Touring Katong estate: Freehold landed living near 4 malls starting from $4m , Lifestyle News

PUBLISHED ONAugust 19, 2023 7:20 AM

As you can see, that's City Plaza right next to the landed houses. If you prefer a more modern mall. PLQ Mall is just a few steps away! (There's also Grandlink Square and KINEX Mall!)

Today, we're headed back East for our landed tour, but we'll be visiting the border of Geylang and Katong, instead of the usual Bedok or Siglap. More specifically, we'll be visiting the landed enclave in between Guillemard Road, Paya Lebal Road, Dunman Road and Tanjong Katong Road. This consists of the following streets (I've also included a short summary of each street for you):

Pebble Lane: has a single white line in the middle of the road (I.e. no street parking, making the area look nice and broad- great for residents but inconvenient for visitors who drive.) It's also the closest street to the 4 malls. All terrace houses here.
Gray Lane: closest to the bus stops along Tanjong Katong Road. Has terrace houses, semi-Ds and detached units.
Sandy Lane: dotted white line so Pebble Lane visitors can head over there to park
Green Lane: connected to Rose Lane via a very nicely landscaped playground park. Has terrace houses, semi-Ds and detached units.
Rose Lane: also very close to another bus stop and to Dunman Road, where you can find commercial shophouses, eateries and a coffee shop within walking distance
Lim Ah Woo Road: like Green Lane, has Chin Lien Bible Seminary at the end of the road (marked as Eden Bible-Presbyterian Church on the Masterplan, so not sure what the noise level and crowds will be like on Sunday. I suggest visiting on a Sunday before buying a property here!)

Here's what the area looks like on the map.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

And on the Masterplan. As you can see, the area is zoned 1.4 so, in the absence of further restrictions, if you can get a plot large enough, it's possible to develop boutique condos in the area. (I saw several when touring.) Although the area is currently low-rise, the surrounding land all has much higher plot ratios from 2.8 to 3.5 thus, when fully developed, the feel of the estate will change greatly.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Currently, the area sort of reminded me of a less busy version of Lorong 101-108 Changi. Let's take a look at the estate so you can see why!

This is across the road from the entrance of Pebble Lane (behind me and to the left.) Look at how open the area currently feels.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Directly across is the Geylang Park connector. Walk a bit more to the left and you'll reach Lorong 40 Geylang Playground and ABC Waters. You can sometimes see otters and terrapins here!
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

And to the right is City Plaza shopping mall.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

I turn around to face Pebble Lane and this is what I see.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

There's a really nice and wide pavement here which the residents have converted into a beautiful makeshift garden.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Can you see it to the right? If you squint, you'll notice that there are several sets of tables and chairs under the shade. (And that the house to the left has a back gate for easy access!)
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

View of the "garden" isn't it beautiful and a wonderful place for a cup of tea? (No pun intended, although I do love that teapot sculpture.)
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

OK, but enough about the garden, let's go see the actual houses!
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Pebble Lane starts with a row of terrace houses.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

According to Edgeprop, the last sale here was for $2m+! (But in 2019.) That's one thing I noticed about the area: sales don't happen very often. Although there were a few houses for sale at the time of writing, the last sale transaction for ALL the streets was in 2021 (Rose Lane.) In fact, for some areas, such as Gray Lane, there have been no sales since 2015 (and only five sales in total since 1999.)

Nice broad streets thanks to the absence of street parking.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

A closer look at some of the houses.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

This is the only childcare centre I saw on my tour (which also means Pebble Lane could potentially be quite noisy when school is in session. I was there from 7-10 on a weekday morning but didn't see or hear the kids.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Some older properties remain in-between more modern ones.
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Fairly patriotic area/house.
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Small boutique condo here with a 4.5 rating on Google (albeit only two reviews.)
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Look down one end of the T-junction (to the right.) It looks like it is a dead-end.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

However, when you take a closer look, you realise that there's actually another road hidden.
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So I walk down and take a look. This is down Gray Lane FYI.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Not the longest of streets.
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I turn back and head in the other direction (Pebble Lane to my left.)
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I pass a very cool house on the way.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

It ends at Tanjong Katong Road. There's a church, Queen of Peace, with Tagalog Mass there, as well as a bus stop (buses 30, 40, 43, 43e, 134, 135, 197 and 853m.) We've seen all of Pebble Lane now so I re-traced my footsteps to check out the other parts of the landed enclave: Sandy Lane etc.

This is the view you get when walking out of Pebble Lane. I will miss the openness once the area has been developed.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

A house you pass along the way when walking along Guillemard Road.
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A look back at Pebble Lane and City Plaza.
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Turned left back onto Lim Ah Woo Road.
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Photo of the junction here for you to appreciate the vast empty expanse.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

A photo in the opposite direction — also very empty.
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After walking into Lim Ah Woo Road, turning back, this is what I see.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

There's a sizeable plot of open land along Lim Ah Woo — if my sense of direction is correct, that means that some of the houses along Pebble Lane and Gray Lane are single loading, with unblocked back yards — you can see the backs of the houses above.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Not sure if it's because of this piece of empty land, but the area was very nice and breezy. Sadly, the land is zoned residential (1.4 plot ratio) so don't keep your fingers crossed that it'll stay this way for long.

Another shot to give you a sense of how large this plot is (Large for a landed estate that is.)
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Some semi-Ds along Lim Ah Woo, the first we've seen today I believe. If I remember correctly., Lim Ah Woo Road only has detached and semi-Detached landed properties (no terraces.)
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

As you can see, part of the road is a single white line. However, where it's a dotted white line, there are double yellow lines, so you still can't park here!
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Reached the junction of Lim Ah Woo and Sandy Lane — turned back to look down the way I came.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

More houses along Lim Ah Woo — as mentioned, you can't park along the street, but luckily the driveways are nice and long (and the houses big) so residents don't appear to lack parking. As a visitor, I felt the lack though — in fact, I was wondering if I would have to find a nearby HDB estate to leave the car.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Luckily, there is street-side parking at Sandy Lane.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Even with cars parked along the road, doesn't the road look huge? It's slightly deceptive though as the different-coloured pavement to the left is actually the driveway for the houses on the left. (If you walk further ahead, the road becomes smaller as the driveway disappears.)
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Here's a photo to illustrate what I mean. Basically, the pavement extends out by the length of the car (see the silver car above) at the end of the row of houses.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Head-on photo of the row of terrace units with nice driveways.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

After the houses, there are some boutique condos.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Interesting. Looks like the neighbourhood is fairly traditional (in case it's not clear, that's a sign explaining that the metal container is for burning incense paper and apologising for any inconvenience caused.)
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

LOVE this house!! It's so old-school. (Semi-D)
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Boutique condo to the left, houses to the right.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

In case you wanted a clearer shot of the condo.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Or of the houses. Note the property on the right. It's very modern but unobtrusive. I almost didn't notice that it had been rebuilt!
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

As is usually the case in old estates, there is room to build upwards.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Hey! Another estate with nice pavements. (The other was over at Kew.) So far, I've only seen these fancy pavements in the east. Have you noticed them anywhere else in Singapore?
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

At the end of Sandy Lane is an old apartment building.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Sandy Lane ends at Tanjong Katong Road. (That's church of our lady Queen of Peace.) There's also Shekinah Tabernacle further ahead.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Not 1 but 2 petrol stations across the road here. (And a 3rd I saw nearby, so you'll never lack for petrol here.)
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What the old apartment block looks like. It's along the main road though, so you probably can hear road noise from within the units. (Also I wonder about maintenance as I noticed that 1 of the lights shown above was broken and not repaired- it looked like there should be three lamps, but the 3rd had disappeared.)
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Just round the corner from the apartments is Green Lane. (As you can see, even though this is a small estate, there are many ways vehicles can enter and exit the estate! Good road planning!)
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Littering alert along Green Lane. I've only seen this in a few landed estates…. I wonder if they just put it up randomly or it's only put up when the estate has a littering issue? (I didn't see any.)
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Looking down Green Lane. It looks like you can also park along the street here, but there's less space compared to Sandy Lane.
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Here's what the houses along the street look like.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Also detached houses. (This is next to a boutique condo.)
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

And semi-Ds. Although these look big enough to be detached? (Would need to check the actual plot size to be sure.)
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

I mentioned above that we can build upwards in old estates. As you can see, it's not just upwards but also outwards here.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Another rebuilt house.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Let's see what's at the end of the road.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Oh it's the bible seminary I mentioned earlier. To the right is Lim Ah Woo Road. The left looks like there's nothing there but there's actually a hidden playground so let's head that way.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

To be honest, the playground is nothing special. There's no fancy court, unlike Carlisle Road, but it's very well-sized and I found it charming.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Wait to see why I found it a nice place. This photo is just to show you the rides first!
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Here. A small area next to the playground is so beautifully landscaped, I wondered if it was done by the residents or the government! (My photo does not do it justice.)
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Again, bad photography but you can still see how the trees planted along the path are very unusual and all of the same type. I felt like I was on Holliday!
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That's special use land to my right. There was no sign saying what it was (and it's not marked on Google. On the Masterplan it's just zoned as Special Use.)
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There is this sign though. (No trespassing.) Anyone know what it is?
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If my sense of direction is correct, we've now exited via the other end of the Park and are at Rose Lane.
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Nice house here. This part of the estate reminds me of Bukit Timah.
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Doesn't the area look so idyllic?
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Note: Cyclists are everywhere in this part of Singapore. Inside the estate and outside the estate. I would say that although I do like this estate a lot, 1 of the downsides, in my opinion, is that it's quite stressful to drive to the landed enclave as here are so many pedestrians and cyclists who can be quite aggressive. (No issue inside the estate but along the main roads…)

Old apartment here. Notice how the empty space between the apartment blocks lines up exactly with the setback between the landed houses, making the area feel less cluttered.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

More terrace houses.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

1 of several construction projects I saw in the area.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Note: another thing to keep in mind when purchasing a property in an old estate like this is potential non-stop renovation. As you can see, most of the houses are still two stories here and since the plot ratio is 1.4, there is plenty of opportunity for new buyers to knock down and rebuild to maximise the plot ratio.

Another small old apartment.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Reached Tanjong Katong Road. This is what we see when we turn right.
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And to the left (bus stop ahead.) If you walk down this way, you'll reach Green Lane, Sandy Lane, Grey Lane and eventually Guillemard Road and Geylang Road.
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The right looks more exciting, so let's wander that way.

Oh, there's a nice shaded track here.
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I'm nosy so I'll head down to see where it goes.
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Love this dedicated cycling path. Wish there were more of it in Singapore. It would make driving and cycling easier.
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As mentioned, here's how you can head back to Rose Lane. I think the white and black building ahead is the Special Use land.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

Either way, we've already seen that part of Katong estate so let's backtrack to the start of this shaded path and continue along our way.

Here we are. Next to the shaded path are some properties — commercial and residential.
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

By commercial I mean an architect (and not shops!)
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Property next to the architect. The sign says there are free drinks here? I'm not sure if it's for real or just as a decoration. It would be nice if it did really offer drinks — not because I'm trying to save money (!!) but because it would be a throwback to old Singapore and kampung life.
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We reach a junction after the "free drinks" property.
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Some shops when you cross the road.
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Surprisingly few eateries, especially since we're in the East! (But don't worry, this landed enclave is within walking distance of so much good food!)
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Reached a Korean place but it was closed down.
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Another petrol station to the right and, finally, a cafe across the road to my left.
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Also, an egg tart shop to my right. It smelt good so I couldn't resist and bought some. (Not tried yet, so no verdict on how they taste.)
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This is the original size ($2.50.) They also have mini ones.
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Saw some school kids across the road (Tanjong Katong Girls School is just down the road.)
PHOTO: Stackedhomes

This brings us to the end of today's tour! How did you find it? As mentioned earlier, apart from finding the area rather stressful to drive in, I really enjoyed it!

However, when I mentioned it to some elderly people, they immediately associated the area with "Geylang, red light district" so it may not be for everyone.

Personally, I think it's just close enough but not too close to the more… lively… parts of Geylang. (I once visited another estate in Geylang, thinking to feature it in this series, but it was so… messy… that I didn't think it would appeal to many readers, so I skipped it. (If you are keen to see other parts of Geylang, feel free to leave a comment and I'll be sure to put it back on the list of estates to feature.)

ALSO READ: Touring Happy estate: More affordable freehold landed living near an MRT station from $3.48m

This article was first published in Stackedhomes.

property landed property house tour