About two-thirds of buyers at Copen Grand, the market's newest EC project, have opted for the deferred payment scheme, which allows them to start paying off their mortgage when their home is completed in a few years.

Responding to an inquiry from the Union-Tribune, developer City Developments (CDL) said 68 percent of buyers in the first round of units sold at Copen Grand on Oct. 22 opted for the deferred payment scheme.

The project, jointly developed by City Developments and MCL Properties, sold 465 units or 73 percent of the units in its first weekend of sales.

North Gaia, an EC project in Yishun, had about 60 percent of buyers opting for deferred payment when it opened in April this year.

Industry insiders estimate that the number of EC buyers choosing to delay payment could be even higher down the road.

They expect that mortgage rates should be lower in two to three years and delaying mortgage payments should save them interest costs.

However, with the downside risk of the economy raising, analysts suggest that buyers should apply for a mortgage now to avoid the possibility of not being able to apply for a loan in case they lose their jobs or have a sharp drop in income in the future.

EC buyers who choose the deferred payment plan must pay a 20% deposit, and can then begin amortizing their mortgage payments only after the house receives a Temporary Occupancy Permit (TOP).

It is important to note that buyers are generally required to pay a higher price than comparable units, for example, an additional 3% of the price of a unit in Dundonald Gardens.

According to Orangetee & Tie's Director of Research and Consulting, Sun Yanqing, more and more EC buyers are opting for deferred payment plans.

As they start amortizing their mortgage later, the interest rate may be lower or stabilize in a few years, and the amortization of the mortgage will be calculated at a lower interest rate, and the money saved can be used to offset the extra 3 percent they have to pay for the delayed payment," Sun said in an interview with the newspaper.

If buyers are still paying for their HDB flats, opting for a deferred payment plan means they don't have to take on two loans at the same time, said Sidney Lee, senior research director at Huttons, in an interview. It also allows buyers to bypass the current high interest rates and accumulate savings while the house is under construction.

He estimates that 50 to 60 percent of EC buyers are currently choosing to defer payments, a rate that could increase next.

Real estate analyst Garson Wong said EC buyers who choose the deferred payment plan do not have to worry about their household monthly income exceeding the $16,000 ceiling for EC purchases when the house is completed in the future, because the contracts for EC purchases were signed earlier. However, buyers must be aware of some potential risks.

If buyers don't apply for a mortgage when they buy the EC, they may not be able to get a bank loan if they lose their job when the house is completed or if their salary decreases due to a job change midway through the process, Wong said.

Therefore, they should obtain a mortgage from the bank first when they have good loan conditions.

According to Lee, buyers who choose to defer payment can apply for a variable-rate loan from the bank when they purchase an EC, and the interest rate is calculated at the rate they will be paying when they start amortizing their mortgage.

Some new private homes under construction in the past also offered deferred payment plans, but the government banned the practice in October 2007.

Currently, in addition to EC, some completed private housing projects that are still being sold by developers also allow buyers to defer payments.

These private properties are resale or private transactions, and deferred payment is not regulated by the Housing Developers (Control and Licensing) Regulations.

The delayed payment by developers of completed projects is to attract buyers because if they do not sell all the units within the five-year period, the developers will have to pay an additional buyer's stamp duty (ABSD), currently equivalent to 30 percent of the land price, said Wong Tak Fai, senior director of research and consultancy at Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) in Singapore.