Joanna's Playground; An Em Dream

[annastans 1]

We will be collecting our keys to our EM on 25th April 2013, so we thought this might be the best time to start our t-blog to provide a bit of background to our home purchase;

Granted HDB (private was out of the question for us) has a few options through which we can buy houses, mainly the BTO, SBF and resale schemes. We were getting married in Jan 2013 and our search for a house was only beginning in Sept 2012, so the earlier we got a house to call our own, the better. As such, our best bet was either the SBF or resale. Of course there was the EC but small space for a high cost pitch really wasn't too attractive to house. My mentality when the house search began was, "Anything also can la; Near MRT, not near MRT also can." I was just excited at the thought of getting a place! Any place would have been exciting to me. But my husband had a very very specific criteria; He wanted an EM. Spaciousness offered by the EM was very attractive to him (Jumbo was just too big for 2 people and thank God we agreed on that) so with all his hopes pinned on getting an EM, we applied for the Sept 2012 SBF. We went for Woodlands because both of us grew up here and were very comfortable with the place but by the end of the exercise, we were disheartened with the final ratio ( 21 flats, out of which 1 was an EM and 6 other were immediately available with the rest ready 2013 onwards, and almost 500 applications) I even started looking for resale flats immediately after the final tally was out because it looked like we had a very high chance of not getting an immediately available flat, much less an EM. Resale was just too expensive and we silently kept hoping we would get a number at least within 100 so we might just be able to get our hands on 1 of the 21 flats. Results day drew near and I finally got a call from my husband-to-be then and I only remember hearing a soft panting amidst which i heard him keep repeating, "oh my gosh, i can't believe it, guess our number" And so I said, "Ok wow, 30??(Or something like that)" It was a number less than 2.

From that day, we were faced with a different kind of dilemma; Which flat to choose?! To my husband it was very straightforward; the EM and nothing but the EM whereas I was very convinced it was anything but the EM for the reason that I found it just too big for us (and we all know who does the cleaning in the end). What followed were days of reasoning on why the EM, why not the EM until finally, yes it was the EM. Another blessing since our search for a house began was that our first appointment was a scheduled for a day immediately after a day we returned from our wedding. Talk about the perfect wedding gift

If selecting the house was a problem, finding a contractor/ID was just as much of a headache. But of course, we had been following Renotalk dutifully from Sept last year so the comments and recommendations for IDs/contractors really helped. After speaking with a lot of them, we decided to give Mr Yeak, once again highly recommended by Renotalk forumers from what I understand, a call although we heard it's very difficult to get him. I am happy to say that it has been a wonderful experience so far speaking with him so long story short, we will be engaging him as our contractor for the renovation of our home.

I must add that a super long starting post is no indication of future post lengths

I will update more once we get pictures of our place (actually got already la from first viewing but we shall try to take prettier ones after getting the keys next week) It has been a truly blessed journey so far and we hope to have an equally smooth reno journey or at least take the hiccups in our stride

Last but not least, here's the floor plan!

Ok nvm; It was clearly too ambitious of me to think I could upload a floor plan with my first attempt at creating a t-blog I'll figure this out and share it with y'all soon!

Thanks for reading and peace out!

[HappyAng 0]

Congrats! Another lucky EM owner.

Wish u a smooth renovation journey.

[multi888 1]

Congrats and all the best on the Reno...

[potatoes 0]

Congrats annastans! Right choice to get an EM...... no Cov? U can use the $$ to do a great renovation.

[annastans 1]

Here's the floor plan!

[annastans 1]

Congrats! Another lucky EM owner.

Wish u a smooth renovation journey.

Thank you Happy Ang! I've been stalking your blog silently all this while I love the Tiffany Blue in your kitchen btw! (I'm trying to see if I can find tiles in that colour, not the glass backing). Congrats that your reno has come out so well

Congrats and all the best on the Reno...

Thank you multi888

Congrats annastans! Right choice to get an EM...... no Cov? U can use the $$ to do a great renovation.

Thank you potatoes! Another EM owner I've grown familiar with in Renotalk! No COV but we're keeping our reno simple. We'll be splitting up our reno into phases so the more major and important ones will be done up in this first phase

[spikedoll 2]

Congrats and lucky you! All the best and have a smooth and pleasant Reno journey

[El LoCo 3]

Wah....u r indeed lucky to get number 1 ! My number is 1206 and I managed to select a 4 rm...phew!

[jaykr 0]

Wah! Another Woodlander!

Welcome to Reno talk!

May I ask where is this EM in?

There were a couple available in the 800 areas and couple in the 400 areas.

I also got my flat in the SBF scheme. Decided not to get a EM, as my parents might have problems climbing the stairs. Instead selected a EA that was 179 sqm.

Have you been staying in Woodlands for a long time, I stayed in Marsiling since I was a kid ;p

Hope you have a great smooth seamless renovation journey!

[jaykr 0]

Hmm.... when you budget, make sure you cater for some extra, because what you plan would be based on what you want, but based on the condition of the house, you might need to do more than what you planned for.

just my two cents. =)

Thank you Happy Ang! I've been stalking your blog silently all this while I love the Tiffany Blue in your kitchen btw! (I'm trying to see if I can find tiles in that colour, not the glass backing). Congrats that your reno has come out so well

Thank you multi888

Thank you potatoes! Another EM owner I've grown familiar with in Renotalk! No COV but we're keeping our reno simple. We'll be splitting up our reno into phases so the more major and important ones will be done up in this first phase

[annastans 1]

Congrats and lucky you! All the best and have a smooth and pleasant Reno journey

Thank you very much for dropping by spikedoll! Your renovation has turned out very well and I'm happy it has worked out for you

Wah....u r indeed lucky to get number 1 ! My number is 1206 and I managed to select a 4 rm...phew!

Congrats El LoCo!! It's good to have a roof over our heads nevertheless

Wah! Another Woodlander!

Welcome to Reno talk!

May I ask where is this EM in?

There were a couple available in the 800 areas and couple in the 400 areas.

I also got my flat in the SBF scheme. Decided not to get a EM, as my parents might have problems climbing the stairs. Instead selected a EA that was 179 sqm.

Have you been staying in Woodlands for a long time, I stayed in Marsiling since I was a kid ;p

Hope you have a great smooth seamless renovation journey!

jaykr, I just dropped by your t-blog and I am very very impressed by your tile selections! Especially the mosaic effect tiles for the toilets! Your place is taking shape very beautifully!

Thank you for the welcome btw . This is in the 800 series. I'm not sure which SBF exercise you are referring to but the Sept 2012 exercise had just 1 executive flat, which was just nice this one. Of course. more options would have been great but we are happy we even managed to get this! And, 179sqm is huuuuuuuuge!! Wow! I saw your floor plan and it just looks like plenty of space to roll around in Hahaha. Yes, I've been staying in Woodlands (to me Marsiling and Woodlands are the same thing ) pretty much all my life. I lived in Marsiling for the most part though.Where's your new flat located?

Hmm.... when you budget, make sure you cater for some extra, because what you plan would be based on what you want, but based on the condition of the house, you might need to do more than what you planned for.

just my two cents. =)

Thanks for the tip! I understand where you're coming from and we are on a very strict budget, so we are trying to retain as much as possible. The kitchen would be where most of the work is done. I can describe our plans more once I upload pictures of the house. I noticed your kitchen and toilet tiles are very similar to ours! Ours is an orangish shade though while yours is greenish. I am ok with those tiles for the toilet but not for the kitchen

[jaykr 0]

Hi Anna,

Thank you for the compliments. Much appreciated.

Its in the 800's I see..... hmmm... Is your corridor to your flat kinda narrow and your EM is in a low floor ?

Mine was actually March 2012 SOBF. ;p

I agree, to me Woodlands and Marsiling is the same.

I actually have been staying near the Indian temple and my new flat is near to Blk 131 coffeeshop. ;p

I jogg / walk at the jetty... now called "Woodlands Waterfront"

How about you?

hmmm..... my tiles..... the pictures are probably not that clear. ;p I don't have any greenish tiles...;p

Once you have uploaded the pics, I would be able to see and then know if it is similar or I am color blind.....

Hmmm.... Strict budget....so you are going with a contractor then? or ID? Chose already?

Better clarify all the details and specifications before signing the contract. I planned for a few months before I started my reno, something I carried over from my profession.

Thank you very much for dropping by spikedoll! Your renovation has turned out very well and I'm happy it has worked out for you

Congrats El LoCo!! It's good to have a roof over our heads nevertheless

jaykr, I just dropped by your t-blog and I am very very impressed by your tile selections! Especially the mosaic effect tiles for the toilets! Your place is taking shape very beautifully!

Thank you for the welcome btw . This is in the 800 series. I'm not sure which SBF exercise you are referring to but the Sept 2012 exercise had just 1 executive flat, which was just nice this one. Of course. more options would have been great but we are happy we even managed to get this! And, 179sqm is huuuuuuuuge!! Wow! I saw your floor plan and it just looks like plenty of space to roll around in Hahaha. Yes, I've been staying in Woodlands (to me Marsiling and Woodlands are the same thing ) pretty much all my life. I lived in Marsiling for the most part though.Where's your new flat located?

Thanks for the tip! I understand where you're coming from and we are on a very strict budget, so we are trying to retain as much as possible. The kitchen would be where most of the work is done. I can describe our plans more once I upload pictures of the house. I noticed your kitchen and toilet tiles are very similar to ours! Ours is an orangish shade though while yours is greenish. I am ok with those tiles for the toilet but not for the kitchen

[annastans 1]

Here are some pictures of the house! Managed to pick out the most decent looking ones

The living room and walk in area. We will keep the existing flooring.

The view of the bare kitchen. Flooring and cabinets need to be done up and wall tiles will be changed too. We are going for an open concept kitchen so a couple of walls will be hacked down to make the kitchen brighter with more natural light coming in.

View of the stairs. The stairs and the flooring for the 2nd level will remain cuz they were in quite good condition to begin with!

The view of the balcony as seen from the MBR. The tiles for the balcony are remaining for now and casement windows for the high opening.

MBR toilet.

That's all the pictures for today and these should give an overall feel and condition of the house by now. "Not too shabby" in my husband's words and most of the renovation is for the kitchen. Toilets are ok la..except for the tile colours but can live with it

[annastans 1]

Hi Anna,

Thank you for the compliments. Much appreciated.

Its in the 800's I see..... hmmm... Is your corridor to your flat kinda narrow and your EM is in a low floor ?

Mine was actually March 2012 SOBF. ;p

I agree, to me Woodlands and Marsiling is the same.

I actually have been staying near the Indian temple and my new flat is near to Blk 131 coffeeshop. ;p

I jogg / walk at the jetty... now called "Woodlands Waterfront"

How about you?

hmmm..... my tiles..... the pictures are probably not that clear. ;p I don't have any greenish tiles...;p

Once you have uploaded the pics, I would be able to see and then know if it is similar or I am color blind.....

Hmmm.... Strict budget....so you are going with a contractor then? or ID? Chose already?

Better clarify all the details and specifications before signing the contract. I planned for a few months before I started my reno, something I carried over from my profession.

Oh! Near the Indian temple! You didn't move much from your old place to the new I see hee! I used to stay at Marsiling Drive! Wow, quite near..

I'm not sure if the corridor is narrow because I've never stayed in a corridor unit before, so no benchmark here . The unit's quite high actually.

I've uploaded a picture of 1 of the toilets so can see it's the same type of tiles HDB has put for both of us, mine's orange and yours appears to be greenish grey! I can't tell the exact colour from the pictures

Yup we're going with a contractor, Mr Yeak and I agree with you that thorough planning must be carried out. It's difficult to have a hold on everything so I'm trusting that Mr Yeak will do a good job using his expertise!

[jaykr 0]

I guess your EM is a new SOBF flat. When I was selecting my flat there was like 3 EM, most of them were low floor.

Ohhhhh.....you were referring to the tiles that HDB provided me not the tiles I selected. My mistake. Yeah, they are kind greenish and the texture, when you touch they are not straight, they have a curvey feeling.

I kinda liked it, bu felt the gaps / lines in between were kinda wide and they used super white grout and for both the bathrooms and kitchen. I felt these areas will get dark and dirty soon with all the bathing and cooking . So I hacked and changed everything. ;p

hmm.....thats interesting,..... I stayed in Marsiling Drive too! before I moved to my new flat!

Your EM looks nice!!

Well, have a great and smooth journey!

Oh! Near the Indian temple! You didn't move much from your old place to the new I see hee! I used to stay at Marsiling Drive! Wow, quite near..

I'm not sure if the corridor is narrow because I've never stayed in a corridor unit before, so no benchmark here . The unit's quite high actually.

I've uploaded a picture of 1 of the toilets so can see it's the same type of tiles HDB has put for both of us, mine's orange and yours appears to be greenish grey! I can't tell the exact colour from the pictures

Yup we're going with a contractor, Mr Yeak and I agree with you that thorough planning must be carried out. It's difficult to have a hold on everything so I'm trusting that Mr Yeak will do a good job using his expertise!