Buying
The bank approved $2.1M. Here are the three numbers it didn't show you.
An In-Principle Approval tells you what a bank is willing to lend. It says nothing about what the purchase actually costs you month to month. Three numbers to run first.
By Eugene Tan · CEA R074026J · 7 July 2026 · 6 min read
Sample article. This post is placeholder copy while the site is being built. The published version will carry live figures sourced from URA and HDB transaction data.
Sample post — placeholder copy for layout. Final version to be written against real figures.
An In-Principle Approval is a lending decision, not a budget. The bank is answering “can we recover this loan?” — not “can this family live comfortably at this number?” Those are different questions and they produce different answers.
Number one: your cash-over-valuation exposure
Valuation and asking price are not the same thing. Any gap between them is cash — not CPF, not loan. In a competitive segment that gap can be the difference between a purchase you can complete and one you can’t.
Number two: the total upfront, not the downpayment
The downpayment is the headline. The upfront is the headline plus Buyer’s Stamp Duty, plus any ABSD if this isn’t your only property, plus legal fees, plus valuation and, realistically, renovation. Budget the upfront, not the downpayment.
Number three: the monthly at a stressed interest rate
Your TDSR is already assessed at a stressed rate, but the number you’re shown is usually the current one. Run your own monthly at a materially higher rate and see whether the answer still feels fine. If it only works at today’s rate, it doesn’t work.
The reframe
The useful question isn’t “how much can I borrow?” It’s “what monthly commitment still leaves us the life we want?” Work backwards from that number to a purchase price, and the shortlist writes itself.
Want these three run for your actual situation? Send me your numbers — free, and I’ll come back within a business day.
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Articles are general by necessity. Your CPF balance, your loan, your timeline and your estate's transaction data are not. Send me the specifics and I'll come back with your actual numbers — free, and i reply within one business day.
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