The 6,000-square-foot bungalow is located halfway up Mount Faber, a big hill about 10 minutes from Singapore’s Central Business District (CBD).

“We felt we had the best of both worlds here. It’s so close to the CBD — it’s 10 minutes down the road. But we are also near Mount Faber Park, near all this greenery,” Hay said.

Those interested in living in a black-and-white bungalow must submit a bid to the SLA. This amount, if accepted, becomes their monthly rent. Thankfully for Hay and her husband, they were the only ones interested in the house and ended up winning the bid. She declined to share how much they pay in rent.

Not everyone is as lucky as Hay: The bidding process depends on market demand. Hay said houses in prime locations are sometimes only available via sealed bids in which bidders don’t know how much others are offering. 

“It’s a bit tricky,” she said. “I’ve had friends who bid quite high because they really wanted the house, but then they found out that the other bid was, say, $4,000 (around R63,070) below them. But they still have to pay the price they bid per month.”

Although the amount fluctuates based on demand, monthly rent for a black-and-white bungalow can reach as high as $20,000 (R315,352) Singapore dollars (R225,480), Lester Chen, a property agent with Singapore Realtors Inc, told Insider. 

The SLA did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.