Handyman services in the North region of Singapore

North region towns, by home type and age

Estate age across the region

How old a block is tells you a lot about what a handyman will find in the walls, pipes and wiring. In the HDB Property Information dataset, HDB's Yishun town has a median block completion year of 1987, and 47% of its flats are in blocks completed in 1986 or earlier. HDB's Woodlands town is more mixed. Its median is 1996, with 25% of flats in blocks from 1986 or earlier, 35% from 1987 to 1997 and 40% from 1998 or later. HDB's Sembawang town is the newest: its median is 2000, it has no flats in blocks from 1986 or earlier, and 91% are in blocks from 1998 or later. Woodlands also has 16 blocks of 30 storeys or more, the tallest at 33 storeys. In Yishun the tallest block is 16 storeys, and in Sembawang it is 23. Tall blocks make it slower to carry flat-pack furniture and tool cases up to the flat.

In older flats, a simple job like drilling for a shelf or a TV bracket can hit patched concrete. A small leak repair can also turn into a question about old pipes. Flats built up to 1986, and flats built from 1987 to 1997, are in the age groups covered by the Home Improvement Programme. Its essential improvements include replacing waste pipes and pipe sockets, repairing spalling concrete and upgrading the electrical supply. A precinct is upgraded only if at least 75% of eligible Singapore citizen households vote yes, and the works in each flat take about 10 working days. EASE fittings for seniors are offered under the same programme. If your precinct might be polled, find out the result before paying for cosmetic work around pipes or the electrical supply.

Flat size changes the work as well. The Census of Population 2020 counts by planning area, and planning areas do not have the same borders as HDB towns. It counts 16,531 three-room HDB households in the Yishun planning area, 7,367 in Woodlands and 1,507 in Sembawang. Woodlands has 28,321 five-room and executive households and Sembawang has 11,653. Bigger flats usually need more furniture assembled and more fittings mounted on each visit.

Private homes in the region

Census 2020 planning area figures (census table) show that Sembawang has the largest share of private homes of the three: 3,509 condo or apartment households (11%) and 943 landed households (3%). Yishun has 6,902 condo or apartment households (9%) and 1,496 landed households (2%). Woodlands has 5,592 condo or apartment households (7%) and 214 landed households, which rounds to 0%.

If you live in a condo, the BCA guidance for strata owners says you must follow your MCST by-laws and check with the MCST before renovating. Changes to common property need the MCST's prior written approval. Structural elements cannot be altered without a Professional Engineer's assessment and approval from the Commissioner of Building Control. So drilling into a wall that might be structural is not a simple handyman job in a condo.

Rules for this trade

A handyman can do drilling, mounting and assembly, but licensed trades are a separate matter. Work on wiring, power points, switches, lighting points or circuit breakers needs an EMA Licensed Electrical Worker, and these licences are held by individuals, not companies. Home gas work can only be done by City Energy or a Licensed Gas Service Worker. In HDB flats, water service and sanitary plumbing work does not need an HDB permit, but it must be done by a PUB licensed plumber. Aircon installation needs a BCA trained installer. Flats without higher electrical loading need an HDB permit to install new 15A power points.