'Yang Yin' house in Singapore up for sale, likely to fetch RM104m

PETALING JAYA (Feb 23): A single-storey bungalow occupying a freehold parcel as big as half a football field in land-scarce Singapore that was the subject of a fraught court battle between a former China tour guide and a wealthy widow has been put on the market, where it is expected to fetch S$35 million (RM104 million or RM3,254 psf), reported The Straits Times.

Widow Chung Khin Chun’s niece Hedy Mok, who has been appointed as the deputy public trustee of the estate’s administration, said the proceeds from the sale of the bungalow in Gerald Crescent will go to charity.

"A substantial 999-year or freehold landed residential pocket such as 2F, Gerald Crescent, is a scarce find in the Seletar area given that such plots are tightly held and seldom made available for sale," she said.

"It is also a rare opportunity to secure a decent size plot under single ownership for immediate redevelopment."

The site — located in the established Seletar Hills, where landed homes predominate — is zoned for three-storey mixed landed residential use, which means up to 11 landed homes can be built there, namely two detached houses a pair of semi-detached houses and seven terraced houses.

The sale is being handled by Savills Singapore senior director of Investment Sales Suzie Mok.

She expects a variety of buyers to show interest in the site due to its several redevelopment possibilities.

"It will appeal to developers for potential sub-division into landed conventional housing schemes, Singaporean families for own stay or multi-generational living and wealth preservation for future generations, investors or high net-worth buyers," she added.

The tender for the property will close on March 22.

Chung had met Yang Yin when the latter acted as her tour guide during her trip to China in 2008.

A year later, he moved into her bungalow, moved his family to Singapore, then made a will where he was named the heir of her entire fortune.

However, the will was thrown out by the courts and Yang was sentenced to 11 years and two months in jail for cheating her out of S$1.1 million (RM3.3 million) and deceiving the authorities into giving him permanent residency.