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LETTER of ADMINISTRATION OF HDB FLAT UPON THE DEATH OF SOLE LESSEE ORDER OF COURT REQUIRED BY HDB TO SELL THE HDB FLAT WHERE DECEASED HAS PASSED AWAY FOR MORE THAN 6 YEARS.

  • An order of Court is usually required before the HDB flat may be sold where the
    deceased (being the sole owner of the HDB flat) has passed away for more than 6 years
    in addition to obtaining either a Grant of Letter of Administration (if deceased has not
    made a Will during his lifetime) or Grant of Probate (if deceased has made a Will but
    there is no power of sale clause in the Will).
    The relevant legislation is as follows :
    “The sanction of the court is necessary by virtue of s 35(2) of the Conveyancing and Law
    of Property Act (Cap 63) (`CLPA`) which states that no sale of land belonging to the estate
    of a deceased person shall be made by the legal personal representative(s) of that person
    after the expiration of six years from his death unless with the sanction of the court.”
    This kind of application for an Order of Court to sell the HDB flat where the Deceased
    has passed away for more than 6 years is to be made to the High Court jurisdiction of
    Singapore court and the Administrator is required to explain in his affidavit the
    reasons as to why he or she is not able to sell the HDB flat for more than 6 years
    from the death of the deceased and further exhibit valuation report of the HDB flat
    to provide the propose price of the said HDB flat to be sold. The Administrator
    may also be directed by the court to serve this application for Order of Court to
    sell the flat on all the beneficiaries so that the beneficiaries’ view can be heard by
    the court before the Court decide as to whether to allow the Order of Court to sell
    the flat.
    Unfortunately, there are not many local case law relating to section 35(2) of the
    Conveyancing and Law of Property Act (Cap 63) (`CLPA`) that one can know as to
    what amount to reasonable reason for the delay in selling the HDB flat for more than 6
    years from the death of the deceased so as to trigger the Court to grant the Order of
    Court.
    In the case of RE THE ESTATE OF SAFIAH BINTE TAHAR (1940) MLJ 285, the case law
    in this case say that Court will not grant the Order of Court to sell the property as of
    right and the Court may require to be satisfied as to the reasons for the delay in failing
    to sell the property for more than 6 years from the death of the deceased. The Court
    may require an affidavit of valuation of the property in case where there are infant
    beneficiary.
  • Reasonable reason for the delay can come from scenario where the delay in selling the
    deceased’s flat or property were due to administrators and beneficiaries have serious
    disagreement over the details of the sale of the HDB flat namely as to the price of the flat or
    administrative details of the sale which cause the delay in selling the HDB flat.
    Another scenario can also come from one of the beneficiary of the estate of the deceased
    are tenant occupying the deceased’s flat and is refusing to vacate the deceased’s flat to
    allow the sale of the said HDB flat.
    The Administrator need to provide a list of reasons for the delay in selling the deceased’s
    HDB flat to provide for legal advice as to the feasibility of succeeding in the application of
    this kind of Order.
    If the Court view the reasons for the delay in selling the flat are due to the Administrator’s
    negligence or tardy response in taking steps to sell the flat, then Court unlikely to grant the
    Order of Court to sell under section 35(2) of the Conveyancing and Law of Property Act (Cap
    63) (`CLPA`) and legal cost of making such application would be wasted unnecessarily.
    In another Malaysian case of YAP YOKE LUAN V ONG WEE TOK (1982) 1 MLJ 23– a
    case not directly on point to the issue of when Court will make the order of court to
    sell deceased’s property when deceased had passed away for more than 6 years but
    on the issue of what Court considers to grant order to sell in Malaysian law on Order
    for Administrator to sell the deceased’s property. In this case, the Court’s duty is to
    protect the rights of the beneficiary and not to consider the interest of the purchasers.
    Court will look into the facts and circumstances of the case and whether the proposed
    sale was favourable to the beneficiary and whether the Administrators have acted with
    proper prudence in exercising their duty to obtain the best possible price.

    For further queries, kindly please contact us:

    Raymond Lim & Co. – Location @

    #03-40 People Park Center
    101 Upper Cross Street
    Singapore 058357
    Mobile: 9760 7060
    Tel: 6222 1004
    Fax: 6222 1648

    Main E-mail  : RaymondLimCo@yahoo.com.sg 
    Other E-mail : RaymondLimWeiFeng@gmail.com

    Our websites:

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PART 3 of 3 (FINAL PART) – ADMINISTATION OF HDB FLAT UPON DEATH OF SOLE LESSEE OWNER

There are serious consequences imposed by HDB if the next-of-kin do not either obtain the Grant of Letter of Administration or Probate or carry out a transmission /transfer/ disposal of the flat  as the flat may be vested in the HDB if :

  1. Letter of Administration/Probate is not taken out within 12 months from the death of the sole lessee or tenant-in-common;
  2. The personal representatives do not apply for a transmission /transfer of the flat within 6 months from the date of representation;
  3. The executor/administrator do not apply for a transfer of the flat to the eligible beneficiaries or disposal of the flat (if there is no one eligible to take over the flat) within 12 months from the completion date of the transmission.

These are the actions that you should take namely as follows:

  1. If the co-lessee under joint tenancy of the HDB flat passed away, the family should inform the HDB branch officer managing the flat and the HDB Branch officer will advise the family of the procedure to lodge the Notice of Death to transfer the ownership of the flat to the other surviving co-owner.
  2. If the sole lessee or co-lessee under the tenancy-in-common passed away, the deceased’s family must find a private lawyer to apply to the Court for the Grant of Letter of Administration (if the deceased did not leave a Will) or Grant of Probate (if there is a Will).
  3. If you are appointed under the Grant of Letter of Administration or Grant of Probate as the administrator or executor, you have to go to the HDB branch officer managing the flat to vest the flat in your name as administrator/executor in your fiduciary capacity known as “transmission”. You need to bring along the following documents namely as follows :
  4. Original Summons for the Grant of Letter of Administration or Grant of Probate;
  5. Engross Grant of Letter of Administration/Probate;
  6. Engross Schedule of Asset usually attached to the engross Grant of Letter of Administration /Probate;
    • Syriah Court Inheritance Certificate (for Muslim estate);
    • Duplicate Lease of the flat (if any);
    • Original copy of the death certificate of the deceased;and
  7. Provide your original Identity Card.

After that, the other important key points to take note:

a. Once the flat is vested in the name of the administrator/executor, you can apply to transfer the flat to the beneficiaries as owners but subject to HDB eligibility rules.

You may need to ask the HDB branch office for a transfer application form and to submit to the branch office managing the flat.

b. You can do the transmission & transfer of the flat at the same time.

c. What if the beneficiaries are not eligible to take over the flat from the administrator/executor?

The only way for the administrator/executor is to sell the flat. However, one has to check if the deceased has a Will or no Will to see if the administrator /executor can sell or not sell the flat. The Will of the deceased must provide for a power of sale for the administrator to sell the flat before the administrator can sell the flat. If there is no power of sale in the Will, then the administrator/executor has to apply to the Court for an Order of Court to sell the flat. If there is no Will, the Administrator may proceed to sell the flat as long as the deceased has not passed away for more than 6 years. An order of Court is required before the flat may be sold where the deceased has passed away for more than 6 years.

 If you have similar above mentioned situation and requirement, then please contact us for further in deep discussion.  

Raymond Lim & Co. – Location @

#03-40 People Park Center
101 Upper Cross Street
Singapore 058357
Mobile: 9760 7060
Tel: 6222 1004
Fax: 6222 1648

Main E-mail  : RaymondLimCo@yahoo.com.sg 
Other E-mail : RaymondLimWeiFeng@gmail.com

Our websites:

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Other related legal articles:

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PART 2 of 3 – ADMINISTATION OF HDB FLAT UPON DEATH OF SOLE LESSEE OWNER

In the scenario of the deceased owner is holding the HDB flat as a tenant-in-common or sole lessee, then the next-of-kin of the deceased owner would be required by HDB to engage a private lawyer to apply to the Court for the Grant of Letter of Administration (if lessee did not leave a Will) or Grant of Letter of Administration (if there is a Will) within a year from the death of the lessee.  This is because the HDB requires the deceased’s next-of-kin to be appointed by the Court to administer the deceased lessee’s HDB flat and other property.

However, if the deceased owner has passed away for more than a year and the next-of-kin of the deceased have not apply to court for either the Grant of Letter of Administration or Grant  of Probate, then the next-of-kin need to appoint  a private lawyer urgently to make application for the said Grants with the Court and also to write to request the HDB for extension of time for the next-of-kin of the deceased owner to obtain the said Grants.

Such a person who administer the deceased’s estate and distribute the said estate among the respective beneficiaries is called a personal representative.  The personal representative is called an “executor” if he is the person appointed by the deceased in his or her Will to administer and distribute the property among the beneficiaries. If the deceased did not leave a Will, the personal representative is known as “administrator”.

Usually upon the death of the sole lessee or tenant-in common of a HDB flat, the HDB require the personal representative of the deceased lessee’s estate to apply to the Court for either the Grant of Letter of Administration or Grant of Probate.

The Grant of Letter of Administration or Grant of Probate are Court Orders which give legal authority to the administrator or executor to administer the deceased’s estate.

Upon obtaining the Grant of Letter of Administration / Grant of Probate, the personal representative will need to go the HDB branch office to vest the deceased’s HDB flat in his name as administrator/executor of the estate, a process called transmission within 6 months from the date of obtaining the Grant of Letter of Administration/Grant of Probate.  The personal representative will also need to apply for the transfer of the flat to the eligible beneficiaries as owner or disposal of the flat usually by sale (if there is no one eligible to take over the flat) within 1 year from the date of transmission of the deceased’s flat to the executor/administrator.

To be continued in Part 3 of 3. Please watch out for the final part of the article.

Raymond Lim & Co. – Location @

#03-40 People Park Center
101 Upper Cross Street
Singapore 058357
Mobile: 9760 7060
Tel: 6222 1004
Fax: 6222 1648

Main E-mail  : RaymondLimCo@yahoo.com.sg 
Other E-mail : RaymondLimWeiFeng@gmail.com

Our websites:

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What is the purpose for Letter of Administration?

DISTRIBUTION OF A DECEASED PERSON ASSETS TO THE NEXT-OF-KIN OF THE DECEASED

If you have a next-of-kin who suddenly passed away and the bank or insurance companies will only release this next of kin’s monies in the bank account or insurance proceeds upon production of a court order called either GRANT OF PROBATE OR GRANT OF LETTER OF ADMINISTRATION, then you are looking into the need to apply to the Court to issue these two court orders.

Or imagine a scenario where your next-of-kin or loved one is the sole owner of the HDB flat and HDB require you being the next of kin of the deceased to produce the GRANT OF PROBATE or GRANT OF LETTER OF ADMINISTRATION in order for you to either sell the flat to prospective purchaser or to do a transfer of the flat ownership to either the next-of-kin or the person that your demise next-of-kin want to give to.

If a deceased person have done a Will – a document providing for the appointment of a person called the Executor to collect and distribute his or her assets to the loved ones that this deceased person wishes to give to, then the Executor should engage a lawyer to apply to the Singapore Family Justice Courts to issue a Court Order called Grant of Probate.

If a deceased person have not done a Will which means he or she did not provide in writing as to who should receive his or her assets, then the next-of-kin of the deceased called the Administrator should engage a lawyer to apply to the Singapore Family Justice Courts to issue a Court Order called Grant of Letter of Administration.

For further enquiries, 

Call 6222 1004 Now  or Click here to get FREE Consultation with our Lawyer, Raymond Lim.

请马上拨电话 6222 1004 或点击这里现在获取和我们的律师，Raymond Lim免费咨询。

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What is a Letter of Administration in Singapore?

WHAT IS A LETTER OF ADMINISTRATION IN SINGAPORE?

When a person passes away without having written a Will in his/her life time, then the next of kin called the Administrator will need to apply to the Court for a Court Order called Grant of Letter of Administration to authorise the next of kin to collect the person’s assets and distribute the assets according to the intestacy law in Singapore. The Administrator will be the person who engage lawyer to apply to the Singapore Family Justice Court to issue this Court Order called Grant of Letter of Administration.

If the demise person is a single person, the Administrator will be usually be the parent who will apply for the Grant of Letter of Administration where the Administrator will collect the assets of the deceased and distribute equally among the father and mother of the deceased.

If the demise person is a married person, the Administrator will usually be the wife of this demise person who will collect the assets of the deceased and distribute equally among the wife and children of the deceased.

If the demise person is a widow or widower whose spouse has already passed away before he or her, then the eldest child will usually be the Administrator who will collect the assets of the deceased and distribute equally among the children of the deceased.

However, if the eldest child of the deceased is not willing to be the Administrator to apply for the Grant of Letter of Administration, then he or she will need to sign a Court Form called Renunciation of right to be Administrator to assign this right to be administrator to the next relative who is eligible to succeed him or her to be the Administrator.

For further enquiries, 

Call 6222 1004 Now  or Click here to get FREE Consultation with our Lawyer, Raymond Lim.

请马上拨电话 6222 1004 或点击这里现在获取和我们的律师，Raymond Lim免费咨询。

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Documents needed for applying for Grant of Probate or Letter of Administration

DOCUMENTS TO PREPARE FOR APPLYING FOR GRANT OF PROBATE OR LETTER OF ADMINISTRATION

In both cases, the Applicant will need to submit the Deceased’s death certificate, next of kin’s NRIC and an inventory list of Deceased’s assets to us to draft the court application papers for either the Letter of Administration or Grant of Probate.

For further enquiries, 

Call 6222 1004 Now  or Click here to get FREE Consultation with our Lawyer, Raymond Lim.

请马上拨电话 6222 1004 或点击这里现在获取和我们的律师，Raymond Lim免费咨询。

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Letter of Administration & Probate Fee

RAYMOND LIM & CO GRANT OF PROBATE AND LETTER OF ADMINISTRATION FEE 

At Raymond Lim & Co, our fees for applying for the Grant of Probate and Grant of Letter of Administration are fixed fees in the range from $1,200 to $2,500 which will include all our legal fees, filing and court fees and involves the following work :

- Preparing the court application papers

- Court attendances

- Making application to court for dispensation of guarantors in cases where the case involves a minor beneficiary of less than 21 years old or mentally incapacitated beneficiary and the Court require the administrators to provide 2 guarantors to sign the Admin Bond-an undertaking to protect the minor or mentally incapacitated beneficiary share.

- Preparing Affidavit statement to affirm that Administrator are not able to find the death certificates of deceased’s father or mother usually required for applying for Muslim Grant of Letter of Administration.

- Obtaining the Court sealed copies of both the Grant of Letter of Administration or Grant of Probate with Schedule of Asset/Will Annexed.

For further enquiries,

Call 6222 1004 Now  or Click here to get FREE Consultation with our Lawyer, Raymond Lim.

请马上拨电话 6222 1004 或点击这里现在获取和我们的律师，Raymond Lim免费咨询。

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How long does it take for Letter of Administration or Grant of Probate?

HOW LONG DOES THE LETTER OF ADMINISTRATION /GRANT OF PROBATE TAKE?

For cases where the Administrator can confirm and identify the deceased’s assets, then the duration of the application can be in the range from 2 1/2 months to 3 months.

For cases where the deceased’s assets are not identifiable and require lawyers to write to institutions to obtain more details to identify the value and description of the assets, then the duration of the application can be in the range from 4 to 9 months depending on the correspondence of the institutions with the law firm to confirm the details of the assets and applying to the court to dispense with the need of the Administrators to provide the 2 guarantors.

For further enquiries, 

Call 6222 1004 Now  or Click here to get FREE Consultation with our Lawyer, Raymond Lim.

请马上拨电话 6222 1004 或点击这里现在获取和我们的律师，Raymond Lim免费咨询。

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