waileong

Are you sure no active CPF account? I thought the CPF account will be there as long as you live, whether or not it's active (ie contributions or withdrawals). I think that the appropriate portion of sale proceeds will go back to CPF, and if they are entitled to withdraw everything, then they will still have to go through the motion of withdrawing everything. But the greatest worry is whether the Minimum Sum will still apply to those even in their 60's. If so, then they won't get everything.

How can there be such a thing? It's so personal.

1. Of course you can sell, if you are the sole owner 2. 100% cash not likely, unless you bought it with 100% cash.

Check "wrought" at dictionary.com.

If you can afford it, sure.

Price is related to quality, ie if it's cheap plastic dining chairs then $50 is too much. If it's high back leather covered dining chairs, $500 might be very reasonable. It goes in the context of your whole house, ie if your house is Ikea furniture at Ikea prices, then your dining chairs would conceivably not excced $150 each. If your house is Da Vinci stuff at Da Vinci prices, however...

The % is just a guide. What if you bought your HDB flat at $720k? Does it mean you should splurge $100k for reno? Obviously not! The idea of paying such a high price is for it to be in move-in condition! On the other hand, if you bought a dump at $200k, should your reno be limited to $30k? Well, you're not going to get a nice place with $30k.

Budget should be ok. But price not the most important factor. See my blog.

I suggest you wait till Mon. What you'll get here will be far less authoritative. Some of it could be downright wrong even.

You have a lawyer. Why don't you ask him. What are you hiring him for if not to solve your problems?

Why would that work? It would have to be very thick and heavy curtains which sweep the floor, get dirty so easily.

I think you should be asking whether you should continue using this contractor. If you have a termination for convenience clause, it's time to consider exercising it.

The law firm is to help you in the sale. Not just the bank loan. It will cost more than $1k, yes. You need to get a law firm approved by the bank, if it also happens to be HDB lawyer, then you can save a bit.

Your ID should know if you need a permit.

Obviously, it depends on how often you cook and how you cook. Stir frying chinese style creates lots of oil in the air. Your hood will not be able to cope.

There's a lot more agencies, incl. LTA, SLA, OA, etc. and other parties such as other party's lawyer, etc. if you're buying from a private seller, etc.

1. Have you ever tried reading legal docs in legalese? 2. There are many procedures, forms, signatures, copies, many govt agencies to deal with. If you screw up just one bit, you could cause delays in the whole process and perhaps cause you to miss deadlines with your seller and other third parties. Is that a risk you're prepared to take?

That doesn't change the need for a lawyer. Frankly, if the lawyer does a good job, everything is smooth, and you wonder why you're paying for his service. If the lawyer does a lousy job, things screw up, then you wonder why you engaged a lawyer.

You should understand that if you deal with her, she will then be your agent to deal with the seller's exclusive agent. If you go direct to the exclusive agent, you will have no agent to represent you. The question is, are you comfortable doing the negotiation, and potentially all the paperwork and legwork that comes as part of a successful negotiation, yourself? Note that it's not a good idea to have the exclusive agent be representing both the seller and you. That's a huge conflict of interest.

AVA doesn't regulate how big a dog you can keep in your private apt because they don't have the power. However, the Management Corporation may have certain bye-laws which may restrict you. Leash laws are NOT because Muslims can't accept dogs. It's for safety reasons, and has even been extended to muzzle laws for big dogs. I don't think she was inconsiderate. More likely, she did not know. But it's not her fault, the dog runs where it will, as long as it doesn't bite someone, it has done no wrong.

It's more commonly capped at a certain % of your purchase price or valuation, rather than being waived.

You're missing the point of the regulation. It's not about passing inspections, it's about safety. What's the point of saying the regulation only applies to rivets, not screws, if your window falls and kills someone?

This is called the FUD approach. Of course the agent want to give you reason to buy now and not 6 months later.

This has nothing to do with muslim neighbours. You will never be officially allowed to keep a big dog in HDB flat, so don't waste time. If you want to keep it nevertheless, better pray that no one complains. But the point of the restriction is, if the dog is so big, will it be happy cooped up in a small HDB flat?

1. Actually, you could do it in 24 hours if you had the cash. All it takes is for the cheque to clear and the keys to be handed over. Problem is the paperwork with the authorities (to get your title deed, etc) takes a few weeks. However, if you need to get loan, do valuation, check with all the authorities about encumbrances, road works, etc.-- all those activities take time. 12 weeks is the standard period, a reasonable period normally used in S&P agreements. 2. Why do you not want a lawyer? This is one of the largest purchases of your life. I fail to understand the reasoning.