Derrick Hoh Spent $100K To Transform His $276K 4-Room Flat Into A Muji-Style Smart Home

The condition of the flat, however, was “really bad”. Not only was it old and rundown, being a repurchased flat meant the unit was stripped bare of fixtures and fittings when it was handed over to the Hohs. Only the bathrooms were left as is and tiles in the kitchen re-laid.

Tasked with the overhaul was Derrick’s sister-in-law, their contractor. Their brief to her? Minimalist and Muji.

To transform the 980 sq ft space, the couple reconfigured its layout to suit their needs. The storeroom was removed to accommodate a dry kitchen, and the original master bedroom, which was just by the kitchen, was halved and converted into a studio for Derrick. The remaining master bedroom space and ensuite bathroom were combined with another bedroom to create the new master bedroom.

It might not be obvious from the neutral colour palettes, wood finishes and barely-there décor, but this flat took six months and $100,000 to refurbish. The bulk of the cost was spent on “hiding things”. As they no longer have a storeroom, they needed plenty of cabinets for storage. Carpentry work took up almost half the cost, about $44,000.

To achieve a clean, pared-down look, kitchen cabinets were built on both sides of the walls for storage, and the counters clear of appliances and clutter. They did away with a dish drying rack and even the sink, cooker hood and ironing board are concealed.

“Hiding things is very costly. My wife doesn’t like mess, so we needed a lot of cabinets to stuff our things. We also had to build false walls and ceilings to conceal all the trunking and electrical wires,” reveals Derrick.

And if you think the couple don't cook, you’re wrong. “The kitchen is my wife's sanctuary and she insisted on making the kitchen longer. She also wanted an extra long counter. I didn’t quite get it until we moved in. It has been very useful,” he adds.

The couple also went all out to Muji-fy the home. Derrick, who admits to being clueless when it comes to interior design, left all the furnishing decisions to the missus. But just decking the home with Muji-style furniture was not enough. They had to be as close to the “Muji shade” as possible.

“I spent a lot of time matching the shade of wood [vinyl flooring] to the furniture. I took the laminate and went to the IUIGA store and tried to match them until I found an exact one. This is why the furniture in the house match so well. I did that with my kitchen countertop too. She’s the brains and I am the brawns,” he laughs.

“I really like how it turned out. It is very calming. After moving in, we were like, ‘What is this house missing’, then we adopted our pomeranian, Uni. Even she matches the place.”

The guest room is the only room with colour on the wall. Though Derrick admits that it “looks kind of weird”, his wife likes green and white, and is considering using it as a kid’s room in future. “I can see it will look nice as a baby room with wood and white, but we are not using it at the moment,” he says.

Meanwhile, the Lego enthusiasts plan to turn it into a Lego-themed room, decorated with vintage Lego prints and memorabilia like the giant Lego heads from their wedding.

Believe it or not, this is all the closet space for two people. "We are the kind of couple that don’t have a lot of clothes. I didn’t marry a fashionista. This is all she has and I appreciate her for that," muses Derrick.

Not in theme with the rest of the house is Derrick’s studio aka man cave, which he had free rein to design however he pleased. Inspired by whiskey lounges, the intimate space is decked out in dark wood, subdued amber lighting, and exudes a more masculine vibe.

His only complaint is the size of the room: “I would have loved to have a sofa here, but my wife wanted a long kitchen, including a space outside which was converted into a dry kitchen. I was like, ’You are eating up my studio space’. I was hoping we could shorten the kitchen or play around with the layout like moving the dining table elsewhere so I can have a bigger studio but she insisted on it.

"We had a debate, to put it mildly, but I think it is part and parcel of a marriage. We didn’t end up being angry with each other, it was more of how we could use this space efficiently and make sure that it lasts for a long time.”

The studio may be tiny, but it is the most expensive room in the house. Derrick spent a “low five-figure sum” decking out and soundproofing the room. Just the acoustic panels (grey panels on the wall) alone cost a few grand.

One thing Derrick insisted on having was a smart home. It’s his dream to have a connected, voice-controlled house and the tech enthusiast spared no expense outfitting it with intelligent devices. He reckons that it cost about $5,000 to wire up the home. During the interview, he tells us about IR (infrared) blasters and life-changing appliances like their automated laundry system that can dry clothes in a couple of hours. He even installed smart speakers around the house so he and his wife can “page” each other… in their, um, four-room flat?

“A lot of things are very ‘extra’, but they come in useful. It’s more about the convenience and improving your quality of life, rather than a necessity. It frees me up to do other more important things and can also minimise conflict [with the wife]. If my wife tells me to turn off the lights, I can just tell Google to do it. You may think these are little things, but they all add up. If you don’t handle them with finesse, they will affect the marriage,” muses Derrick.

You know what they say, “happy wife, happy life”.

8 DAYS: Did you have any concerns about buying such an old flat?

DERRICK HOH: I was more concerned about buying a repurchased flat ‘cos I might encounter issues like loansharks. But my mum came here to kaypoh around and she found out from the neighbours that the previous owner had passed away of old age. So, we thought that was kind of a good vibe ‘cos she lived a long life, and I could potentially do that as well.

We were also not allowed to view the unit so we didn’t know the condition of the place. But we were pretty lucky ‘cos before we put in the deposit for the flat, we came here to take a look and just so happened someone was laying the tiles for the kitchen so we asked if we could go in to take a look. The condition was really bad. There were burn marks ‘cos I think the previous owner burnt incense, but my contractor said it looked okay, so I was confident to buy it.

Renovations began last December but you only moved in in June. What took you so long?

A lot of it was due to us being unable to make decisions on a lot of things like which wall to hack and how we wanted to do up the kitchen. My contractor kept chasing us and because she is family, she was very brutal. It was also very difficult to get hold of carpenters, plumbers and electricians during the pandemic so she was really kan cheong and wanted to book these people. It came to a point where she just went ahead and booked them and gave us the deadline.

But you moved in even though the place wasn’t completely ready.

Yes. There were delays in the shipment of our furniture and kitchen appliances. Our bed hadn’t arrived, so we slept separately on sofas for two weeks and the doors of our cabinets were not installed. There was a shortage of manpower so sometimes the workers worked on a few projects concurrently. So we had to brave through the [post-renovation fumes] and glue smell. It really hurts the eyes! Now that we think of it, it was very foolish of us.

Why didn't you at least wait for it to be properly fitted?

We just couldn’t wait ‘cos it is our [first] home and also I’ve been wanting a studio for so long. I was away from my workstation for about one-and-a-half years, and I really wanted to get back to it, so the first thing that was done up in this house was the studio. I think it is quite shiok. We were very excited about the idea of firing things up for the first time, like turning on the TV or having our first meal in the house. These are like milestones, little victories that we appreciate a lot.

Your home is really very tidy. I have never seen such an empty kitchen counter.

The place isn’t clean just because you guys are here. It is like this all the time. I like the minimalist theme and I like the fact it is very clean. It also reflects how much my wife changed me for the better. I used to be very sloppy, but she has made me want to be neat as well.

​​​​​​​Apart from your smart laundry rack, what other unexpected high-tech features do you have in the house?

We have an automated toilet seat. It’s a toilet bidet and it can warm the seat and also wash and dry your butt. It’s damn shiok and you don’t need to use toilet paper! And I don’t get into trouble [for leaving the toilet seat up] ‘cos it will bring the lid down and close automatically. But I am well-trained like Uni. I honestly think its damn ‘extra’ but my wife likes it. And since we saved quite a bit when we bought the flat, we decided to splurge on certain things in the house.

​​​​​​​What is your most treasured item(s) in the house?

My trophies. The tragic thing is when I was moving them here, I hit a curb and everything fell. A lot of trophies got smashed into little pieces. These are the surviving ones. I kept the debris and am thinking of creative ideas to deal with it.

I see you’re a fan of Aaron Kwok.

This LD (laser disc) is what made me a singer. I bought this more than 20 years ago and back then, LDs were hard to come by. This cost me $80. Every day, I would save 10 cents just so I could buy this. I would go to the store every day to make sure it was still there and move it to the back of the rack. After I bought the LD, I played it every day and practised singing his songs. Then in 2008, when I was in Taipei to promote my first album, Aaron Kwok happened to be in town for his concert, so my manager arranged for us to meet backstage and he autographed this for me. That meeting sort of influenced my next album. He told me that male artistes must know how to dance, so for the first plug of the album, ‘Acceptance’, I danced in the music video and till today, that is still one of my biggest hits.

What have you learned about yourself since moving in?

I learned that I was always ready for marriage. It was never on my agenda in the past. And to be able to get married in such a short time — we got together two years before we got married — and every single day, I am still able to wake up… not being cheesy here but I can still be like, “Yeah I am married to this woman and I am proud of it”.

Watch #JustSwipeLah for a tour of Derrick's home.
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Photos: Alvin Teo

Catch Derrick on Cutting Edge on meWATCH.