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He Built Singapore's Largest Co-Living, Eyeing a Listing? [TBS 15 ft Eugene Lim, The Assembly Place]

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What does it take to scale from a single rented house to becoming Singapore’s largest co-living operator with nearly 5,000 keys?

We sat with Eugene Lim, Founder and CEO of The Assembly Place (TAP), for an unfiltered conversation about bold pivots, gritty beginnings, and building a real estate business with purpose. In this episode: From broke uni student to building a 20-year real estate career

  • Why co-living is more than just renting rooms
  • How TAP is expanding into regional markets like KL and eyeing global hotspots like Japan and London
  • The strategic shift from operator to asset co-owner
  • Fundraising, building lean with tech, and the road to a potential SGX listing
Whether you're a budding entrepreneur or just curious how the co-living model works behind the scenes, this is one founder story you won’t want to miss.

Highlights:

  • 03:50 – How do you end up in the co-living category?
  • 05:45 – By the third year you had 300 people. How much were you making by then?
  • 11:00 – Why did you then leave it and join corporate?
  • 17:50 – What was that process like from testing co-living to hitting 250 keys?
  • 19:30 – What was the pivot during COVID? What were you doing?
  • 23:45 – How much did you raise and how was it used?
  • 25:15 – Why equity raise instead of project financing?
  • 30:35 – Your team is very lean. Is there some thought around this you want to share?
  • 35:10 – What’s next? What is happening in the next phase?
  • 37:50 – What are the major growth trends or regions you’re riding on?
  • 40:10 – What’s the exit plan?

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