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Thread: New beginnings at the Pinnacle

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    Default New beginnings at the Pinnacle

    http://www.straitstimes.com/Life%252...ry_492377.html

    Feb 20, 2010

    New beginnings at the Pinnacle

    It may have been a rush but these residents are glad to usher in Chinese New Year in new abodes

    By lin wenjian


    Owners of units in the 50-storey Pinnacle development (above) got their keys to their homes two months ago. -- ST PHOTO: STEPHANIE YEOW


    View more photos



    New year, new clothes, new homes in what is probably Singapore's most desirable HDB estate.

    A handful of home owners at The Pinnacle@Duxton managed to do up their new abodes in time to show them off to visitors during this Chinese New Year season.

    Two months ago, owners of units in the 50-storey development received the keys to their homes, following a ceremony on Dec 13 attended by Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew.

    It has been more than five years after The Pinnacle was launched for sale under the Housing and Development Board's build-to-order scheme in May 2004.
    HDB says keys to 1,530 out of 1,848 four- and five-room apartments have been issued.

    The flats are erected in Duxton Plain in Cantonment Road - the site where the first two HDB rental blocks in the area were built in 1963.

    Now, replacing the old slab-like blocks are condo-style flats - from 93 to 108sqm - spread over a unique hook-shaped design that ensures no window looks into a neighbouring home.

    Designed by local architecture firm ARC Studio Architecture + Urbanism, Singapore, these flats boast another distinctive feature: two skybridges that link the seven blocks on the 26th and 50th storeys.

    The one on the lower floor is open 24 hours only to residents. It has amenities such as an outdoor gym and a jogging track.

    Beating the deadline

    The public can access only the skybridge on the 50th storey from 9am to 10pm daily and non-residents have to pay $5 each for a visit.

    A maximum of 200 visitors are allowed every day.

    The area is close to two MRT stations - Outram and Tanjong Pagar. Both are five minutes away on foot.

    Residents can shop for groceries at the nearby wet market at Chinatown Complex in Smith Street. There are also plenty of eateries and bars in Bukit Pasoh and New Bridge Road for those wanting to make merry.

    With such attractive design and facilities, it is no wonder that residents were eager to move in as soon as they could.

    The only problem was, the year-end period is always the peak season for interior design firms here.

    'There is usually a 50 to 60 per cent increase in jobs from October to January,' says Mr Thomas Tham, ownerof design firm White Space Living, which is working on four households atThe Pinnacle.

    An interior designer of another company, D'esprit Interiors, says her company handles about 10 cases in 'the one or two months leading to Chinese New Year', compared to three to four jobs it receives at other times of the year.

    She declined to be named.

    Despite the crunch, some Pinnacle home owners - about 10 per cent, according to a quick Life! survey of the estate - moved in just in time for the Chinese New Year.

    [email protected]



    Their love nest, finally

    Who lives here: Ng Say Hian, 32, army officer, and his wife, Seow Lin, 31, senior IT analyst
    Flat type: 34th storey, four-room flat, 93sq m
    Cost of flat: $346,000
    Keys collected: Dec 15
    Moved in: Feb 13


    To keep their 93 sq m flat looking as spacious as possible, Mrs Ng Seow Lin and her husband, Mr Ng Say Hian (both, top), fitted a mirror in the living room to create the illusion of a larger area and kept their furnishings to a minimum, with just a leather sofa. -- ST PHOTOS: AIDAH RAUF

    The Ngs' excitement about getting the keys to their new home immediately disappeared when they stepped inside for the first time and saw how small it was.

    'When we opened the door to the flat, we were quite disappointed at how small 93 sq m really is,' says Mr Ng Say Hian.

    The couple, who have been married for four years, previously lived with Mr Ng's parents in a Hillview Road condominium and with his in-laws in a Bukit Timah house.

    Thanks to the good work of their interior designer, the apartment looks more spacious.

    The living room, done up in a classy black-and-white scheme, is now Mr Ng's favourite part of the house.

    'With the elevated platform and mirror, it now feels bigger. I'm very much into entertainment, so I'll probably invest in a good sound system to set the living room up to be my haven,' he says.

    To keep the area as spacious as possible, a cream-coloured L-shaped leather sofa is the only loose piece of furniture there.

    'We prefer our place to be neat and tidy, with no hidden or hard-to-reach corners, so cleaning is easier,' says Mrs Ng.

    Mr Ng adds: 'We gave the interior designer a budget of $30,000 to achieve a minimalist look, and worked very closely with him to get everything ready so we could spend the Chinese New Year holidays in our new home.'

    The home owners are planning a housewarming party today and Mr Ng intends to borrow as many access cards as he can from his neighbours so he can take all his guests to the skybridge on the 50th storey at the same time.

    Each household at The Pinnacle has four cards.

    Even though the Ngs no longer enjoy the convenience of living with their parents, they are happy to finally have a place to call their own.

    'The sense of ownership we have is very satisfying and we know that this place is a good buy, as an investment and as a place to live in,' MrNg says.
    His wife adds with a laugh: 'Our parents are also getting old, so they should not be still helping us with household chores.'


    Love the view

    Who lives here: James Tan, 48, tour agency sales manager, his wife Serene, 49, legal secretary, their daughter Cassandra, 21, student, and son Ericson, 19, student
    Flat type: 42nd storey, four-room flat, 93 sq m
    Cost of flat: $369,000
    Keys collected: Dec 14
    Moved in: Jan 10


    Hanging lamps (above) in the 93 sq m home of James Tan, his wife Serene and children Ericson and Cassandra (all, top) are part of the apartment's showpieces, which also include paintings and rosewood furniture. -- ST PHOTOS: TERENCE TAN

    Mr James Tan and his family could move in to their new home at The Pinnacle less than a month after collecting their keys mostly because they kept renovations to a minimum.

    There was one big problem, though: Mr Tan and his wife's beloved rosewood daybed could not be dismantled and therefore could not fit into the lift.

    'The movers had to carry it up from the first floor,' Mrs Tan says. That feat took seven hours and cost them $400.

    The Tans are used to living on the outskirts of the city. Their previous home was a maisonette in Geylang East, whose location they loved. But with their children grown up and spending less time at home, they wanted a smaller place than the 140 sq m maisonette.

    'My son will be enlisting for national service in two years and my daughter sometimes goes on overseas exchange programmes that last a few months each time. That leaves just the two of us and we don't need such a big space,' Mr Tan explains.

    'Our queue number was in the 900s, so during the two-week selection period in July 2004, I checked the Internet every day to see which units were taken up so that when it came to our turn, we would have a good idea of which one to choose,' says Mrs Tan.

    Although they did not get a unit in their preferred B and C blocks, which they say have the best view of the city, they are satisfied with their choice.

    'The first thing I see when I wake up is a beautiful sea view. It is fantastic,' says Mr Tan, who asks that Life! not identify the block he lives in.

    So proud is his family of their new home that they invited friends and relatives over during the Chinese New Year holidays, something they hardly did in the 14 years they lived in Geylang East.

    'Some even took the initiative to ask to visit me,' he says with a chuckle.
    In all, they spent $20,000 on the renovations, which included painting the walls in a cosy shade of rose white, wiring up the apartment and installing built-in cabinets.

    Another $3,000 was spent on five hanging lamps. 'They add character and, together with my paintings, are showpieces of the place. Apart from those, we brought over most of the furniture from our old place because we really like them,' Mr Tan says of their rosewood sofa, dining set and TV console.

    From The Pinnacle, the Tans take less time to get to work and school.

    Mr Tan is just one MRT stop away from his office in Raffles Place. His wife takes a five-minute stroll to the law firm she works at in Tanjong Pagar.

    Daughter Cassandra now has a direct bus to the National University of Singapore. 'The journey used to take me more than an hour, compared to 40 minutes now,' says the second-year arts student.

    Her brother Ericson's daily 30-minute commute to Ngee Ann Polytechnic in Clementi is also an improvement from the 45 minutes he used to take.
    They are also nearer to Mr Tan's 70-year-old mother, who lives in nearby Neil Road. He says: 'We used to visit her only on weekends. Now we see her at least three times a week.'


    In time for baby's arrival

    Who lives here: Darien Loh, 30, business development executive, and his wife, Eunice, 29, bank executive
    Flat type: 5th storey, four-room flat, 96 sq m
    Cost of flat: $465,000
    Keys collected: Dec 15
    Moved in: Second week of this month

    With its spacious area, the living room is Mr Darien Loh's favourite part of his 96 sq m flat. With him is his wife, Eunice. -- ST PHOTOS: STEPHANIE YEOW

    The view of Cantonment Road from the apartment's living room is peppered with greenery such as trees.

    No doubt The Pinnacle is highly desirable and located in an excellent area close to the central business districts, and the skybridges are a great feature with stunning views of the city skyline.

    Whatever. After viewing about three flats every week for the past two years, Mr and Mrs Darien Loh are just relieved they now live in a home they own.

    They had been living with Mr Loh's parents in a flat in Clementi since tying the knot in September 2008.

    'The skybridges are a nice bonus but I can probably do without them,' Mr Loh says.

    When they received the selection notice in March last year, the couple initially agreed that they would not settle for a unit below the sixth floor.
    In the end, they decided to buy their fifth-storey apartment.

    Mrs Loh says: 'There were only four units left on the fourth and fifth floors. We went ahead and chose one on the higher floor. We did not want to pay the cash-over-valuation price and an agent's fee needed for a resale flat.'
    Renovations started almost immediately after they received their keys, as the couple wanted to move in before Mrs Loh delivers their first child next month.

    Built-in furniture is a key element in their design. The dining table, the cupboards and the shoe cabinet are made to measure.

    'We made it a point to conceal all electrical wires and not to have hanging lamps because we want the whole place to look neat,' Mr Loh says.

    The long wall beside the kitchen is bare at the moment because Mrs Loh intends to cover it with a montage of family photos.

    The total cost of renovations was $30,000.

    Less than a month after moving in, they already have their favourite corners.

    Mrs Loh says: 'I love our bedroom most. It is where I feel most relaxed and I can do whatever I want.'

    Her husband likes to chill out in the living room. 'This is where I watch TV, read the papers or have a drink to relax after work,' he says.

    'It's the biggest part of the house, so I don't feel hemmed in when I'm here.'

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    the family who bought the 5th floor unit at 46xk is being ripped ripped off by the govt as a 42nd floor unit which is just 3sm smaller is sold at almost 100k cheaper. Maybe HDB can do some explanation before the govt talks about erratic pricing of flats in the resale market....

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    Quote Originally Posted by Regulators
    the family who bought the 5th floor unit at 46xk is being ripped ripped off by the govt as a 42nd floor unit which is just 3sm smaller is sold at almost 100k cheaper. Maybe HDB can do some explanation before the govt talks about erratic pricing of flats in the resale market....
    Early bird catches the worm, the family that bought the 42nd floor unit, the husband looks like the savy type.

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    we are talking about govt pricing of hdb flats here and selling flats to people at subsidised rate so there is no such thing as early bird coz hdb is not private developer. the price dif is more than 100k for more than 29 floors difference so i dont know how hdb is going to explain this anomaly


    Quote Originally Posted by xebay11
    Early bird catches the worm, the family that bought the 42nd floor unit, the husband looks like the savy type.

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    i am very surprised the reporters did not pick that up when they interviewed the home owners

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    Probably the 5th floor owner did not bought it when it was first released, or wasn't successful in the initial ballot, as the prices went up after HDB puts it back for Sale in Matured Estates.
    BE CENTRED BY ALL AT THE FRINGE OF THE CITY @

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    remember that hdb are not supposed to raise prices like that as they have to set an example. different project cannot attack them, coz they can say all they want about different contractors doing the job and give a thousand and 1 excuses about cost of construction differ for different projects. In this case, the price great price disparity is seen in the same project and as mentioned before, hdb should not operate like private developers when it comes to selling flats to the public

    Quote Originally Posted by sleek
    Probably the 5th floor owner did not bought it when it was first released, or wasn't successful in the initial ballot, as the prices went up after HDB puts it back for Sale in Matured Estates.

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    std answer fr them wld likely be: Timing lah

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    If I were Mr Darien Loh, I would give HDB a good F'ing and publish all kinds of reports about unfair pricing policies of HDB rather than smiling for the camera like a goon (or perhaps he doesnt know about it until the article was published). Also remember that HDB's policy is to sell a house for owner occupation so why should it fluctuate due to timing issues even if there were different launches for Pinnacle at different times? HDB can only use construction costs as an excuse but even then construction costs were very much determined even before the project was built.

    Quote Originally Posted by cheerful
    std answer fr them wld likely be: Timing lah

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    Quote Originally Posted by Regulators
    If I were Mr Darien Loh, I would give HDB a good F'ing and publish all kinds of reports about unfair pricing policies of HDB rather than smiling for the camera like a goon (or perhaps he doesnt know about it until the article was published).
    Yah, maybe he doesn't know until ..... ..... ...

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    Quote Originally Posted by cheerful
    Yah, maybe he doesn't know until ..... ..... ...
    If he had really bought under the Sales for Matured Estate category, the new prices are published on the HDB website, so he can choose to buy other BTOs if he feels that the price is not right.
    BE CENTRED BY ALL AT THE FRINGE OF THE CITY @

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    Should the price not be right if it is coming from HDB since govt says that HDB flats are heavily subsidised?
    Quote Originally Posted by sleek
    If he had really bought under the Sales for Matured Estate category, the new prices are published on the HDB website, so he can choose to buy other BTOs if he feels that the price is not right.

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    If not mistaken, HDB usually price their flats 20% below the market or resale flats.

    As for heavily subsidized, who really knows, while construction cost is known, land cost is but a guess in most cases (it is not like open for bidding).

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    Quote Originally Posted by Regulators
    Should the price not be right if it is coming from HDB since govt says that HDB flats are heavily subsidised?
    So far if I can recall, the only BTO flats that had prices lowered were Citylights@Boon Keng, after only about 70% of the successful ballot applicants decide not to proceed or were unable to have their loans approved.

    But generally even new BTOs flats prices had risen after each released.
    BE CENTRED BY ALL AT THE FRINGE OF THE CITY @

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    I don't know what the fuss is about. It's perfectly fair pricing. The HDB prices its new flats at a discount (something like $30-40k) to the market price of surrounding flats. Its subsidy is a market -based subsidy, not cost-based subsidy. In a rising market, late buyers will pay a higher price than early buyers. Conversely, the later buyers will pay a lower price than the early birds in a falling market.

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    u will sing a different tune if u were darien loh n are buying a flat wth ur wife for the 1st time. Px dif of 1xxk for a 5th flr n 42nd flr unit is not a slight increase my friend n in ths case the one who paid 1xxk mre is the one who bought the low, not high flr
    Quote Originally Posted by lancelot
    I don't know what the fuss is about. It's perfectly fair pricing. The HDB prices its new flats at a discount (something like $30-40k) to the market price of surrounding flats. Its subsidy is a market -based subsidy, not cost-based subsidy. In a rising market, late buyers will pay a higher price than early buyers. Conversely, the later buyers will pay a lower price than the early birds in a falling market.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Regulators
    u will sing a different tune if u were darien loh n are buying a flat wth ur wife for the 1st time. Px dif of 1xxk for a 5th flr n 42nd flr unit is not a slight increase my friend n in ths case the one who paid 1xxk mre is the one who bought the low, not high flr
    i understand Pinnacles was not sold at one go .. so theres price difference ...

    but this is HDB .. why did HDB stagger the sales ? like private condo ?

    will owners then be paying maintenance like $300-500 a mth depending on 'shares' like condo ?

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    my point is despite the fact that pinnacle was sold in stages over a period of time, it does nt justify such a huge px disparity. If a flat costs 350k, would u say that paying 100k mre for a unit 37 flrs below just becoz u r later in the queue is justified? Are u saying that is reasonable?
    Quote Originally Posted by proud owner
    i understand Pinnacles was not sold at one go .. so theres price difference ...

    but this is HDB .. why did HDB stagger the sales ? like private condo ?

    will owners then be paying maintenance like $300-500 a mth depending on 'shares' like condo ?

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    Quote Originally Posted by Regulators
    my point is despite the fact that pinnacle was sold in stages over a period of time, it does nt justify such a huge px disparity. If a flat costs 350k, would u say that paying 100k mre for a unit 37 flrs below just becoz u r later in the queue is justified? Are u saying that is reasonable?
    i totally agree with you

    something is not right there

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    in other words they r not practising what they preach...

    Quote Originally Posted by proud owner
    i totally agree with you

    something is not right there

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    Given that Altez has hit $2,300 psf, the Pinnacle should be worth at least $1,000 psf.

    Each of these people's flats has a market value of at least $1 million in the secondary market, once they are allowed to be sold.

    Hence it doesn't matter whether it is Mr. James Tan who bought his 42nd floor unit for $369,000 or Mr. Darien Loh who bought his 5th floor unit for $465,000. They have all already made at least half a million each. Just have to wait till their minimum occupation period is over.

    Anyone who feels that Mr. Darien Loh is unhappy can ask him to return his flat (if he is willing) to the HDB for $465,000.

    The HDB will then advertise in the newspaper: 5th floor flat (96 sq m or 1,033 sq ft) at the Pinnacle for $465,000 or $450 psf. Just three streets away (300 m) from Altez now selling at $2,300 psf. Balloting starts tomorrow at 4.00 am in the morning.


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    Lesson in Propertism - "the Point of Indifference" Concept

    For those who have passed the PSLE (Propertism School Leaving Exam) which I set in the Propertism Sentiments 2010 thread, we shall now go on to a higher level concept in Propertism - "The Point of Indifference".

    There is no better illustration than to use the Pinnacle as an example.

    One of the most remarkable features of property prices is that it not only goes up, it goes up exponentially!

    After a while, we will reach what is called "the Point of Indifference".

    Can you recall the 34 fortunate families who got $5.5 million each for their Pin Tjoe Court en bloc?

    Business Times – 22 Sep 2006
    Pontiac Land Group buys Pin Tjoe Court for $201m
    (SINGAPORE) The existing Pin Tjoe Court comprises 32 apartments and two penthouses. The apartment owners will receive $5.5 million per unit and the penthouse owners $11 million per unit. These sums are about 75 per cent more than the units could fetch had they been sold individually.
    These were the same 34 unfortunate families who bought Pin Tjoe Park back in 1984, just before Singapore's first recession in 1985!



    The recession of 1985 hit sharp and hard!!!

    The market plunged 38%. Each apartment at Pin Tjoe Park plunged from an average of $882,000 to $547,000, a whopping loss of $335,000 !!!

    Think about it: is losing $335,000 a big deal in exchange for earning $5.5 million?

    But that's 38% to those people at that time!

    Today we look back and laugh. What's $335,000?

    We have reached "the Point of Indifference".

    If you don't get what I mean, let's go back further in time.



    In 1920, Mr. A. M. Mootiah Chitty paid $8,200 for a bungalow at No. 9, Shanghai Road (which has since been amalgamated into Shanghai One condo).

    Imagine that when World War II broke out, the property market plunged 50%, or make it more dramatic, plunged 90%. And his bungalow became worth only $820.

    In other words, he lost a WHOPPING $7,380 !!!



    But if he (or his children) had held on to No. 9, Shanghai Road till it was finally en bloced (with other odd-numbered houses from 1 to 9) to the developer of Shanghai One condo, they would feel (I'm sure everyone here will feel) a sense of INDIFFERENCE over losing $7,380 in a property investment.

    Coming back to the Pinnalce, we are at the beginning stage of sensing INDIFFERENCE over the fortunes of whether it's Mr James Tan who bought his flat at $465,000 or Mr. Daniel Loh who bought at $369,000 (or was it the other way round) since they are all worth more than $1 million.

    But once the Pinnacle breaches $1 quadrillion (as in due course it will, due to the fast depreciating dollar), I think everyone here will see my point.


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    Quote Originally Posted by Regulators
    my point is despite the fact that pinnacle was sold in stages over a period of time, it does nt justify such a huge px disparity. If a flat costs 350k, would u say that paying 100k mre for a unit 37 flrs below just becoz u r later in the queue is justified? Are u saying that is reasonable?
    I will not be unhappy even if I was in Darren's shoes. If we apply our minds to the issue of fairness, we will find that the answer is not as as clear cut as some imagined.

    You seem to overlook the fact that buyers who come in much later have the benefit of hindsight over early buyers. Pinnacle was launched for sale in 2005. HDB priced the flats at an average of $380k a unit after taking into consideration that neighbouring prices then were abt $410k. All units were sold out. Subsequently, some buyers dropped out for various reasons (couples break up, lose jobs, bought private etc) and HDB is left with some leftover flats. These they sold in 2009 during one of those sale-of-balance flats exercise. Now in 2009, surrounding flat prices have gone up to $520k. Should the later buyers be offered the balance flats at the original price of $380k when everybody knows that house prices have gone up significantly? Why should the first buyer get a market subsidy of only $30k ($410k-$380k) while the buyer of the leftover flats get a whopping subsidy of $140k ($520k-$380k)?

    It's like buyers of the Sail in 2009 demanding that CDL (for argument's sake) sell to them at $900psf because buyers in 2005 were offered units at $900psf.

    Let's not forget that the buyers in 2005, whether it's the Sail or Pinnacle, took on a market risk at the point of purchase. A buyer in 2009 wanting to buy at 2005 prices is not taking a market risk but is getting a guaranteed windfall with the benefit of hindsight. Why should they enjoy such a privilege?

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    you still do not seem to understand the point of contention.

    Quote Originally Posted by lancelot
    I will not be unhappy even if I was in Darren's shoes. If we apply our minds to the issue of fairness, we will find that the answer is not as as clear cut as some imagined.

    You seem to overlook the fact that buyers who come in much later have the benefit of hindsight over early buyers. Pinnacle was launched for sale in 2005. HDB priced the flats at an average of $380k a unit after taking into consideration that neighbouring prices then were abt $410k. All units were sold out. Subsequently, some buyers dropped out for various reasons (couples break up, lose jobs, bought private etc) and HDB is left with some leftover flats. These they sold in 2009 during one of those sale-of-balance flats exercise. Now in 2009, surrounding flat prices have gone up to $520k. Should the later buyers be offered the balance flats at the original price of $380k when everybody knows that house prices have gone up significantly? Why should the first buyer get a market subsidy of only $30k ($410k-$380k) while the buyer of the leftover flats get a whopping subsidy of $140k ($520k-$380k)?

    It's like buyers of the Sail in 2009 demanding that CDL (for argument's sake) sell to them at $900psf because buyers in 2005 were offered units at $900psf.

    Let's not forget that the buyers in 2005, whether it's the Sail or Pinnacle, took on a market risk at the point of purchase. A buyer in 2009 wanting to buy at 2005 prices is not taking a market risk but is getting a guaranteed windfall with the benefit of hindsight. Why should they enjoy such a privilege?

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    Quote Originally Posted by lancelot
    I will not be unhappy even if I was in Darren's shoes. If we apply our minds to the issue of fairness, we will find that the answer is not as as clear cut as some imagined.

    You seem to overlook the fact that buyers who come in much later have the benefit of hindsight over early buyers. Pinnacle was launched for sale in 2005. HDB priced the flats at an average of $380k a unit after taking into consideration that neighbouring prices then were abt $410k. All units were sold out. Subsequently, some buyers dropped out for various reasons (couples break up, lose jobs, bought private etc) and HDB is left with some leftover flats. These they sold in 2009 during one of those sale-of-balance flats exercise. Now in 2009, surrounding flat prices have gone up to $520k. Should the later buyers be offered the balance flats at the original price of $380k when everybody knows that house prices have gone up significantly? Why should the first buyer get a market subsidy of only $30k ($410k-$380k) while the buyer of the leftover flats get a whopping subsidy of $140k ($520k-$380k)?

    It's like buyers of the Sail in 2009 demanding that CDL (for argument's sake) sell to them at $900psf because buyers in 2005 were offered units at $900psf.

    Let's not forget that the buyers in 2005, whether it's the Sail or Pinnacle, took on a market risk at the point of purchase.A buyer in 2009 wanting to buy at 2005 prices is not taking a market risk but is getting a guaranteed windfall with the benefit of hindsight. Why should they enjoy such a privilege?
    This essay warrants an A* for a Masters Thesis in Propertism.

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    A*star for what? for being a goon and willingness to get ketok by HDB? How could an owner even rejoice when he knows that he is paying 100k more for a 4rm unit on a very low floor compared to an owner who paid 100k less for a unit on very high floor? Assuming Darien Loh bought his unit much later than the other two owners Mr Tan and Mr Ng, he should still be paying almost the same price as the other 2 owners considering that his unit is 3x floors lower (assuming every floor being approximately 2k difference). Assuming Mr Loh had bought his unit the same time as the other 2 owners, taking each floor to be 2k difference, his unit would cost roughly 280k. He is paying 465k for buying the unit later which is an increase of 66% from the early buyers, so how does HDB justify that? Is HDB going to attribute that to market movement? How is HDB going to explain the 66% jump in price between Mr Ng/Tan's time of purchase and Mr Loh's time of purchase? HDB has always been an advocater of steady price increases for flats but is a 66% jump in price between the first launch and later launch of pinnacle a steady price increase by HDB?
    Quote Originally Posted by jlrx
    This essay warrants an A* for a Masters Thesis in Propertism.

  27. #27
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    my argument above is assuming Mr Loh applied for pinnacle later than the other 2 owners, but what if he applied for his flat at the same time??? If that is the case, Mr Loh should go full steam against HDB...

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    Quote Originally Posted by Regulators
    my argument above is assuming Mr Loh applied for pinnacle later than the other 2 owners, but what if he applied for his flat at the same time??? If that is the case, Mr Loh should go full steam against HDB...

    correct

    now that the papers have unintentionally exposed this
    the 5th flr unit owner should clarify with HDB ...

    as a minority ... whether he made money already or not ... he should fight for it ..


    just like the minority of Horizon tower ...

    who knows ... he may get back some $$ ....

    and then sue HDB if he has to ... for any cost he may incur in the process ..

    spore pledges Justice and Equality mah ...

  29. #29
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    Quote Originally Posted by Regulators
    A*star for what? for being a goon and willingness to get ketok by HDB?
    The gist of the whole issue is very simple.

    Nobody is holding a gun and forcing Mr. Darien Loh to buy that 5th floor unit at the Pinnacle.

  30. #30
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    also remember that HDB owes a fiduciary duty to all Singaporeans in pricing n selling their flats at rationally n fairly (not just reasonable) so Mr Loh has every god given right to sue hdb for his money back. Fiduciary duty supercedes whatever contractual terms that hdb sets out to bind purchasers.
    Quote Originally Posted by proud owner
    correct

    now that the papers have unintentionally exposed this
    the 5th flr unit owner should clarify with HDB ...

    as a minority ... whether he made money already or not ... he should fight for it ..


    just like the minority of Horizon tower ...

    who knows ... he may get back some $$ ....

    and then sue HDB if he has to ... for any cost he may incur in the process ..

    spore pledges Justice and Equality mah ...

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