My Search For A Better Alternative To Old Folks Homes In Singapore: Are Overseas Retirement Homes Better? My Mother spent over 30 years of her life staying with and caring for her own mother. When she was no longer needed, she had to move out of the house in which she had stayed for almost half her… 14 Apr 2024 by TJ 10 min read 7
Touring Corporation Walk: Cheaper $2 Million+ Landed Homes Next To A Park Connector (99-Year) A while back, a reader asked for a tour of Corporation Walk, so off to the West I went on a weekday mid-morning. Although the area is quite far West, it’s located in between Jurong Point and Jurong Gateway, so… 7 Apr 2024 by TJ 9 min read 2
We Lived In A 2,000 Sqft SLA-Managed “Penthouse”: The Surprising Reality Of Living In One We’re aware that any mention of SLA today immediately starts arguments about Ridout Road; but there’s more to SLA rentals than those bungalows. SLA actually has a number of different properties, not all of which are as obvious or famous… 12 Sep 2023 7 min read 0
“I Waited 7 Years For My HDB Maisonette” 5 Homeowners Share Their Regrets HDB Maisonettes are relics of a different era: a time when HDB flats were truly spacious, when many upgraders were happy to upgrade to a bigger flat (not even a condo), and when our ageing problem didn’t yet preclude stairs…. 11 Sep 2023 6 min read 5
Touring Luxus Hills: A 999-Year Landed Estate That Overlooks Ang Mo Kio Linear Park I was talking to a new acquaintance the other day, who shared with me her decision to move from a landed house to a condo because the stairs were becoming too much as she got older. As I live with… 10 Sep 2023 10 min read 0
The Hidden Downsides Of Living In A Boutique Condo: 5 Things Owners Wish They Knew Before Buying Boutique condos – commonly thought of as projects with 50 units or less – offer a lot of privacy. But these tiny developments also mean smaller land space, fewer facilities, and maybe even cliquish management committees; so are they really… 7 Sep 2023 5 min read 4
How We Sold Our Forest City Unit Before The Worst Happened: Here’s What It Was Like To Stay In A $100 Billion Ghost Town Forest City, a colossal development project situated in Johor, Malaysia, was initially conceived in 2006 with an estimated budget of $100 billion. Originally marketed as a ’20-year project,’ the development is now increasingly believed to be falling short of expectations…. 6 Sep 2023 6 min read 3
Touring Yio Chu Kang Gardens: Affordable Freehold & Leasehold Landed Homes Near Lentor MRT From $2.8m Yio Chu Kang Gardens is a small landed enclave in Ang Mo Kio, close to Lentor MRT and within 1 km of Anderson Primary, CHIJ St. Nicholas Girls’ School and Mayflower Primary School. As it’s close to several HDB estates,… 3 Sep 2023 10 min read 1
I Regret Buying A DBSS: 5 Homeowners Share Their Biggest Regrets Introduced in 2005 but discontinued in 2011, Singapore’s Design, Build & Sell Scheme (DBSS) remains a topic of conversation, even if it’s for its relatively short lifespan. This unique housing scheme aimed to elevate public housing by bringing in private… 30 Aug 2023 6 min read 2
Touring Goldhill Landed Estate: A Surprising Hidden Freehold Oasis Near ACS With Terrace/Semi-D’s From $5.5m I have passed the Goldhill landed estate many, many times in my life and, I must confess, sometimes rather patronisingly thought, “It must be so noisy for the people living here!” Perhaps because it’s located right next to ACS and… 27 Aug 2023 11 min read 0
I’m An Ex-Property Agent That Only Ever Made One Sale: A $9 Million Bungalow. Here’s My Story. What would you think of a realtor who, as his very first deal, managed to transact a $9 million bungalow? Impressive right? But this week I spoke about the incident to this very same (former) realtor, who has an odd… 25 Aug 2023 7 min read 2
Touring Jalan Seaview Landed Estate: Large Freehold Landed Houses Near The MRT In The East Today’s tour is a rather belated walkabout of the landed estate at Jalan Seaview. It was requested by a reader some time ago and I’ve been putting it off – not because I wanted to procrastinate but rather because the… 20 Aug 2023 13 min read 0
Touring Katong Estate: Freehold Landed Living Near 4 Malls Starting From $4 Million As you can see, that’s City Plaza right next to the landed houses. If you prefer a more modern mall. PLQ Mall is just a few steps away! (There’s also Grandlink Square and KINEX Mall!) Today, we’re headed back East… 13 Aug 2023 15 min read 1
I Regret Buying A Mega-Development: 7 Homeowners Share Their Biggest Regrets Singaporeans’ love for mega-developments is unmistakable. Recent sales figures consistently demonstrate their popularity, and it’s easy to see why. It could be a blend of attractive pricing, cost-effective monthly maintenance, or the irresistible array of amenities – be it 80m… 12 Aug 2023 2 min read 2
Touring Happy Estate: More Affordable Freehold Landed Living Near An MRT From $3.48 Million I have a confession. I was somewhat prejudiced against Happy Gardens estate before I visited. You see, I’d previously toured Macpherson Garden estate, which is across the road, and was, shall we say, not very impressed by it. So I… 6 Aug 2023 11 min read 3
Touring Kew Estate: Cheap Landed Living From $2 Million In 2023 In A Sprawling Estate (Yes, It’s Leasehold) Today’s tour brings us almost to the edge of Singapore: We’re visiting Kew landed estate, which is all the way over at Bedok. I must admit, it felt pretty far removed from urban life when I was driving over. However,… 30 Jul 2023 11 min read 0
Touring Mayflower Landed Estate: Affordable Freehold Landed Living From $2.83m In Ang Mo Kio I was browsing the map for a landed enclave to feature in this series when I came across Mayflower estate and noticed that it was pretty much right next to an MRT and hawker centre. As many landed estates are… 23 Jul 2023 12 min read 0
Touring Goodlink Park: Freehold Landed Living From $3.26 Million (Friendliest Estate I’ve Visited) A while back, a reader asked for a review of the Goodlink Park landed estate, near Chong Pang Hawker Centre. I’m sorry it took me so long to get around to it, but this brings me to the first point… 16 Jul 2023 11 min read 0 bukit timah condo
Touring Mount Emily: Freehold Landed Conservation Shophouses And Terrace Homes On Top Of A Hill In District 9 A month ago, I saw a notice advertising the sale of a freehold residential conservation shophouse at Niven Road. As I mentioned in my Blair Road walkabout, I’ve always loved heritage homes, so I thought I’d check out the area… 9 Jul 2023 14 min read 0
Touring Highgate Park Estate: Rare Freehold Terrace Houses In District 21 Near Beauty World D21 has been the talk of the town with the launch of Reserve Residences, which sold over 70% of its units during its launch. Moreover, given the previous request for tours around the Toh Tuck area, I decided it was… 2 Jul 2023 9 min read 1