Home cleaning in the North region of Singapore

North region towns, by home type and age

The three towns in the North region have quite different housing, and that changes what a cleaning job involves. In Yishun, 47% of units in HDB's Yishun town are in blocks completed in 1986 or earlier. In HDB's Sembawang town that figure is 0%, and 91% of units are in blocks completed in 1998 or later, according to HDB Property Information. Woodlands sits between the two. HDB towns and census planning areas do not share the same borders, so the two sets of figures below cover slightly different areas.

Older HDB stock: Yishun

The median block completion year in HDB's Yishun town is 1987, and no block there is taller than 16 storeys (HDB Property Information). The Census 2020 counts 16,531 households in 3-room HDB flats in the Yishun planning area, against 7,367 in Woodlands and 1,507 in Sembawang. Older flats often hold years of grime in kitchen grout, window tracks and bathroom fittings, so a deep clean usually needs more time on these surfaces than a regular visit.

Flats built up to 1986 were the first group covered by HDB's Home Improvement Programme. The programme replaces waste pipes, repairs spalling concrete and upgrades the electrical supply, and the works in each flat take about 10 working days. A precinct is upgraded only if at least 75% of eligible Singapore citizen households vote yes. If your block goes through it, book a post-renovation clean for after the contractors leave, because concrete and pipe work leaves fine dust inside cabinets and on ledges.

Mixed ages and tall blocks: Woodlands

The units in HDB's Woodlands town are spread across all three periods: 25% are in blocks from 1986 or earlier, 35% from 1987 to 1997 and 40% from 1998 or later. The town also has 16 blocks of 30 storeys or more, and the tallest has 33 storeys (HDB Property Information). In the Woodlands planning area, the census counts 31,978 households in 4-room flats and 28,321 in 5-room or executive flats (Census 2020). Larger layouts take longer to clean, so check whether a quote covers every room and the service yard. Flats built from 1987 to 1997 were added to the Home Improvement Programme in 2018, so the post-renovation advice above can apply here too.

Newer flats and more private homes: Sembawang

In the census, the Sembawang planning area is 86% HDB, 11% condominium or apartment and 3% landed. That is the highest landed share of the three, and 11,653 households there live in 5-room or executive flats (Census 2020). In newer flats, move-in and move-out cleans tend to be more common than heavy degreasing. Larger flats and landed homes still need extra time for bathrooms, windows and outdoor areas.

If you live in a condo, you must follow your MCST's by-laws, so check them before booking any contractor (BCA). Cleaning inside a private residence does not need an NEA Cleaning Business Licence, but cleaning of condo common property is not covered by that exemption (NEA).

Tip: Before you book, decide whether you need a regular, deep, move-in or move-out, or post-renovation clean, and make sure the quote names that type of clean. The age and size of your flat matter more to the hours needed than the town you live in.