Commentary

Can You Still Afford To Upgrade To A Condo In 2024? Here’s A Reality Check For HDB Upgraders

The tried and true way of getting a condo is to start with an HDB BTO flat, save every penny you can, and eventually sell it for a tidy profit and move up to a private condo; or at the…

• 2 Feb 2024
• 6 min read
• 4

Singapore’s Best And Worst Performing Property Districts Since The Pandemic: Here’s What We’ve Found

The times are changing, and it’s not just the pandemic that caused it (although it sped things up a bit). Amidst big moves like decentralisation, and Work From Home, the very idea of what constitutes “central” – and hence a…

• 30 Jan 2024
• 5 min read
• 1

The Changing Attitudes Toward Chinese Property Developers In Singapore

When Chinese developers first entered the Singapore market, there was some skepticism involved. It didn’t help that, during the en-bloc fever of 2017, Chinese developers copped a lot of the blame for pushing up home prices (even though if you…

• 25 Jan 2024
• 6 min read
• 3

Are These Old Condo Facilities Still A Benefit Or A Burden?

When it comes to condo facilities, some trends come and go. You can even identify the age of a condo based on the sort of facilities it has (squash courts, anyone?) But while trendy facilities help at launch (and perhaps…

• 24 Jan 2024
• 5 min read
• 2

The Rise Of Million-Dollar HDB Flats In Singapore: Is This Going To Be The New Norm?

Million-dollar HDB flats are still outliers, making up some one per cent of HDB transactions; and even those that are close to a million (e.g., $800,000 or $900,000) are hardly the majority. However, there’s no denying that these outliers are…

• 22 Jan 2024
• 6 min read
• 0

The Hidden Costs Of Property Selling: Unveiling The Real Cost Behind Agent Commissions In Singapore

Hang around on forums or in coffee shops (or anywhere in Singapore really), and you’re bound to hear complaints about property agent commissions. A common impression is that realtors hike up their commissions for even “simple” jobs, like listing your…

• 28 Dec 2023
• 5 min read
• 0

Should You Buy A Small Landed Home Or A Bigger Condo? Here’s What Singaporeans Have To Say

Recently, we saw a conversation on Reddit about living in a smaller landed property, versus a bigger condo unit. This isn’t the first time we’ve come across the question – with some larger condo units (premium or penthouses) now reaching…

• 23 Dec 2023
• 6 min read
• 0

“My Neighbour Was Stealing Water From The Carpark” 7 Craziest Arguments We’ve Heard At Condo AGMs

On the one hand, we advise everyone to be present at condo AGMs, to keep track of what’s happening, and to exercise their vote. On the other hand, we can sympathise with why some people refuse to attend. A common…

• 11 Dec 2023
• 7 min read
• 0

How Well Did Property Experts Forecast Singapore’s Property Trends? We Look Back At 2023 Market Predictions

You’ve probably heard that it’s a bad idea to try and time the market, be it for stocks or real estate. But what about the opinions of analysts? Would the extensive research and data of a property firm help them…

• 9 Dec 2023
• 5 min read
• 0

Live In Johor Bahru But Work In Singapore? How The RTS Link Is Reviving Interest In Cheap JB Properties

Do you remember the hype about the Iskandar region, or the Malaysia My Second Home (MM22H) programme? Or perhaps you recall the High Speed Rail (HSR) project, which has been on-and-off for years now. Well with the Johor Bahru –…

• 30 Nov 2023
• 6 min read
• 0

11 Leasehold Condos With A Secret, They’re Actually On Freehold Land: Here’s Where To Find Them

Leasehold condos sitting on freehold land make up just 0.8% of homes in Singapore. What do we know about them, and where are they?

• 28 Nov 2023
• 5 min read
• 4

6 Common Misleading Claims Property Agents Make That All Savvy Buyers Know About

Most property agents are honest, if for no other reason than having a license to lose. However, whether through inexperience or outright lying, we sometimes hear things that are questionable; if not just plain wrong. Not all realtors are equal,…

• 27 Nov 2023
• 6 min read
• 0

A Jadescape Condo Owner Just Made A Record $1.1m In Profit: Why Is This Mega Condo Raking In The Big Bucks?

If you’re tracking the latest trends in Singapore’s property market, you’ll find the recent sale at Jadescape particularly noteworthy. A unit at the development has just notched a profit of $1.122 million, a figure that stands out despite it being…

• 18 Nov 2023
• 5 min read
• 0

Would You Pay $700k For The First BTO Flats At Pearl’s Hill After 40 Years?

The announcement of 6,000 new homes at Pearl’s Hill, including – gasp – NEW HDB FLATS! has caused quite the stir of late. This is the heart of Chinatown, just a few minutes down the road (or a few stops…

• 10 Nov 2023
• 5 min read
• 2

Why Property Agents Are No Longer Pushing You “Sell One, Buy Two” In 2023

The “sell one, buy two” strategy has been in the property playbook for some time now, going back to at least the last property dip in 2016. But it’s a term we’ve heard less often these past year or so,…

• 9 Nov 2023
• 7 min read
• 0

6 Ways Property Data Can Trick You: Avoid Being Fooled By These Common Misconceptions

If you’ve asked for property comparisons before, you might notice two different agents can show you two different data sets. And as some readers have pointed out, they can encounter prices that are far higher than the project’s average (or…

• 4 Nov 2023
• 7 min read
• 0

A $2 Million HDB Flat? Here’s When We May Possibly See The First One

I remember the first time we hit a million dollars for an HDB flat (this was an Executive HDB at Mei Ling Street in 2012). The idea of spending a seven-figure sum on an old resale HDB flat seemed ludicrous…

• 31 Oct 2023
• 5 min read
• 0

The Hidden Risks Of Investing In Freehold Luxury Properties In Singapore

If you’re new to Singapore’s property market it may shock you to learn this, but freehold luxury properties may not be as good as investment as you may think. These properties are considered the cream of the crop – but…

• 13 Oct 2023
• 2 min read
• 0