The bottom line
Kampong Glam is the most atmospheric of the precincts I work in. Anchored by the golden dome of the Sultan Mosque and threaded by Arab Street, Bussorah Street and the famously photographed Haji Lane, District 7's historic quarter holds the third-largest concentration of conserved shophouses in Singapore. It is a tourism-and-culture market more than a business one, and that gives it a different rhythm and a different risk profile from the CBD streets. For the right buyer — one who understands a lifestyle and visitor-led tenant base — it is one of the more characterful places to own a shophouse in the city.
What the register shows
From my database of the URA conservation register, Kampong Glam sits third among all conservation areas by shophouse stock, behind only Little India and Joo Chiat.
- Little India1,156
- Joo Chiat811
- Kampong Glam576
- Jalan Besar539
- Geylang530
- Tanjong Pagar359
- Telok Ayer355
- Kreta Ayer335
- Bukit Pasoh251
- Boat Quay192
Source: URA conserved buildings register (7,235 buildings) · Shophouse Finder database, 2026-06.
Source: our database of URA's conservation register; Singapore Tourism Board.
The quarter, with the adjacent Beach Road conservation stretch, gives District 7 a substantial conserved footprint — and one of the most distinctive streetscapes anywhere in Singapore.
The tenant economy
Kampong Glam trades on identity. Arab Street has long been the textile and carpet street; Bussorah Street frames the mosque with cafés and shops; Haji Lane has become one of the city's best-known strips of independent retail, bars and small restaurants; and Middle Eastern, Malay and contemporary F&B fill much of the rest. The common thread is footfall driven by culture and tourism — Singapore took in 16.5 million international visitors in 2024, and a great many of them pass through here.
In Kampong Glam, you are buying into a place people travel to see. That is a powerful tenant draw — and a reminder to underwrite for the cycles tourism runs in.
That tourism dependence is the precinct's strength and its risk in one. The footfall is real and the brand is global, but a tenant base weighted towards visitor-led F&B and retail is more exposed to travel cycles than a CBD building underwritten by an office workforce. I underwrite Kampong Glam buildings with that in mind.
Who buys here
The buyer pool leans towards lifestyle-minded investors and operators who want a characterful, destination address, alongside boutique enhancers repositioning units for the café, bar and indie-retail economy, and owner-occupiers in hospitality and F&B who want to be where the crowds already are. Entry quantum can be more attainable than the CBD-fringe trophy streets, though the best Haji Lane and Bussorah Street frontages command strong prices for their footfall.
What I check on a Kampong Glam deal
Five of the seven checks carry the extra weight here, with the District 7 emphases:
- The tourism mix, honestly. How much of the building's income leans on visitor-led trade, and how it would hold through a soft travel year.
- Frontage and street. Haji Lane and Bussorah Street trade very differently from the quieter lanes; position is much of the value.
- Conservation and the streetscape. This is a tightly-conserved, much-photographed quarter; alterations and signage are scrutinised, and the obligation to rectify runs with the title.
- Use and licensing. F&B, bars and short-stay uses each carry their own approvals; confirm what the building can host.
- Tenancy and tenure. Underwrite the covenant and the lease, and prefer freehold and near-freehold for the deepest exit.
Where to start
If Kampong Glam is calling — and it is a precinct people fall for fast — start with a specific street and a clear view of the tenant you are underwriting. The character sells itself; my job is to make sure the income and the tourism exposure behind it are ones you have gone into with your eyes open.
Questions
How many shophouses are in Kampong Glam?
our database of URA's conservation register identifies 576 likely conserved shophouses in Kampong Glam — the third-largest concentration in Singapore after Little India and Joo Chiat, with a further conserved stretch along Beach Road.
What kind of tenants do Kampong Glam shophouses attract?
A culture- and tourism-led mix: textile and carpet retail on Arab Street, independent retail, bars and small restaurants on Haji Lane, cafés around Bussorah Street and the Sultan Mosque, and Middle Eastern, Malay and contemporary F&B throughout.
Is Kampong Glam a good area to buy a shophouse?
It offers the third-deepest conserved stock, a globally recognisable identity and strong tourist footfall, often at a more attainable entry than the CBD-fringe trophy streets. The trade-off is greater exposure to travel cycles, since much of the tenant base is visitor-led — which should be underwritten deliberately.
Where is Kampong Glam?
In District 7, on the city fringe near Bugis and Beach Road, anchored by the Sultan Mosque and bounded by Arab Street, Bussorah Street, Haji Lane and the surrounding conserved streets.
Sources
- URA — conservation register and conservation guidelines (official): ura.gov.sg
- Singapore Tourism Board — international visitor arrivals, 2024: stb.gov.sg
- our database — conserved shophouse counts by conservation area, geocoded from the official URA register.
Note on sources: this profile uses our database (built from the official URA conservation register), official URA guidance, and the Singapore Tourism Board. No property-agency or consultancy figures are used.