SINGAPORE — The ornate, colorful "shophouses" that line the streets in some old neighborhoods of Singapore are not what immediately comes to mind when people think of the city-state. In a country where land is scarce and public housing can cost more than a million, these two- or three-story shophouses can cost tens of millions. Shophouses are colonial-era buildings — with some built as early as the 1840s — that are under a government conservation program. From Jack Ma's wife to Hong Kong superstar Jackie Chan, as well as Spanish tycoon Ricardo Portabella Peralta, the rich and famous are reportedly among the buyers of Singapore's shophouses. Renowned Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio was also recently identified as a buyer of two shophouses along Singapore's Club Street.

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Persons: Jack Ma's, Jackie Chan, Ricardo Portabella Peralta, shophouses, Ray Dalio, Knight Frank Organizations: Hong Kong, Bridgewater, Singapore's, Street, CNBC Locations: SINGAPORE, Singapore, Hong