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A] Technically once you have given the cheque Seller should grant you the OTP, but in this case they have not submitted their Seller's checklist so they cannot grant you the OTP yet B] Since you do not have the OTP, the Seller may not honor the deal if they get a better offer May I ask when you view the unit, was it the very first day the unit was released in the market? Did you make your offer within a couple days of viewing? Best, Mark

Standard procedure: 1] Sellers complete checklist submit to HDB (7 days cooling period till granting of OTP to buyer) 2] Buyer complete checklist 3] Buyer exchange option fee($1000) for OTP (14 days consideration, or exercise immediately) 4] Buyer exercise OTP pay $4000 5] Submit case to HDB before number of days stated in OTP (page 4) 6] 1st appointment date depends on availability (check HDB web) 7] 2nd/completion 6-8weeks from 1st appointment you can print this page: http://www.hdb.gov.sg/fi10/fi10321p.nsf/w/...TP?OpenDocument and discuss with your Agent, the only cooling period is between step 1 & 3, after that there is no cooling period... Best, Mark

ok, so this Agent represents you & another Agent represents the Seller? I don't quite understand your initial post, have you exercised the OTP or not? Have you handed your $5000 to the Seller or not?

Seller can only grant OTP 7days from date of Sellers Checklist Option fee is usually $1000 (Agent should have given you the OTP at this point, 14days consideration period) Option exercise fee $4000 (You should have exercised the OTP at this point) If you have paid $5000 you should have already exercised the OTP There is a period of time stated in the OTP for Buyers & Sellers to submit the case to HDB (page 4 of OTP) Do you have your own Agent or are you dealing with sellers Agent directly? Best, Mark

For those who buy their next flat before selling the existing one, the proceeds from the sale of their existing flat would not have been realised when they first apply for an HDB loan. To help them buy a flat, HDB will first grant them a bigger loan at commercial interest rates after they draw down their CPF balance. The commercial interest rates are pegged to the 3-month average non-promotional interest rate for HDB flats offered by the 3 local banks and is currently at 3.82%. After the sale of their existing flat, they will have to redeem this loan with the full CPF refund from sale of the existing flat and part of the cash proceeds. Upon redemption, the loan will be converted to a concessionary rate loan. The new policy affects those who submit their Resale flat HLE Application on or after 5 Mar 2010.

You can go to HDB reception, request to speak to an officer regarding your situation

Valuation for blk 54x have increased to about 450k-470k blk 33x EM is about 800m+ from Chinese Gardens MRT, nice scenery @ Chinese Gardens... location quite ok, there's polyclinic, market, hawker, shops, jamming studio @ Yuhua I'm currently selling a unit at 337, feel free to contact me if anyone is interested

Basic: Bedframe, Wardrobe Others better to provide upon request, different tenant will request for different things

I feel it isn't easy to save 40% of income given the high cost of everything today, when your colleagues say that you are saving too much, do they mean that you could allocate some funds for investment to grow your money at a faster pace or that you should spend more money? I don't think there's anything wrong with saving too much Like what random_username said, perhaps you could do a projection of the expenditure you'll likely have in retirement using your current expenditure as a reference, most people should spend less in retirement, unless they're planning to travel the world then its different

Yes

Yes, the Agent not suppose to collect commission from both sides or even sign any doc as witness for both sides.

If you rent out to couple can ask for more, for common room $800 is considered on the high side.

True, because COV is paid up-front if don't even have the cash cannot buy a home at all, loan can be paid slowly/take longer loan period, in a way not as pressing...main point is still can buy Whether the cooling measures have worked really depends on how we look at it: Since the measures are not aimed directly at lowering valuations, the only way for the valuations to drop is for the COV to drop & even become negative (sell below valuation) as it has happen in the past, most recently 1Q2009(slightly), 2Q2005(more drastic) So actually the 1st step has worked, COV has dropped although it is more so for certain areas than others.. Will COV drop to value or negative? With the economy/market going up again, it is unlikely....STI is back to about 3200pts(?), outlook is good for the near future (at least for the time being, with the global economy so closely interconnected anything can happen) Why are the measures not aimed directly at Valuations? If they are to tweak the valuations, it could create an even bigger problem, one which they will not be able to solve without drastic measures, imagine all flat owners' home prices falling at once... Like many have said, price is still going up, but at a slower rate compared to 3Q2010-4Q2010, where both COV & Valuations increase at the same rate

If Buyer requests to speak directly to Seller, and Seller is agreeable..I don't see why not, I don't hide anything from my Sellers so there is no reason to prevent them from meeting. In fact it is better, if Buyer & Seller can talk before they officially close the deal, I have had Buyers lie to me several times but end up the Seller thinks I am the one playing tricks. Trying to be an "honest" Agent has its pitfalls, because of all the negative publicity & customers' personal experiences with other Agents, some people have this image that all Agents are lying b**tards, makes it frustrating to serve them when they have doubts about what i'm doing very step of the way...

For me after viewing the unit I usually will have a target COV amount that I feel is reasonable for my buyer to pay according to current market conditions, once the Seller or Agent raises the COV over my target i'll advise my buyer to walk...whether my buyer accepts my advise is up to them. Some of them tell me they really love the unit (or cannot waste any more time viewing other units) & are willing to pay, then of course I follow their instructions. In this case, always close the case fast...preferably on the same day. Best, Mark

There's restriction on landed property ownership (on main land)...so it is less susceptible to speculation by foreigners, landed prices are usually quite stable. I doubt the price will drop very much unless we have a second wave of bad news/recession from US/EU...

current & future loan must be from HDB, 1st appt is on the same date for all parties most complex part is getting people to cooperate with each other Contra is quite common... Best, Mark

May I ask how new is your Agent exactly? I feel after this episode she would probably learn and improve and be able to serve you better in future, hopefully you can give her another chance Not all Sellers' Agent are going to be like this one that you met, there is a good number of ethical Agents...I closed my last 3 cases happily with very ethical Agents. Best, Mark

This is very true, I had wanted to write the same reply...but reckon no one will believe me.....since I'm an Agent

Playing music

Actually, a good number of the complaints are for past transactions....complaining about what had happened months ago (or maybe even years) At least now there is a proper outlet for the public.

Yup, only certain areas drop...

To be fair... Buyer's Agent is always at the losing end compared to Seller's Agent, if the Buyer likes the unit a lot and the Seller is non-compromising on price or terms there isn't much a Buyer's Agent can do. The Seller can always sell to another Buyer willing to accept their price or terms.

Usually Agent will ask Buyer to sign service fee during exercise, as when Buyer exercise option they confirm buying the unit. Agent need to submit case to Agency. For my own transactions, signing the service fee agreement does not mean my buyer need to pay early, they can still pay on completion of the transaction. Best to ask your Agent.

- Eligibility to purchase - CPF Housing Grant eligibility - Financing - Explain OTP - Whether any Upgrading - Days to submission to HDB - What to bring on appointment (actually HDB will send the letter to Buyer it is stated inside, but sometimes Buyer don't read so I will remind them again before appointment) Pay Agent on completion