scenic98

all eyes will be on gilman and hundred trees pricing expected to be launched very soon. if a serious global eonomic crisis did not really dampen the buying mood, i doubt very much how much impact MBT's measures have. but having said that, buyer's and seller's price will widen....just see who blink first.

correct. the house we just took possession has those greenish slates in the car porch. some of them are already fading and some have cracked. will be changing to textured homo tiles.

interesting site.... OPSH i was about to settle on Alumix and then i read the horror stories here. any other had a different experience? I saw ikea's but feel it looks quite industrial.

i would just go to the more established brands like Elmark, KDK etc. just like these place selling those $20 stand fan, I don't think they last. and especially for ceiling fan, safety is a important consideration

nice. my wife won't even want to have a toilet with frosted glass wall separating the room and the toilet.

sorry to hear that. since it's unopened, did u try talking to the shop and ask for an exchanged? To sweeten the deal, maybe buy a more expensive one or buy some other piece of furniture from them?

in the end, i did not take up this bank's offer. just using it as a backup, if the other bank with a better rate for whatever reason reject my loan application. at the end of the day, to all prospective buyers, do your sums, don't stretch until your limits, then u will have one less worry whether u can get the loan or not.

yup... everything, from our income statements, cpf statements, everything....we wanna be real safe.

tks for jolting my memory, JM. what i got was a AIP....but the kind of information i filled in the form, was like applying for the actual loan, hence the AIP i got was like a offer letter. in any case, i was being real conservative when we bought our house, and didn't stretch to the max.

don't forget to factor in the Stamp Fee when making a purchase in a resale mkt. Even though u can use your CPF, u have to pay cash first after which if you want, your lawyer will help u get that back from your CPF account.

correct. and also u will need to have the exact unit number. otherwise, if you type in a street name, it doesn't show u which unit/s along that street was sold. but as with any online information, even from URA, use them as a guide and not as a bible. best to make sure you get at least 1 bank to hand u a letter of offer and not a AIP before signing to OTP.

yup...i like streetsine too. it gives you the exact unit number that's transacted. whereas the URA site only show the project and the price. but streetsine is not so good for landed properties. Business Times listings of sold properties are extracted from URA.

well...nothing wrong with setting aside a more than sufficient amount and get a few quotes. u will know if 1 or 2 contractors charge u too much. when i was getting my quotes, i 2 budget...what i want to pay the contractor and what i can really afford. that is so true.

congrats. real nice and neat. for safety sake...pls add on window grills. especially u have a bay window. i know it spoils the view, but what to do.

do note if u intend to "add" another story to the existing single story, the arch/engineer will have to determine if the existing structure is strong enough to withstand the additional weight of the new levels. best if you bring along a PE or Arch or a experience contractor when u do a viewing of the house. they may give u their expert opinion. good luck

amazing....previous bubble not fully burst, another one is forming. shanghai stock mkt corrected down 6% today. for $1100, must as well buy Vista at Balestier, which i already thought the pricing is ridiculous and that's for a freehold land. At least Arte is more reasonably priced. and both vista and centro is by the same developer

we went to both Lookz and AE on Sun since they are along the same stretch. Equally satisfied with both services and both seem knowlegeble. Lookz seems to have a better selection of toilet bowls and sinks while AE seem so to have a better package for kitchen sinks and storage heaters. Agree?

i would suggest checking with a qualified archi or engineer to do a visual survey of your place. they may be better to give u a guesstimate of how much. frankly, i think 400k will be cutting real close. from a single storey to a 2.5, it's literally tearing the old structure down and starting from scratch, including piling and foundation. while construction cost has come off, it's still not at pre-2007 days. my guessitmate without knowing how big and what details u are putting to the house.....600k. (better to err on the safe side)

i did the water bucket pouring thing for the toilets too. check all tiles for cracks. look out for water patches on granite or marble tiles check all wooden fixtures. i've heard of termites nest on doors of a new condo unit. check all switches. tap wall/floor tiles for hollow-ness. if it hollow, the tile may pop out down the road. u dun really need to be there when they come and correct the defect. when we collected out unit (that was years ago), the dev gave us a "temp key". just pass the key to the supervisor. once all the defects are done, u can then use your normal key to "break-in"

older estates (like serangoon gardens) have above ground power cables. these cables usually runs at the back of the houses. these estates have since been upgraded with power grid running underground but for houses that haven't been renovated, abv ground grid still works. My contractor friend told me moving the cables to the front will incur the cost u stated and maybe more if your unit is far from the distribution box. i think it's worthwhile moving the box to the front. save the hassle of letting a stranger into the house. (these days, u can send in your own reading on line)

errr...lead can absorb EM waves i think....if my sec sch physics is correct. But if you can prove that the EM from the substation is so strong, u better write in to PUB.

i printed mine recently. assuming you have done your application online and BCA have reverted to you. You will need to bring doc proof that you are authroised to view the plans. when u are there, the officer will take out the relevant microfilm after u have paid the $25. u will then go to a viewing room. if u have difficulty using the machine, they will help u. there are so many plans for a building. I can imagine there will be more if u are buying a condo, as all the drawings for the whole development will be there. just pick the necessary ones. for me, i printed the structural plans, side, front and top elevantion drawings, totalling 4 sheets. each cost $3 to print. quite a simple process actually. prepare about 1 hour there. there's some waiting time.

amzing the kind of informatio u can get on this forum. this thread will be handy for me when I take over my place. It already has a electric gate, but since the place is 13 years old, the gate may ka-put on me. having a reliable motor is important esp it's always subjected to our rain and shine weather. if the cost difference is too much, i think electric will make more sense. Hydraulics uses oil pressure. over time, if the seals deteriorate, the oil may leak.

A colleague who was interested in the Arte commented there's only 1 road in/out of the development. Expect a bottle neck during morning peak hours. Jams at Balestier is usually bad nearer to the Shaw building. aviod units that are facing PIE unless u intend to leave the aircon on most times.

do make sure the floor plans are drawn to scale especially if you are getting from msct, whom may pass you the sales brochure. i made this newbie mistake, ended up having to pay extra to cut a smaller glass dining table top and changing sofa set which i ordered before stepping into the house.