From Rental to “Real Home”: Why Expat Life in Singapore Doesn’t Have to Look Like an IKEA Catalog
September 2025
Welcome to Singapore! You’ve survive the paperwork, figured out which hawker stall has the best chicken rice, and braved the humidity. But then you open the door to your rental and discover your new design aesthetic: “Landlord Chic.”
You know the look: oversized dark-wood wardrobes that weigh more than your entire shipment, a shiny black leather sofa that could star in a crime drama, and overhead lights so harsh they make you question your skincare routine.
Cue the expat starter pack: one IKEA haul later, and your home looks… exactly like everyone else’s. Functional, yes. Personal, not even close.
Why “making do” isn’t doing you any favors
Because here’s the truth: your rental is not just a place to park your suitcase. It’s the backdrop to family dinners, wine nights with new friends, post-swim towel explosions, and those moments when you’re homesick and need somewhere that feels like… you.
Enter Edited Homes: Design for the rental generation
This is where Edited Homes comes in (yes, shameless plug, but stay with us).
We’re a digital-first interior styling studio created by expats, for expats. Think of us as your shortcut to a home that feels stylish, functional, and—most importantly—like it’s truly yours.
Here’s how it works:
- You pick the room you want to transform (living, dining, bedroom, even the tiny study nook you keep ignoring).
- You tell us your vibe: Japandi calm? Aussie coastal? British cosy? Bollywood glam? (Yes, we’ve seen it all.)
- We deliver a personalised digital lookbook with mood boards, 3D visualisations, and a ready-to-shop list of curated furniture and décor—all from reputable Singapore stores.
- You can click to buy at your own pace. Or, if the idea of wrangling deliveries makes you want to hide under the duvet, we’ll manage all of that for you too.
And if you’re not ready for a full furniture overhaul? There’s Edited Touch - our decor-led glow-up that focuses on rugs, art, lighting, and accents. Sometimes it’s the little details that make the magic - like the statement earrings that turn a simple black dress from ‘just fine’ to ‘fabulous’.
“When you move countries, you want your new home to feel familiar but also exciting. For me, it’s about creating spaces that reflect who you are right now—whether that’s a calm sanctuary or a bold, lively home for entertaining. That’s the beauty of styling over renovating: it’s fast, flexible, and personal.”
— Priya Chopra, Co-Founder, Edited Homes
A family finds their style in Singapore.
When Emma and James, a British family of four, moved into a condo near the East Coast, they thought they’d just “make do.” The landlord’s furniture was functional but soulless, and after six months, Emma confessed their place felt more like an Airbnb than a family home.
That’s when they reached out to us. We styled their living and dining rooms around a Scandi-coastal theme—light wood tones, soft blues, airy fabrics that matched the sea breeze just outside. The heavy sofa was swapped for a clean-lined sectional, we layered in a textured rug, added warm pendant lighting, and used art that nodded to both London and Singapore.
The result? Their kids started calling the living room “the cosy zone,” and James found himself inviting colleagues over for drinks because, in his words, “the place finally feels like ours.”
No walls were painted. No hacking was done. Just thoughtful styling that turned a rental into a real home.
Ready to love your rental?
If your home currently looks like a mismatched furniture experiment or if you’ve been saying, “We’ll get around to it after the next holiday,”—this is your sign.
Check out Edited Homes. Whether you want the full design treatment or just an Edited Touch, we’ll take your rental from “meh” to “marvelous,” without a single renovation permit or landlord tantrum.
👉 Visit editedhomes.com and use the code OracleSG for an exclusive 10% discount on our services.
Your future self (and your Instagram feed) will thank you.