Landed property: freehold or leasehold?
Is freehold landed property worth a higher price than leasehold?
Asks whether freehold landed property is worth a higher price than leasehold. It uses terrace houses, the most often sold landed type: the URA index to 2013 Q1, and the median price per sq ft of land, freehold against 99-year leasehold. Freehold land cost 22% to 62% more per sq ft in 2021 Q4 to 2026 Q3, but a high premium alone is no reason to avoid freehold.
MemberKey figures
Freehold terrace land sold for 46% more per sq ft than 99-year land in 2021 to 2026
Median price per sq ft of land, terrace houses, from transaction records, 1995 Q1 to 2012 Q1 and 2021 Q4 to 2026 Q3
Members see the full chart. The data table and CSV download are for members too. See plans
Source: PropInsights calculation from URA transaction records, 1995 Q1 to 2012 Q1 and 2021 Q4 to 2026 Q3. Terrace houses with their own land title; freehold against 99-year leasehold (999-year leases left out). Not quality-adjusted. Preview only: the full chart, table and CSV are for members. Preview of the first part (to 2026 Q3). The full chart, table and CSV are for members.
Medians and counts only: no unit-level data.
FreeLine chart
Freehold terrace prices went from level with leasehold in 2007 to 25% ahead by 2013
Terrace house price index, 1998 Q4 = 100. Freehold and leasehold, 1998 Q4 to 2013 Q1 (legacy URA series, ends 2013 Q1)
Freehold drew level in 2007 Q2 and then pulled away. By 2013 Q1 the freehold index stood at 254.7 and the leasehold index at 203.6, a premium of 25.1%. The index shows which way prices moved, not what one house is worth.
Source: URA, Property Price Index of freehold and leasehold terrace houses (archive series, compiled by PropInsights, 2013). 1998 Q4 to 2013 Q1. The series ends in 2013 Q1. Data to 2013 Q1.
Licence: amber class.
View the data as a table
| Period | Freehold | Leasehold |
|---|---|---|
| 1998-Q4 | 100 | 100 |
| 1999-Q1 | 107 | 106 |
| 1999-Q2 | 129 | 110 |
| 1999-Q3 | 129 | 130 |
| 1999-Q4 | 136 | 139 |
| 2000-Q1 | 140 | 139 |
| 2000-Q2 | 140 | 138 |
| 2000-Q3 | 139 | 125 |
| 2000-Q4 | 134 | 134 |
| 2001-Q1 | 132 | 132 |
| 2001-Q2 | 125 | 129 |
| 2001-Q3 | 120 | 131 |
| 2001-Q4 | 118 | 130 |
| 2002-Q1 | 116 | 126 |
| 2002-Q2 | 116 | 125 |
| 2002-Q3 | 115 | 127 |
| 2002-Q4 | 115 | 126 |
| 2003-Q1 | 113 | 125 |
| 2003-Q2 | 112 | 123 |
| 2003-Q3 | 111 | 123 |
| 2003-Q4 | 111 | 123 |
| 2004-Q1 | 111 | 122 |
| 2004-Q2 | 113 | 121 |
| 2004-Q3 | 114 | 121 |
| 2004-Q4 | 114 | 121 |
| 2005-Q1 | 114 | 121 |
| 2005-Q2 | 114 | 121 |
| 2005-Q3 | 115 | 121 |
| 2005-Q4 | 116 | 121 |
| 2006-Q1 | 117 | 121 |
| 2006-Q2 | 117 | 122 |
| 2006-Q3 | 119 | 122 |
| 2006-Q4 | 122 | 123 |
| 2007-Q1 | 125 | 126 |
| 2007-Q2 | 134 | 133 |
| 2007-Q3 | 146 | 138 |
| 2007-Q4 | 151 | 146 |
| 2008-Q1 | 157 | 151 |
| 2008-Q2 | 158 | 154 |
| 2008-Q3 | 157 | 150 |
| 2008-Q4 | 150 | 140 |
| 2009-Q1 | 137 | 127 |
| 2009-Q2 | 132 | 126 |
| 2009-Q3 | 151 | 137 |
| 2009-Q4 | 166 | 146 |
| 2010-Q1 | 176 | 164 |
| 2010-Q2 | 186 | 172 |
| 2010-Q3 | 202 | 174 |
| 2010-Q4 | 209 | 183 |
| 2011-Q1 | 216 | 194 |
| 2011-Q2 | 225 | 199 |
| 2011-Q3 | 236 | 199 |
| 2011-Q4 | 238 | 195 |
| 2012-Q1 | 243 | 193 |
| 2012-Q2 | 246 | 196 |
| 2012-Q3 | 248 | 198 |
| 2012-Q4 | 250 | 207 |
| 2013-Q1 | 255 | 204 |
MemberLine chart
Terrace land reached S$2,483 psf for freehold and S$1,584 for 99-year leasehold in 2026 Q3
Median price per sq ft of land, terrace houses, S$. Data 1995 Q1 to 2012 Q1 and 2021 Q4 to 2026 Q3; nothing between
From 2021 Q4 to 2026 Q3 freehold land rose 40.1%, from S$1,772, and 99-year leasehold land rose 44.6%, from S$1,096. So 99-year land did not catch up: the gap in dollars grew.
Source: PropInsights calculation from URA transaction records (REALIS to Apr 2012, URA API from Sep 2021). Terrace houses with their own land title. Freehold and 99-year leasehold; 999-year leases are left out. Not quality-adjusted. Nothing between 2012 Q2 and 2021 Q3. Preview only: the full chart, table and CSV are for members. Preview of the first part (to 2012 Q1). The full chart, table and CSV are for members.
Medians and counts only: no unit-level data.
MemberLine chart
Freehold terrace land averaged 46% above 99-year leasehold since 2021, against 10% before 2012
Freehold median psf over 99-year leasehold median psf, less 1, in %. Data 1995 Q1 to 2012 Q1 and 2021 Q4 to 2026 Q3; nothing between
A single quarter can move by 10 points or more: in 2024 the premium fell from 42.5% in Q3 to 22.4% in Q4. So read the average, not one point. The 99-year medians in 1995 rest on only 6 or 7 sales a quarter, so treat the early spikes with care.
Source: PropInsights calculation from URA transaction records (REALIS to Apr 2012, URA API from Sep 2021). Same transaction records and dates as the chart above. 999-year leases are left out. Preview only: the full chart, table and CSV are for members. Preview of the first part (to 2012 Q1). The full chart, table and CSV are for members.
Medians and counts only: no unit-level data.
MemberTimeline
A typical 99-year terrace house sold since 2021 had about 69 years of lease left
Lease start year at the 25th percentile, median and 75th percentile of 939 sales; years left counted from 2026
Source: PropInsights calculation from URA transaction records: lease start years of 939 sales of 99-year terrace houses, 2021 Q4 to 2026 Q3. Bars run from lease start to lease end. The transaction table has 939 such sales, with the same three lease start years. Preview only: the full chart, table and CSV are for members. Preview of the first part. The full chart, table and CSV are for members.
Medians and counts only: no unit-level data.
FreeFlowchart
Three checks before you compare a freehold and a leasehold house
A short checklist from the transaction records, 2021 Q4 to 2026 Q3
Source: PropInsights checklist; the 22% to 62% range is the premium from 2021 Q4 to 2026 Q3.
View the data as a table
| Step | Detail | Leads to |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lease start | Find the start year of. the leasehold house | 2. Like with like |
| 2. Like with like | Compare houses of. similar age, same area | 3. Premium |
| 3. Premium | Compare it with the. recent range 22% to 62% | Decide |
| Decide | A high premium alone. is no reason to avoid. freehold |