AnneY

My house : front gate (for car) is 4m wide and we have 1.5m wide pedestrain gate. The approvals took quite a bit of time as a few agencies' approval are needed(i think the usual plus LTA, PUB and may be NEA). Initially, we were asked to build culvert (i.e to cover the drain) along the entire width of the house but we (through architect) appealed successfully. We need to do the culvert in front of the gate and pedestrain gate, obviously.

My understanding is no drilling/hacking and other "heavy" activty after 12 noon on Sat. My neighbour called my contractor up to complain the moment it is past 12 noon on Sat during my construction. You can consider this : Get a meeting with the main contractor's rep before you sign off the pre-consultant survey photos. You can convey your concerns and requests to he main contractor and get their project manager's mobile phone number. Most contractors try to start off with a good relationship with neighbours. There is little way to escape the noise, dirt and inconveniences of living next to a major construction. If cracks appear on your wall, floor, water leakage, excess vibration etc you can complain to BCA - they take safety concerns very seriously.

Besides fixed skylight you can also use transparent roof tiles. We use the kormac roof tiles and 12 pieces of transparent tiles from the same manufacturer. They work very well. I also have a fixed skylight in one of the windowless bathrooms but I like the transparent roof tiles better.

Harrods carries miele and other appliances, even sub zero fridge. But you have to email them under the Harrods Direct service as I mentioned.

from Harrods (UK, London Dept store). You have to email them using the contact on their website. However for vacuum cleaner i am not sure if the savings will be significant after the shipping charges.

In my experience, for condo, best to start with partially furnished (wardrobe, kitchen cabinets, fridge, washer, dryer, curtains). If you meet a prospective tenant who want more items like TV, microwave or furniture, they can always negotiate with you. Many tenants have their own furniture and appliances. If you buy first, the tenant may not share your taste in furniture.

Hello Lee, if you are building another house next to your existing house (ie. you will have 2 houses in the plot of land), its likely you have to pay a development charge which could be quite hefty. Have you look at this item?

The ceiling exhaust fan is connected to a duct which will carry the air to hole in an exterior wall. The exhaust fan is cheap (~$200-300), the ducting is expensive (Depending on length of duct). There are 2 options - flexible hose or fixed ducting. Flexible is cheaper but not much. I was quoted about $2K plus to do install 2 fans with fixed ducting in 2 toilets that are windowless. For reducing humidity in walk-in wardrobe, one option is to install a dehumidifer (eg novita has some slim models). If you make provisions during construction, you can install a pipe to carry away the water from the demumidifier (so that you don't have to empty the water tank).

twothumbs : For bathroom related stuff like taps and steam generator, we have purchased from Amazon.com (accepts SG cards) and homeperfect.com (accepts Paypal). Have to use vpost or comgateway to forward the packages. Usually at least 40% savings after shipping, GST (if >$400) etc. UK and European sites usually accept international credit cards. Some of these sites will deduct VAT (19-20%) off the price when they ship outside Europe. So very large savings can result. If shopping for electrical items (like lights) must get from UK due to 220V voltage. We purchased a De Dietrich induction oven from UK site, about ~S$1K total with shipping, GST and we did not even get VAT deduction from that site.

As we construct our house, we found that many items are far cheaper in Europe or US. We have purchased from these sites and save money in the process. 1. Ironmongeries : Valli & Valli door levers & lock (Italian design and made in US) from www.decow.com). Average about US$150 where those less known brands in singapore cost >S$300. 2. Samsung digital keypad lock : SHS 3120 from Amazon.com : US$230 (about S$600+) here 3. George Nelson Bubble Lamps & other italian light fittings : ylightings.com - >50% savings in general 4. Kohler Purist floor mount bath filler (for free standing bath tub) : US$580 compared to >S$2K here And many other items including Elitis wallpaper, Miele appliances, steam generator, etc. Does anybody have other shopping sites to share ?

A few more: WeLoveAir Designer Furniture - clean and sleek look. http://weloveair.com/siteAir/contact.html Monticello - LIGNE ROSET European Designers #01-01 Odeon Towers The Shophouse Teak Furniture at Tanglin Mall & Rochester Park www.theshophouse.com The Home Gallery Made in China, but looks quite close to European designer furniture UE Tech Park, 8 Pandan Crescent, Lobby 5

New Erection is start from scratch. Reconstruction is like an extensive A&A, it reuses some of the existing structure. You can read about it in this URA document. http://www.corenet.gov.sg/Corenet/einfo/Circulars/HTMLandPDF/URA_2005090501.PDF A&A does not require architect and no need for TOP/CSC.

Have PM you. For construction contract (including PS sums), mine works out to be in the range $165 psf of GFA (including open terrace, car porch), but this is not an accurate assessment of building cost based on my observation. Mine will be well below $150 psf range if i did not have a swimming pool. It depends on (a) how much foundation structure you are redoing, the type of foundation needed due to soil condition (piling or pad footing) (b) any sewer line running across your property © do you want an attic, are you redoing the roof structure - major items like this. For a semi-d of land 3800 sq ft, a few architects i spoke to said you need a total budget starting 800-900K (for reconstruction) and at least 50% more if it is a new erection (ie demolish everything and start from scratch). The total budget includes the construction cost plus PS sums set aside for aircon, sinks, taps, wc, electrical, lighting, built-in cabinets, door handles, autogate etc but excludes furniture. My PS sums are 30% of total budget - this is the portion you have discretion on how much to spend for the quality you want.

I have seen houses which remain as "semi-d" status, but the house is designed in such a way that most of it is detached from the neighbour's house - looks and feel like a detached. That may be an option for you if it is not approved.

HI Goodluck, for your reference, my architect's fee is 40K (his name is found in the Board of Arch) , PE 12K, QS 2.5K. And this is for reconstruction of a semi-d land size 3600, 2 levels, 5 bedrooms +family room, and swimming pool. So I think it is possible for get one for under 70K.

YES u are right. The board oaf architects.

Forgot to mention that i was told the following affects the quotes you get from a builder: a. Does he have a lot of jobs now? If not, he will be pricing lower as he has available workers. So timing places a BIG part. b. Some builders price higher (put in more buffer) if they sense that you are a demanding customer. If they feel that they can work with you, you are reasonable, they will price will more reasonably. c. Builders price in "risk" of a project - are there areas where possible delays or issues will happen? That depends on the scope of work, and things like is your plot on a slope, is your house is on a main road, your neighbour's property etc d. Sometimes if an familiar architect or designer is in charge of the project, the builder will price lower as he knows the architect or ID will manage the customer communications. As for my builder, my project is <15% done, i have not seen the finished quality so i hesitate to recommend. For builders, you can check up on the BCA Directory of Registered builders.

Hi siaw8, if you are referring to the contract sum, I am not sure why a tender might result in more expensive quotes. The professional fees (Architect, QS) might be higher and it will take a few weeks longer. The performance bond cost $2K in my case (contract sum ~600K). My architect and another architect i spoke to (HYLA) both use the tender process. Also pay attention to the payment schedule in a design & buid contract.

Yes, our current builder is very experienced so if I had known them before, I guess I would consider engaging them directly if I know exactly what i wanted to do and if it is not complex. Although $40K for architect is a lot of $$, but I observed actually it is quite a lot of work for the architect so far. He met us weekly in the "design phase", and we are meeting fortnightly after construction starts. The architect did the full specifications (thick book & drawings) and managed the tender. Besides progress meetings, he has to attend to technical issues separately with the builder and engineer, and ad-hoc meetings on selecting finishes and interior.

i have 5 condensers 9 fan coils totaling 180,000 BTU. However, perhaps the intended usage pattern is more important. We are not heavy users of aircon. For eg, we turn on aircon in living & dining only when we have guests. My kids sleep with aircon on 5-10% of the time only. One unit is in the guest room (no one occupies it) and one unit is in the walk-in wardrobe. It is very unlikely all will be turn on simultaneously.

Yes, 3 phase. BTW, i forgot to mention that I was told that if you have 100amp, your house will need to be certified by a registered electrician annually (i.e more cost).

We purchased an old semi-d in east coast early this year. Just before we purchased the house, I came across this forum and have benefited from all the information on rebuilding, and also got some contacts from other postings. One of the first difficult decision in A&A/reconstruction/erection of landed property is to whether to go with an architect, designer OR builder, and which one?? I like to share my experience about the pros and cons of the different approaches : 1. Interior Designer Met 3-4 interior designers who have experience fronting and managing A&A projects. Fees range between 12-28K for the designer, and some times another 8-12K for engineers and/or architect’s fee to ‘sign-off’. The ID is usually strong on the interiors, placing more emphasis on overall creative concept, color scheme, furniture etc. They will present 3D drawings, “mood board”, selection of materials, curtains, lighting etc well in advance. From the photos and feedback I had from friends, some of the projects turn out quite well. However ID firms usually do A&A projects only due to lack of construction expertise or financial strength. Some ID call themselves “Design & Build” i.e you have to use their selected contractor. I feel that this approach is riskier. You usually pay in advance (30% the moment you sign up) and there is no architect/QS for check that the work is properly done. This is a good option if (a) you find an experienced ID, (b) the A&A work is not complex, and © you care more about design & aesthetics – you want more “designer touches” in your house. Another advantage is generally the interior designer is more flexible on hours (work outside office hours) and can spend more time in discussions with you compared to an architect. One of the designer I met was great in communications/follow up. Another had a modern/minimalist design style which we liked. A big disadvantage is the payment schedule: usually the fees and billing are “in advance” (eg 30% when you sign up) and hence you bear more risk. I also understand that suppliers (of tiles, marble, sanitary, etc) usually pay a “rebate” or “commission” to the interior designers if their clients make purchases – this means the prices you pay for material and fittings will not be the best prices when you shop with your interior designer. 2. Builder I understand some people select the builder first, and the builder will get the PE and provide a quotation. I spoke to a builder who did very good work for my friend’s A&A project and he referred me to his usual PE firm to come up with the design for submission. The PE quoted about 22K, and 30% upon signing. 3. Architect Architect fees range upward of 30K (may be 40-70K is typical for terrace/semi-d) if you appoint the architect directly. In addition, there will be separate PE fees (12K) and usually a QS (quantity surveyor) will also be appointed. The architect is a licensed professional and usually will run a formal tender process to select the builder. The contract signed with the builder will be the standard one recommended by the Singapore Institute of Architect. It is worthwhile to mention that I actually talked to 2 guys who claims to be “architects” but I found they are NOT architects. There are firms who provide architectural services – these 2 people are very experienced individuals who have designed and managed many projects – but they do the work but get someone (an architect) to “sign-off”. If you engage this type of firms (usually called XX Design or XX Planners & Design), the “architect” fees are lower (10-20K) and some of the forum-ers have reported good experience as well. An architect's name/firm must be found in the Board of Architects website directory http://www.boa.gov.sg/register.html . Do a check so you know. In the end we went with the Architect approach and so far we feel it’s the right decision because a. The tender process is transparent – we have five tender quotes. The difference between the lowest and highest is almost 500K! b. The architect knows the good quality construction firms he worked with in the past and has leverage – the construction firms want to have future projects with him. The builder we selected (lowest quote) has been very good so far – very professional, very experienced project manager, good communications by phone/email, progress reports, proper documentation etc c. The payment schedule – although the Architect approach is most expensive, the payment schedule is most favorable . Our architect did not invoice us the first progress payment till he completed the submission to URA and launch the tender. For the builder, we are billed monthly for the work they have COMPLETED (as certified by architect/QS). We have not been billed by the professional engineer! d. In the tender approach, there is a performance bond (10% of contract sum) and $500 liquidated damages per day if project is not completed by agreed date (6 months for me). We don’t have to “chase” the builder and have peace of mind. e. Our project has some complexities: an old retaining wall at the back which needs to be moved by 2m. A sewer line also runs at the back of the house and a sewer trench is needed. After the demolition, we found additional columns and columns not in position shown on old plans. f. Our architect has good contacts to tiles, marble, sanitary, aircon, appliances suppliers – and these suppliers provided higher than usual discounts because architects do not take “rebate” from them. There are of course disadvantages in working with an architect. Besides this approach being more expensive (more professional fees) and the longer tender process, the main issue for us is the architect works office hours, mon-fri only and it sometimes difficult to get a meeting with him. He needs to be “chased” in periods when he is busy. Reconstruction of a single house is a small project for an architect and sometimes accorded less priority. The interior design portion is more ad-hoc, and we did not have any 3D drawings to help visualize the interior layout plan. He accompanied us to shop for flooring materials only so far, although he recommended places for us to shop for the other items. Overall however, his experience in dealing with technical issues (no major delays in getting approvals), his guidance in selecting & managing the builder and the sia contract terms are important things we will not forego.

Hello TwoThumbs, 60 amps vs 100amps : I have induction hob, convection & steam ovens, steam generator (in shower area), swimming pool and my builder said 60amps is sufficient. Profit in attendance : mine is 2% under my contract. The main contractor co-ordinates with the "specialists" such as the aircon supplier, works out the techincal issues (such as where to place the condenser units, where to run the concealed piping etc), scheduling etc, arranges delivery of the aircon etc.

Thanks for sharing. I am reconstructing a semi-d currently and the info has been very useful. Thanks also to Eileen for sharing her contacts & suppliers.