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Showing posts from July, 2011

Buying residential property in Malaysia

There is growing interest among Singaporeans in investing in residential properties outside the country following the fourth round of property market cooling measures announced in January. The measures include increasing the holding period for the imposition of seller's stamp duty to four years and lowering the loan-to-value-limit to 60 per cent on second and subsequent mortgages. With a bullish Singapore dollar, favourable financing terms, geographical proximity, similar culture and background and, most importantly, family ties, Malaysia remains one of the top favourite property investment destinations for Singaporeans. To help first-time investors, here are some things you should know about buying a residential property in Malaysia. Know the type of property you can own More details at  http://www.todayonline.com Source : MediaCorp Press Ltd by Aileen Han

Years to correct supply-demand imbalance for HDB flats: Khaw

SINGAPORE: National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan said it will take 3 to 5 years to "substantively resolve" the problem of high resale flat prices and for prices to stabilise. He said there is currently an imbalance between supply and demand - and new Build-To-Order (BTO) flats take three years to build. Mr Khaw said this in response to questions from reporters on the sidelines of a community event on Sunday. He also expressed confidence that resale flat prices will stabilise but stressed that the problem of high prices cannot be solved overnight. He urged Singaporeans to be patient. On Friday, figures from the HDB showed prices rising by 3.1 per cent in the second quarter of this year, nearly twice the previous quarter's 1.6 per cent. More details at  http://www.channelnewsasia.com Source : MediaCorp Pte Ltd by Joanne Chan

Prices of HDB resale flats up a steeper 3.1% in Q2

SINGAPORE: Prices of HDB resale flats rose a steeper 3.1 per cent in the second quarter compared to the 1.6 per cent increase seen in the first quarter. The number of transactions rose by about 6 per cent to some 6,600. HDB's Resale Price Index rose to 180.3 points in the second quarter from 174.8 points a quarter ago. Analysts believe this is due to a supply crunch of resale flats. They said this is partly brought on by policy measures to cool down the private property sector. An example is the lower 60 per cent Loan-To-Value limit on housing loans for individuals with existing housing loans at the time of the new housing purchase. More details at  http://www.channelnewsasia.com Source : MediaCorp Pte Ltd by Linette Lim

Some tenants in arrears hold landlords to ransom

SINGAPORE: With Singaporeans increasingly turning to renting out their apartments for extra income, more disputes are flaring up between landlords and tenants, according to lawyers and property agents. And it is not only the landlords who are giving their tenants headaches. Anecdotally, complaints of landlords being held ransom by tenants in arrears and refusing to move out are increasing.   Property agent G Rajan told Today that three out of 10 rental disputes in the last two years he handled, were from landlords. He said: "It's a lot of legwork and time spent going after the tenant." A recent case involve a couple who were unable to drive out their tenant. Mr Poh Boon Kay, 62, and his wife got SP Services to terminate the utilities account on March 7, hoping that this would prompt their tenant to move out.  More details at  http://www.channelnewsasia.com Source : MediaCorp Pte Ltd by Esther Ng

Ming Arcade up for collective sale by tender

SINGAPORE : Ming Arcade, a prime freehold commercial development located off Orchard Road, is up for collective sale by tender. The redevelopment site is zoned 'commercial' and majority-owned by Ong Beng Seng's property group, Hotel Properties Limited (HPL). Located at 21 Cuscaden Road, Ming Arcade has a gross plot ratio of 4.2 and an allowable building height of 20 storeys. It currently has 88 commercial or retail strata units of sizes varying from 140 square feet to 620 square feet. As the site has an approved gross floor area of 55,046 square feet, no development charge is payable, according to sole marketing agent Jones Lang LaSalle.  More details at  http://www.channelnewsasia.com Source : MediaCorp Pte Ltd by Linette Lim

Khaw elaborates on BTO exercise

SINGAPORE: National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan has elaborated on who were the successful applicants in the Build-To-Order (BTO) exercises from January to March this year. In his latest blog entry, Mr Khaw said when an application rate is about 2, which means two applicants for one unit, almost all applicants will get a chance to select. This is because not all who are asked to select do so. For the January BTO, practically all first-timers got to select a flat. Even second-timers got an 84 per cent chance to select. But when the application rate increased to 5 or 8, the chances fell significantly, especially for second-timers. Mr Khaw said that the HDB is ramping up BTO launches to reduce the application rate, and hence raise the chances for applicants. More details at  http://www.channelnewsasia.com Source : MediaCorp Pte Ltd 

Time for action on home loan rates?

Home loan rates are back in the news. In the latest move to maintain loan volumes in an uncertain market, at least two Singapore banks have reportedly been dangling some of the lowest rates, currently pegged at about 0.2 per cent to market benchmarks, on selected properties. The offered mortgage rates are pegged against two commonly used benchmark interest rates. These are the Singapore interbank lending rate (Sibor) and the swap offer rate (SOR). The three-month Singapore dollar Sibor has been at a record low of 0.438 per cent since January, while the three-month SOR has moved between 0.189 and 0.3 per cent since April. It now stands at 0.21 per cent. The fact that these deals have not been offered to the rest of the market yet and with the marketing kept low-profile, suggests that the banks themselves recognise that it would be counter-productive to engage in an open mortgage war at this time. However, it may not be too long before this happens, given the global ec

Daisy Apartments up for en bloc

SINGAPORE: Daisy Apartments, a residential redevelopment site near Serangoon Gardens, is up for en bloc at an expected price of above S$14.5 million. Property consultants Credo Real Estate said the freehold site is located at Daisy Road and has a land area of more than 13,000 square feet. The land is zoned for Residential use at a plot ratio of 1.4 and an allowable height of up to five storeys. All the owners of the 12-unit apartment development have signed a collective sale agreement to sell the property. Credo said the potential buyer has the option of redeveloping the site to accommodate approximately 42 apartment units of average 500 square feet, depending on layout and configuration. More details at  http://www.channelnewsasia.com Source : MediaCorp Pte Ltd by Jonathan Peeris

New rules to protect property buyers, sellers from rogue lawyers

SINGAPORE : New measures to better protect property buyers and sellers from rogue lawyers will kick in from August 1. They are part of the Conveyancing (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill that was passed in Parliament in April and was gazetted on July 8. The aim is to tighten safeguards for conveyancing money held by lawyers. Lawyers will no longer be allowed to receive and hold such money in their normal client accounts. Instead, the money must be held in special accounts, which will be offered by banks appointed by the Ministry of Law. More details at  http://www.channelnewsasia.com Or call the conveyancing measures hotline at 6838 1289. www.conveyancing.sg Source : MediaCorp Pte Ltd

Investor's Choice : Water Place Condominium for Sale

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l Breathtaking view of Marina Bays Sands, Singapore Flyer and City. Watch beautiful Fireworks during festive celebrations. View of Marina Bay Golf Course that's opposite Water Place. Spacious Master bedroom with beautiful full height Windows to brighten room. The Spacious Master Bedroom has another Window to take in the breeze between the built-in Wardrobe and Ensuite Bathroom. Another view of the Ensuite in the Master Bedroom with Aircon split-unit and entrance on the right. Premium Marble Flooring with quality Timber flooring for Bedrooms. A private walkway leading to all the 4 Bedrooms seen here. Bedroom 1 spacious enough for a Queen-sized bed and writing table plus built-in wardrobes. Seen here with the Morning Sun coming diagonally. Bedroom 2 with Super-single bed. Common Bathroom 1.   Powder Room 2 by the Living area. Adequate Storeroom. Bathroom 3 in the Kitchen wash area. Wash area as seen from the Kitchen. The 2 doors on the right is the Bathroom

Expat's Choice : The Clift Condominium for Lease

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The Clift at 21 McCallum Street. Nearby to Chinatown as the street sign stated. Guardian store just below. A 7Eleven store just across the road. Amoy Street Food Centre is across the street. The View. Another view. More view. The Facilities       Kitchen Bathroom Sunken bath