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ENBLOC
SALE
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Strata
Titles Board
The Strata Titles Board is a body
constituted under Part VI of the Land Titles (Strata) Act to hear
applications :
1. for orders for collective sales under Part VA of the Act; and
2. relating to certain types of disputes or matters arising in respect
of the strata units or the strata development including the common
property.
Please note that the information related to STB below are
extracted from the Ministry of Law website.
An application for an order for en-bloc sale
by majority consent under Part VA of the Act
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WHAT DO THE AMENDMENTS TO THE LAND TITLES (STRATA) ACT
COVER?
Before the amendments, an en-bloc sale of all the units in a
strata or flatted development could take place only if all
the unit owners agreed.
The amendments provide that if a specified majority of unit
owners in a strata or flatted development agree to an en-bloc
sale and meet the requirements of Part VA of the Act, they may
apply to a Strata Titles Board for an order that all the units
and the land in the development be sold. WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF DEVELOPMENTS FOR WHICH AN
APPLICATION CAN BE MADE FOR AN ORDER FOR EN-BLOC SALE UNDER PART
VA OF THE ACT?
The developments for which an application can be made for an
order for en-bloc sale by majority agreement are:
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Strata developments registered under the Land Titles
(Strata) Act;
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Strata or flat developments where the owners of the
flats also own a share in the land and the leases for
their flats are registered under the Registration of
Deeds Act or the Land Titles Act; and
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Strata or flat developments where the owners of the
flats own a registered leasehold estate of 999 years or
more (or such other leasehold period as the Minister may
specify) but they do not own the land in the
development. The leases for the flats may be registered
under the Registration of Deeds Act or the Land Titles
Act.
As there are no share values or shares in land
assigned to flats in such developments, the owners of at
least 25% of the total number of flats in the
development must apply to the Registrar of Titles for
notional shares in land to be assigned to their
individual flats to facilitate calculation of the
majority agreement.
Please
click here for the application form.
WHAT IS THE REQUIRED MAJORITY WHICH MUST BE OBTAINED
BEFORE AN APPLICATION CAN BE MADE?
If a development is less than 10 years old [calculated from
the date of the issue of the latest Temporary Occupation Permit
(TOP) (or Certificate of Statutory Completion (CSC) if no TOP)],
the owners of 90% of the share values, share in land, or
notional share in the land must agree in writing to sell all the
units and common property or land to a purchaser under a sale
and purchase agreement (subject to an order of the Strata Titles
Board); and
[Sections 84A(1), 84D(2) and 84E(3)]
If a development is 10 years old or more [calculated from the
date of the issue of the latest TOP (or CSC if no TOP)], the
owners of 80% of the share values, share in land, or notional
share in the land must agree in writing to sell all the units
and common property or land to a purchaser under a sale and
purchase agreement (subject to an order of the Strata Titles
Board).
[Sections 84A(1), 84D(2) and 84E(3)].
Note: The date of issue of the TOP or CSC may be obtained
from the Building Plan Department, Building and Construction
Authority at 5 Maxwell Road #16-00 Tower Block, MND Complex,
Singapore 069110 (Tel No: 3251586, Fax No: 3251607).
WHAT ARE THE STEPS WHICH THE MAJORITY OWNERS MUST TAKE
BEFORE SUBMITTING AN APPLICATION?
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Hold at least one Extraordinary General Meeting to
consider the en bloc sale.
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Appoint not more than 3 owners to represent the majority
owners in connection with the application.
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Obtain a valuation report for the whole development
which must not be more than 3 months old when the
application is made.
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Obtain a report by a valuer on the proposed method of
distributing the sale proceeds.
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Advertise the particulars of the proposed application in
the local newspapers, as approved by the Board, in the 4
official languages. Please
click here to see format.
The advertisement must include:
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(i) |
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information
on the development; |
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(ii) |
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the
names of all the unit owners and their
addresses, unit addresses and their strata lot
numbers, if any; |
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(iii) |
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the
names of the mortgagees, chargees and other
persons with an estate or interest in the units; |
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(iv) |
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brief
details of the sale proposal; and |
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(v) |
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the
place at which the relevant parties can inspect
the documents for the en-bloc sale. |
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Prepare the application to be made to the Board. A copy
of the application form may be obtained from the Land
Titles (Strata Titles Boards) Regulations 1999 or
downloaded from this website. The form
is also available at the office of the Strata Titles
Boards at 45 Maxwell Road #01-11, East Wing, The URA
Centre, Singapore 069118 (Tel: 3251586, Fax: 3251607).
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Serve
a notice of the proposed application ("the
notice") to all the owners of the units by
registered post and by placing a copy under the main
door of every unit and to the mortgagee, chargee or
other person (other than a lessee) with an estate or
interest in the unit and whose interest is notified on
the land register for the unit by registered post. [For
the address of service by registered post, please see
paragraph 10]
The notice
must include a copy of:
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the
advertisement referred to in paragraph 5
above;
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the
sale and purchase agreement;
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a
statutory declaration made by the purchaser
on his relationship, if any, to the unit
owners;
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the
valuation report referred to in paragraph 3
above;
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the
report by a valuer on the proposed method of
distributing the sale proceeds referred to
in paragraph 4 above; and
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the
minutes of the extraordinary meeting
referred to in paragraph 1 above.
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[Section 84A(4), 84D(3) and 84E(5)
4th Sch. Para. 1(c)]
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Affix
a copy of the notice on the main door of the units whose
owners have not agreed in writing to the sale.
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Affix a copy of the notice, in the 4 official languages,
to a conspicuous part of each building in the
development.
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The notice to be served by registered post shall be
served on a party:
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(i) |
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where
the party is an owner of a unit registered under
the Land Titles (Strata) Act, at the address as
shown on the strata roll; |
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(ii) |
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where
the party is an owner of a unit not registered
under the Land Titles (Strata) Act, at the last
recorded address at the Singapore Land Registry; |
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(iii) |
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where
the party is a mortgagee, chargee or other
person with an estate and interest in the unit
whose interest is notified on the land register,
at the address on the strata roll or last
recorded address at the Singapore Land Registry;
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(iv) |
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where
the party is a management corporation, at its
address as shown in the Singapore Land Registry. |
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WHAT IS THE PROCEDURE FOR APPLYING?
The application for en-bloc sale must be made using the
prescribed form within 14 days of the publication of the
advertisement. The application is to be made by way of a
statutory declaration by the representatives appointed by the
majority owners, stating that the relevant provisions of the Act
have been complied with. The application is to be submitted at
the office of the Strata Titles Boards, 45 Maxwell Road #01-11,
East Wing, The URA Centre, Singapore 069118 (Tel No: 3251586,
Fax No. 3251607).
The application must include the following:
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(i) |
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the
documents set out in paragraph 7; |
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(ii) |
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a
list of the names of the unit owners who have
not agreed to the sale in writing, their
mortgagees, chargees and other persons (other
than lessees) with an estate or interest in the
flats whose interests are reflected in the land
registers; |
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(iii) |
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such
other documents that the Board may require; and |
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(iv) |
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an
undertaking to pay the costs of the Board in
relation to any valuation or other reports
called for by the Board. |
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WHAT OTHER DOCUMENTS DO THE MAJORITY OWNERS NEED TO FILE?
After submitting the application at the Strata Titles Boards,
the applicants must lodge a copy of the application, in the
approved form, for registration at the Singapore Land Registry.
A copy of the forms can be downloaded from the website of the
Singapore Land Registry at http://www.gov.sg/molaw/slr
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HOW CAN A MINORITY OWNER OR HIS MORTGAGEE, CHARGEE, ETC,
FILE AN OBJECTION TO THE EN-BLOC SALE APPLICATION?
A unit owner who has not agreed to the sale in writing, his
mortgagee, chargee or other person with an estate or interest in
the unit may, within 21 days of the date of the notice for
en-bloc sale, file an objection in the prescribed form with the
Strata Titles Boards.
[Sections 84(A)(4), 84D(3) and 84E(5)]
The Board will, within 5 days of the filing of an objection,
forward a copy of it by registered post to the representatives
appointed by the majority owners and their lawyers, if any.
WHAT ARE THE FACTORS WHICH THE BOARD WILL TAKE INTO
ACCOUNT IN DECIDING ON AN APPLICATION?
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Where no objection is filed against the application
The Board will approve the application unless, after going
through the application, it is satisfied that the transaction is
not entered into in good faith, after taking into account:
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(i) |
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the
sale price for the whole development; |
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(ii) |
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the
method of distributing the sale proceeds; and |
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(iii) |
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the
relationship of the purchaser to any of the flat
owners. |
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The Board will not approve an application if the sale agreement
requires any unit owner who has not agreed in writing to the
sale to be a party to any arrangement for the redevelopment of
the property.
[Sections
84A(9), 84D(7) and 84E(9)]
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Where objections are filed against the application
The Board
will consider all the factors in paragraph 1 above and the
objection and may call for mediation.
The Board
will not approve an application if it is satisfied that:
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(i) |
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the
unit owner who objects to the sale will suffer a
financial loss; or
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(ii) |
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the
sale proceeds to be received by a unit owner,
his mortgagee or chargee, are insufficient to
redeem any mortgage or charge against the flat. |
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Note 1: A unit owner will be considered to suffer financial
loss if the sale proceeds for his unit, after any deduction
allowed by the Board, are less than what he paid for the unit.
Note 2:
A unit owner will not be considered to suffer financial loss
because his net gain from the sale will be less than the other
unit owners.
[Sections
84A(8), 84D(5) and 84E(7)]
WHAT
ARE THE EFFECTS OF AN ORDER OF THE BOARD FOR EN-BLOC SALE?
Owners
of units and land
An order
for en bloc sale issued by the Board is binding on all the unit
and land owners of the development (including their successors
in title and assigns), their mortgagees, chargees and persons
with an estate or interest in the units and land (including
lessees).
Under such
an order, all the unit owners must sell their units (together
with the land) to the purchaser in accordance with the sale and
purchase agreement. They must produce the certificates of title
and relevant title deeds to the representatives appointed by the
majority owners for the purpose of the sale.
Owners
of land in an application under section 84E where the unit
owners of a 999-year registered leasehold estate do not own a
share in the land
Where the
Board makes an order for the en-bloc sale of the units and the
land, the owner of the land (or reversion) will be deemed to
have transferred his estate and interest to the land to the
purchaser upon the registration by the Registrar of the
transfers of all the units in the development and the Registrar
shall enter a notification of the vesting of the land in the
purchaser on the land register.
Effect
on leases of the units
A lease
against any of the units (other than the lease held by the unit
owner) shall, unless there is an earlier agreed date, determine
on the date on which vacant possession is required to be given
to the purchaser.
The order
does not prejudice the lessee's right to any compensation from
the unit owner. However, only unit owners who have not agreed to
the sale in writing or their lessees can apply to the Board to
determine the amount of compensation payable.
CAN THE
MAJORITY OWNERS APPLY TO THE BOARD TO APPOINT A THIRD PARTY TO
ACT FOR CERTAIN UNIT OWNERS IN THE SALE?
The
representatives appointed by the majority owners may apply to
the Board to appoint a person to deal with all matters
pertaining to the sale of a flat where:
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(i) |
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the
unit owner has died and no personal
representative has been appointed; or |
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in
any other case as the Board may think fit. |
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WHO CAN
APPEAR IN A HEARING BEFORE THE BOARD?
Where a
Board has appointed a date for hearing, it will, where
necessary, give to all parties to the dispute or matter a notice
of the hearing.
A party
entitled to appear before the Board may appear in person or may
be represented by his lawyer or such other person as the Board
may allow and who may examine witnesses and address the Board on
behalf of the party.
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An
application for an order on
a dispute or matter under Part VI of the Act.
HOW
LONG DOES IT TAKE TO HEAR MY CASE?
Each
case should be heard within 6 months, unless the Minister for Law approves
an extension of time. Much depends on how prepared you are when you submit
your application. For example, if you apply for an order that your
neighbour on the upper floor carry out repairs to stop water leaking into
your apartment, you may need a surveyor or other expert to visit the
premises and give an opinion on the cause of and steps to be taken to
rectify the problem. You may also need to have a contractor's quotation
ready to assist the panel in gauging how much it will cost you to repair
the damage to your apartment caused by the leakage. If you are ready with
this information, the Board will be able to hear your case earlier.
HOW DO I APPLY
TO THE BOARD FOR AN ORDER?
You may make the
application yourself and represent yourself or you may engage a lawyer or
ask someone (whom the Board must allow) to represent you. If you do not
intend to engage a lawyer, you may nonetheless want to at least obtain
legal advice first so that you proceed under the correct section and use
the correct form.
To apply, you
will need to lodge with the Registrar of the Strata Titles Boards the
appropriate form and 3 copies thereof, together with the fee of $300.
Please click here
for a brief summary of the types of application that may be made to the
Board.
WHERE DO I GET
THE FORM?
The prescribed
forms are found in the Land Titles (Strata Titles Boards) Regulations 1999
which may be bought from SNP Corporation Ltd, 8 Shenton Way #01-06,
Temasek Tower, Singapore 068811 (Tel: 2230834). Alternatively, you may
download the forms from this web site. The forms
are also available at the office of the Strata Titles Boards at 45 Maxwell
Road #01-11, East Wing, The URA Centre, Singapore 069118 (Tel: 3251586,
Fax: 3251607).
WHAT DOCUMENTS
DO I NEED TO FILE TOGETHER WITH MY APPLICATION?
When you file
your application, you need only hand in the fee, the original and 3 copies
of the prescribed form together with such supportive documents as
required. If your application is in order, the Board which is empanelled
to hear your application will issue directions to all relevant parties to
proceed with the determination of the dispute or matter expeditiously.
Notes:
For more information on STB, please feel free to
contact
or email us.
Should you need our assistance to assess your land value for Enbloc Sale,
click
here.
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