Buying Process · 2026

How to check a property's past transactions: a URA caveat guide

By Winfred Quek · 10-minute read · Last reviewed May 2026

Quick answer: To research a Singapore property's price history, use two free official sources. For private property, the URA's online property transaction tools publish caveat data, the price, date, area and floor band of past sales. For HDB flats, the HDB resale flat prices portal publishes completed resale transactions by block, flat type and month. A caveat is lodged with the Singapore Land Authority by a buyer to register their interest, and caveat data typically appears with a short lag of around two weeks. Used together, these sources let you check what comparable units actually sold for before you make an offer.

Facts verified: May 2026 · Sources linked below

Key Takeaways

• Private property price history comes from URA caveat data; HDB resale prices come from the HDB resale portal. Both are free.
• A caveat is a buyer's registered interest lodged with the Singapore Land Authority, and caveat data publishes with a short lag of about two weeks.
• Compare on a per-square-foot basis and adjust for floor, facing, size and lease, not just the headline price.
• Caveat data shows what buyers paid; it is the strongest counterweight to an inflated asking price.
• Recent comparables matter most; a sale from two years ago tells you little in a moving market.

Before you make an offer on any property, you should know what comparable units have actually sold for. Asking prices are aspirational; transacted prices are fact. Singapore makes this easy because the data is public and free. Here is how to use it properly.

Where Do You Find Private Property Transaction Data?

For private residential property, the source is the Urban Redevelopment Authority. According to the URA, it publishes property transaction information drawn from caveats lodged on private property sales. The URA's online property tools let you search transactions by project name, street, or area.

A typical caveat record shows you:

The transacted price, what the buyer actually paid.
The date of the transaction (caveat lodgement date).
The area of the unit, usually in square metres and square feet.
The floor band, often shown as a range rather than the exact storey, for privacy.
The tenure, freehold or leasehold, and the project name.

From price and area you compute the price per square foot, the single most useful comparison metric. A $1.6M sale of a 900 square foot unit is roughly $1,778 per square foot; that number is comparable across units in a way a raw price is not.

Where Do You Find HDB Resale Transaction Data?

For HDB flats, the source is the Housing & Development Board's resale flat prices portal. According to HDB, it publishes completed resale transactions, searchable by town, flat type, block and month. The data covers the resale price for each transaction.

HDB resale records typically show the town, the block, the flat type (3-room, 4-room, and so on), the floor area, the remaining lease, and the resale price. Because HDB blocks contain many similar units, the comparables are usually closer matches than in the private market.

Property type	Official source	Key fields
Private (condo, apartment, landed)	URA property transaction tools (caveat data)	Price, date, area, floor band, tenure
HDB flat	HDB resale flat prices portal	Resale price, town, block, flat type, floor area, remaining lease

Both sources are official and free. Always check the data directly on the .gov.sg portals linked below.

How Do You Read the Data Like a Buyer Should?

Pulling the numbers is the easy part. Reading them well is what protects your offer.

Step 1 -- Filter to the same project or block: Start with transactions in the exact development, or the exact HDB block, before widening to nearby comparables.

Step 2 -- Convert to price per square foot: Divide price by area. This normalises for unit size and lets you compare a 700 square foot unit against a 1,100 square foot one.

Step 3 -- Weight recent sales: A transaction from last month tells you far more than one from two years ago. In a moving market, prioritise the most recent comparables.

Step 4 -- Adjust for the obvious differences: A high floor, a better facing, a larger size, a longer remaining lease, each justifies a price difference. Mentally adjust the comparable to match the unit you are considering.

Step 5 -- Build a range, not a point: The output is a sensible price band for the unit. The asking price should sit inside, or below, that band, or you need a reason why not.

This is exactly the discipline a bank valuer applies. If your offer is far above what the data supports, the bank's valuation may come in low, opening a cash-over-valuation gap you have to bridge.

What Is a Caveat, and Why Does It Lag?

A caveat is a notice lodged with the Singapore Land Authority by a party with an interest in a property, typically the buyer, to register and protect that interest. When a buyer exercises an Option to Purchase, their lawyer usually lodges a caveat.

Because caveat data feeds the URA's transaction records, there is a short lag between a sale happening and it appearing in the public data, commonly around two weeks. In a fast-moving market, the very latest sales may not yet be visible, so treat the published data as slightly trailing reality.

One caveat on the data: Caveat and resale records show price, area and date, but not the condition, renovation, or exact facing of the unit. Two units at the same price per square foot can be very different in practice. Use the data to set the range, then view the unit to judge where within that range it sits.

Winfred's Take

Every buyer I work with does this exercise before making an offer, and most are surprised how much it changes their number. An agent's asking price is a starting position; the URA caveat data is the evidence. When a seller's price sits well above recent comparables, you either have a documented reason to negotiate down, or a documented reason to walk. Either way you are making the decision on facts rather than on a glossy brochure. Spend the half hour on the data before you spend hours at viewings.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is URA caveat data free to access?

The URA's online property transaction tools provide caveat-based transaction data to the public free of charge. Some detailed or bulk data may have its own access terms; check the URA portal.

How recent is the transaction data?

Caveat data publishes with a short lag, commonly around two weeks, because it follows the caveat lodgement. The very latest sales may not yet appear.

Can I see the exact floor a unit sold on?

URA caveat data typically shows a floor band, a range of storeys, rather than the exact floor, for privacy. HDB resale data shows the storey range similarly.

Why does this matter for my bank loan?

Banks size loans on valuation, not on price. If you offer well above what comparable transactions support, the valuation may fall short and you will need to cover the gap in cash.

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