Urban legends are part and parcel of growing up in Singapore—stories we hear as kids and somehow keep hearing even as adults. While most of us think of HDB flats as safe and ordinary spaces to call home, some blocks come with more than just friendly neighbours, with chilling stories that have been passed down for decades. Here are a few that’ll make you look twice next time you pass by.
1. Taman Jurong’s diamond blocks
Known by some as the “suicide flats”, the diamond-shaped cluster at Yung Kuang Road has a grim history that’s hard to shake. Tales that cemented its infamy include a pregnant woman who allegedly leapt to her death and was gruesomely impaled on a bamboo tree, and 2 children who were said to have fallen from Block 64 in the 1980s.
As an older estate, Blocks 63 to 66 are joined together to form a striking diamond shape with an open courtyard at the centre. Residents fondly nickname the estate as ji sap ek lau or “21-stories” in Hokkien, but its ghost stories are far less endearing.
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Residents have claimed to spot a floating figure of a woman in white, while a distinct face with black eyes was observed outside a 12th-floor window. Some ghost hunters who tried exploring the area also claimed to suffer sudden unexplained fevers afterwards, fuelling its haunted reputation.
Image credit: u/pewsg on Reddit
In 2020, the blocks were refurbished to house foreign workers during the COVID pandemic, but all residential units are now left uninhabited and barricaded. More recently, the long-serving NTUC Fairprice closed in 2024 after 41 years in the estate, leaving the blocks quieter and eerier than ever.
2. Block 99, Bedok North Ave 4
Image credit: SRX
Block 99 at Bedok North is infamous in Singapore’s HDB lore, and also a well-known pontianak haunt. Bedok isn’t a stranger to haunted blocks either—back in the 1980s, the abandoned Block 611 reportedly housed a lingering spirit of its own.
The legend that led to Block 99’s eerie legacy involves a woman who allegedly threw her 3-year-old son from the 25th floor. She even scrawled “It’s not over, darling” on the wall with her own blood, before leaping to her own death in a red wedding gown.
According to accounts, her husband and his mistress later moved into the same flat, where their son claimed to play with an unseen “older brother”, until he too reportedly fell to his death at 3 years old.
Even today, residents report hearing the laughter of a boy and a woman echoing through the corridors at night, believed to be the spirits of the deceased mother and son, serving as a chilling reminder of the estate’s tragic past.
3. Block 852, Woodlands Street 83
Image adapted from: Google Maps
Block 852 in Woodlands has long been infamous, not just for years of vacancy, but for a violent crime that shook the community. In 2009, a 14-year-old girl was tragically stabbed to death by her mother in one of the flats, an incident that has fuelled ghost stories ever since. Residents have even recounted taking the lift with a mother-daughter pair, only for them to vanish once it reached the first floor.
Even before this tragedy, the block had already earned an unsettling reputation. It was used as a SARS quarantine site in 2003, leaving behind empty units, dark corridors, and strange sounds lingering in the air.
Although most of the units have since been re-tenanted, the block’s haunted aura refuses to fade, carried on as local urban legends and whispered stories from its residents.
4. Teban Gardens
Image credit: Remember Singapore
Located near Pandan Reservoir, Teban Gardens has earned a reputation for unnerving tales tied to its older HDB flats. One story centres on a unit whose door faced the lift, and without protective statues, became the site of a terrifying possession. The occupant’s wife was said to have been taken over by a male spirit, so stubborn that multiple exorcism attempts failed, eventually landing her in IMH.
Another executive flat, previously unoccupied for 5 years, gave its new occupants the creeps, with moving lightbulbs, missing clothes, and the occasional appearance of a mysterious old woman. In the end, they resorted to protective talismans to keep the spirits at bay.
These eerie experiences have cemented Teban Gardens’ chilling reputation among residents and visitors alike.
5. Spooner Road estate
The 2 HDB blocks along Spooner Road were originally built for Malayan Railway staff, but they were left empty for years after the railway line shut down. Former residents and urban explorers reported hearing footsteps and spotting shadowy figures in the dim corridors—made even eerier by the blocks’ remote location.
Just when you think it couldn’t get any creepier, a Redditor commented, “Wait till you enter the lift at night. Feels super claustrophobic and scary.”
Image credit: u/catcourtesy on Reddit
The blocks are now scheduled for demolition as part of redevelopment plans tied to the upcoming Cantonment MRT Station. Since the last rental tenants moved out in 2023, the estate has once again become a quiet shell of its past.
6. Neo Tiew estate
Image credit: BiblioAsia
Neo Tiew Estate in Lim Chu Kang was abandoned in the early 2000s after residents were resettled under the En Bloc scheme. The estate originally featured shophouses, a playground, and a wet market—but after resettlement, ownership was transferred to the army as a training facility.
Urban legends have kept memories of the estate alive, though. One story tells of a spirit that supposedly haunts a particular tree: a gambler allegedly stuck 7 needles into it, forcing the spirit to give him winning lottery numbers. He won, of course, but failed to remove the needles, angering the spirit that still haunts the abandoned estate to this day.
Image credit: u/alphaodyssey_17 on Reddit
Reports of strange noises and supernatural sightings are common in the area. A Redditor even recounted that an NS sectionmate saw the abandoned swing seemingly move on its own, without any wind. Today, Neo Tiew remains a relic of the once-bustling housing estate, its eerie stories lingering long after the residents left.
7. Yishun estate
Image credit: SRX
Last but not least, Yishun—one of the most infamous towns in Singapore—is the centre of many creepy happenings. Pontianaks are said to roam Yishun Park, a former rubber plantation; a small hill opposite Yishun Primary School is rumoured to contain human remains; and some residents often report hearing unexplained noises and seeing shadowy figures in these areas.
Adding to the unsettling lore, a mysterious man was reported to have gone door-to-door in the area in 2016, asking residents for their children. With so many urban legends intertwined with everyday life, Yishun’s hauntings have become infamous, living on in stories and attracting urban explorers.
Singapore’s haunted HDBs are not for the faint-hearted
Whether you believe in the paranormal or are simply a thrill-seeker, these 7 HDBs offer a glimpse into the city’s haunting side. And even if some estates are abandoned or redeveloped, their stories will linger long after the walls are gone.
For new homeowners, these haunted reputations might give them pause before moving in, while for others, the estates’ storied pasts just add an extra layer of intrigue to the neighbourhoods.
For more spooky reads:
- 7 Singapore estates that were built over exhumed grave sites
- 7 HDB flats & private homes with unsettling dark pasts
- Exploring the haunted Spooner Road HDBs & “Suicide Flats” in Taman Jurong
Cover image adapted from: u/catcourtesy, u/alphaodyssey_17 on Reddit
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