Singaporean Xu Wei Jie, 43, has never moved out of his parents’ home and has no plans of doing so any time soon.
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While he had considered buying his own flat nearby several years ago, Xu, who is single, found property prices to be too high.
His attachment to his home and desire to be close to his family also outweigh his need for personal space.
“There are all these expectations that once you reach a certain age in Singapore, you have to buy a home. Otherwise, I get the sense I would be seen as somehow less of a person who hasn’t become an ‘adult’,” said Xu, an executive in the education sector.
The issue of Singaporeans not moving out of their familial homes was cast into the spotlight recently following a court case in which a 62-year-old woman who lived under her parents’ roof for 27 years unsuccessfully sued her 91-year-old mother for evicting her.
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Rita Kishinchand Bhojwani, the daughter, argued that her eviction was unlawful as it violated her right to live in the flat rent-free for the rest of her life. She filed a lawsuit against her mother, the family company, and a director of the firm.