Development charge (DC) rates has been in the news quite recently because of the spate of en-blocs going on around Singapore. Even though someone may be familiar with the en-bloc market, DC rates may be something new. DC rates are not something that is thrust into the spotlight but has a big role to play in how present owners of en-bloc’d properties are remunerated, how reserve prices are calculated and how developers make their money. This post sheds some light on what DC rates are all about, how they figure in an en-bloc process, why the government tweaks the rates up and down and how they can affect you. From URA’s website, the definition of DC rate is as follows – “Development charge is a tax levied when planning permission is granted to carry out development projects that increase the value of the land (e.g. when a development is rezoned ......