Why go private? HDB flats are better

http://business.asiaone.com/Business...13-134943.html

Mon, Apr 13, 2009

my paper

Why go private? HDB flats are better

BY DARYLL NANAYAKARA


THE demand may be strong, the price may be right, and the reasons to upgrade may be there.

But some Housing Board dwellers are staying put in their flats, even though some of their estates are over 20 years old.

According to some flatowners who spoke to my paper, living in an HDB unit has its own unique advantages over private homes.

Mechanic Stephen Chong, 54, who has been living in Bukit Batok for nearly 23 years, said he is likely to turn down any offer for his four-room flat, even if he was given a good price.

'I have got to know my neighbours so well over the years,' he said. 'I have seen them move in, have kids, watched their kids grow up, get married and move out. There's a sense of attachment here that money cannot buy.'

Furthermore, the estate is not lacking in amenities, added Mr Chong's neighbour, Madam S.L Loh.

The 45-year-old housewife said in Mandarin: 'We have everything that a condo has. We're near an MRT station and bus interchange. It's a quiet neighbourhood. There are lots of eating places and a mall. And if you want to swim, there's a swimming pool five minutes away by foot.

'Why would you want to take out a huge loan to pay for a condo unit that is smaller than a flat?'

Madam Zainab Taib, a 42-year-old housewife, would also prefer to stay put in her four-room HDB unit in Yishun Ring Road, because living in private property would make her life 'harder'.

She explained: 'Here in an HDB unit, if the pipes are leaking, I can get it fixed by HDB. In a condo, I would have to do it on my own.

'Also, I can buy another flat at a more affordable price because of the subsidies offered by the Government.'

http://business.asiaone.com/Business...13-134983.html

HDB Block Busters

Mon, Apr 13, 2009

my paper


BLOCK 7, GHIM MOH ROAD
UNIT TYPE: 5-room HDB unit
PRICE: $650,000
ATTRACTIONS: 10 mins' drive to Sunset Way group of eateries and Holland
Village, Rochester Park and five mins' walk to Buona Vista and Dover MRT
stations, 10 mins' drive from National University of Singapore
Related link:
» $658,000 for Tiong Bahru flat » Why go private? HDB flats are better

BLOCK 131B, KIM TIAN ROAD
UNIT TYPE: 5-room HDB unit
PRICE: $658,000
ATTRACTIONS: Less than five mins away from Tiong Bahru MRT Station, near
the CTE and AYE, five mins to Zouk and Tiong Bahru Food Centre, 10 mins' drive
to Orchard Road area and Vivocity shopping centre

BLOCK 131C, KIM TIAN ROAD
UNIT TYPE: 5-room HDB unit
PRICE: $640,000
ATTRACTIONS: Less than five mins away from Tiong Bahru MRT Station, near the
CTE and AYE, five mins to Zouk and Tiong Bahru Food Centre, 10 mins' drive to
Orchard Road area and Vivocity shopping centre

BLOCK 324, CLEMENTI AVENUE 5
UNIT TYPE: 4-room HDB unit
PRICE: $428,000
ATTRACTIONS: Five mins' walk to Pei Tong Primary School, directly opposite
Clementi MRT Station, less than 10 mins' walk to Nan Hua High School, 10 mins'
drive to Holland Village, 15 mins' drive to Ngee Ann Polytechnic

http://business.asiaone.com/Business...13-134932.html

Mon, Apr 13, 2009

my paper

$658,000 for Tiong Bahru flat

BY DARYLL NANAYAKARA


A FIVE-ROOM flat at Block 131B, Kim Tian Road, fetched a princely $658,000 on the resale market recently - more than what it may cost to get a private apartment in Loyang.

Over at Queenstown and Ghim Moh, the HDB resale market is similarly smoking hot: A five-room flat in Queenstown commanded $600,000 while another in Ghim Moh cost $650,000.

These flats are not short on amenities either: they are near food haunts, schools, MRT stations, swimming and sports complexes and a short ride from town.

As the price differentials between HDB flats and condominium apartments narrow, property companies told my paper that this is the best time for flat dwellers dreaming of an upgrade, or flat sellers hoping to make a tidy profit, to get in on the act.

While prices for private homes have plunged by 13.8 per cent in the first quarter this year, the price tags of resale HDB units have remained largely unaffected.

PropNex's corporate communications manager, Mr Adam Tan, said this was due to strong demand for resale flats.

He explained: 'The overall continued strong demand for resale flats stems from the fact that there are no more surplus flats with HDB and resale flats present a viable option for people who are unable to wait for projects under construction.'

So does this slump in the economy present an opportune moment to switch to private properties? The answer is a resounding yes.

'For people with the means, now is an excellent time...given that the gap between the price indices of the two is at its narrowest,' Mr Tan explained.

Disadvantages of HDB flats:

1. urinating in the lifts
2. all kinds of rubbish big and small dumped at lift lobbies (including old sofas, mattresses etc)
3. loan shark scribblings on the walls
4. uncouth people spitting around
5. cockroaches and rats everywhere (Town councils treat them as part of family these days)
6. constantly fighting for parking lots in certain places
7. no facilities like swimming pool or gym just downstairs
8. no security guard
9. not much of a facade to talk about for most hdb flats

might not true

things that can happen at Condo
1. littering from lady long hair to used sanitary
2. dog po po everywhere
3. someone do art and craft on other ppl cars
4. party thru' out the night and claim that is their right.

I have more to add:

10. Pigeons (hundreds of them) flying around at void deck & their poo-poo everywhere (because some bloody idiots keep feeding them at same spot everyday - Sooner or later sure get H5N1 as pigeons are known to be carrier).
11. Dogs po po & urine everywhere
12. Cars become more fanciful with all the nice "art-and-craft"
13. Cars windows & windscreens smashed (cash cards gone - Nobody care anyway because no security guard).
15. Mahjong & party sessions throughout the night.
16. "Pong Pong Pong" music from some idiots kicking football in void deck, especially at night.
17. Mosquitoes commandoes - can fly even up to 10 storey high - dengue???
18. More music to the ears from "V-room V-room" from the "David Hartleyson" motorcycles.
19. "Groom Groom Groom" from lorries, buses, and even the rubbish trunks even before 6am.
20. Noise insulation so terrible that up-stairs, down-stairs talking loudly also can hear (Some stupid people write to forum to complain HDB about it and HDB said you pay so little for HDB flat so can't expect excellent quality right?).

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by franzmark

Disadvantages of HDB flats:

1. urinating in the lifts
2. all kinds of rubbish big and small dumped at lift lobbies (including old sofas, mattresses etc)
3. loan shark scribblings on the walls
4. uncouth people spitting around
5. cockroaches and rats everywhere (Town councils treat them as part of family these days)
6. constantly fighting for parking lots in certain places
7. no facilities like swimming pool or gym just downstairs
8. no security guard
9. not much of a facade to talk about for most hdb flats

---

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Acer

might not true

things that can happen at Condo
1. littering from lady long hair to used sanitary
2. dog po po everywhere
3. someone do art and craft on other ppl cars
4. party thru' out the night and claim that is their right.

---

From the posts, looks like more points -ve than +ve leh ... :D

Town councils these days busy with other things than doing up the paint job (used to be 5 years once right?? .. but what happened now?) .....

Heard about graffiti (or art work) oso happening at condos .. but i guess chances of seeing burnt vehicles (if u ever saw those news in the past abt fire acts at hdb car parks) should be smaller at condos bah ...

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by cheerful

From the posts, looks like more points -ve than +ve leh ... :D

Town councils these days busy with other things than doing up the paint job (used to be 5 years once right?? .. but what happened now?) .....

Heard about graffiti (or art work) oso happening at condos .. but i guess chances of seeing burnt vehicles (if u ever saw those news in the past abt fire acts at hdb car parks) should be smaller at condos bah ...

---

town council busy investing surplus funds, dont disturb them ok? :sleep:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by cheerful

From the posts, looks like more points -ve than +ve leh ... :D

Town councils these days busy with other things than doing up the paint job (used to be 5 years once right?? .. but what happened now?) .....

Heard about graffiti (or art work) oso happening at condos .. but i guess chances of seeing burnt vehicles (if u ever saw those news in the past abt fire acts at hdb car parks) should be smaller at condos bah ...

---

i just want to say..
condo also got funny ppl :D

election not coming... do what painting.

hanor ...... maybe oso busy with fixing gaps between metal railings ...

Zzzzz ....... :sleep:

and caught rat too :D

actually it all depends on the residents staying in the estate. When i was staying at Dover Close East, the place was exclusive and residents were very considerate.

But i know it is an exception so please don't shoot me.:scared-2: