TYPES OF PROPERTIES:

When people think “landed properties”, they would usually just think of a standalone house on a piece of land. They’re not far from wrong, but there are actually different types of landed properties, 5 different types to be exact.  Although typically freehold, some of them have a 99 or 999-year leasehold pegged onto them. Lets start off a familiar one.

Terraces

Go along the roads of Chestnut Gardens in Bukit Timah and you will see a whole stream of these houses. These landed properties are not exactly standalone as they come in a stretch of linked identical houses and they share walls that separate them nicely. They are great for people who enjoy their privacy yet still want to have neighbours around. For terrace houses, we can further break it down into inter-terrace and corner terrace.

Strata

Practically the sibling of terrace houses; the strata holds the combination of terraces with the perks of owning a condominium. Strata houses are also identical houses in one estate; but they have the community-living factor included. Individual homes have their own space, but they share common facilities like swimming pools, multipurpose rooms and gyms – much like your typical condominium.

Semi-Detached

More commonly defined as “semi-d” to Singaporeans or “duplexes” in some other parts of the world; its name itself tells you that it’s the close relative of the detached houses. As much as they have a bit of the standalone factor, semi-detached are pairs of identical houses built together with only a wall between both houses.

This sort of landed property is popular among those who want their own space. Unlike the terrace houses with a whole stream of neighbours who literally live over the walls, semi-detached houses have space for only one neighbour.

Detached / Bungalows

Now, this sort of landed property is really the standalone sort. It basically owns the entire piece of land on its own, usually without a twin next door or anywhere nearby. This sort of landed property gives the residents heaps of privacy and space; usually with their own surrounding gardens to boot.

Black and white bungalows

Black and white bungalows are white-painted bungalows, in a style once commonly used to house well-heeled immigrants comprising of European colonial and expatriate families in tropical climate colonies, typically the Southeast Asian colonies of the British Empire in the nineteenth century.  Most of these houses are spacious, aristocratic, and carefully oriented to get the most out of sunshine, shade, and the cooling breezes, and are set in gorgeously lush gardens. The term ‘black and white‘ refers to the dark timber beams and whitewashed walls usually found in these buildings.
Such Black and white bungalows typically have a pitched roof with wide overhanging eaves due to the rainy tropical condition, and the high roof also allows for good ventilation that draws in cooling air. The ground floor is generally open and spacious, often tiled for coolness. The Black and white bungalows may have large verandahs, and some Black and white bungalows have elevated foundations similar to that of a traditional Malay house.  

These black and white bungalows are rich in character and history, and are set in a lovely environment, having a charm of their own!  Black and white Bungalows are generally surrounded by lush, green jungle. Most black and whites we know have standard creepy crawlies, as well as snakes, rats, bats, monitor lizards and at times, cheeky, thieving macaques in the fruit bowl. If you love nature, This is it!  

If you’re hoping to live in one of these beautiful homes, you’ll find that you have a lot of competition, particularly from other expats, as these black and white bungalows are popular with diplomats and senior executives of MNCs. Many of these black and white bungalows are homes to the CEOs of multinational firms!

There were once thousands of black and white houses, but today, only about 300 remain. The number of black-and-whites is dwindling as they are being torn down to make way for new construction — for instance at Seletar to make way for the Seletar Aerospace Park, an industrial park for aerospace companies. Hence, the number has been reduced from 500 to 700 such bungalows two years ago, to just 300 today!

The closest comparison to the black and white bungalows in the private-housing market are Good Class Bungalows GCBs, which have a minimum land area of 15,070 sq ft. There are around 2,500- 2,800 GCBs today, and the number will only increase through the subdivision of larger Good Class Bungalows GCBs plots. As there are a limited number of Good Class Bungalows GCBs, therefore Good Class Bungalows GCBs will hold well in terms of rents too. 

State-owned black-and-white bungalows are even more niche, with just 300 of them,  and the rents for such black-and-white bungalows of the same size are generally lower than Good Class Bungalows GCBs in the same location. As you might have guessed, black and white houses are in high demand. The houses are in short supply and get snapped up quickly, so if you want to experience elegant, colonial-style living, the sooner you get the wheels in motion, the better! 

If you can afford to rent one of these truly stately homes, and you want to turn your time in Singapore into the best experience ever, there’s nothing to beat the classic black and white house. These beautiful houses are highly desirable and sadly in short supply.

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How to get your hands on one!

Interested t0 Rent a Black and white bungalow to experience the charm and feel of these century-old houses in land scarce Singapore?

Call Serene Chua @ HP ( +65) 98-199-199 to begin your house hunting.

As your realtor, we are committed to do the homework for you and list available suitable Black and white bungalows that are currently for Rent.

***** MANY Black and white bungalows on hand, One call view all.****

$$ Referrals Appreciated $$

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Good Class Bungalows

The most sought after property type by the extremely affluent individuals in Singapore, there are actually a limited number of these houses on the island. With plot sizes of at least 1,400 square meters, these houses are also to be located on prime lands.

Just about as standalone as private properties can get in Singapore; these Good Class Bungalows possess generous amounts of land that boast of one’s wealth beyond comprehension. Some of the residents have also made use of the land to have their private swimming pools and other amenities.

By definition, Good Class Bungalows need to have a plot size of at least 1,400 sq m (15,070 sq ft) and has to be located in one of the areas zoned for Good Class Bungalows Areas (GCBA).

Features of Good Class Bungalows (GCBs)

• Good Class Bungalows can only be found in the 39 Areas which are safeguarded as Good Class Bungalow Areas (GCBA).
• Good Class Bungalow has to be of a land size which is at least 1,400 sq metres or 15,070 sq ft.
• Good Class Bungalow must have a minimum plot width of 18.5m and a minimum plot depth of 30m.
• Good Class Bungalow maximum building height is of 2-storeys only.  GCB can have an attic and basements.
• The maximum site coverage (footprint) of Good Class Bungalow must not exceed 40% of the land.

P.S : To find out which Good Class Bungalow Areas (GCBA) is your Good Class Bungalow in, visit : https://www.ura.gov.sg/maps/index.html?service=lha.

Shop Houses

A heritage that speaks clearly of Southeast Asia; shop houses were once upon a time a hybrid of a shop at the ground level with homes on the second levels. Nowadays most of them have been refurbished and made thoroughly into homes or even offices. Taking with them the richness of our historical culture and is popular among those who have a keen artistic eye.

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Interested t0 buy a landed property in land scarce Singapore?

Call Serene Chua @ HP ( +65) 98-199-199 to begin your house hunting.

As your realtor, we are committed to do the homework for you and list available suitable landed properties that are currently for sales.

***** MANY GOOD CLASS BUNGALOWS / Landed Properties on hand, One call view all.****