Renting a Heritage Apartment in Singapore: A Practical Guide

Most rental listings in Singapore point to towers built in the last two decades. Heritage apartments are the exception: homes inside conserved shophouses, pre-war walk-ups and other protected buildings, where the high ceilings, timber floors and street-facing windows cannot be replicated in new builds. Here is where to find them and what to check before you rent one.

What counts as a heritage apartment?

The term covers several building types. The most common are the upper floors of conserved shophouses — the terraced, five-foot-way buildings of Singapore’s historic districts. Others include pre-war walk-up apartments, the Streamline Moderne flats of Tiong Bahru, and the state-owned black-and-white houses managed by the Singapore Land Authority. Many sit within conservation areas protected by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), which restricts how the buildings can be altered — a constraint that preserves exactly the character renters come for.

Where to look

Conserved homes cluster in the districts where conservation began: Emerald Hill beside Orchard Road, Joo Chiat and Katong in the east, Jalan Besar and the painted terraces of Petain Road, Tanjong Pagar and Duxton around the CBD, Tiong Bahru’s walk-ups, and pockets of Balestier and Geylang. Each district trades differently on quiet, food and commute — the shophouse belt near the CBD suits office workers, while the east rewards those who want cafes and the coast.

Supply is thin compared with condominiums — conserved buildings are a small, fixed stock, and most shophouse uppers are held by private landlords who list irregularly. That scarcity means good units move quickly and rarely appear on the big portals, so it pays to know the districts and the operators who specialise in them rather than waiting for listings to surface.

What to check before you rent

• Stairs, not lifts: most shophouse and walk-up homes are reached by stairs — a factor for heavy luggage or accessibility needs.
• Cooling and ventilation: ask which rooms are air-conditioned and how the home handles Singapore’s humidity.
• Condition of the restoration: wiring, plumbing and waterproofing vary enormously between renovated and untouched units.
• Street noise: ground floors of shophouse districts often host restaurants and bars — visit at night before committing.
• Minimum stay: heritage homes are private residential property, so URA rules require stays of at least 3 consecutive months.
• Occupancy: a private home may house at most 6 unrelated occupants (up to 8 for registered properties of at least 90 sqm, a concession extended to 31 Dec 2028).

Renting one without the renovation risk

The hard part of heritage renting is finding a building that has been restored well. Figment’s heritage apartments are conserved shophouses restored by architects and furnished by local designers, offered move-in ready on flexible leases from 3 months. You can rent a private studio, a room in a heritage shophouse coliving home, or an entire shophouse. Browse the full collection of houses or start with how coliving in Singapore works.

Can you rent a heritage apartment short term?

Not below 3 consecutive months — heritage apartments are private residential property under URA rules. Stays under 3 months are legal only in licensed hotels or serviced apartments — for heritage buildings, that means shophouses approved for serviced-apartment use, such as Figment’s 1-month rentals.

Are heritage apartments furnished?

Privately listed units vary from bare to dated. Design-led operators furnish theirs fully — see Figment’s design-led coliving homes for what a restored shophouse interior can look like.