It's hard to believe that Anthony Lau’s HDB block in Yishun Street 43 is only five years old, given the cracked ceilings and mouldy exterior walls. Sp
It’s hard to believe that Anthony Lau’s HDB block in Yishun Street 43 is only five years old, given the cracked ceilings and mouldy exterior walls. Speaking to AsiaOne on Wednesday (March 22), the 38-year-old sales manager expressed disappointment with the deteriorating state of the estate, which has left both him and his neighbors disheartened.
“Coming home every day to see everything falling apart… and yet nothing is being done about it,” Lau lamented. “And our estate even won an award after it was built.”
Built in 2018, Lau’s four-room HDB flat is part of the Meadow Spring @ Yishun Build-to-Order (BTO) project, which recently reached its minimum occupation period (MOP) of five years. Despite receiving the HDB Construction Award in 2020 for its “efficient construction methods and good management efforts,” the estate now resembles an “abandoned estate,” according to Lau.
In a TikTok video posted on March 20, Lau highlighted the damage, including leaks he suspects have reached his own unit. Several netizens commented on the video, noting similar issues in other new estates like Anchorvale Crescent in Sengkang and Matilda Court in Punggol.
Although Nee Soon Town Council has put up signs indicating repair works are in progress, Lau claims no action has been taken for over a year. “I grew up in Yishun and love my estate, but we feel forgotten by the town council,” Lau said. “We’re not asking for much, just some concern for us.”
This issue isn’t unique to Yishun. In January, a Sengkang resident shared that her block, also only five years old, was “always mouldy,” with walls and floors stained by algae and mould. She added that the estate looked “worse than a 30-year-old building,” and was told by her town council that it would be another two years before the blocks would be repainted.
Responding to concerns about mould growth in HDB flats, National Development Minister Desmond Lee announced in February that HDB would be commissioning an independent study to understand why certain blocks are more prone to mould and how to prevent future occurrences. The study is expected to take three to four months.
Despite these issues, HDB has assessed that the mould growth observed does not affect the structural integrity of the buildings.
Residents like Lau, however, remain frustrated as they await meaningful repairs.
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