Keeping old Singapore condos liveable will take financial discipline, not just new rules and subsidies
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SINGAPORE — At Lakeview Estate in Upper Thomson Road, ageing lifts have become more than just an inconvenience.The 49-year-old development has three blocks, with each lift serving alternate floors. When one breaks down, residents on those floors - includinKeeping old Singapore condos liveable will take financial discipline, not just new rules and subsidies
SINGAPORE — At Lakeview Estate in Upper Thomson Road, ageing lifts have become more than just an inconvenience.The 49-year-old development has three blocks, with each lift serving alternate floors. When one breaks down, residents on those floors - including the elderly and wheelchair users - effectively lose lift access.Replacing all 12 lifts would cost $1.8 million, but as at August 2025, the sinking fund held barely $1 million, The Straits Times reported then.Lakeview Estate's dilemma is not unique.More than 1,000 of Singapore's 3,750 private residential developments are at least 30 years old. Many were built in the 1980s and 1990s and are now reaching the stage where major systems - from lifts to plumbing and electrical systems - begin to fail.But many may not have collected adequate sinking funds for such urgent essential repairs, especially since maintenance costs have risen over the years. Read more
