The SIT initially carried out back lane improvement schemes and marking out unsanitary buildings for demolition, but began constructing public housing from 1935.

The SIT consisted of a Board of Trustees, two staff, and additional workers to conduct maintenance work, along with an Estates Department, established in 1947, which handled the land and developments of the organisation.

A property tax known as the Improvement Rate, rent revenue and government loans financed the SIT's projects.

In the early 20th century, Singapore was experiencing rapid expansion and development, and the local government was unable to handle significant town improvement schemes.

A 1907 report by a public health commissioner called for the construction of back lanes to facilitate the removal of human waste.

A report by a housing commission in 1918 recommended that Singapore's urban planning be handled by a trust, similar to what had been done in India.

[9] The SIT soon started work on what The Straits Times claimed was to be a model housing scheme at the Lavender Street—Serangoon Road intersection, and land clearance in Tiong Bahru.

[13] In 1931, the SIT carried out a scheme to construct houses for artisans in the Balestier Road area, thereby providing workers with sanitary and affordable residential facilities.

The owners of the buildings disputed the order, bringing the case to the Supreme Court in January 1935,[15] and to the Privy Council in 1937.

Thus, these properties were in extremely poor condition by the end of Japanese rule, and the SIT spent the first few years after the Occupation refurbishing them.

This plan made several recommendations regarding the zoning and transport infrastructure in Singapore, such as an improved road network and the construction of new towns that could function separately from the city.

The reasons for this included the high rental cost or the undesirable location of flats offered by the SIT as compensation, along with more aggressive opposition by secret society members.

[32] In 1955, the Committee on Local Government recommended that the SIT be scrapped, and housing be handled by an agency managed by a government-appointed board.

Initially made up of eleven staff, the department experienced yearly expansion to cope with the increase in housing construction, and had 70 personnel by 1952.