SITUATED in a cosy enclave at Leonie Hill road, barely minutes away from Orchard Cineleisure, the Grangeford condo looked private and classy. As I approached it, security guards peered attentively into the car.
Once I got inside, however, it was a different story.
Two police cars, four or five police officers and a whole horde of angry residents (what looked like a 100 people) were noisily milling around the lobby entrance last Sunday night at about 9.30pm.
Concerned residents called the police. PHOTO: Samuel He
ST photographer Samuel He was already there, snapping pictures of the ongoing commotion; affected tenants had already let him into their apartments to shoot what was at the heart of the commotion: illegally partitioned but well furnished rooms.
To give a pared down version of the fiasco, about 200 tenants have been asked to vacate their apartments due to their landlord (Ideal Accommodation) flouting URA rules.
Entire apartments had been illegally partitioned into smaller rooms so they could be rented out to more people - 357 rooms have been turned into 600 rooms.
URA informed Ideal a month ago, who for some reason only known to themselves, waited until last Wednesday to inform some residents.
Many tenants only heard of it on Sunday, which really only leaves them three days to find another suitable apartment and move all their things out.
Most, from what I found, are working professionals hailing from the US, UK, Hong Kong, Korea, Vietnam, India, Philippines.
At the meeting held in the lobby, apparently a few of them had gotten incensed enough to call the police as they feared for their possessions, their deposits (with the agent) and rent paid upfront.
They want to get their money back, but Ideal Accommodation would not answer their calls. Many looked lost, and had not even started to pack their things, in the hope of a last minute reprieve.
A few said, "What should I do? I've to work and find an apartment and move out at the same time? At least give me a few weeks!"
But some were resigned to the fact, already piling their things into trucks and cars earlier in the afternoon when I visited the first time.
Some residents just decided to pack up and leave. PHOTO: Lim Wui Liang
One Filipino named Mikey said that he was forced to settle for an apartment after looking for just one day. He was sharing a room with his sister.
The allure of the condo and its location for these expatriate professionals and students — if they were less than fussy — was apparent to me.
The rent was very cheap for a choice location in town — between $900 to $1,400 for a big room which some share.
The condition of the apartments and rooms looked far better than the many illegal dorms out there — there were proper beds, washing machines, even a LCD TV and Internet connection!
The partitions looked expertly done, like real walls.
"They're certainly not shower screens!" one tenant cheekily said, and then let me into his room, which looked cosy and exactly what his bedroom at home would have looked like.
I learnt later that Ideal paid $3m for all the fittings, in the hope of luring the more well-off tenants.
But there were signs of neglect by the landlord.
One tenant, who introduced himself as Mr Ashish and said he is working here as an investment banker, beckoned us to take a look at his apartment, where he is the only tenant renting a room for now.
Before I even entered it, I was shocked — the entire door's hinges were off, he couldn't even lock the door to protect himself against strangers and burglars.
He told us ever since it had happened suddenly a week ago, he had been locking his possessions in his bedroom every day.
Still, it could not deter shoe thieves.
"I can't even find out who did it. I've called Ideal many times but they just didn't come to repair the door," he said.
Many times, the cleaners have entered his apartment to clean the living rooms, but left his lights switched on the whole day. "Guess who's paying the electricity bills?" he wryly asked.
In the wake of this incident, Ideal Accommodation has not tried to meet up with the affected tenants to give a proper explanation. They have not answered repeated calls either.
All they released were copies of their appeals to the Ministry of National Development, which also explained the situation, and a badly written eviction notice.
Yes, it sounds like a terrific deal — nice location, reasonable fittings and not too dodgy neighbours for a low price.
But, as the iffy landlord has shown, when something is too good to be true, it usually is.
Residents at a loss as to what to do. PHOTO: Samuel He
Read the full story in Tuesday's edition of The Straits Times.