Kuala Lampur, Oct. 27 -- My home changed colour last week. The public housing block I live in was repainted as part of a refurbishment.

Now I can't say I'm a fan of the new orange and yellow colour scheme. The pastel shades look like a Dulux colour chart but the point is the government via the Housing Development Board (HDB) does make regular refurbishments to Singapore's public housing.

This regular attention helps make the HDB one of the world's most successful public housing schemes.

Eighty per cent of Singaporeans live in HDB housing. The city has arguably the highest proportion of public housing dwellers in the world.

Sure, there is some debate about the cost of the houses (some claim it's too high) and the final ownership of the...