SINGAPORE – Homeowners looking to refinance their existing home loans will enjoy more flexibility with regard to the Total Debt Servicing Ratio (TDSR), the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said on Thursday (Sept 1).

This will allow property owners like those at The Affinity at Serangoon to refinance their home loans at prevailing low-interest rates even if it means busting the TDSR limit of 60 percent.

About 2 percent of all existing home loans are currently above the TDSR limit.

Previously, this exemption was only granted to the refinancing of loans for properties bought before the TDSR was introduced in June 2013.

Now the exemption applies to all owner-occupied housing loans.

To benefit from the TDSR exemption, the borrower must commit to repaying at least 3 percent of the loan’s total outstanding balance over three years.

The TDSR rules will still apply to new housing loans and the MAS notes that this move does not represent a relaxation of property cooling measures (see condo launches 2021).

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