Property Stories

From EC To District 10 Condo: How A Couple’s Property Investment Decision Evolved

Would you pay off an Executive Condominium (EC) in full, or buy a District 10 condo on loan? They’re vastly different approaches to real estate, and you might think we’re talking about two different buyer profiles. However, that’s the journey…

• 11 Jul 2022
• 5 min read
• 0

Touring Yunnan Gardens: Attractively-Priced Freehold Terrace Houses At $1,000 Psf

In Singapore, the smallest landed houses (usually terrace houses) are often the cheapest if we look at price quantum, but they can be pretty pricey when we look at the price per square foot (PSF.) For example, at MacPherson Garden…

• 10 Jul 2022
• 10 min read
• 0

Touring Pavilion Park: More Affordable Freehold Landed Living With Great Protected Views In Bukit Batok

The freehold landed houses at Pavilion Park have been on my watchlist for a while, as Pavilion Park is one of the few freehold estates in Singapore where you can still get a semi-D for around $4 million. A few…

• 3 Jul 2022
• 9 min read
• 4

Single, Under 30 And Renting: Why And How These 2 Young Singaporeans Are Making It Sustainable

In a previous piece, I explored why we seemed so averse to renting and it was really interesting to see the widely differing opinions on Facebook and Instagram. It was the clearest indication of the different age groups on these…

• 27 Jun 2022
• 7 min read
• 5

Buying An HDB At 24: The Inspiring Story Of Lisa And Her Struggle To Provide For Her Family

Adulting is never easy, especially when circumstances don’t give you much choice. Today’s story is a really special one as we’ll be touching on a Singaporean’s journey and the challenges she faced when she bought her first HDB flat at…

• 25 Jun 2022
• 11 min read
• 1

Why I Bought A 3Gen HDB Flat Instead Of An Executive Maisonette For My Family

In a perfect world, everyone will have a generously-sized home, affordable, and maybe even the capacity to practice filial piety, all while planning to grow our family within budget. It’s every Singaporean’s dream, right?  But here’s the reality: big homes…

• 17 Jun 2022
• 6 min read
• 0

Why I Chose To Rent Instead Of Buying A Home In Singapore

Growing up, I lived in a HDB flat my parents owned. During all the social studies lessons we had (you can probably tell my age from this!), I was taught that a home you owned was always an asset to…

• 13 Jun 2022
• 6 min read
• 0

A Landed Home For Just $750K? It’s Possible, But There’s A Catch. We Tour Fuyong Estate To Find Out.

Today’s landed estate tour is probably going to be our most controversial ever. Fuyong Estate is a collection of terrace houses, semi-Ds, and detached houses that is just a stone’s throw from Rail Mall. But here’s where it gets intriguing….

• 12 Jun 2022
• 14 min read
• 1

My Journey As A Single Homebuyer In Singapore At 35: How I Bought Selegie House

For singles to buy a home in Singapore, it is frankly a bit of an arduous process. As a quick summary, you aren’t able to buy a BTO flat unless it’s a 2-bedder, and in a non-mature location. Even if…

• 8 Jun 2022
• 9 min read
• 0

Touring Island Country Villas: Spacious Landed Living Next To A Lush Forest (And Monkeys) For About $2.6 Million

Island Country Villas is a landed estate at Old Upper Thomson Road and Casuarina Walk which comprises 58-60 99-year leasehold semi-detached houses, and was developed by UOL Group in 1999 (with leases starting from August 1995). Usually, I’d choose bigger…

• 5 Jun 2022
• 10 min read
• 0

NFTs, Guilds & Coins: We Spoke To A Crypto Enthusiast About His Thoughts On The Metaverse

As someone who has invested $19k of her own money into the metaverse, I am naturally bullish about the space – even if recent events in the crypto space have been anything but convincing! I don’t confess to being an…

• 30 May 2022
• 8 min read
• 0

Touring Villa Verde: Affordable Terrace Houses For About $2 Million In Choa Chu Kang

I’d been meaning to check out Villa Verde for some time because well, for a landed house in Singapore, it’s “cheap” (or shall we say less expensive?) Coincidentally, someone left a comment on my article about the houses at Loyang…

• 29 May 2022
• 10 min read
• 10

Touring Haus@Serangoon Gardens: Bustling Landed Living Near A Plethora Of Amenities For About $3 Million

Serangoon Gardens is one of the most popular landed enclaves in Singapore. So when I learned about Haus@Serangoon Gardens, a 99-year leasehold, 97-unit residential enclave on a 28,402 sqm plot of land, where you can get a new landed house…

• 22 May 2022
• 9 min read
• 10

Touring Loyang Villas: Shophouse-Styled Terrace Houses In Changi From $1.8 Million In District 17

If you’ve always wanted to live in a landed house, but have a limited budget (and don’t mind living in the East), Loyang Villas is definitely an area that you should pay attention to. It is one of the largest…

• 15 May 2022
• 9 min read
• 1

You Can Now Buy A Home Without Selling Any Of Your Bitcoin With Crypto Mortgages. Here Are The Pros & Cons

Take a guess which year this was written: When asked which payment method they used most often, 43% of Singaporeans preferred cash, as compared to 3% who used mobile wallets, and 2% who used contactless payments.  If you’re anything like…

• 11 May 2022
• 7 min read
• 1

Why We Upgraded To A 1,593 Sqft Executive Apartment From A 4-Room BTO (Despite Its Age)

There’s been much talk about HDB upgraders in 2021/2022, and while most of the attention seems to be on upgrading to a condo, there are also many who are looking for bigger resale HDB homes as an upgrade to their…

• 10 May 2022
• 6 min read
• 1

Touring Victoria Park Villas: A Stylish Leasehold Landed Enclave In District 10 Next To GCBs

A 99-year leasehold development by CapitaLand, Victoria Park Villas is one of the younger leasehold landed enclaves around. It TOP-ed in Dec 2018 with a lease starting from September 2013 (i.e. no lease decay worries for a good while) and…

• 8 May 2022
• 9 min read
• 0

We Ask Gen Zs About The Metaverse: Not Everyone Thinks It’s The Next Big Thing

If you’ve been wanting to start investing in the Metaverse or digital real estate, I’d pay attention to what the Gen Zs are doing. Many people like to dismiss the younger generations, but you’d be foolish to discount the first…

• 4 May 2022
• 8 min read
• 0