Do horror films leave you blasé? Then maybe you need to find yourself in front of a real haunted property to get a proper adrenaline rush. Here are seven of Singapore’s most notorious haunted houses.
Famous Haunted Houses and Properties in Singapore
- Pasir Ris Red House
- Matilda House
- Woodneuk House
- Hillview Mansion
- 17 Jalan Batai
- Geylang Lorong 3
- Geylang Bahru
Read on for the chilling tales of these haunted properties. If you make it to the end, we also cover some of Singapore’s most popular housing estates with spooky stories of their own.
1. Pasir Ris Red House
This red-roofed house at 191 Jalan Loyang Besar used to be a favourite of thrill-seekers at the nearby chalets, thanks to its reputation as one of Singapore’s most haunted houses.
Formerly owned by the McNeice family before being sold to CK Tang, the house mysteriously lay abandoned for decades until being remodelled into a preschool in 2014. With a fresh coat of paint and a new gate, it now looks a lot less creepy than before.
The Pasir Ris Red House is located right next to idyllic Pasir Ris Park, with the sea less than 250 metres away. At such a great location, it’s no wonder so many private developments have popped up in the area, including Ocean Front Suites and The Edgewater, all a short stroll not only from the beach but also the Pasir Ris Park Connector.
2. Matilda House in Punggol
This single story bungalow at Punggol Walk was built long before the government started developing Punggol into an HDB estate. Formerly a stately six-bedroom residence, the house has been in a state of disrepair for decades. Rumour has it that three workers dispatched to demolish it mysteriously died, thus halting demolition works.
In 2012, it was sold for redevelopment, and is now condominium A Treasure Trove’s clubhouse. Matilda House and A Treasure Trove are located a short walk from the Punggol MRT and Bus Interchange, as well as Waterway Point. At such a well-connected location, it’s unsurprising that the rumours of ghosts are quickly fading.
Want to move in next door to some hair-raising neighbours? Check out Punggol Central properties on PropertyGuru.
3. Woodneuk House at Tyersall Ave
Woodneuk House, also known as Istana Woodneuk, is an abandoned palace that’s a favourite of urban explorers and paranormal investigators. Former property of the State of Johor, it was previously a temporary home for the third wife of Sultan Abu Bakar. The building burned down in 1925, and again in 2006.
Located in the middle of the jungle between modern-day Tyersall Avenue and Holland Road, it has since been cordoned off by the police due to structural hazards, but the rumours about apparitions remain.
You’d never guess there was a building in ruins near Tyersall Avenue, which is prime land in Singapore and passes through the UNESCO-listed Botanic Gardens, a short distance from Orchard Road and some of Singapore’s ritziest residences.
4. Hillview Mansion
The barbed wire atop the fence instills a sense of foreboding that serves as a reminder of Hillview Mansion’s former reputation as one of the scariest haunted houses in Singapore.
One popular rumour is that the wife of the owner fell to her death, causing its subsequent abandonment. The mansion has since been demolished, but the front gate remains, barbed wire and all.
Today, the area around Jalan Dermawan is a sleepy residential neighbourhood beside Bukit Batok Town Park, a short drive from the eateries and bars at Rail Mall.
5. 17 Jalan Batai
This house off Upper Thomson Road lay in an abandoned state for more than 10 years. It was owned by two elderly sisters, Pearl and Ruby Tan, the younger of whom had schizophrenia.
In 2006, NEA discovered a human skeleton in a toilet following complaints by a neighbour of mosquito breeding. As if that’s not bad enough, after the house was taken over by the Public Trustee’s Office in 2015, a contractor discovered a human skull and thigh bone in the rubble of a guest room. According to the coroner’s report, the bones are those of Pearl and Ruby Tan.
The house borders Upper Thomson Road, close to Ang Mo Kio and within walking distance of Bishan Park. Due to its proximity to these popular mature estates and connectivity to town, the area is quite sought-after. That could explain why the house was sold in an auction for $2.23 million in 2018.
6. Geylang Lorong 3
A block of HDB flats along Geylang Lorong 3 is the site of the grisly Kallang body parts murder which took place in 2005, in which Chinese national Liu Hong Mei was killed by her lover in his flat. He then proceeded to cut her body into seven parts and distribute them all over Singapore.
While some would think twice about moving into the very flat where the murder took place, the surrounding location is actually great, with Kallang MRT located just five minutes’ walk away and the Singapore Sports Hub and Kallang Wave Mall less than 15 minutes’ walk away.
7. Geylang Bahru
The Tan family murders of 1976 took place in a one-room HDB flat at Geylang Bahru. Four children aged five to ten were slashed to death in the bathroom of their flat while their parents were at work.
What’s even more disturbing is that two weeks later, the grieving Tans received a Chinese New Year card from the murderer taunting them. The murder mystery remains unsolved to this day.
The block of flats where the murders took place has a scenic view of the Kallang River and is now only seven minutes’ walk from the Geylang Bahru MRT station on the Downtown Line. It’s also not far from town, at less than 15 minutes’ drive to Raffles Place.
Want to move in near the scene of the crime? Check out other Geylang Bahru properties on PropertyGuru.
Other places and estates with spooky stories
Entire areas and housing states in Singapore have been credited with being haunted. Here are some of the most famous.
Sembawang Park
Sembawang Park has gained a reputation for being a breeding ground for the “pontianak”, with many sightings having been reported in the trees. The scent of frangipani is also frequently detected in the park, a sign that pontianak are near.
Want to live near a park with an otherworldly view? Check out other Sembawang properties on PropertyGuru.
Old Tampines Road
You probably don’t want to find yourself driving alone along Old Tampines Road in the middle of the night. Strange things have been known to happen, from people getting mysteriously possessed by a resident ghost to taxi drivers having their vehicles flagged down by an eerie woman.
Bedok Reservoir
Floating bodies have been found in Bedok Reservoir, which is a major spot for suicides. Despite religious leaders gathering to bless the reservoir in 2011, the bodies just keep coming, with the latest corpse having been found in April 2020.
Bidadari
The former Bidadari Cemetery was used for burials from 1907 to 1972, but was exhumed in 2006 to make way for the Bidadari residential estate. That hasn’t deterred homeowners, who have scrambled in droves to ballot for BTO HDB flats, given Bidadari’s fantastic location in the Toa Payoh area. In fact, there’s a Bidadari BTO launch coming up in November, and we expect it to be oversubscribed (as usual).
Nevertheless, there are still rumours of supernatural activity in the area. For instance, before Woodleigh MRT opened in 2011, there were reports of spirit sightings by commuters as trains zipped by the station.
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