Look inside a Singapore supermarket billionaire's $50 million mansion, which combines a historic bungalow with an ultra-modern house and has a 100-foot swimming pool

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Katie WarrenApr 15, 2021, 08:55 IST
Look inside a Singapore supermarket billionaire's $50 million mansion, which combines a historic bungalow with an ultra-modern house and has a 100-foot swimming pool

The home is a "good class bungalow," Singapore's most rare and coveted type of real estate.TA.LE Architects

  • Singapore billionaire Lim Hock Leng lives in a $50 million historic bungalow combined with a modern mansion.
  • Lim, who co-owns Singapore's 3rd-largest supermarket chain with his two brothers, has amassed a fortune of $1.2 billion with his brothers.
  • The mansion features a swimming pool that starts indoors and extends outside.
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On a secluded, leafy street in Singapore, supermarket billionaire Lim Hock Leng lives in a $50 million bungalow.

On a secluded, leafy street in Singapore, supermarket billionaire Lim Hock Leng lives in a $50 million bungalow.
TA.LE Architects

Lim is the co-owner and managing director of Singapore's third-largest supermarket chain, Sheng Siong, which operates more than 60 stores in the city-state.

Lim's older brother, Lim Hock Chee, is Sheng Siong's CEO, while the eldest brother, Lim Hock Eng, is executive chairman. Together, the three brothers own a majority stake in the company, putting their combined net worth at $1.2 billion, according to Forbes.

Lim's home is a "good class bungalow," Singapore's most rare and coveted type of real estate.

Lim's home is a "good class bungalow," Singapore's most rare and coveted type of real estate.
TA.LE Architects

The city-state has a limited number of good class bungalows, making them a status symbol reserved for the ultra-wealthy.

The design of Lim's home combines a historic Singapore bungalow with an ultra-modern home.

"From the front, it looks very unassuming," one local real-estate agent, who has visited the home and wished to remain anonymous, told Insider. "But if you look from the back it's a monstrous house that towers over the whole neighborhood."

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The back of the home shows off the modern addition that was designed as "as a series of stepped terraces with green roofs," according to the architecture firm.

The back of the home shows off the modern addition that was designed as "as a series of stepped terraces with green roofs," according to the architecture firm.
TA.LE Architects

Singapore-based architecture firm Ta.le Architects oversaw the restoration of the colonial bungalow and designed the new bungalow.

Lim paid 35 million Singapore dollars - or about $26.2 million - for the land and the historic colonial bungalow in 2015, a spokesperson for his company confirmed to Insider.

Lim paid 35 million Singapore dollars - or about $26.2 million - for the land and the historic colonial bungalow in 2015, a spokesperson for his company confirmed to Insider.
TA.LE Architects

The executive then spent roughly SG$30 million ($22.4 million) to restore the bungalow and build the attached modern bungalow, which was completed in 2018, the spokesperson said.

That brings Lim's total investment in the property to nearly $50 million.

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The architecture firm, Ta.le Architects, dubbed the finished property "Hidden House."

The architecture firm, Ta.le Architects, dubbed the finished property "Hidden House."
TA.LE Architects

Source: Ta.le Architects

The home has three courtyards, one of which features a grassy lawn and sits between the historic bungalow and the modern bungalow.

The home has three courtyards, one of which features a grassy lawn and sits between the historic bungalow and the modern bungalow.
TA.LE Architects

Source: Ta.le Architects

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Another courtyard separates the living room and the dining room of the new bungalow and brings light and air into the center of the house.

Another courtyard separates the living room and the dining room of the new bungalow and brings light and air into the center of the house.
TA.LE Architects

Source: Ta.le Architects

The third courtyard on the lowest level of the home is where you'll find the 98-foot swimming pool, which extends from indoors to outside of the house.

The third courtyard on the lowest level of the home is where you'll find the 98-foot swimming pool, which extends from indoors to outside of the house.
TA.LE Architects

Above the pool is a staircase designed to "glow in the night," according to the architects.

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Indeed, the entire rear facade of the home does appear to glow at nighttime.

Indeed, the entire rear facade of the home does appear to glow at nighttime.
TA.LE Architects

Source: Ta.le Architects

The bungalow sprawls across 33,700 square feet.

The bungalow sprawls across 33,700 square feet.
TA.LE Architects

Source: Ta.le Architects

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Rather than going for pure opulence, the architects said they designed the home to create a "minimalistic luxurious experience."

Rather than going for pure opulence, the architects said they designed the home to create a "minimalistic luxurious experience."
TA.LE Architects

Source: Ta.le Architects

Last month, Lim gave a tour of his home to the South China Morning Post and told the publication that he shares his home with different generations of his family.

Last month, Lim gave a tour of his home to the South China Morning Post and told the publication that he shares his home with different generations of his family.
TA.LE Architects

Source: South China Morning Post

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The architects therefore designed large bedrooms - almost like independent apartments - to accommodate Lim's four children and his parents.

The architects therefore designed large bedrooms - almost like independent apartments - to accommodate Lim's four children and his parents.
TA.LE Architects

Source: Ta.le Architects

The bungalow's formal dining area can accommodate at least 15 people.

The bungalow's formal dining area can accommodate at least 15 people.
TA.LE Architects

Source: Ta.le Architects

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Many of the home's common areas appear to open up to the grassy terraces.

Many of the home's common areas appear to open up to the grassy terraces.
TA.LE Architects

Source: Ta.le Architects

Photos of the home show lavish marble bathrooms. There's also a massive walk-in closet.

Photos of the home show lavish marble bathrooms. There's also a massive walk-in closet.
TA.LE Architects

Source: Ta.le Architects

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The spacious office seems appropriate for the managing director of a major supermarket group.

The spacious office seems appropriate for the managing director of a major supermarket group.
TA.LE Architects

Source: Ta.le Architects

The home's amenities include a fitness center, a sauna and squash court, a pool table, and a home theater with 14 seats.

The home's amenities include a fitness center, a sauna and squash court, a pool table, and a home theater with 14 seats.
TA.LE Architects

Source: Ta.le Architects

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When he set out to build the house, Lim said he told the architects, "'You are building this house for my neighbors, not me.'"

When he set out to build the house, Lim said he told the architects, "'You are building this house for my neighbors, not me.'"
TA.LE Architects

"When you build a house, that house has to become scenery for your neighbors," Lim told the Post during the tour.

Lim told the Post that he considers spending so much money on a house to be a bit "extravagant."

Lim told the Post that he considers spending so much money on a house to be a bit "extravagant."
TA.LE Architects

But for Lim, the cost was justified. His father always wanted the whole family to live together but couldn't afford a large enough home, Lim said, so he sees the house as realizing his father's dream.

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