waileong

In the real world, it is hard to find cheap and good. The reason is plain economics-- anyone who is really good will have demand, and demand pushes prices up. Also, you must distinguish what is really cheap and what is really expensive. The total cost of ownership needs to be taken into account, not just the initial price. Cost of maintenance, level of quality, durability, design, service, customer responsiveness, etc. are all factors to be considered. As an example: A Merz for $100K is "cheap". A Hyundai for $60k is "expensive". There is a vast difference in quality, prestige and feel between the two, and the upfront price tells you nothing, other than one is more than the other.

Cheap. But good? That's a separate matter.

Does it really matter? You're going to tile it over right? If not, the new area will be different from the living room...

If you want cheap, just look for those ads in the classifieds (20 ft run for $999!). If you want good, you can either deal with the kitchen specialist direct, or tell the contractor who you want him to deal with. Any contractor can do a kitchen. The reason kitchen specialists exists is because they are good. In my previous house, the cabinets lasted me 7 years, and that was that. The silicone came off, the water seeped, and the wood started to rot, the counter top became wobbly, and the tap came off the sink. Do you want a cheap kitchen? Or a good kitchen?

In America you would get them from Home Depot....

As some of you reading the blogs may know, there's someone having a very bad reno experience now. The important thing is that no one will do a job well unless it's worth his while. This means that if you try to make the contractor lose $$, he will not do a good job, and you could end up like her. A good business relationship cannot be established if one side feels shortchanged by the other. You'll come to rely on your contractor much more than you think. If you pay cheap, he will treat you like dirt. One should aim to pay a fair price, not try to rip off the contractor. A job well done at a fair price is much more important than a lousy job done cheaply. See Vermillion's blog if you want graphic evidence.

Don't be too smug. Cheap things come at a price. Getting a contractor with a bad attitude because he can't make $$$ can hurt you more in the end.

This is a house you're talking about. Do you have the time and expertise to project manage everything yourself?

That's not true. Good contractors can do everything.

Dirt accumulates under the decking easily if they are timber slats. But if they are solid planks joined by tongue and grooves, that should be ok.

This is simple. If it's inside your house, it's your problem (with one exception). If it's outside your house, it's the town council's problem or HDB's problem, unless it can be shown that you caused the damage. The one exception inside the house is for those living on the top floor. If there is ceiling leakage, then the town council will have to fix it.

You can cancel the deal and get your $$ back if the seller cannot show that his changes were approved by URA/BCA. Quite standard terms and conditions, which are part of the searches your lawyer should do.

Ask him to quote you the exact BCA regulation, then you can check if its true from the BCA website. In any case, extending just the front part of the house requires rebuilding the entire front wall and extending the roof as well. Sounds like an expensive A&A job. Most people extend their front garden or drivway/porch as that does not affect the main house.