SINGAPORE: A local Reddit Singapore user posed a question regarding the legality of loitering outside someone else’s flat, making the startling claim that “a stranger lies on an abandoned sofa directly outside my HDB unit every night to talk on the phone.”
In his detailed post on the popular Reddit thread, r/askSingapore, user u/Junn23 shared that his newly purchased HDB unit, conveniently located near the staircase landing, inadvertently provides enough space for the unexpected placement of a sofa.
He confessed, “I’m not living in it yet, but every time I’m there at night, he will be outside. It makes me uncomfortable and I would like to know if there is anything I can do about it? Is it his right to loiter outside since the HDB corridor is considered a public space? I didn’t get the chance to talk to him as he is always on the phone. And frankly, I’m too much a wuss to do that too.”
The Reddit user further explained his hesitation, voicing his preference to avoid antagonizing the man as he may be a potential neighbor.
“We made eye contact a few times and I’m afraid he will guess that I’m the one that got rid of his sofa,” added u/Junn23.
Fellow Reddit users tried to offer helpful advice, such as moving the sofa.
Another suggested that u/Junn23 ask the Town Council for help.
Others suggested he file a report on the OneService app.
One commenter suggested he make the sofa “less appealing to sit on…like hide or throw away the cushions or something”.
“I’ve developed some anxiety over going to the house at night,” the post author commented, clearly uneasy about the stranger on the “abandoned sofa directly outside my hdb unit”. 
While loitering may not necessarily be illegal in this case, especially if the person is a resident, his presence may be frowned upon by authorities.
/TISG