kardtoon

Are these all builders? Might want to mix in a few architects to help round out your decision. Do a search in the forum about the pros/cons of architect vs builder led projects. When you talk to each one, be specific in tell them what you want to do, state your budget and timing considerations upfront and see what they each say about feasibility. Shortlist to a few that you have a good feeling about (honesty, good design, good quality, good feedback from others, etc) and then ask to view some of their projects. Should help you narrow down your search.

Before you decide who to employ, you may want to consider if your plan is to do an A&A or construction. Renovation is out as you plan to increase your GFA. Either A&A or construction both requires submission to the authorities and however A&A limits your to increase of maximum 50% of the current GFA. If you feel that you can manage the floor increase within 50% guideline, then it could be the cheaper way to go. Reconstruction does not limit the amount of GFA except to the limit of your plot ratio. Depending also on whether you want to do significant relaying of toilets, bedrooms, etc, these could also affect the cost of A&A. Hence you need to know roughly what you want to do before you deicde on who to employ. You can discuss various options with forummers here or with friends and once you roughly know which path you want to take, your budget and timeline, it will be easier to narrow down to architect or builder options. Just a standard renovation contractor is probably out for your case due to PE submissions.

An archictect should be able ot advise you on current market building cost, professional fees etc and other costs to budget and plan for. Typically these kinds of initial meetings to get the info should be free of charge, so don't worry, just go talk to a few and get a range of opinion.

Did you change anything to the drawings between when the contract is signed to when they asked for additional cost? If not, don't pay... they made a mistake and usually when I make a mistake at work, I suck it up! This will also set the tone for the whole project.

Curious why you wouldn't ask your builder to include carpentry? cost no good? workmanship no good?

Totally makes sense. End of the day, the architect should work for you, so if you find one where you really like the design and can click with you, i think it's a wise decision. Another point to note is the builder/architect relationship. I've found that architects tends to have a few builders that they like to work with so during tender they will typically bring those in. I did bring in my one more that I found into the mix but ended up that was more expensive that the rest. Anyway during the construction process, my architect was able to negotiate a lot of extra stuff to be done without charges. I noticed that when my architect asks for design change (e.g. use more glass to let in more lights etc), there were no VOs applied. Whenever I asked for any design change, they will usually (not always but usually) charge me. I realised that there is a relationship that the builder would like with the architect in order to gain further future referrals, hence as long as they have a comfortable margin from the project, they will acceed to request from the architect. This relationship really helped in my construction not just in terms of cost but also speed, problems solving, etc. If you need further advice, please feel free to contact me via PM.

I don't think there would be a fixed fee for PE and QS. It would depend on the scope of your construction, degree of difficulty, etc etc. Best to ask your architect to call for tender. if you get recommendations from friends, just ask them to join the tender.

Question 1 and 2 varies according to the type of house that you want to build. Find and architect or builder and they can give you a good gauge to timing and budget. If you are have the frontage and size to convert to a semi-D, that'll probably bring extra value to your house... nice :-)

Ask your architect to put forward a tender for a PE. Then pick the lowest cost that your architect is comfortable to work with. Good PE can help save cost and get nice design (i.e. less beams, thinner columns, etc) so don't just pick the lowest cost, your architect should have some experience working with them and recommend them.

Thanks for the kind words Lee. I have benefited from your advice through this process. One word to readers of the forum. This forum is not a substitute for professional advice. Always consult if possible different professionals and decide on one where you feel the most comfortable with.

I actually think $750k for quality construction with good quality materials is pretty cheap. My estimate is probably in the range of 900k. Do bear in mind that Lee and myself may and probably have different ideas around quality. Best that you view different houses, get some ideas around what level of functionality, furnishing and finishing that you want. Then engage a builder or architect that can help you realisze your dreams within your budget. Don't wait too long though... I forecast continued inflation :-)

I've heard from builders and architect that garment for inter terrace is more expensive than corners, semi-D or detached at the same size. This is because for inters, you need protection works for both your left and right neighbors. Have you spoken to architects or builders? What did they say about viability of your budget?

My condo management requires submission of design for all renovations and they have to agree to the design before they give out the Reno permit. If you condo is the same ( read the bypass), you won't be able to start work. If Ou do this illegally, they may make you tear it out. Any other penalties, read the bypass. Best answer for your wood question is to lift up and check condition yourself.

Not true, as I changed my staircase position. Get architect to advise.

Sounds like you are really doing a significant rebuild rather than keeping the existing building and just extending part of the house. In that case, the amount seems a bit closer to market rate. Many on this forum would advise that given the large amount of spend here, you should talk to a few builders etc so you get a better gauge. You should also think about which approach you want to take with this new project. Some of us use a lead architect who does the design and then tenders out to builders to quote. Others use a builder who designs and builds the whole things, ie one stop shop. Each approach has it's pros and cons.

Sound excessive if it's just an extension. Sounds more reasonable if it's a complete rebuild/reconstruction. Better get a few more quotes.

Partitioning part of the roof terrace is probably illegal as it increases GFA. your condo mcst will likely not approve it.

Anyone falling off anything higher than 2nd or 3rd floor can meet a fatal end. Penthouses are not less or more dangerous IMO. If you have kids, please becareful to educate them and block off access to ledges and ensure they don't climb on railings... doesn't matter which floor you are on.

While true in most cases, for enbloc often developers will buy over and top up lease for redevelopment. Hence my earlier post on good location.

I would focus on the location. Layout and space can be better optimized through renovation, A&A or rebuild. Location cannot run away and in the longer term is better protection for the value of your property. Buildings will age over time and lose value.

sure it's possible but all your neighbours must agree to sell. It's not strata title so 100% must agree to sell, hence landed enbloc not common. However you can combine with your neighbours to rebuild into condo and each of you take one unit and sell the rest.. :-)

Sounds like a good balanced approached. My builder tries to avoid buying for me. Everytime I ask him to buy, he says he's afraid I don't like and ask me to get it myself. Only when pushed will he buy for me... if/when he does that, he passes the invoice to me directly to pay him back. Personally I feel that they may not try to take advantage of these types of items as they are quite low cost. I mean even a $200 tap, how much can they cheat? Maybe $50? even multiply by all the taps, it's just a bit more and I doubt most reputable builders will bother. It's really the big ticket items like timber flooring, marble and tiles where the prices can go into the tens of thousands where you need to be careful. Other items like structure is also an area where they can rip you off but again that's very hard to catch unless you are an industry insider or have a QP looking out for your interest or you have comparative quotes from others. My approach during my house building process is not to sweat too much of the small stuff, largely due to lack of time/energy/laziness on my part. I take a more hands on approach on the bigger ticket items, though even that is very minimal compared to other more hardworking forummers here :-) . Thankfully it's coming to an end and my house should TOP tomorrow :-)

Depends... you really need to aks yourself. I hate gardening.. it's dirty and plants while nice to look at can take effort to maintain. I even hate watering plants. However my family members love it. they like have a place to plant their own herbs, they find flowers beautiful and like fertilizing, pruning, etc. Do you like gardens? If you do, it's pretty good. Some penthouses have large rooftop gardens, some layouts have much smaller ones. Either way, you pay for the square footage, so you should find value in having that space. Penthouses tends to be quieter... you don't have neighbours above, so no one jumping up and down disturbing you. Your view tends to be better and is usually windier. There's usually more space compared to smaller units. They can also get hotter as they are right below the roof. If the lift breaks, you have a lot to walk.

99 yr old leasehold property tends to follow the market trend pricing direction with a discount over freehold property. The discount amount depends on how "hot" the market is. You probably know that when there is a feverish market, leasehold pricing can be very close to freehold. During softer times, the discount seems to be greater. At some point though, when the property gets old or when it becomes difficult to get loans, the discount may be significant. That said, given that the SG market has been on the uptrend over the past decades, I suspect that most 99 year landed property owners may still be able to sell their property today for more than what they paid for. Even the ones that has say 5 years left on it's lease. I'll give an example, my neighbour bought his 2500 sf house for $19k 30 years ago. Today he has an offer for $3.2M. That house is 999 yr lease but even if it only has 3 years left on it's lease, it is likely that he will sell it more than 19k because renting a place like this for 3 years will cost much more than that in rental. I suspect that this the case for many properties in Singapore. However for this to continue, the market has to keep climbing on and on and who knows if this can and will be sustained. On your bank question, the bank can technically do that. However in practice, they normally won't disturb if you have been regularly paying your mortgage payments.

I'm staying in one. What would you like to know?