Watch: A one-of-a-kind executive apartment in Serangoon

Home Type: HDB executive apartment

Floor Area: 1,500sqft

Text by Janice Seow

The executive apartment is a rare HDB type. Spanning between 1,500 and 1,615 square feet, it is larger than a five-room flat (old resale units go up to 1,474 square feet).

Constructed in the 1980s, executive apartments also come with balconies and an additional study area, and all these features make them highly desirable, especially for larger families.

In this executive apartment located in Serangoon, designer Levonne Chan of Ethereall has fully maximised the potential of the 1,500-square-foot unit to give a family of four some truly dreamy and unexpected features you wouldn’t expect in an HDB flat.

For one, the balcony has been extended and now spans across the master bedroom, kid’s room and the study, which have been reduced in size but are still spacious compared to ones in a standard flat. The newly configured shared balcony creates a buffer between the rooms and the windows for greater privacy from the neighbouring block, and allows alternative access to the communal areas and the other rooms via the balcony.

The couple wanted to limit screen time, and the designer has found an ingenious solution by establishing a separate entertainment room (the former master bedroom) that can only be accessed via a newly formed entryway in the yard. Tucked away at the back of the house, it’s a cosy space that the family can hang out in and watch TV when they have the desire for it.

Otherwise, the now open-plan communal space boasts a huge kitchen island where family and friends can gather, and activities can spill out easily onto the breezy balcony where the couple can do their gardening, and the young ones can run around and play.