BTO handover checklist, what to bring, what to check.

Before the day

The short version: your key collection appointment is at the HDB Sales Office in HDB Hub, Lorong 6 Toa Payoh, not at the flat. Bring the identity cards of every applicant and occupier, your Certificate of HDB Fire Insurance if you are taking an HDB housing loan, and a Singpass-ready phone for the CPF withdrawal. You see the unit afterwards, keys in hand — go the same day with a torch, a plug-in socket tester and your phone, and check doors, tiles, water flow, sockets and the household shelter in every room before renovation starts. The rest of this page is that check, room by room.

HDB notifies you of your key collection appointment by SMS and email, usually within about two weeks of the appointment date, with the appointment letter on My HDBPage. HDB does not publish a standard duration for the appointment. What it covers is administrative: the balance purchase price and resale levy if applicable, stamp duty on the Deed of Assignment, legal and survey fees, the online CPF withdrawal via Singpass, and issue of your HDB housing loan if you are taking one. You will not see the flat during the appointment. All applicants attend in person at HDB Hub, collect the keys and Welcome Kit, and go to the unit afterwards.

The moment that actually matters is the gap between collecting your keys and starting renovation. Your 12-month Defects Liability Period runs from the date of key collection. HDB asks you to report items within one month of key collection and before renovation begins, so that nobody has to investigate later whether a defect was inherent from construction or caused by renovation works. That one month is HDB's recommendation, not a cut-off: the DLP still runs the full 12 months. Once you report, the Building Service Centre arranges a joint inspection to verify the items on your list.

What to bring to the appointment

• Identity card of every applicant and occupier named in the flat application, physical or digital via the Singpass app (not required for children under 15)
• Certificate of HDB Fire Insurance, digital or hard copy, if you are taking an HDB housing loan
• A phone or device with internet access and Singpass to apply for your CPF withdrawal online
• Power of Attorney (original) if an applicant cannot attend in person
• The financial worksheet enclosed with your appointment letter: it sets out exactly what you must pay

What to bring to the flat afterwards

• Phone with full battery for photos and video
• Powerful flashlight: most BTOs have minimal lighting at handover
• Tape measure for any specific dimension you want to verify
• Plug-in tester if you have one (testing socket polarity yourself)
• Bottle of water and snacks: collection days run long
• Notepad and pen for handwritten notes alongside photos

What to expect

Key collection happens at the HDB Sales Office in HDB Hub, Lorong 6 Toa Payoh. All applicants attend in person; HDB staff take you through the payments and paperwork and hand over your keys and Welcome Kit. Nobody walks the flat with you at this stage. You go to the unit afterwards, on your own time. Use that visit properly: work through the flat room by room, photograph everything, then report the items to the Building Service Centre, either by scanning the QR code in your Welcome Kit or at the temporary BSC in your precinct. The BSC then arranges a joint inspection to verify what you reported and assigns a contractor to carry out the rectification.

Take your time in the unit. There is no need to rush, and nothing to sign there. Your protection is the 12-month Defects Liability Period, which runs from the date of key collection: report what you find to the Building Service Centre, ideally within the first month and before renovation starts. For a private condo or EC, vacant possession works differently. There you inspect before accepting the unit, and defects are raised with the developer under the 12-month DLP in your Sale & Purchase Agreement.

Living room and entrance

1. Main door alignment: Open and close fully. Listen for scraping. Check the seal at the bottom. There should be no daylight visible.
2. Door lock function: Lock and unlock from inside and outside with each key. Confirm all keys work.
3. Door peephole: Look through it. Should be clear, properly aligned.
4. Floor tiles: Walk the entire floor. Tap each tile lightly with a coin (some inspectors use a small metal rod). Note any tile that sounds duller. These are likely hollow.
5. Wall paint and plaster: Look at walls in low-angle light if possible. Note runs, missed areas, surface defects.
6. Ceiling: Look up and walk the perimeter. Note water marks, cracks, surface defects, alignment.
7. Air-conditioning provisions: HDB does not supply air-conditioning in a new flat. You are responsible for installing your own after handover, and what the flat comes with is the concealed wiring and air-conditioning points, so there is normally nothing to switch on. Check instead that the air-con ledge is sound, that wall sleeves and condensate drain provisions are in place and clear, and that service access is unobstructed. In a condo or EC where the developer has installed the system, run each unit, listen for unusual noise, and confirm the condensate pipe discharges rather than backing up.
8. Power sockets: Test each socket with a plug-in tester or a phone charger. All should work. Polarity errors are common and require an electrician's report.
9. Switches and lights: Test every switch. Every light should work.

Kitchen

1. Sink and kitchen tap: A kitchen sink is not part of the standard fittings in a new flat, so check your project's sales brochure for what your flat type actually includes. Where a sink and tap are fitted and the supply is on, run the water for 60 seconds and check the cabinet underneath for leaks at the trap and connections. Do not expect hot water: HDB provides the water-heater point and wiring, not the heater, so a hot supply is something you add during renovation.
2. Drainage: Fill the sink, then drain it. Time how quickly it drains. Slow drainage indicates a gradient issue.
3. Floor drainage: Pour water onto the kitchen floor near any floor drain. Confirm it drains. Floor traps that don't drain are a common HDB defect.
4. Kitchen tile work: Tap-test floor tiles, especially near the sink and stove area. Check wall tiles too.
5. Counter alignment: Look across the countertop with a flat object. Note unevenness or gaps.
6. Cabinet doors: Open and close every cabinet. Check alignment, soft-close function, hinge tightness.
7. Power points: Test each socket. Note any that don't work.
8. Yard area: Same checks as kitchen: drainage, tiles, sockets, paint.

Bathrooms

1. Tile work: Tap every tile, including walls. Hollow tiles are most common in bathrooms because of moisture exposure and substrate movement.
2. Drainage gradient: Pour a litre of water onto the bathroom floor. Watch where it goes. Water should run to the floor trap. Pooling in any other location is a defect.
3. Floor trap: Run water down it. Drainage should be quick. Smell it. There should be no sewage smell.
4. Toilet: Flush twice. Confirm the bowl refills cleanly. Listen for ongoing flow after the flush completes (cistern leak indicator).
5. Shower set and basin tap: The shower set and wash basin tap mixer are Optional Component Scheme items, so if you did not opt in at the flat booking appointment they will not be installed. There are exceptions: shorter-waiting-time projects, and flats built using Prefabricated Prefinished Volumetric Construction (PPVC), come with sanitary fittings as standard, so check your project’s sales brochure for what your flat type actually includes. Where they are fitted, run them, check pressure, and look for drips at every connection. There is no hot water at handover: HDB provides the water-heater point, not the heater, so check that the point is present, correctly positioned and undamaged.
6. Bathroom sink: Run water, drain, check for leaks under.
7. Mirrors and accessories: Check alignment, mounting solidity.
8. Ventilation: HDB does not supply a bathroom exhaust fan in a new flat: bathrooms are ventilated through the window or vent opening. Check that it opens fully and freely, that the opening is unobstructed, and that the frame and seals are intact. In a condo or EC with a mechanical exhaust fan fitted, switch it on and hold a tissue near the grille to confirm it draws.
9. Door alignment: Bathroom doors are often misaligned. Open and close. Check the seal.

Bedrooms

1. Floor tiles or vinyl: Walk the floor. For tiles, tap-test. For vinyl, check for bubbles, gaps at edges, alignment.
2. Walls and ceiling: Same checks as living room.
3. Windows: Open and close fully. Confirm seals are intact. Test the window lock.
4. Window glazing: Look for cracks, scratches, sealant defects.
5. Aircon outlet: If aircon is provided, test it. If not, confirm the wall opening for future installation is clean.
6. Power sockets: Test each.
7. Switches and lights: Test each.
8. Wardrobes: Open every door. Check soft-close. Check shelf level.
9. Door alignment: Open and close the bedroom door. Listen for scraping.

Bomb shelter

1. Door seal: Look around all four sides of the closed door. The gasket should be continuous and undamaged: no tears, flattened sections or gaps. SCDF's own commissioning checks on a household shelter door are a light penetration test (a torch shone from outside passes only if no light can be seen from inside) and a chalk mark test (chalk applied to the frame must transfer onto the seal in an unbroken, uniform line). The torch check is the one you can repeat yourself. Report any gap or damaged gasket.
2. Hinges: The door should open and close smoothly. Hinge alignment failures are common.
3. Door serial label: The household shelter door is a regulated shelter product, and its serial label is issued by an accredited Certification Body under the certification scheme SCDF requires, not by SCDF itself. The label is water-proof and tamper-proof, and carries the product category, a unique serial number, the certification body's mark, and a QR code you can scan to see whether the label status is valid or void. Report a label that is missing, defaced or painted over.
4. Walls and floor: Same general inspection as other rooms: paint, tiles, sockets.
5. Inside surface: No water marks, no efflorescence, no surface defects.

Service balcony and yard

1. Floor drainage: Pour water onto the floor. Should drain to the floor trap, not pool.
2. Tiles: Tap-test (yard tiles are exposed to thermal cycling, so the failure rate is higher).
3. Walls: Check paint and plaster.
4. Power sockets: Test each. Outdoor sockets sometimes fail polarity tests at handover.
5. Door alignment: Yard doors take more weather exposure, so alignment issues are common.

What to do if you find issues

1. Document everything on the day. Take photos with your phone of every defect you find. Most phones record a timestamp on each photo, which helps anchor the date if a defect is disputed later. Keeping each photo attached to its own entry saves you reconstructing the afternoon from a camera roll afterwards; our guide to the free defect checklist app sets out the four fields every entry needs.
2. Report the items to the Building Service Centre. For an HDB flat, submit your rectification request by scanning the QR code in your Welcome Kit or at the temporary BSC in your precinct. Be specific. "Hollow tiles in master bathroom" is better than "tile issues."
3. Do not refuse to take possession. Once your TOP/key collection is scheduled, you typically must take possession. Refusal can trigger penalties. The right approach is take possession with documented defects, not refuse possession.
4. Submit the official defect form within the DLP. You have 12 months. Don't wait until month 11. Submit early so rectification can complete before the window closes.
5. Don't start renovation immediately. Once renovation begins, the developer's standard response to defect claims becomes "renovation caused this." If renovation is planned, commission a pre-renovation inspection as a baseline.

Common questions about handover

How long do I have to report defects?

Twelve months from key collection. The first month is the most important window: the project contractor is still mobilised on site, materials are still on site, and rectification is fastest.

What if I find major defects after collecting the keys?

For an HDB flat there is nothing to sign at the unit, so there is nothing to withhold. Document everything, then submit a rectification request to the Building Service Centre. The BSC arranges a joint inspection to verify the items and assigns a contractor to carry out the work. If the list is long or technical, commission a professional inspection first so the report you submit is complete.

What if I can't get an inspector on the day I collect keys?

It does not need to be the same day. You hold the keys, so the unit is yours to visit whenever suits. Book us within the first week if you can, so your defect list is filed inside HDB's recommended first month and before any renovation starts. WhatsApp us your collection date and we will fit around it.

Should I bring family members or friends?

Bring at least one other adult. Having a second pair of eyes helps. Don't bring children if possible: handover takes hours and the unit isn't safe for unsupervised kids.