News

I Wouldn’t Count Too much on ABSD-related discounts this year…

I wouldn’t count too much on ABSD-related discounts this year. If you’ve never heard of it, an ABSD discount is when a developer comes close to its five-year deadline for completing and selling 90 per cent of the units. If…

• 30 Jun 2024
• 4 min read
• 0

This Hasn’t Happened In The Singapore Property Market In 20 Years…

Zero bids for a GLS site, I never thought I’d see the day. This GLS site at Upper Thomson, next to Springleaf MRT station, has attracted a record-breaking zero bids from developers. This is a 53,729 sqm site, with a…

• 23 Jun 2024
• 5 min read
• 0

Another 2,000 New Homes To Come: What Does This Mean For Prices?

You know how Batman, Wonder Woman, and Superman form the trinity of DC comics? We have something exactly like that in the property market, and it’s about to go big. URA is planning for close to 2,000 new homes in…

• 16 Jun 2024
• 4 min read
• 0

Does This Mean The Foreigner ABSD Is Going To Be Lowered Soon?

Why do we have so many new land plots for sale in prime areas right now? For those who have been keeping track of new land releases in Singapore, it may seem like  bit of a puzzle why the government…

• 9 Jun 2024
• 4 min read
• 1

The Costly Mistake Of Buying The Wrong Property In Singapore In 2024

The high cost of getting your property purchase wrong in Singapore. Do you need to wait a few more years to afford a condo? Or are you just unsure? Then you may just want to wait. There are people –…

• 2 Jun 2024
• 5 min read
• 0

Finally, The First HDB In Bukit Timah In 40 Years…

HDB seems locked in a constant battle with what Singaporeans call “the rich people areas.”  HDB seems to view enclaves – be it ethnic enclaves, or areas defined by a certain socioeconomic strata – as areas that need to be…

• 26 May 2024
• 5 min read
• 3

Will The New HDB Resale Listing Portal Really Cut Out Agents?

If I were a good property agent, I’d be pretty happy with the HDB resale portal. In fact, I’d want it to be bigger and have all the listings. Far from a threat of being “cut out”, the resale portal…

• 20 May 2024
• 4 min read
• 0

$2 Million Dollar HDB: Is The Agent Really To Blame?

If you have an unrealistic boss, ask a realtor how to cope. The often-overlooked benefit(?) of being a property agent is that, after a while, you learn to accommodate a wide range of delusions. Realtors have, for instance, the ability…

• 12 May 2024
• 4 min read
• 0

Is This The Right Way To Cut Property Agent Numbers?

One way to lower prices is to take out the middleman, right? It used to be a no-brainer for me. But over the years, I’ve been forced to admit that some middlemen (and related fee collectors) are indispensable. Like when…

• 5 May 2024
• 5 min read
• 0

Can Your HDB/Condo Really Last 99 Years?

Have you considered what your condo or HDB flat will look like, after 99 years? This question is partly inspired by Life After People, which is a series I highly recommend. And while the scenario isn’t quite the same, one…

• 28 Apr 2024
• 3 min read
• 0

Would You Sell Your Home To Retire On A Cruise Ship For $300k In Singapore?

Do you like cruises? Do you really really like them, to the point you can stay on that ship for months or years?  Then you’ll be glad to know you can, in fact, buy a cruise ship cabin and live…

• 21 Apr 2024
• 5 min read
• 0

Should You Buy This Sentosa Condo At A 40% Discount?

Yet another luxury condo fire sale You’ve probably heard: The prices at The Residences at W Singapore Sentosa Cove are being slashed by over 40 per cent. But as great as that may sound, here are a few things that…

• 14 Apr 2024
• 5 min read
• 0

Are New Launch Condos About To Get Cheaper?

I think now we can be sure the rejected bid for Marina Gardens Crescent wasn’t an isolated event.  I’m talking about the one lonely bid that was made for a prime central site, which got turned down for being too…

• 8 Apr 2024
• 5 min read
• 1

Here’s Why Some New Launch Condos Sell Better Than Others

Bigger condo projects tend to sell better these days News reports have a whole host of reasons why Lentor Mansion managed to sell 75 per cent of its units, despite slower sales of projects like The Arcady at Boon Keng…

• 31 Mar 2024
• 5 min read
• 0

Here’s Where The Future MRT Stations May Be

An educated prediction on future MRT lines These are some interesting – and well-researched – speculations on MRT lines that we may see in future. Some of the future areas to think about, for me, are the Long Island project…

• 24 Mar 2024
• 5 min read
• 0

How Do We Still Have Fake Property Listings In 2024?

How is it that searching for a home online in 2024 is the same as 2008 It is the year 2024.  I can create a photo of a cat riding a motorcycle in the fields of Timbuktu with a click…

• 17 Mar 2024
• 4 min read
• 2

Are We In A Property Buyer’s Or Seller’s Market?

The theme for the 2024 property market is “good news, bad news” It’s almost as if the universe wants to perfectly balance the forces that push property prices up, as well as down; so I’m not surprised that 2024 has…

• 10 Mar 2024
• 4 min read
• 0

Is This New ABSD Rule A Sign?

Changes to ABSD for developers are a sign of the times. When we started seeing runaway prices after Covid, there was a sense of “not this again,” and most market watchers had flashbacks to 2009 to 2013, or the 2017…

• 3 Mar 2024
• 4 min read
• 0