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Refinance or Reprice? Home Loan Break-Even Calculator (Singapore)
Compare staying, repricing and refinancing your home loan on your own figures. It shows the monthly instalment, the interest over the new lock-in, the switch cost and the break-even month.
The rates below are examples so a result shows straight away. Replace them with the rates in your letter of offer. This page does not quote bank rates or rank lenders.
SORA figure fetched 17 October 2026. Mortgage duty checked against IRAS on 17 October 2026. General information only, not financial, legal or tax advice.
Calculator
3-month compounded SORA is 1.2418% a year. Value date 15 Oct 2026. Published 16 Oct 2026. Source: MAS, SORA, figure from the MAS Domestic Interest Rates table. 0.50 is an example spread, not a quote. The quoted rate is used only when you select it above.
Mortgage duty is prefilled from the IRAS rule and updates when the loan changes, until you edit it. IRAS charges 0.4% of the loan amount granted on the mortgage, capped at $500, rounded down to the nearest dollar, minimum $1. A transfer of mortgage on a refinancing attracts this duty. An equitable mortgage is 0.2%, also capped at $500. Source: IRAS, Mortgage Duty, checked 17 October 2026.
The example lock-in ends 30 June 2027 and the example clawback ends 31 March 2027, so both charges are included while the switch date is 17 October 2026. Change the dates to yours. Legal fees, valuation, mortgage duty, the lock-in penalty, the clawback and the subsidy are counted on the refinance. The reprice cost is the extra amount you enter, usually zero, because a reprice keeps the same mortgage.
Stay
Monthly instalment
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Interest over the lock-in horizon
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Total switch cost
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Break-even month
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Reprice
Monthly instalment
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Interest over the lock-in horizon
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Total switch cost
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Break-even month
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Refinance
Monthly instalment
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Interest over the lock-in horizon
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Total switch cost
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Break-even month
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Verdict
How it works
It works out when a lower instalment pays back the cost of switching. It uses the same monthly-rest instalment as the mortgage calculator, and it keeps the outstanding loan and the remaining tenure the same. It does not model a longer tenure. MoneySense describes this monthly reducing method as the common way interest is worked out on a home loan (MoneySense, How home loans work, updated 28 September 2026).
Monthly instalment:
M = P × r / (1 − (1 + r) ^ −n)
r = yearly rate / 100 / 12
n = remaining years × 12
If the rate is 0, M = P / n.
Interest over the lock-in horizon is the sum of each month's interest on the balance, for the new lock-in or the months left, whichever is shorter. The instalment itself is still the one for the full remaining tenure.
Refinance switch cost:
legal fees + valuation fees + mortgage duty + lock-in penalty + clawback − subsidy
The lock-in penalty is outstanding loan × penalty percent, and only when the switch date is before the lock-in end date. On the end date, and after it, the penalty is zero. Leave the end date blank and the penalty is not included. Clawback is the full amount you enter, on the same date rule. It is not spread over the months left. Reprice switch cost is the extra reprice cost you enter. The other lines stay on the refinance, because a reprice does not replace the mortgage.
Break-even month = switch cost ÷ (current instalment − new instalment), rounded up to a whole month. The saving used here is the unrounded instalment difference. If that saving is zero, there is no break-even. If the saving is negative, there is no break-even. If the switch cost is zero and the instalment falls or stays the same, the break-even month is 0.
The verdict compares interest over the horizon plus the switch cost. The lower total costs less over that horizon. If a break-even month is later than the new lock-in, the verdict says so: the rate after the lock-in is not known.
A floating package is often 3-month compounded SORA plus a spread. MAS publishes SORA every business day (MAS, SORA). The 1.2418% figure is the 3-month compounded SORA for value date 15 Oct 2026, published 16 Oct 2026. A refinance is still a housing loan, so the MAS loan-to-value, tenure and TDSR rules for new housing loans still apply. This page does not restate those limits. Check them on the mortgage calculator and on MAS, New housing loans. Cash you need on a purchase is a different sum: how much cash you need to buy a condo.
Repricing vs refinancing
MoneySense describes refinancing as switching to a new lender, and refinancing with your current bank as repricing, or a conversion. Ask your current lender for a reprice before you decide to redeem. If the lock-in still applies, a penalty can apply. Source: MoneySense, How home loans work, updated 28 September 2026.
| Repricing | Refinancing | |
|---|---|---|
| Lender | The one you already use | A different lender |
| Mortgage | Stays in place | A new mortgage. The old one is discharged |
| Legal fees and valuation | Usually none | You usually pay both |
| Mortgage duty | Usually none | IRAS duty on the new mortgage |
| Lock-in penalty and clawback | Usually not charged when you stay. Check the letter | Charged if you redeem before the end dates |
| What to compare | The new rate, plus any fee the lender still quotes | The new rate against the full switch cost |
When to start
Start about 4 months before the lock-in ends. Banks usually want about 3 months' notice before you redeem, so the earlier weeks are for reading the letter of offer and comparing a reprice with a refinance.
- About 4 months out: write down the outstanding balance, the lock-in end date, the penalty percent, the clawback amount and the clawback end date. Ask your current lender for a reprice. If you want a second figure, ask another lender for a refinance quote and enter both here.
- About 3 months out: banks usually want notice around then if you will redeem when the lock-in ends. Ask for the redemption figure. If you will change lender, a lawyer needs this time to prepare the new mortgage.
- On the lock-in end date: this calculator stops including the penalty. Aim for the new rate to start as the old lock-in ends, so you are not paying the penalty and not keeping a rate you have already decided to leave.
What a clawback means
A clawback is money the lender gave you, such as a legal subsidy or a cash rebate, which the letter of offer tells you to return if you redeem before a date. It is a term of that loan, not a stamp duty. HDB loans are a different product: MoneySense notes that an HDB flat buyer cannot refinance an existing bank loan back to an HDB loan.
Enter the amount in the letter, not a guess. This calculator adds all of it when the switch date is before the clawback end date, and adds none of it otherwise. It does not shave the amount down for the months you have already stayed. A reprice often does not trigger the clawback. If your letter says a reprice still does, put that charge in the extra reprice cost.
Common questions
What is the difference between repricing and refinancing?
Repricing is a new rate on the loan you already have, from the same lender. MoneySense calls that a conversion. Refinancing is redeeming that loan and taking a new loan from a different lender. A refinance is the switch that usually adds legal fees, a valuation and mortgage duty.
How is the break-even month calculated?
Divide the switch cost by the monthly instalment you save, then round up to a whole month. If the instalment does not fall, there is no break-even. If the switch cost is zero, the break-even month is 0.
How much mortgage duty does a refinance attract?
IRAS charges 0.4% of the loan amount granted on the mortgage, capped at $500, for documents from 22 February 2014. Duty is rounded down to the nearest dollar, and the minimum is $1. IRAS says a transfer of mortgage for a refinancing attracts this duty. The field is prefilled with that amount and you can change it. An equitable mortgage is 0.2%, also capped at $500.
What is a clawback?
A clawback is a subsidy or cash rebate the lender can take back if you redeem the loan before the date in your letter of offer. This calculator adds the full amount you enter when the switch date is before that end date. It does not reduce the amount for the months already passed.
When should I start, and what if break-even is after the new lock-in?
Start about 4 months before the lock-in ends. Banks usually want about 3 months' notice before you redeem. If the break-even month is later than the new lock-in, the lower rate is not guaranteed for long enough to cover the switch cost.
Talk to a bank or a broker you choose
This page does not pick a loan. If you want a person to read the letter of offer against these figures, ask the lender you already use, or a mortgage broker you choose yourself. SgPropertyInvesting does not refer you to a broker or a lender, and does not pass on your details. See how this site makes money. The weekly update is on the newsletter page.