5 Geylang Lorong 3 Households Still Haven’t Found Replacement Homes Even Though The Gov is Taking Back the Place Soon

What happens when a lease for a freehold land expires? Well, the land will be returned to the government and everyone moving within the area has to move out without remuneration.

Singapore’s about to experience its first one and five unfortunate households still haven’t found replacement homes despite it being less than a month away to D-Day.

Geylang Lorong 3

191 two-storey terrace houses located at Geylang Lorong 3 will be demolished to make way for public housing.

The houses were sold back in 1960 on a 60-year lease and were built for displaced Chinese families involved in a massive kampung fire.

The lease ends on 31 Dec 2020, which is less than a month away.

The demolition of the area will start in the third quarter of 2021 and be completed by early 2023.

The land has been reserved for public housing.

5 Households Still Haven’t Found Replacement Homes Even Though The Lease Is Ending

According to the Singapore Land Authority (SLA), five households who were living in the private properties located along Geylang Lorong 3 have yet to find replacement homes for themselves.

Four of them had taken up a rental unit from HDB while the remaining household is making alternative arrangements.

There are 37 families reportedly staying in the area and they’ll have to hand their homes over to the government by the end of the year with no compensation.

Out of the 37 families, 32 of them have found other living arrangements. Of which, six will be staying in interim HDB flats while waiting for their new homes to be ready.

SLA says they’ve been in touch with the families in the area since June 2020 to guide them through the lease expiry process.

It was reported, back on 3 Oct 2020, that 1 in 5 households living at Geylang Lorong 3 qualified for public HDB flats.

Another 149 units were mainly rented out to accommodate foreign workers and religious activities, and SLA is working on relocating them as well.

The employers of affected workers said that their workers will be relocated before the lease ends.

Meanwhile, 13 out of the 16 units used for religious purposes have either made plans to relocate or closed down completely.

The other 3 are still deciding on whether they want to share a location with an existing religious organisation or to go out and rent another place.

Where’s Next

The next in line to reach expiry is the private houses in Jalan Chempaka Kuning and Jalan Chempaka Puteh near Tanah Merah.

They are 70-year leasehold private houses and will expire in 2034.

Two other estates, Fuying estate in Bukit Timah and Rifle Range Road, are left with less than 40 years before their leases expire.

Featured Image: Google Maps