How family's fortunes have grown over years

http://www.straitstimes.com/ST%2BFor...ry_434495.html

Sep 26, 2009

THANKS TO HDB

How family's fortunes have grown over years


THE letters lamenting how singles are being priced out of the HDB market and the call to ban cash over valuation (COV) arrangements are bemusing.

My family is an example of how HDB policies have helped us improve our standard of living and how gradual price increases have helped my family upgrade our housing status.

My parents have three children and over 40 years, our family of five has moved from a one-room flat to a three-room and finally to a four-room flat in Choa Chu Kang - a location that is not ideal for some people but has reasonably good amenities. Most important, it is a place my family can afford.

Although we started out with a small one-room flat, the price increases have helped our family upgrade the size of our home.

Unlike other countries, Singapore has a unique public housing policy where the Government not only helps most of us buy our first home, but also ensures that the increasing value of our property will enable us to upgrade to the next level when we are ready.

My brother recently applied successfully for a flat in the vicinity. Although his fiancee's parents live in the more popular Sengkang and of course she would like to live near them, they decided to apply for Choa Chu Kang because their chances of getting a flat would be higher.

When I got married eight years ago, I lived with my parents-in-law for a few good years before we bought our own place. Young couples these days complain they are being priced out of the HDB market. But it is their unrealistic expectations that have caused this.

Realistically, a young couple who want to start a family and own their own place should consider a tradeoff between the size of their first home, its location and the availability of new homes (especially in a mature estate).

Otherwise, there are other options like the rental market or living with their parents until they are ready to move out.

A word of advice to these young couples who plan to start their own families and move on to the next stage of their adult life: Instead of blaming others for not being able to own their own place (with the size and location they want), perhaps they should be more mature and realistic in their expectations.

In life, we must learn to adapt and not just live within our means, but also make the most of what we have.

Mabel Tan (Miss)

The letter was funny..

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Originally Posted by H88

http://www.h88.com.sg/images/h88_masthead_logo.jpg
Anger at rising HDB prices misdirected
Anonymous Fan
H88
Sunday, 27 September 2009, 15:41

I have been monitoring the chatter on popular local forums lately, and of late, is the hot topic of rapidly increasing HDB prices. While some of the voices have legitimate issues, some are just blindly joining in the fray.

Let me explain:
•For those that are complaining about high Cash-Over-Valuation prices, it is either time to start saving or settle for a low floor unit.

•For those that want to stay in mature estates and yet want low prices, they need a reality check.

•For those that insist on staying near parents in mature estates, they can't complain of high prices in older estates.

•For those who insist on having a home before starting a family, it is a matter of choice.

•For those that complain about why your parent's flat cost $75,000 and yours cost $350,000, you need a time machine.

No, I am not a "HDB ghost writer". In fact, I've personally faced some of the issues above. No doubt I am unhappy about many things, but I came to realize the root cause of my problems is the failure to plan early and lack of success at 'bringing home more bread'.

But if there is an issue at hand that really needs to be addressed, a sudden massive influx of new residents is the one to look at. Especially if the report that "40% of recent HDB buyers are actually Permanent Residents" is accurate.

It is understandable that we should not let an extraordinary opportunity to rejuvenate our population and competitiveness pass by, but to not have foreseen and prepared for side effects - such as increased demand leading to an unhealthy sudden price upswing; was a big blunder, with punishment handed out to citizens.

It is hard to pin all the blame on a single organization like HDB, which is responsible for providing affordable quality homes to citizens. Perhaps, it is a simple case of multiple organizations not talking to each other - with one turning on the tap and the other shutting the drainage leading to a flood. However glazing over this issue and acting like it isn't happening is also not the right way forward.

Knee-jerk measures - such as making available thousands of new Build-To-Order flats and introducing anti-speculative measures in a bottom-up property rally should not have been the only "visible" solution. Perhaps managing policy could help - a reader of H88.com.sg, has candidly suggested on Facebook: "PR = Please Rent"

To the angry ones: Anger about the issue of rapidly increasing HDB prices is growing, but I feel it is misdirected. Banging on the wrong doors will only give you the wrong answers.

To the ones that can provide a solution: Come clean and solve this problem, or this issue will fester.

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Time to cool down?

the writer works for HDB?

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Originally Posted by Reporter

Time to cool down?

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finally someone comes along and tell these cockernader losers to shut up [i mean the article]

Author is :doh:

HDB has a policy of gradual appreciation of his flat, which allows them to upgrade from one room to 3 rooms and finally 4 room flats.

Is he trying to say that the HDB policy only appreciates one room flat? otherwise, in terms of absolute quantum, the % of appreciation applies to 3 and 4 rooms, will result to it going even higher than the 1 room, and he would not be able to afford it at all.

Unless of coz his 1 room flat was in Raffles place, 3 room flat was in Clementi and finally 4 room flat in Chua Chu Kang... but i don't remember seeing 1 room flat in Raffles Place before...

A reply to Ms Mabel Tan’s letter: “How family’s fortunes have grown over the years”

September 29, 2009

I refer to the letter “How family’s fortunes have grown over the years” by Ms Mabel Tan dated 26 Sept 2009.

Ms Tan’s bemusement is understandable. She is bemused because she and her family are totally unencumbered by the recent sharp increases in property prices. Like the person watching a fire from the safety of the opposite bank of a river, she feels neither anxiety nor pain.

She shares with us her good example of being able to stay with her in-laws for 8 years and so she expects everyone else to be able to do so. But I know of a colleague whose husband slept in the living room of his parents’ flat before their marriage because his family was too big.

Does Ms Tan expect my colleague to sleep in the living room of her parents-in-laws’ flat? Ms Tan shouldn’t have moved out after 8 years but should have continued to stay with her in-laws to uphold the example she had been setting.

Ms Tan claims that her family’s fortunes have ‘grown’ over the years, but she provides no details as to how it has actually grown. Let’s see, there is no doubt that from a one-room flat to a four-room flat, Ms Tan’s parents have benefitted from asset inflation. But has Ms Tan’s extended family benefitted as a whole?

Let’s say for simplicity’s sake, Ms Tan’s parents’ flat appreciated from $30,000 to $300,000, that’s a cool $270,000 that Ms Tan’s parents pocketed over the years without doing anything. But what about Ms Tan and her siblings?

If the price had stayed at $30,000, Ms Tan and her siblings would have been able to snap up units at $30,000 each only. But because of asset inflation, Ms Tan and her siblings now have to fork out $300,000 each.
In fact, Ms Tan and her two siblings would have to fork out a total of $900,000 instead of $90,000. Collectively, they would have paid $810,000 more. The extra burden of $810,000 that Ms Tan’s generation has to bear far outweighs the gain of $270,000 that her parents pocketed.

So that is the truth behind the fallacy of asset appreciation. We can of course adjust all prices for inflation but what this simple example illustrates is this: the so-called gain from asset appreciation of one generation will be borne by the future generation. It becomes a debt for the future generation to bear. Unless salaries can keep up, that debt will keep increasing and increasing until it becomes totally unbearable.

Thank you


Ng Kok Lim

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Originally Posted by august

I refer to the letter “How family’s fortunes have grown over the years” by Ms Mabel Tan dated 26 Sept 2009.

Ms Tan’s bemusement is understandable. She is bemused because she and her family are totally unencumbered by the recent sharp increases in property prices. Like the person watching a fire from the safety of the opposite bank of a river, she feels neither anxiety nor pain ...

Ng Kok Lim

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This Ng Kok Lim writes well. Obviously he has intelligence and a good income.

If he would just spend more time in properties instead of complaining, he should get far ahead and be "watching a fire from the safety of the opposite bank of the river, feeling neither anxiety nor pain".

Or perhaps he is laying the ground work for entry into opposition politics? Hmmm ... then I would say he is smart.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jlrx

This Ng Kok Lim writes well. Obviously he has intelligence and a good income.

If he would just spend more time in properties instead of complaining, he should get far ahead and be "watching a fire from the safety of the opposite bank of the river, feeling neither anxiety nor pain".

Or perhaps he is laying the ground work for entry into opposition politics? Hmmm ... then I would say he is smart.

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he was quoted in ST before, a poly lecturer iirc.

http://www.propnex.com/images/PropnexLogo.jpg
HDB price index maintains steady climb
PropNex
Thursday, 1 Oct 2009

HDB’s resale price index (RPI) flash estimate of 144.7 for the third quarter of 2009 continues setting a new record high for the RPI.

PropNex CEO Mohamed Ismail attributes this growth to the greater demand for resale flats in recent months.

"Looking at our transactions for the past few months, we have seen a return of higher COVs (cash-over-valuation)," says Mr Ismail, “which is clear evidence of a rising demand for resale flats.”

However, he maintains that only growth increases of 2–3% are sustainable, and does not expect to see any variation in this for the next few quarters.

Adds Mr Ismail: "This increase is actually good news for HDB owners as it provides them with the prime opportunity to upgrade their property or simply gain cash from selling their existing flat."