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“We lived in a condo out near
Newton, but to be honest
it was a bit ill-advised as it
was still a bus ride away from the MRT
station, so not wholly convenient,” says
Katie. “Our agent warned us that it got
lots of sun, and she wasn’t wrong – our
bedroom was like an oven!”
Both Michael and Katie work full-time,
and so found they didn’t meet many
people from their condo, particularly
as many of the flats had their own
private entrance. “I had the car as I was
driving over to Malaysia for work quite
frequently,” says Michael. “It was okay
for me, but I think Katie found it quite
isolating.”
After 18 months, Mike’s company
began discussions to relocate the
couple back to the UK, but with Katie
enjoying her job and both of them loving
the Singapore life, they took the decision
to ditch the expat package and for Mike
to find another job in Singapore.
REDHILL RESIDENTS
The HDB hunt
The couple realised they would have to
leave their first condo and find something
to suit their new circumstances. “Our key
requirement was that it had to be close
to an MRT station,” explains Katie. They
were hoping to have a baby, and so were
looking for three bedrooms and air-
conditioning throughout the apartment.
This ruled out about 75 percent of HDB
apartments, the majority of which have
units only in the bedrooms.
“Wedidn’t knowanyone elsewho lived
in an HDB. We had a look at Property
Guru, but saw some real horrors,” says
Katie. “When dealing with agents I found
it easier to communicate via SMS. I was
asking three key questions: does it have
air-con in the living space (which I later
found out actually refers to the hall),
HDB history
The Housing & Development Board (HDB), responsible for public housing in
Singapore, was formed in 1960 to address the issue of housing shortages
and resettle residents into subsidised state-built housing. Around 82 percent
of Singaporeans now live in public housing. Social cohesion and patriotism
were policies that HDB housing aimed to promote, and from 1968 citizens
have been allowed to use their pension fund (CPF) to buy these homes; an
incentive to work hard so as to own a stake in their own country.
Owners are eligible to rent out their flats, with written approval from the
Board. Issues arising between the owners and subtenants are considered
a private matter; that includes rental amounts, payment or forfeiture of
deposits and the right to terminate a tenancy.
British expats Katie and Michael
Peace have been in
Singapore since 2012;
their one-year-old son
James was born here
in February 2014. The
couple relocated from
the UK withMichael’s job,
and started Singapore life
on an expat package.