What is HIP? A homeowner's guide to HDB's Home Improvement Programme

Name: What is HIP? HDB's Home Improvement Programme explained
Uploaded: 2026-11-08T20:00:00+08:00
Duration: 2 min 21 s
Description: What HDB's Home Improvement Programme is, its history, the block vote, Essential, Optional and EASE works, what citizens pay, the steps, and why bathroom cabinets go in after the works.

HIP is HDB's programme to fix common problems in older flats and upgrade toilets for owners who choose it. Here is its history, what it covers, what it costs and how a HIP round runs, with links to HDB for your own block.

The same HDB block when new, worn after decades, and refreshed after upgrading — Most HDB flats are upgraded twice in their lease: HIP at around 30 years, and a second round at 60 to 70.

2007year HIP was introduced
320,000flats in the first offer, built up to 1986
230,000more flats added in 2018, built 1987 to 1997
75%of a block's eligible citizen households must vote yes

HERA is a bathroom retailer. We are not part of HDB or the HIP programme, and we are not an HIP contractor.

🎬 Watch: What is HIP? (2:21)

What HDB's Home Improvement Programme is, its history, the block vote, Essential, Optional and EASE works, what citizens pay, the steps, and why bathroom cabinets go in after the works.

Chapters and transcript

0:00 Has your block been picked for HIP?
0:08 What HIP is
0:16 HIP history: 2007 and 2018
0:33 The block vote
0:41 Essential, Optional and EASE works
1:00 The HIP toilet upgrade
1:10 What citizens pay
1:28 Steps and timeline
1:38 What many owners miss
1:49 The best time for new cabinets
1:55 HERA vanity cabinets
2:05 Check with HDB
2:15 Questions on WhatsApp

Transcript

Has your HDB block been picked for HIP? Here is what it means for your home, and your bathroom.

HIP is HDB's Home Improvement Programme. It fixes common problems in older flats, and can give your toilet a full refresh.

It started in 2007, for flats built up to 1986. In 2018, it was extended to flats built up to 1997. Most flats get major upgrading twice in their lease: HIP at around 30 years, and a second round at 60 to 70.

Your block decides together. If at least 75% of eligible citizen households vote yes, HIP goes ahead.

There are three parts. Essential works fix things like spalling concrete and old waste pipes. For citizens, the government pays for these in full. Optional works are your choice: the toilet upgrade, a new main door and gate, and a new refuse chute hopper. EASE adds safety items for seniors, like grab bars and ramps.

The toilet upgrade gives you new floor and wall tiles, new waterproofing, a wash basin, a pedestal pan, a toilet door, a grab bar and a louvred vent.

Citizens pay between 5% and 12.5% of the optional package, depending on flat type. That is about S$600 for a 3-room flat, and about S$1,500 for an executive flat. And you only pay after the works are done, in cash or with CPF, at once or in monthly instalments.

After a successful vote, you have 6 weeks to choose your optional items. Works inside your flat take up to 10 working days, and the whole precinct takes about 14 months.

Here is what many owners miss. You must remove any fittings or cabinets that block the works, at your own cost. And the toilet package does not include any storage.

So plan your new bathroom cabinets for right after HIP. Nothing new has to come down during the works.

HERA vanity cabinets are fully waterproof, from 500 to 800mm wide, from S$711. We can measure your new toilet and recommend what fits.

HERA is not part of HDB, so check your flat's details on HDB's website. Our full guide, with links to HDB, is at herabathroom.com/hip.

Questions about your bathroom after HIP? Message us on WhatsApp. We're happy to help.

❓ What HIP is

The Home Improvement Programme (HIP) is HDB's programme for flats that have reached around 30 years old. It deals with wear and tear common in older flats, such as spalling concrete, structural cracks and old waste pipes, and offers optional upgrades such as a new toilet.

According to gov.sg, HDB flats get major upgrading twice in their 99-year lease: HIP at around the 30-year mark, and a second round at around the 60 to 70-year mark.

For Singapore Citizen households, the Government pays for the essential repairs and heavily subsidises the optional ones.

🗓️ A short history of HIP

2007 HIP is introduced. It is first offered to flats built up to 1986 that had not gone through the earlier Main Upgrading Programme (MUP), about 320,000 flats in all.
2012 HDB launches EASE (Enhancement for Active Seniors), senior-friendly fittings such as grab bars and ramps. HIP now offers EASE as its third component.
2018 HIP is extended to another 230,000 flats built between 1987 and 1997. In December, EASE adds portable and customised ramps for flats with steps at the entrance.
2024 EASE 2.0 adds items such as foldable shower seats, bidet sprays, rocker switches, lower toilet kerbs and wider toilet entrances.
2026 On 15 May, MND and HDB select over 18,000 more flats for HIP.
Next A second round of upgrading at around 60 to 70 years of a flat's life.

Sources: HDB's background of HIP and background of EASE (May 2026), CPF Board for the 2007 start, and gov.sg for the second round.

🧱 What HIP covers

HIP has three parts. Essential improvements are needed for health and safety, Optional improvements are your choice, and EASE adds fittings for seniors.

Government-funded for citizens

Essential

Repair of spalling concrete and structural cracks
Replacement of cast iron waste and soil pipes, and of UPVC pipes that leak or crack
A new clothes drying rack in place of the old pipe sockets
An electrical load upgrade if needed, done separately

Your choice, subsidised

Optional

Toilet upgrading package
New main door and grille gate
New refuse chute hopper

For seniors, up to 95% subsidised

EASE

Grab bars and a foldable shower seat
Slip-resistant treatment for toilet floor tiles
A lower or wider toilet entrance
Ramps and a handrail at the main entrance

🚽 The HIP toilet upgrading package

The optional toilet package covers a new waterproofing membrane, wash basin, floor and wall tiles, louvred vent, toilet door, grab bar and pedestal pan.

A worker lays new floor tiles in a small HDB toilet with a new pedestal pan, wash basin, grab bar and louvred vent — The HIP toilet upgrade: new floor and wall tiles, waterproofing, a wash basin, a pedestal pan, a toilet door, a grab bar and a louvred vent.

It is a package. If you leave items out, you still pay for the whole package, and the unused items are not given to you.
Opting out needs a water test. The floor is flooded to at least 10mm for 4 hours and checked for leaks into the flat below. If it fails, toilet upgrading is required, to protect your downstairs neighbour.
The new pedestal pan has at least a 2-tick water efficiency rating, as PUB requires. HDB suggests holding the flush a little longer.
Your water heater must use connections that meet current rules. If it does not, the contractor installs a new dedicated circuit in wall trunking as part of the works.
Storage is not included. There is no vanity cabinet, mirror cabinet or shelving in the package.

💰 What HIP costs

For Singapore Citizen households, the Government pays the full cost of Essential improvements. For the full Optional package, owners pay 5% to 12.5% depending on flat type.

Flat type	You pay (full Optional package)	Government pays
1, 2 and 3-room	S$599.50 (5%)	S$11,390.50 (95%)
4-room	S$899.25 (7.5%)	S$11,090.75 (92.5%)
5-room	S$1,199.00 (10%)	S$10,791.00 (90%)
Executive	S$1,498.75 (12.5%)	S$10,491.25 (87.5%)

Singapore Citizen households, including 9% GST. From HDB's background of HIP, May 2026.

EASE items are subsidised up to 95% for citizens, so you pay a small share of each item you choose.
Permanent Resident households receive no subsidy and pay the full cost, Essential items included. HDB reimburses the subsidy if an owner becomes a citizen within a year of billing.
You pay only after all the works are done: in one lump sum, or monthly over 1 to 10 years with interest, by cash, CPF or both.

🗳️ How a HIP round works, step by step

Shortlist and poll. HDB writes to households in shortlisted precincts. HIP goes ahead in a block if at least 75% of its eligible Singapore Citizen households vote in favour.
Choose your items6 weeks After a successful poll, pick your Optional and EASE items at the HIP Information Centre or online through My HDBPage. No changes are allowed after that.
Condition survey and water test. HDB records cracks, spalling concrete, ceiling leaks and your water heater connections. If you opted out of toilet upgrading, your toilet gets the water test.
Schedule publishedabout 3 months after the poll Each block's works schedule goes up on the precinct noticeboard and HDB InfoWEB.
Works beginabout 4 months after the poll The first block starts. You get notice about a month, and again 2 weeks, before your flat's turn.
Works in your flatup to 10 working days 8am to 6pm, Monday to Saturday, except public holidays. An adult must be home.
Precinct completeabout 14 months of works A typical HIP project takes about 18 months from the poll.
Sign off and pay. You confirm the works are done, collect your keys if a new main door was fitted, and HDB sends an invoice for your share.
Defects period1 year Report faults to the Information Centre hotline, or to your HDB Branch once the project team has left.

The same HDB bathroom during HIP works, then weeks later with a new vanity and mirror cabinet fitted — The HIP toilet package includes no cabinets, so a vanity and mirror cabinet are best fitted after the works.

🧰 A homeowner's checklist

Before the works

Decide on the toilet package within the 6-week window. You pay for the whole package even if you skip items.
If you plan to opt out, the water test decides it: a failed test means toilet upgrading is required.
Look at what is on your toilet walls and floor. HDB's booklet says owners must remove and reinstate, at their own cost, any fittings, fixtures or cabinets that obstruct the works.
Put valuables away and move fragile items somewhere safe.

During the works

Arrange for an adult to be home from 8am to 6pm on your flat's works days.
Want extra work from the HIP contractor? Agree the scope and cost in writing at the Information Centre, and get a receipt there.

After the works

Check the new toilet and report any defects within the 1-year defects period.
Then plan storage. The package has no vanity or mirror cabinet, and anything fitted now never has to come down for HIP.

🪞 Where HERA fits in

A mirror cabinet open above a vanity, showing shelves, a hair dryer holder, a tissue box and a magnifying mirror — A mirror cabinet adds the bathroom storage the HIP toilet package leaves out.

HIP gives you a new basin, tiles and pedestal pan, but no storage. HERA vanity cabinets are 100% waterproof PVC, in widths from 500 to 800mm, from S$711. Our mirror cabinets come in 500mm and 800mm widths and join with open shelves into one storage wall.

Fitting them after your flat's HIP works means nothing has to be taken down. We come to your home, take measurements and recommend cabinets that suit your space.

See the vanity range and the mirror cabinet system.

📍 HIP estates with a HERA guide

Pasir Ris: 4 precincts, 77 blocks, 5,181 homes

Each estate guide lists its HIP precincts from HDB's open data, with real HERA installs nearby.

🔗 Official HIP sources

HDB's pages are the final word on HIP, and details can change. Check your own block with HDB before you plan any works.

Links checked 8 Nov 2026.

❓ Questions people ask

What is HIP in HDB?

HIP is HDB's Home Improvement Programme. It fixes common problems in flats around 30 years old, such as spalling concrete and old waste pipes, and offers optional upgrades such as a new toilet. Essential repairs are paid by the Government for Singapore Citizen households.

Who pays for HIP?

For Singapore Citizen households, the Government pays for Essential improvements in full. Owners pay 5% to 12.5% of the full Optional package depending on flat type, and up to 5% of EASE items. Permanent Resident households receive no subsidy. You pay only after all the works are done, in a lump sum or instalments of 1 to 10 years, by cash or CPF.

How long does HIP take in my flat?

HDB's booklet says works in a flat take up to 10 working days, from 8am to 6pm, Monday to Saturday except public holidays, and an adult must be home. Works across a whole precinct typically take about 14 months.

Can I opt out of the HIP toilet upgrade?

Only if your toilet passes HDB's water test, in which the floor is flooded to at least 10mm for 4 hours and checked for leaks into the flat below. If it fails, toilet upgrading is required.

Do I need to remove my bathroom cabinets for HIP?

If they are in the way. HDB's booklet says owners must remove and reinstate, at their own cost, any fittings, fixtures or cabinets that obstruct the works.

Does the HIP toilet package include a vanity or mirror cabinet?

No. The package covers a new waterproofing membrane, wash basin, floor and wall tiles, louvred vent, toilet door, grab bar and pedestal pan. Storage is not part of it.

Should I buy new bathroom cabinets before or after HIP?

After. Anything that blocks the works has to come down at your own cost, so new cabinets fitted after your flat's works are finished never need to be removed.

How do I know if my flat is getting HIP?

HDB writes to households in precincts shortlisted for HIP. You can also check your flat with HDB’s HIP status e-service.

Planning your bathroom after HIP?

Find your HIP project and sign up, or message us on WhatsApp. We arrange a visit to measure for cabinets once your works are done.