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.'