SINGAPORE – More budget-conscious Singapore families are styling their Build-To-Order (BTO) flats to look like Ikea showrooms.

Here, three home owners reveal their experiences and expenses in tapping the Swedish retail titan’s new one-stop Home Design Service after bypassing contractors and interior designers.

Each home owner’s journey has been expedited by an Ikea specialist, progressing from initial space planning to final installation.

Cost: $40,000Flat type: Four-room BTO (90 sq m)

Inside a stylish living room at MacPherson Weave, a family of five gathers for a cosy movie night with the blinds drawn and popcorn passed around. The traditional-modern space exudes a calm aesthetic that belies the initial terror felt by the homeowner, who wants to be known only as Seng.

“How am I going to fit the family?” the 53-year-old church worker recalls asking himself, during an interview with The Straits Times a fortnight after the family’s mid-May move-in.

The downsize to a ...