“They really pile everything,” said Ms Phua. “So now it’s more on sorting out. Last time, (volunteers would check for) expired items and clear them. Now, you have to organise it.”
Sometimes, people hide money inside kettles, she added. “They said (during the COVID-19) circuit breaker, they cannot go to the bank, so they keep money inside the kettle,” explained Ms Phua.
A MORE CONDUCIVE LIVING ENVIRONMENT
In some households, the hoarding problem could have been avoided, but sometimes the situation is not so simple, said observers.
A homeowner, who only wanted to be known as Ms Aaliyah, said her husband has a habit of going to garbage bins to look for things that can be reused in order to save money, such as toys for their children.
“That’s how things started getting cluttered in our house,” she said. “Because we have financial issues, we try not to buy things.”