An HDB flat can be rented out, but not freely. HDB has to approve it, and what it will approve depends on how long you have lived there and who the tenants are.
Rooms or the whole flat
You may rent out spare bedrooms at any time, as long as you go on living in the flat. Renting out the whole flat needs HDB's approval and only becomes possible after the 5-year , or 10 years for a Plus or Prime flat, where it stays restricted even then.
Limits that catch people out
- There is a cap on how many people may live in a flat, by flat size.
- Non-citizen tenants are subject to a quota by block and by neighbourhood, which can be full.
- Each approved letting runs for a fixed period and has to be renewed.
- Tenants must be citizens, permanent residents, or hold a valid pass. Tourists are not allowed.
What the published rents show
Every approved whole-flat letting is published, which is why our rent pages and the rent check can show what tenants actually pay, block by block. Two caveats come with it: the rent is declared by the owner and HDB does not verify it, and the date recorded is when the letting was approved rather than when the tenant moved in.
Room rentals are not published at all, so nothing here can tell you what a single room goes for.