HDB resale portal unlikely to cut out property agents

The portal enables sellers to list their units themselves.

The new HDB Resale Flat Listing (RFL) service may encourage do-it-yourself (DIY) buying and selling amongst Singaporeans, potentially sidelining real estate agents.

Through the RFL service, sellers can list and market their HDB units independently. To list flats, sellers must have a valid Intent to sell, whilst buyers will need a valid HDB Flat Eligibility (HFE) letter to access the full suite of features of the RFL service.

Mark Lim, associate group director of OrangeTee & Tie, said the portal will affect real estate agent's role to "some extent" given that it gives direct access between sellers and buyers.

"The house hunting process is the most tedious part of the search process. With the possibility of marching the seller and the buyer, it literally takes away the job of an agent, quite drastically," Lim told Singapore Business Review.

"The initial part of sourcing properties, marketing of properties, looking for buyers to match sellers, that is the part that, in my opinion, an agent's role will be reduced to some extent," Lim added.

With the portal likely leading a shift to DIY amongst sellers, Lim said agents must uplift their role as professional advisors.