Loan-to-Value (LTV) Limits on a Property Loan (2026)

Before you fall in love with a property, it is worth knowing how much a lender will actually put on the table, because that number decides how much cash and CPF you need to find yourself. In Singapore, that limit is governed by loan-to-value rules, and they are one of the main tools the authorities use to keep borrowing sensible and the property market stable. Getting your head around the LTV limit early saves you from the unpleasant surprise of finding a home you can afford in theory but cannot finance in practice. Here is how it works.

What loan-to-value actually means

Loan-to-value, or LTV, is simply the size of your loan expressed as a percentage of the property’s value. If a lender applies an LTV limit of a given percentage, that percentage is the most they will lend you, and the rest of the purchase price is money you must provide yourself. The LTV limit is the ceiling; you can always borrow less if you prefer to put down more.

One detail trips people up: the LTV is calculated against the lower of the property’s valuation or its purchase price, not simply the price you agreed. So if you pay above the official valuation, the loan is based on the valuation, and you must make up the difference in cash on top of your normal downpayment. This is why a property’s official valuation matters so much when you plan your budget.

The specific percentages change, so check the source

It is tempting to want a single number to plan around, but the actual LTV percentages are set by policy and are adjusted from time to time as part of the government’s property cooling measures. Because of that, this guide deliberately avoids quoting a figure that could be out of date by the time you read it. For your first housing loan, a second, or a third, check the current LTV limits on the MAS website for bank loans, or the HDB website for HDB loans. Treat those official sources as the authority, and be wary of older articles quoting fixed percentages.

What does not change is the logic of how LTV works and what pushes it up or down, which is what the rest of this guide focuses on. Understand the mechanics, then plug in the current numbers.

Why a second or third loan lowers your LTV

The LTV limit is not the same for everyone. It is at its highest for your first housing loan, and it steps down for a second concurrent housing loan, and lower again for a third. “Concurrent” is the key word: it depends on how many outstanding housing loans you already hold when you take the new one. If you have fully paid off an earlier property loan, your position may be different from someone still servicing one.

The reasoning is deliberate. Lower LTV limits on additional loans mean bigger downpayments, which cools speculative buying and pushes borrowers to have more of their own money at stake. The upshot is that financing a second property demands far more cash upfront than your first. If that is on your horizon, read our detailed guide to buying a second property in Singapore, which walks through the full cost picture.

How tenure and age reduce your LTV

Two other factors pull your LTV down even on a first loan: the length of your loan tenure and how far the loan stretches past a certain age. If you choose a long tenure, or the loan would run beyond a set age threshold, the LTV limit is typically reduced, so you can borrow a smaller share of the price and must find a larger downpayment.

The intent is to stop borrowers carrying heavy loans deep into their later years, when income may fall. The practical effect is a genuine trade-off. A longer tenure lowers your monthly instalment, which helps with affordability under the debt servicing rules, but if it crosses the tenure or age thresholds it can shrink your LTV and raise your upfront cash needs. Check the current tenure and age limits on the MAS or HDB website, and model both a shorter and longer tenure before deciding.

HDB loans and bank loans have different limits

The LTV limit also depends on who you borrow from. An HDB concessionary loan and a bank loan carry different LTV limits, and historically the HDB loan has allowed a higher LTV, meaning a smaller downpayment. That is one of several reasons the two options suit different buyers.

The LTV is only one piece of the comparison, though. HDB loans and bank loans differ in their interest rate structures, downpayment cash requirements, and flexibility if you hit financial trouble. Before you assume the higher-LTV route is automatically better, work through our full comparison of an HDB loan versus a bank loan, and remember to verify the current LTV figures for each on their respective official websites.

The flip side of LTV: your downpayment

Whatever the LTV limit works out to, the remaining slice of the price is your downpayment, and this is where many buyers get caught out. The downpayment is not a single lump you can pay however you like. A minimum portion must be paid in cash, and the balance can typically come from your CPF Ordinary Account or additional cash.

The exact split between the compulsory cash portion and the CPF-or-cash portion depends on your LTV and loan type, and it too is set by policy. So when you budget, do not just work out the total downpayment; work out how much of it has to be hard cash, because that is the amount you truly need liquid on completion day. If you plan to tap your CPF, our guide on using CPF to buy property in Singapore explains what you can and cannot draw.

Putting the numbers together before you commit

To avoid overcommitting, sequence your sums in the right order. Start by confirming the current LTV limit that applies to you, given how many housing loans you already hold, your intended tenure, and your age at the end of the loan. Apply that percentage to the lower of the price or valuation to find your maximum loan. The gap is your downpayment, and within that, identify the compulsory cash element.

Only then check whether the resulting loan sits comfortably within the debt servicing limits on your income, using our explainer on TDSR and MSR on property loans. Working in this order, LTV first, then cash, then affordability, keeps you from setting your heart on a home that the financing rules simply will not stretch to.

The bottom line

The LTV limit is the lever that quietly decides how much you can borrow and how much you must find yourself. It is highest on your first loan and steps down for a second and third, and it shrinks further with a long tenure or a loan running past a certain age. HDB and bank loans apply different limits, and whatever is left after the loan is your downpayment, part of which must be cash. Because the exact percentages move with policy, always confirm the current figures on the MAS and HDB websites. If you would like help mapping your borrowing limit to a realistic budget, get matched with a licensed property agent below.

Related guides: CPF for Housing