal in 2015 SGCA 54 and 2008 SGCA 25.
Eight claims about share value that do not hold up
| Commonly published | What we found |
|---|---|
| “The governing law is the Building Maintenance and Strata Management Act.” | The current short title is the Building (Strata Management) Act 2004. The older name still appears on the 2020 Revised Edition. |
| “Share value decides how en bloc proceeds are split.” | It does not. The Act requires only that the sale and purchase agreement specifies the proposed method of distributing the proceeds. The method is a matter for the agreement and the good-faith test, not a formula. |
| “The en bloc threshold is 80% of share values.” | Incomplete. It is 80% of share values and 80% of total lot area for developments ten years or older. |
| “At least 25% of contributions must go to the sinking fund.” | No statutory or BCA basis found. Treat as unsourced. |
| “The minimum share value is 5.” | 5 is the bottom band of BCA’s residential table, not a stated legal minimum, and other development types use different methods. |
| “The share value bands are in the Act.” | They are in BCA filing guidelines. The Regulations require only a whole-number proposed share value per lot. |
| “The bands apply to all non-landed residential units.” | The table is for single-user residential developments. Commercial, mixed-use and two-tier schemes differ. |
| “The Chief Surveyor approves share values.” | The Commissioner of Buildings accepts the schedule. The Chief Surveyor approves the strata title plan. |
What to ask before you commit
Buying a new launch
- The filed floor area for your unit, not the brochure size — and whether it excludes a void.
- The proposed share value for your unit, and the total share values in the development.
- The developer’s estimated monthly contribution for your unit type, and what facilities that estimate assumes.
- How many units in total. A large budget over few share values is an expensive building to live in.
Buying a resale
- The last two years of AGM minutes and audited accounts. These are the real document, not the brochure.
- The current sinking fund balance against the age of the building and what is due — lifts, repainting, waterproofing, chillers.
- Any special levy raised, proposed or discussed.
- Whether contributions have been raised in recent years, and by how much.
- Whether there is litigation or a defects claim running, and who is funding it.
- Any arrears position across the development. Widespread arrears become everyone’s problem.
We go through these with buyers as a matter of course, because a building with a thin sinking fund is a cost you inherit on completion and a discount you should have negotiated.
Where this fits
For how bedroom counts map to floor area and therefore to your band, see our condo unit mix analysis. For the full purchase cost picture including stamp duty and financing, read condo buying costs in Singapore. For tenure and its effect on value, see freehold vs leasehold. For per-project pricing, see new-launch condo psf.
Browse
Correct as at 6 September 2026. Every rule on this page is linked to the Building and Construction Authority, Singapore Statutes Online or the Singapore Courts. Strata law changes and every management corporation sets its own budget — check the linked source and read the development’s own accounts before you commit. Nothing here is legal, tax or financial advice. Finest SRI is part of SRI Pte Ltd, agency licence L3010738A; every listing is handled by a CEA-registered salesperson.
Guides in this series
Seven companion guides to this page, written from the unit charts and price lists we hold and from the current government rules.