{"id":4255,"date":"2016-01-28T06:49:33","date_gmt":"2016-01-27T22:49:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.99.co\/blog\/singapore\/?p=4255"},"modified":"2022-07-01T03:59:52","modified_gmt":"2022-06-30T19:59:52","slug":"geylang-property-hot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.99.co\/singapore\/insider\/geylang-property-hot\/","title":{"rendered":"Geylang property is hot in more ways than sex"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Geylang produces conflicting reactions in Singaporeans. On the one hand, it\u2019s a den of vice: a haven for gambling, sex-for-sale, and people with budget tattoos who spend every weekend failing to get into Attica. On the other, it\u2019s a food paradise and a splash of local colour. Let\u2019s face it, the rest of the country looks as sterile as a clinic compared to Geylang. But did you know Geylang has become a property hot spot of late?<\/p>\n

A quick rundown of Geylang<\/b><\/h3>\n

Some Singaporeans will tell you a quick rundown is what Geylang needs. As in, with a car. From the 1980s right up till the present, Geylang has been the centre of Singapore\u2019s legalised prostitution scene.<\/p>\n

But while the brothels are licensed, Geylang is home to many activities that are not. Unlicensed cigarettes, gambling, illegal streetwalkers and sex pills, Geylang has it all.<\/p>\n

Nonetheless, Geylang is a vibrant, colourful district. It\u2019s one of the few places where old school, first and second generation hawkers ply their trade. It\u2019s where Singlish and dialects blend into a constant hum, and clan associations practice traditional wu shu <\/i>and lion dances.<\/p>\n

The property scene in parts of Geylang has a questionable reputation<\/b><\/h3>\n

Let\u2019s start with the fact that few people want to be recognised as a Geylang landlord \u2013 practically every interview request I made had been turned down. Most of them, you see, have a reputation for being slum lords<\/a>.<\/p>\n

As recently as April 2015, two foreign workers were killed, and three injured, in an overcrowded Geylang unit<\/a>. Previously in December 2014, a shophouse fire<\/a> had killed tenants. You get the point: many Singaporeans equate Geylang landlords with something that makes them want to take a bath.<\/p>\n

In addition, it is a rare bank willing to grant a loan for Geylang properties. If they foreclose, they may not find eager buyers. When you live across the street from an illegal cigarette peddler, and there are enough prostitutes next door to form their own football team, you know you made a bad choice of family home.<\/p>\n

Sounds terrible right?<\/p>\n

Until you consider that\u2026<\/p>\n