Residents in Bidadari HDB Estate So Affected With Property Agents, They Put Up “Do Not Disturb” Sign at Door

Property agents have been pestering the residents of Alkaff Vista, a HDB block in the Bidadari estate, knocking on doors and asking if they’d like to sell their flats. 

In response, about 200 residents in the area got creative and started to put up “Do Not Disturb” signs, with some even DIY-ing a mailbox for real estate agents to place flyers in. 

And surprisingly, this homebrewed campaign has worked. 

One resident, Ms Peng, told Shin Min Daily News that the property agents who used to knock on their door on weekday evenings have just started leaving flyers after she put up the “Do Not Disturb” signs. 

Here’s what happened.

Homes Sold for over $1 Million

Why the sudden property agent frenzy? 

Once a cemetery, Bidadari has now transformed into a highly desirable residential hub with four HDB blocks, some of which have recently entered the resale market. The area sports playgrounds, good food, a greenway and is walking distance from Potong Pasir and Woodleigh MRT stations. 

With the five-year minimum occupancy period (MOP) ending for many Alkaff Vista homeowners in the second half of this year, residents have the option to finally sell their units and make a nice profit.  

Unfortunately, the MOP has also brought on a horde of very persistent property agents, each eager to make a hefty commission on the flats in question. 

According to Shin Min Daily News, residents have complained that the property agents started visiting the estate as early as last year and that the frequency of their visits has been increasing with the recent high value-sales of neighbouring units.  

In the past two months, five units within the Akaff Vista block have been resold for nearly 60% profit. A five-room unit was sold for $1.2 million, while four four-room units were sold for prices ranging from $937,500 to $1.17 million. 

When the Alkaff Vista estate first launched, a four-room unit cost $433,000 to $ 550,000, and a five-room unit cost $544,000 to $625,000. This means that homeowners who sold could have made a profit of about $600,000, assuming they’d bought the units at the lowest price. 

According to the latest property listings on 99.co, these prices are still going strong, with three-room and four-room units going from $1.2 to $1.4 million. 

Not Everyone Wants a Quick Profit

Despite the potential 6-figure profit, not everyone wants to flip their flats, with many families happy to live in this convenient, abundant estate. 

Mr Li, a 20-year-old who lives with his parents in a four-room flat in Alkaff Vista, told reporters from Shin Min Daily News that the family had “bought it to live in” and had “no plans to sell it at the moment.” 

Another resident, Wani, a 35-year-old kindergarten teacher, put up a sign saying they were not interested in selling their flat after property agents knocked on their door almost every day.