Pender Court. Finland Gardens. Tulip Garden. Makeway View. These were all attempts to sell an estate en bloc which fell through, all within this month.

But even as the en bloc fever cools, not all the affected residents are getting hot under the collar. Many told The Sunday Times that they were disappointed to miss out on a good price, but were happy to stay put.

It was reported last Friday that the sale of Pender Court, off West Coast Highway, had fallen through. Others reported include Finland Gardens in Siglap on Tuesday; Tulip Garden in Holland Road on April 9; and Makeway View in the Newton area on April 1.

Italian expatriate Lucia Omodei, 43, who has lived at Tulip Garden for six years, said: 'We looked elsewhere in case we had to move out, but we didn't find anything this ideal. Besides, we would miss our neighbours.'

A fellow resident, music teacher Y.C. Lee, 75, saw the bright side in the 'consolation hongbao' he received, a $120,000 payout which was his share of the $25 million deposit that the buyer forfeited.

The unhappy ones are most likely those who had bought another house and now face financing issues.

The Sunday Times spoke to residents in some of the failed en bloc estates to find out how their lives have been affected.

This article was first published in The Straits Times on April 27, 2008

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