SINGAPORE: In a fourth-storey flat with curved balconies and a whitewashed spiral staircase, 78-year-old homeowner Paul Soh is holding on to more than just property.
The walk-up at 38 Kim Pong Road – part of the iconic post-war public housing estate in Tiong Bahru – has been his home since 1963.
It holds the story of his family: the years his father spent bedridden from a stroke before his death, the siblings who eventually found marital bliss and moved out, and the grandchildren who now sleep in the same room. Many of the flat’s fixtures, from its doorknobs to its windows, remain original.
As the 99-year lease ticks down, and property agents keep calling with assurances that the flat could fetch up to S$1 million (US$778,000), Mr Soh remains firm: he is staying put.
“I stayed in this house so long because we are so used to it, and it holds memories of our family staying here,” he said.
Mr Soh moved into the two-bedroom top-floor unit when he was 15 years old. Built in 1949, the flats were then under the Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT) and available only for rent.
At the time, Mr Soh recalled paying S$69 a month for the corner unit. In 1974, the Housing and Development Board (HDB) took over the block from SIT and sold the flat to his mother for about S$20,000 on a 99-year lease. The unit was later passed down to him.
With public home resale prices soaring and with more homeowners today viewing HDB flats as appreciating assets, long-term and multi-generational home ownership – like Mr Soh’s – has become increasingly uncommon.
“I have friends here, they shifted to other places. They keep telling me, why don't you shift? You can make money,” he said. “I said, wait, why should I do that … This house holds a lot of memories of my family. So why should we shift?”
Mr Soh noted that most of his original neighbours have moved out. In their place are younger families and expatriates renting units, drawn by Tiong Bahru’s charm and central location.
Second-generation flat owner Paul Soh (right) and his son, Clarence Soh (left), outside their flat at the Seng Poh estate in Tiong Bahru. (Photo: CNA/Lan Yu)
Last month, Tiong Bahru’s Seng Poh estate came under the spotlight after two blocks failed to qualify for the HDB’s Home Improvement Programme, due to insufficient votes in favour of upgrading.
Part of the shortfall was attributed to difficulties contacting the original owners of flats that were rented out, as they had already moved out a long time ago.
But there were also original owners who have never moved out and, to this day, remain fiercely committed to the idea of staying in the historic neighbourhood for the long haul.
One such resident is 74-year-old Michael Tan, who has lived in the same ground-floor unit at Block 46 Seng Poh Road since he was born in 1951.
His grandparents moved into the flat in 1949. His parents later bought it from HDB in 1973 for S$22,000. The unit was eventually passed down to Mr Tan and his brother, who still live there.
The retiree recalled growing up in the 1950s and 1960s, when the estate was filled with children playing in the evenings, a stark contrast to the quieter neighbourhood today.
“You don’t see people flying kites around here nowadays, but in those days, flying kites was a hobby especially with windy weather, you can see people going up the roof of the flats playing kites,” he said.
As for why he never wanted to move, Mr Tan’s answer was simple.
“It’s nostalgia. You grew up here, and you’re so used to this place,” he said. “Moreover, I’m living on the ground floor, so if you asked me to move to some of these high-rise flats, I’m not comfortable.”
Mr Michael Tan outside his unit on 46 Seng Poh Road, where he has stayed since 1951 when he was born. (Photo: CNA/Justin Ong)
Back at Kim Pong Road, Mr Soh’s son Clarence said he has lived in the flat since he was born in 1980, and has witnessed the estate’s transformation firsthand.
Now 45, he enjoys showing his two sons, aged six and nine, the places that once defined his childhood.
He pointed out a former HDB estate named after Queen Elizabeth II that was demolished in the late 1990s, and a hawker centre replaced in the early 2000s by the two-storey Tiong Bahru Market and Food Centre.
“I have the chance to bring my kids around, letting them know in my younger days, this was a temple I used to go to, this was where there was an uncle who pushed his roadside satay stall, and this is where I actually purchased (food), and that our playground was not like that in the past,” he said.
“They themselves are very curious, asking why do you still want to stay here when so much is actually gone, but the memories are something that is priceless to me.”
Second-generation flat owner Paul Soh in his Seng Poh estate flat in Tiong Bahru, where he has lived since 1963. The estate is one of the oldest HDB neighbourhoods in Singapore. (Photo: CNA/Lan Yu)
Mr Soh’s flat, being a corner unit with more windows than other former SIT flats there, have attracted many curious buyers even though he had not put up a resale listing. Similar units in the estate were transacting at about S$800,000 more than a year ago, said Mr Clarence Soh.
“We got an offer (that was) just nice at S$1 million,” he said. The family turned down what would have been a S$937,000 capital appreciation – or 14.8 times the original price that his grandparents paid for the flat in 1974, after adjusting for inflation.
“I said, maybe you can look for other units, because we know that money can’t buy this place,” he added.
Mr Tan also had a similar experience over the years. Agents had approached him too, offering as much as S$650,000.
“Housing agents have come to our place, asking whether we want to sell, we told them no,” he said.
“You’re so used to all the store owners (in the neighbourhood), I’ve known them for so long, some are the children or grandchildren of the previous owners, so you know them very well,” he said. “Whatever price they offer, it’s not that attractive.”
A review of property listing websites shows that HDB flats of comparable size in other central locations built in the 1960s and 1970s are priced between S$300,000 and S$500,000. In contrast, Seng Poh flats have recently transacted in the S$700,000 to low S$800,000 range.
In 2020, it was reported that an adjoined post-war flat in Tiong Bahru with just over 51 years of lease left fetched over S$1 million.
Mr Nicholas Mak, chief research officer at property portal Mogul.sg, said the premium stems from the estate’s proximity to town, Tiong Bahru MRT station and amenities like Tiong Bahru Plaza.
Mr Mak said that the median resale price of a three-room post-war unit in Tiong Bahru was S$630,000 in 2015. In 2025, this had grown to S$780,000, a 23.8 per cent increase.
He said that gentrification has further enhanced the appeal of such units, with cafes and restaurants opening in the ground-floor units of some pre-war blocks.
“These post-war flats have also become increasingly scarce,” he said.
“Even if you say I don’t care, just want to live in Tiong Bahru, the newer flats in Tiong Bahru are quite pricey, because there’s limited supply… because the area is so built up, it’s difficult for HDB to have a new BTO project there.”
Second-generation flat owner Paul Soh and his son, Clarence Soh, at the playground in Tiong Bahru’s Seng Poh estate, one of Singapore’s oldest HDB neighbourhoods. (Photo: CNA/Lan Yu)
As is the case for all 99-year leasehold properties in Singapore, the clock is ticking. Mr Soh’s flat has 48 years left on its lease, while Mr Tan’s has 47.
The government has explained that the 99-year-lease is needed to enable the recycling of land so flats can be built for future generations.
On what happens when the lease expires, then National Development Minister Lawrence Wong said in 2017 that for the vast majority of HDB flats, they will be returned to HDB who will in turn have to surrender the land to the government.
As the leases decay, the flat prices will come down correspondingly, he said.
Mr Wong, who is now the Prime Minister, was responding in a blog post to an article by Chinese newspaper Lianhe Zaobao on March 15, 2017 on the high transaction prices in ageing estates, such as the Tiong Bahru former SIT flats.
Despite this, there are other ways for homeowners to unlock the value of ageing flats, such as through HDB's lease buyback scheme. The government has also announced the Voluntary Early Redevelopment Scheme (VERS), which allow older HDB flats to be redeveloped before their leases expire, but only if owners agree.
VERS has yet to be rolled out.
Years have passed since the high resale prices of Tiong Bahru flats led to a national discussion over what to do with expiring 99-year leases, but for Mr Soh and Mr Tan, there are still no plans to sell the remaining lease to someone outside of the family.
Mr Soh hopes to pass the flat to his son – and eventually to his grandchildren, even though it is unclear what the future holds for the flat in terms of ageing infrastructure and monetary value as it approaches lease expiry.
“I hope my grandchildren will carry on. But, it’s up to them. When they grow big, their thinking may change,” he said.
Mr Tan, who has no children, is open to passing the unit to his nieces or nephews.
But Mr Clarence Soh feels
“Having the lease run down to nothing is a bit of a concern for me, but this kind of concern is something not that we can control,” he said.
He hopes HDB will eventually offer solutions for flats with deep heritage value, such as allowing lease top-ups.
Ms Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist at real estate firm Realion Group, said the future of the Seng Poh estate will depend on how the government implements VERS.
“If many old flats are developed under VERS, and it becomes a common trend for people to opt for VERS and avoid living in old flats, then we could see a decline in demand for these post-war flats,” she said.
“If the opposite happens, then more people could continue to value and keep these flats for their historical appeal and identity.”
Beyond the 99-year lease, the fate of these flats remains uncertain.
Mr Mak said conservation status – as granted to some pre-war blocks at Tiong Bahru – could allow the government to take back the flats without tearing them down, and issue new leases.
As leases run down, Professor Sing Tien Foo, Provost's Chair Professor in the Department of Real Estate at NUS Business School, said the value of the flat shifts from investment to utility.
“The intrinsic value (of the unit) is how much people are willing to pay for consumption and not investment,” he said.
For example, a flat with 10 years left on its lease – equivalent to 120 months – and a rental value of S$4,000 a month would have a consumption value of S$480,000.
“(It is) more like a long-term lease,” he said.
For the elder Mr Soh, however, price and policy feel distant. His main concern is whether he will still be able to climb four storeys as he grows older.
“Now I can just walk up four stories without any break. So in the future, maybe I’ll go up one storey, rest for a while, then come up again, slowly.”
“I have to find a way ... If there's a will, there's a way,” he said.
Continue reading...
The walk-up at 38 Kim Pong Road – part of the iconic post-war public housing estate in Tiong Bahru – has been his home since 1963.
It holds the story of his family: the years his father spent bedridden from a stroke before his death, the siblings who eventually found marital bliss and moved out, and the grandchildren who now sleep in the same room. Many of the flat’s fixtures, from its doorknobs to its windows, remain original.
As the 99-year lease ticks down, and property agents keep calling with assurances that the flat could fetch up to S$1 million (US$778,000), Mr Soh remains firm: he is staying put.
“I stayed in this house so long because we are so used to it, and it holds memories of our family staying here,” he said.
Mr Soh moved into the two-bedroom top-floor unit when he was 15 years old. Built in 1949, the flats were then under the Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT) and available only for rent.
At the time, Mr Soh recalled paying S$69 a month for the corner unit. In 1974, the Housing and Development Board (HDB) took over the block from SIT and sold the flat to his mother for about S$20,000 on a 99-year lease. The unit was later passed down to him.
With public home resale prices soaring and with more homeowners today viewing HDB flats as appreciating assets, long-term and multi-generational home ownership – like Mr Soh’s – has become increasingly uncommon.
“I have friends here, they shifted to other places. They keep telling me, why don't you shift? You can make money,” he said. “I said, wait, why should I do that … This house holds a lot of memories of my family. So why should we shift?”
Mr Soh noted that most of his original neighbours have moved out. In their place are younger families and expatriates renting units, drawn by Tiong Bahru’s charm and central location.
Second-generation flat owner Paul Soh (right) and his son, Clarence Soh (left), outside their flat at the Seng Poh estate in Tiong Bahru. (Photo: CNA/Lan Yu)
LOYALTY TO A CHANGING ESTATE
Last month, Tiong Bahru’s Seng Poh estate came under the spotlight after two blocks failed to qualify for the HDB’s Home Improvement Programme, due to insufficient votes in favour of upgrading.
Part of the shortfall was attributed to difficulties contacting the original owners of flats that were rented out, as they had already moved out a long time ago.
But there were also original owners who have never moved out and, to this day, remain fiercely committed to the idea of staying in the historic neighbourhood for the long haul.
One such resident is 74-year-old Michael Tan, who has lived in the same ground-floor unit at Block 46 Seng Poh Road since he was born in 1951.
His grandparents moved into the flat in 1949. His parents later bought it from HDB in 1973 for S$22,000. The unit was eventually passed down to Mr Tan and his brother, who still live there.
The retiree recalled growing up in the 1950s and 1960s, when the estate was filled with children playing in the evenings, a stark contrast to the quieter neighbourhood today.
“You don’t see people flying kites around here nowadays, but in those days, flying kites was a hobby especially with windy weather, you can see people going up the roof of the flats playing kites,” he said.
As for why he never wanted to move, Mr Tan’s answer was simple.
“It’s nostalgia. You grew up here, and you’re so used to this place,” he said. “Moreover, I’m living on the ground floor, so if you asked me to move to some of these high-rise flats, I’m not comfortable.”
Mr Michael Tan outside his unit on 46 Seng Poh Road, where he has stayed since 1951 when he was born. (Photo: CNA/Justin Ong)
Back at Kim Pong Road, Mr Soh’s son Clarence said he has lived in the flat since he was born in 1980, and has witnessed the estate’s transformation firsthand.
Now 45, he enjoys showing his two sons, aged six and nine, the places that once defined his childhood.
He pointed out a former HDB estate named after Queen Elizabeth II that was demolished in the late 1990s, and a hawker centre replaced in the early 2000s by the two-storey Tiong Bahru Market and Food Centre.
“I have the chance to bring my kids around, letting them know in my younger days, this was a temple I used to go to, this was where there was an uncle who pushed his roadside satay stall, and this is where I actually purchased (food), and that our playground was not like that in the past,” he said.
“They themselves are very curious, asking why do you still want to stay here when so much is actually gone, but the memories are something that is priceless to me.”
Second-generation flat owner Paul Soh in his Seng Poh estate flat in Tiong Bahru, where he has lived since 1963. The estate is one of the oldest HDB neighbourhoods in Singapore. (Photo: CNA/Lan Yu)
WHY THESE OLD FLATS STILL COMMAND A PREMIUM
Mr Soh’s flat, being a corner unit with more windows than other former SIT flats there, have attracted many curious buyers even though he had not put up a resale listing. Similar units in the estate were transacting at about S$800,000 more than a year ago, said Mr Clarence Soh.
“We got an offer (that was) just nice at S$1 million,” he said. The family turned down what would have been a S$937,000 capital appreciation – or 14.8 times the original price that his grandparents paid for the flat in 1974, after adjusting for inflation.
“I said, maybe you can look for other units, because we know that money can’t buy this place,” he added.
Mr Tan also had a similar experience over the years. Agents had approached him too, offering as much as S$650,000.
“Housing agents have come to our place, asking whether we want to sell, we told them no,” he said.
“You’re so used to all the store owners (in the neighbourhood), I’ve known them for so long, some are the children or grandchildren of the previous owners, so you know them very well,” he said. “Whatever price they offer, it’s not that attractive.”
A review of property listing websites shows that HDB flats of comparable size in other central locations built in the 1960s and 1970s are priced between S$300,000 and S$500,000. In contrast, Seng Poh flats have recently transacted in the S$700,000 to low S$800,000 range.
In 2020, it was reported that an adjoined post-war flat in Tiong Bahru with just over 51 years of lease left fetched over S$1 million.
Mr Nicholas Mak, chief research officer at property portal Mogul.sg, said the premium stems from the estate’s proximity to town, Tiong Bahru MRT station and amenities like Tiong Bahru Plaza.
Mr Mak said that the median resale price of a three-room post-war unit in Tiong Bahru was S$630,000 in 2015. In 2025, this had grown to S$780,000, a 23.8 per cent increase.
He said that gentrification has further enhanced the appeal of such units, with cafes and restaurants opening in the ground-floor units of some pre-war blocks.
“These post-war flats have also become increasingly scarce,” he said.
“Even if you say I don’t care, just want to live in Tiong Bahru, the newer flats in Tiong Bahru are quite pricey, because there’s limited supply… because the area is so built up, it’s difficult for HDB to have a new BTO project there.”
Second-generation flat owner Paul Soh and his son, Clarence Soh, at the playground in Tiong Bahru’s Seng Poh estate, one of Singapore’s oldest HDB neighbourhoods. (Photo: CNA/Lan Yu)
AS THE LEASE RUNS DOWN
As is the case for all 99-year leasehold properties in Singapore, the clock is ticking. Mr Soh’s flat has 48 years left on its lease, while Mr Tan’s has 47.
The government has explained that the 99-year-lease is needed to enable the recycling of land so flats can be built for future generations.
On what happens when the lease expires, then National Development Minister Lawrence Wong said in 2017 that for the vast majority of HDB flats, they will be returned to HDB who will in turn have to surrender the land to the government.
As the leases decay, the flat prices will come down correspondingly, he said.
Mr Wong, who is now the Prime Minister, was responding in a blog post to an article by Chinese newspaper Lianhe Zaobao on March 15, 2017 on the high transaction prices in ageing estates, such as the Tiong Bahru former SIT flats.
Despite this, there are other ways for homeowners to unlock the value of ageing flats, such as through HDB's lease buyback scheme. The government has also announced the Voluntary Early Redevelopment Scheme (VERS), which allow older HDB flats to be redeveloped before their leases expire, but only if owners agree.
VERS has yet to be rolled out.
Years have passed since the high resale prices of Tiong Bahru flats led to a national discussion over what to do with expiring 99-year leases, but for Mr Soh and Mr Tan, there are still no plans to sell the remaining lease to someone outside of the family.
Mr Soh hopes to pass the flat to his son – and eventually to his grandchildren, even though it is unclear what the future holds for the flat in terms of ageing infrastructure and monetary value as it approaches lease expiry.
“I hope my grandchildren will carry on. But, it’s up to them. When they grow big, their thinking may change,” he said.
Mr Tan, who has no children, is open to passing the unit to his nieces or nephews.
But Mr Clarence Soh feels
“Having the lease run down to nothing is a bit of a concern for me, but this kind of concern is something not that we can control,” he said.
He hopes HDB will eventually offer solutions for flats with deep heritage value, such as allowing lease top-ups.
Ms Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist at real estate firm Realion Group, said the future of the Seng Poh estate will depend on how the government implements VERS.
“If many old flats are developed under VERS, and it becomes a common trend for people to opt for VERS and avoid living in old flats, then we could see a decline in demand for these post-war flats,” she said.
“If the opposite happens, then more people could continue to value and keep these flats for their historical appeal and identity.”
Related:
Beyond the 99-year lease, the fate of these flats remains uncertain.
Mr Mak said conservation status – as granted to some pre-war blocks at Tiong Bahru – could allow the government to take back the flats without tearing them down, and issue new leases.
As leases run down, Professor Sing Tien Foo, Provost's Chair Professor in the Department of Real Estate at NUS Business School, said the value of the flat shifts from investment to utility.
“The intrinsic value (of the unit) is how much people are willing to pay for consumption and not investment,” he said.
For example, a flat with 10 years left on its lease – equivalent to 120 months – and a rental value of S$4,000 a month would have a consumption value of S$480,000.
“(It is) more like a long-term lease,” he said.
For the elder Mr Soh, however, price and policy feel distant. His main concern is whether he will still be able to climb four storeys as he grows older.
“Now I can just walk up four stories without any break. So in the future, maybe I’ll go up one storey, rest for a while, then come up again, slowly.”
“I have to find a way ... If there's a will, there's a way,” he said.
Continue reading...