cleong

For those who are curious, two years ago, you can buy two of the K15Z9 in JB for the equivalent model, V60WK, in Singapore.

You must be talking about this one: http://www.propertyguru.com.sg/listing/hdb-for-sale-137-bedok-reservoir-road-11688569 The asking COV is jaw dropping, even though it is renovated and looks recent and in good condition...... I was expecting there to be a reservoir view at least.

Sellers will always want to sell high, buyers will always want to buy low. Things are not helped by having real estate agents going round persuading people to sell their flats, citing "can try" 100k COVs and also persuading prospective buyers that 100k COVs are "worth paying". They are commission driven and stand to profit from high prices. Just keep looking and I hope you guys who are still flat hunting will find a sincere seller instead of asking speculative prices.

Seems like EMs are the HDB apartments in the news right now and many are changing hands at eye-watering prices...... Anyway, congratulations on your purchase and good luck with the renovation.

Wow, any photos or links to share to let us see what 150k COV looks like?

I reckon these items may drive your cost up. Timber bi-fold doors cost significantly more than equivalent aluminium framed bi-fold doors. Having a kitchen island may cost more if you have a sink there as it involves more plumbing work, not sure if the kitchen floor needs to be raised to accommodate the pipes running in and out below the floor. Reconfiguring your upstairs rooms also attracts cost in hacking and rebuilding - to be sure, you are customizing it to meet your needs, but it depends if your budget allows it. I did minimal modifications to my unit structure to keep these costs down, as hacking and building walls involves HDB approvals, and also to reduce cost. Its fine to have a wishlist but work with your ID on various scenarios and their cost implications to see what you can do without.

Staircase is a big ticket item so it depends on what your "re-done" means. A minor freshen up should be reasonable, but an extensive rebuild of railings and floorings can run up to 5k and more. The contractor is going to ask for more money to plaster all the walls to cover up the rough stone finish that was so trendy back in the late 80s and early 90s.

What generation of EM do you have - square or rectangular balcony? If its the first generation, the study room next to the front door is already small to begin with. If its the second generation with a larger study room, sectioning off would create cramped conditions for both the study and the maid - and if the maid doesn't get the side that has the windows, its pretty crap conditions for her to live in. Literally a closet. Even if HDB approves it, I think its not such a great idea from the liveability aspect. i suspect though, if you put up fibreboard partitions that are non structural, though, HDB may not raise an issue.

Start with the Saturday Classified section...... then you need patience to see more EMs which increases your chance of finding a good one at a good price, and also finding a genuine as opposed to speculative seller. When you see more EMs you start being more "experienced" in sizing up relative value and then you can be more decisive in making a firm offer. Of course, you must set aside a warchest that is your COV offer limit keeping in mind you have to spend on renovation usually. I saw around 50 different flats in 9-10 months of flat hunting. I made a firm offer on my flat within ten minutes of walking through the front door. The offer was accepted, if I recall, the next day.

2-3 units in our opposite block changed hands in the past year...... I guess those who want to sell, already have. Those who just bought, have an MOP to see out. I also wondered about en bloc - if we were to be en bloc-ed would we get back a similar size or forced to downgrade, and on what sort of a "compensation" package? Personally, the value of EM areas is not just within the unit, but the relatively lower population density in the neighbourhood and the way the estate itself is laid out. I do not like the densely packed new estates that have floor-to-ceiling windows that are nice in themselves but so close to the neighbouring block that you have to keep curtains drawn, or rooms so small that you can have a bed, a wardrobe and nothing else. An en bloc, imho would be a downgrade in quality of living despite a new 99 year lease and new unit. You also raise a valid point about age - new EM owners should be mindful that there will be problems like water seepage, cracks, old wiring, etc. which are unexpected costs. Try to get these sorted out during renovation and spend a bit more to do it properly. I've had to chase pipe leakage, wall seepage, and roof leaking (mine is the top floor unit) during my 1.5 years living here.

I don't know about you, but I held my final payment until I was satisfied with everything and also negotiated for a discount off the agreed quote due to late handover. They knew I was very pissed off missing on moving in during my wedding. In the end I got about 5-7% discount off the quotation. Although they were still supposed to provide 1 year warranty on workmanship I was mentally prepared to forgo it.

The COV was in the region of 200k, which basically meant that the renovation factored into it. But in valuation reports, renovation and condition of the renovation fittings has already been included in that value. So in effect the renovation has been priced twice......

My suggestion is to let the "fever" subside and the media turn its spotlight onto other types of housing and then you might be able to get some realistic asking prices. Some sellers are perfectly happy to continue staying in their EMs but are merely tempted by agents to "try their luck" so they will naturally ask a speculative price. I get plenty of flyers in my mailbox and shoved into my grille and porch all the time. IIRC my sale completed in 2010 and I paid 35k COV.

I wouldn't have done it like this but the owner did take a lot of design risks on his EM to reduce the room count. But the outcome is quite unlike most EMs and frankly quite impressive to me: http://www.propertyguru.com.sg/listing/hdb-for-sale-603-elias-road-11301855

I'm curious how such a highly sought-after Queenstown flat would end up in the HDB ballot system instead of being sold on the open market? This is not a pre-MOP sale. I can only think of it being taken back by HDB. Nevertheless getting a Queenstown flat *at* valuation is great, you should have a nice stash of cash with which to do up your flat very nicely now. Congratulations!

Not to sound unfriendly towards the newcomers, but I've had a few enquiries regarding details about my renovation and/or cost, quotations and such like. Unlike others, my T-blog was only 2 pages long, and that information had been covered in the thread itself. On good days, I don't mind repeating some of the information, on other days, I just wish they bothered to read it all, instead of skipping to the finished photographs and asking questions which have already been addressed......

adidaem, you should consider adding that to your signature - do not PM me if you just want to know the cost of my renovation.

Sorry, your questions are very vague. Each apartment is different, in a different condition and each owner has different things in mind for it. 1. any lesson learnt? Engage a good recommended ID if you have more money than time. Be realistic in your expectations of completion date. Early Dec 2012 to Early Feb 2013 gives you no margin of delay or error. Given the complexity of renovation, the following can happen: shortage of workers, delay in delivery of material, missed furnishings/electrical deliveries, furniture not in stock even though ordered. Mine was promised for two months and took three and a half. 2. Reno tips to share? Set your budget then add 10-20% to allow for cost overrun. Write down in detail all that you want in your renovation and try not to add on after the quotation is agreed upon. Be prepared to strike things off if your budget cannot stretch. Variations can run up even if you don't want it to. 3. Anything to look out for? Leaks. Loansharks. "Good friends". Fengshui if you're into that sort of thing. 4. How much is your estimated Reno cost? Around $45,000. Furnishing was another $10,000-15,000. A system 4 A/C is already $4,000.

Foreign worker quotas have been cut, cost of doing business has risen, in addition I wonder if expectations have risen as well?

If your two upstairs bathrooms are linked by a common wall it may be possible to combine the two to create a single large shared bathroom with two doors.i might be mistaken but I think adidaem did it? That way you have more space to play withto have a bathtub and still have space for everything else.

I'm one of the owners that refurbished instead of replaced the original marble floor, you can check out the before and after photos in my thread. Link is in my sig. Anyway a lot of it has got to do with the stuff that's been accumulated by the original owner of the unit, once you brighten up your walls and de-clutter, the floor will be fine. As someone seems to have quoted, a new marble floor for the lower level is 20k. Polishing is 10% or less of that.

Offhand, I could suggest checking out coffeeshop awnings where they open and close it several times a day - sometimes the manufacturer's label is still on the awning. When I repaired mine, I was advised not to open and close it within a short span of time because the motor could overheat(!). So far its still ok though.

I shoo them away - they help to keep other nasty insects at bay! My wife refuses to let me kill them anyway, and I suppose they're quite harmless. Only needs us to keep cleaning up after their poop. If you had a pet dog/cat you'd have to do the same......

Its not hard to clean as your master bedroom windows overlook the awning canvas. You just need to use a floor scrub on a pole to brush it every now and again, and you can retract it to bring the edge closer to you for cleaning. Birds don't perch on the awning because the angle is "wrong" for them. The only blemish is lizard poop...

It looks more like 2 weeks more before you can move in. Some things need time and cannot be rushed.