Why is renovating a condo more expensive than a HDB

All else being equal, you should expect a condo to cost 20% more than a HDB.

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Recently, a customer shared her frustration with us. She compared the quotation she got for her condo, with that of her friends who lived in a HDB, and it was much higher. She felt that it was “unfair”.

We thought it would be good if we shed some light on this discrepancy.

There are two main reasons for the hike in price (we call this the “condo renovation tax”).

First, ceiling height of a condo is higher than that of a HDB. The former stands at around 2.8m, while the latter is around 2.4m-2.6m. The implication is in carpentry, which is by far the largest ticket item in any renovation. Most carpentry (eg. wardrobe) are built to full height. As the ceiling height of a condo is around 10% more than a HDB, and including excess wastage (i.e. leftover materials that can’t be used), we can expect the corresponding price to go up by around 10%.

Second, it is operationally more difficult to renovate a condo. Renovation timings are strictly based on a 9-to-5 schedule, and weekends can’t be used, due to MCST requirements. As a result, firms either have to employ more manpower to complete the renovation within the normal 2 months period, or use more man-days and complete it within 3 months. Both scenario result in higher labour cost for the renovation firms.

Contrast this with HDBs, where they have much more flexibility. Only hacking is required to follow this 9-to-5 schedule, and it finishes pretty quickly.

The good thing about condos is that most of the furnishing and fittings come pre-installed. So, there is some form of cost savings there. The possibly “worst” scenario is purchasing an old condo where an overhaul is necessary. Make sure you budget enough for that if you are purchasing one like this ya!

(P.S.: We got featured on asiaone!)

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