zirhk3355

I blame it on the system. If you put food on the streets filled with hungry people without any restrictions, you cannot blame them for being barbaric, can you??

Not mine lah, choyy! If this is my car I will be taking leave and stalking the MSCP wearing a ski mask to wait for the boys. Sorry but to take civil action against such mischief is simply beyond me; the cost of doing it (include time, stress, etc) is just not worth at all. What can I get out of civil action? Few hundreds for my repairs + abit more for inconvenience? Want more, then really got to spend money get good lawyer to sue their a*s off, but how much can I get? Its a small issue, after all, and this is not just about money. And if happen the kids belong to some rich blokes or white horse, also gone case, more heartache. Spare me of all these, pls... I would just "deal with them severely" myself and move on. Settled within minutes... Those who do not agree with me, pls go search for Peter Russell in youtube, his video on "Beat your kids".

"Vandals will be dealt with severely. If you are lucky, we will hand you over to the police."

In-car camera in action...d*mn power! Video: Cick to view video Police report had been made. Just look at the age of the kids! And from the video they are not the least scared, looked like they do this very frequently and having fun too. The best thing is in BROAD DAYLIGHTS somemore! Dun ask me where is this; I won't tell because I want everyone to know that if this can happen to others, it can happen to you as well, wherever you are staying! So beware!! On a side-note, join your neighbourhood's Citizen-on-Patrol (COP) now to help keep your place safe! --- Still-shot 1: --- Still-shot 2: --- Damages (Car 1): --- Damages (Car 2): --- Damages (Car 3):

Still waiting for the photos...??

Pls note in this article, the term 'experts' refer to their agencies' bosses themselves...bahh~ -------------------- Aug 7, 2008 Housing agent fees: How low can they go? With guidelines axed next month, rates will come under pressure but big fall unlikely, say experts By Jessica Cheam PROPERTY experts expect agents to feel the pinch once fee guidelines are abolished next month, but the big question in the industry is just how low fees can go. Real estate insiders concede that fees will come under pressure with buyers and sellers free to haggle, but dismiss the notion that rates could plummet to zero. 'In a buyer's market, perhaps, buyers can get away without paying. But agents also need their salaries and ultimately consumers will get the service they pay for,' said PropNex chief executive Mohamed Ismail. Agents spend about 40 per cent of their commission on the marketing, transport and operational costs of selling a flat. Active agents earn about $5,000 a month, said Mr Ismail, so how low rates go will depend on the individual. Those who aim for a large turnover of properties might be willing to slash rates but this could be at the cost of service quality, he added. Mr Eugene Lim, assistant vice-president at ERA Asia Pacific, does not see rates falling drastically as the current rate is one of the lowest in the region. Fees will be negotiable next month, thanks to a decision by the Competition Commission of Singapore, which told the Institute of Estate Agents to axe its guidelines on commissions. The 1999 guidelines were based on a 1974 Government Gazette that stipulated a 2 per cent fee payable to agents from sellers. In the past, when Housing Board prices were relatively low, agents began charging buyers a further 1 per cent. The Consumers Association of Singapore is advising people not to be held to old guidelines and to avoid giving exclusive rights to agents. It also said agents should not collect fees from both buyers and sellers, due to conflict of interest. The new playing field will offer plenty of scope for buyers, sellers and agents to negotiate, but agency boss Albert Lu of C&H Realty pointed out that the real estate market is 'already very competitive'. For private property sales, for example, agents are known to cut their commission charges from the recommended 2 per cent to 1 per cent for sellers. 'It's not in the interest of agencies to start price wars, as we end up hurting ourselves,' said Mr Lu. But he suggested that agencies might devise ways to entice buyers and sellers, such as bundling home services. Industry leaders do not rule out a 'one-stop shop' concept where agencies could offer agent and legal services along with loans, for example. Analysts believe consumers will be quick to take advantage of the new system and start haggling, but given the slow market, it is unclear who has the upper hand. Prices have eased in favour of buyers but many sellers are not budging, so with volumes down, agents may see an incentive to give discounts. Homebuyer Vivian Wong, 25, said she will bargain harder while agents vow to fight and justify commissions. HSR Property Group's Mr William Tan, 43, said he was confident of retaining the 2 per cent commission. 'In this new landscape, the better agents will survive because they will offer quality service consumers will pay for.' jcheam@sph.com.sg Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved. Privacy Statement & Condition of Access http://www.straitstimes.com/Singapore/Stor...ory_265321.html

Duno yet leh, now busy with the NDP dinner (see the carpark already set up tentage). After NDP there will be another meeting, I will tell them all about you enthusiastic bunch of people!!

I think a more probable situation is that when an agent is marketing a very good property, s/he will ask for sky-high comm from the buyer and turn away all agents. If this is not regulated, it can turn chaos. I also agree with the move to stop agents from representing both sides; once I questioned an agent on his fidicary duties when he collects fees from both seller/buyer, he said he will stand on middle ground and not side anyone. I said if I am paying you a fee to represent me and you want to stand on middle ground, I will sack you on the spot; you are supposed to represent me and act in MY best interest! Otherwise I employ you as my agent for what...? Only in this industry can such nonsensical practice be condoned... If buyer is to pay the same agent who is also representing the seller, then no, as I explained above. But if an agent wants to represent you as a buyer solely to act on your behalf for the transaction (because you are not sure about real estate and need help), then of course you must pay a fee even though you are a buyer. The agent's comm is not paid just for marketing purpose, but also to assist you (as buyer) to act in your best interest in terms of legalities, due diligence, negotiation, etc.

Yes, there is a Citizens on Patrol (COP) group in every constituency. This is jointly organised by the RC and the police. Either check with the RC or your 'friendly' neighbourhood police post/centre for more info. Haha...sounds like an advertisement! But seriously lah, if we can do our part, its always better for everyone.

I dun understand what you are driving at with your two posts; care to elaborate?

Why are you linking a post that links back to this thread? *confused*

Another interesting viewpoint fron Straits Times... -------------------------- Aug 6, 2008 Property fee guidelines must go, says watchdog Move could foster competition and a price war among real estate agents By Jessica Cheam HOME buyers and sellers will be able to haggle over the commission they pay property agents after a guideline on fees is axed next month. The Competition Commission of Singapore (CCS) said yesterday that the guidelines adopted by the Institute of Estate Agents (IEA) in 1999 are uncompetitive and must go. The surprise move could spark a price war among agents, say some experts. Mr Seah Seng Choon, executive director of the Consumers Association of Singapore, believes buyers and sellers will be the winners: 'Consumers should not accept agents who are harping on the old fee practices and should be free to bargain.' At present, sellers of Housing Board flats generally pay the agent 2 per cent of the purchase price while the buyer pays 1 per cent. In private property transactions, only the seller pays 2 per cent. The IEA guidelines have become standard practice, a point addressed by the competition watchdog yesterday. It said that while the guidelines are not binding, 'they provide a focal point for prices to converge. This will... dampen competition and facilitate price coordination.' It also noted that they are stated as a 'minimum fee', which discourages any price competition below that rate. 'Agents should not be constrained to offer the same price,' said the CCS, which told the IEA on June 25 that the guidelines 'are likely to infringe the Competition Act'. IEA president Jeff Foo said the institute, which represents about 1,600 agents, will axe the guidelines by Sept 25. Industry leaders had mixed reactions to yesterday's news. Some say the impact will be minimal as agencies will keep the status quo but other experts forecast an agents' price war, especially during market downturns. 'This throws open negotiations between agents and sellers or buyers. Market conditions will determine who has the upper hand,' said Mr Colin Tan of property firm Chesterton International. In bad times, agencies could start under-cutting each other, or conversely, agents could demand higher commissions from desperate sellers and buyers, said Mr Tan. Mr Chandran Pillay, senior vice-president of Global Real Estate Services, said smaller agencies like his cannot lower fees too much as they are already quite low and the costs of selling a property are high. House-hunter Tania Goh, 24, welcomed the room for negotiation but she was concerned about agents who 'can abuse this system when they know a buyer strongly desires a property'. PropNex chief executive Mohamed Ismail said the removal of guidelines 'may not be a bad thing' if agents up their service quality to justify the commission they get. His agency will use the IEA fee guidelines as the basis for negotiations with its clients. Mr Eugene Lim, assistant vice-president at ERA Asia Pacific, said the 2 per cent fee is lower than the 6 per cent norm in the US, for example. IEA's Mr Foo said consumers should get written agreements on agents' fees before accepting any services. jcheam@sph.com.sg Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved. Privacy Statement & Condition of Access http://www.straitstimes.com/Free/Story/STIStory_264971.html

Ya its quite a farce and more should still be done. Agencies must be enforce to elaborate their fees upfront to the client and CCS must monitor this to ensure there is no price cartel. So many industries also do not have guidelined fees but they also operate in cartel, which is even harder to regulate.

Fees freed, who gains?? Consumers reluctant to pay more, but agents want higher fees for premium service Wednesday • August 6, 2008 Kelvin Chow and Neo Chai Chin kelvinc@mediacorp.com.sg IT WAS the centre of controversy two years ago, as HDB homebuyers raged about paying a 1-per-cent commission to housing agents — who were, at the same time, taking a 2-per-cent cut from the seller — just for submitting simple documents to the housing authorities. Come Sept 25, this percentage commission recommended by the Institute of Estate Agents (IEA) will be scrapped. Individual agents and agencies will decide how much to earn off home sellers and buyers. But will consumers be the real gainers? The Competition Commission of Singapore (CCS) told the IEA on June 25 that the fee guidelines — based on 1974 recommended commission rates of 2 per cent for sellers and 1 per cent for buyers — restricted competition. “Customers should exercise their right to negotiate fees and terms with estate agents,” said CCS in a statement. However, real estate agencies told Today that lifting the guidelines may not mean lower fees — in fact, they expect more room to offer enhanced services to buyers and sellers willing to pay more. Mr Chandran Pillay, senior vice-president of Global Real Estate Realty, said: “We intend topackage a premium service for customers who prefer a higher standard of service, to justify a higher fee collected.” Agents would now be appropriately rewarded, said Dennis Wee Group director Chris Koh: “If they want a higher fee, they will have to raise their professionalism.” :The CCS urges agencies to publish their fees and provide a breakdown of prices, to help consumers shopping around for an agent. :Still, there is a risk of some agents jacking up prices unscrupulously. “Those with exclusive rights to a property may hike fees,” said :Mr Koh Hock Seng, division director of Roof Real Estate Group, who felt there should be guidelines to prevent overcharging. :Others could also find a willing buyer and seller before demanding high fees – and with a deal almost sealed, parties would be reluctant to back out, suggested civil servant J Arumugam, 35. :Recognising the possible pitfalls, the Consumers’ Association of Singapore (Case) urged buyer and sellers not to accept agents who insist on the old fee practices and to “avoid exclusivity clauses”. The watchdog also urged agents to be transparent in listing “all fees clearly in a contractual document”. HD: More bang for the buck? But, whether higher fees are backed by agents’ better service or sly tactics, sellers and buyers seem reluctant to pay more than the current rates – as they do not see what further value these middlemen can add to a transaction. Mr Arumugam, who sold his flat two years ago to buy a house, said: “Agents don’t do anything more than taking the cutomer to see the house.” Mr Chandran said the liberalised commission system could motivate agents to seek out a bigger pool of sellers, so that they can charge a prospective buyer more for taking him or her to see “10 to 20” more homes than they currently would. But, sellers and buyers looking pay the cheapest fees will also have choices available. Already, some agents told TODAY, they exercise discretion in charging clients. Said one with 20 years’ experience: “:Sometimes agents may charge below 1 per cent just to get the deal through and move on.” What could work in consumers’ favour: Market conditions. :Mr G Lim, 41, for example, paid his agent less than $1,000 to buy a HDB flat in 1998. “When markets are bad, agents are prepared to negotiate. In a good market, sometimes agents are not even interested to do your business,” said Mr Lim, who is in the financial industry. :With the fee structure freed up, who will have the consumer’s back? As Mr Chandran admitted, it would be “difficult to determine whether the consumer will be overcharged for the services offered”. While the onus will be on the consumer shop around carefully before settling on an agent, those who think they have been overcharged can :seek recourse. :For example, if an agent has under-reported a house’s floor area, the client can make claims through the agent’s professional indemnity insurers, said PropNex chief executive Mohamed Ismail.: Conversely, if the customer refuses to pay the commission agreed on, the agent can “seek his own recourse with the customer”. :Consumers can also approach Case, which last year received 1,055 complaints about disputes between property agents and their clients, most of them concerning “unsatisfactory services”, said executive director Seah Seng Choon. What of that perennial bone of contention – agents receiving dual commission? Case agreed that agents should not collect fees from buyers and sellers, as it would breach their duties to both parties. It also urged agencies to put a stop to “questionable practices” such as preventing potential buyers from viewing a property unless commission is paid. But some homebuyers, like Mr Phong Kah Ho, 34, are optimistic the consequences of the freed fee structure could resolve the issue. “If there’s enough competition, I think the commission paid by the buyer could go down to zero,” said the engineer. Copyright MediaCorp Press Ltd. All rights reserved. http://www.todayonline.com/articles/269048.asp

They deferred once when they take the keys, then everytime HDB writes to them, they will reply with another reason for deferment. Why bother to wait for the HDB to reply your fax/mails? Just write in and if HDB dun care, you also dun care lor...lol...

Only buy from big mega stores if you have better plans for your cash, ie you want to pay via instalments. If you intend to pay cash in full, your friendly neighbourhood electronics stores are always cheaper.

1. Fengshui says no good, so need to defer. 2. Someone died in the family, so cannot get married, bad luck. 3. Career advancement, need to travel alot. 4. Financial problems, need to do proper planning (honesty is best policy!) Its really very easy to get deferment for this lah; remember HDB is a privatised organization now, they got stakeholders to report to and they ARE a profitable organization. So in that perspective, after they already sold the flat to you successfully, do you think they will go all the trouble to repossess the flat from you, legal fees, paperwork, etc and take the meat out of their own mouth?? Unless they have reasons to believe that both of you are not intending to get married at all, and currently earning money by renting the flat out or something, they usually will not repossess lah. A real life example, got a friend who gotten their flat since 2005 and finally going to renovate and ROM only in Nov'08. Nothing happened to them and they told me for the whole period, HDB only wrote to them three times on their marriage cert. So dun fret and congrats in your new flat!!

Great! More volunteers, pls!!

Cat, not car. Car can only be scrapped after 10 years, it won't pass away...

DIYHDB, if I am not wrong, is just assisting you in the paperwork, ie contracts, doing due diligence on your buyer, apply for this and that, etc. The value of a housing agent is to market your property (advertise in classified, do legwork for viewing, etc), find a buyer for you and negotiate on the price, etc. All these are NOT done by DIYHDB, but by yourself. Paperwork-wise, HDB had already streamlined alot of things and their procedures are quite straightforward. Most educated people should be able to do it, but just a matter of whether you want to take the effort or not. Just attend the HDB resale seminar, read HDB website and you will know. If you are already marketing the property yourself (which is the MOST work already), why not just do the paperwork yourself too?? To pay someone $450 - $550 to do such paperwork is expensive if you ask me. So IMO, if want to save up on commission, then might as well do everything yourself.

Just now I drank a can of Coca-Cola, choke on it and kept coughing for a good 5mins. So now I tell you this, are you going to avoid drinking Coca-Cola because someone had choked on it? But what you didn't know was that I "kay-kiang" tried to drink it while lying down on my sofa. I think its only fair to name the manufacturer only if the incident's cause was directly due to them.

I think if there are no major rewiring (ie no need to pull wire all the way from main points but just relocate), it should be ok... But to remove the cornices will depend on how it was installed. If the cornices were up first then the false ceiling was affixed on the cornices, then that will be tricky.

Sounds like a short circuit. That could be due to several reasons, from factory defects to bad installation to human's factor (eg accidentally sprayed water at vital parts, or leaking water). Did your circuit breaker cut off the power? Could have called the manufacturer to investigate, if they are honourable enough they should do it. At least you will get some answers...

What: Citizens-On-Patrol (COP) Where: Tanglin Halt vicinity When: TBC Who: 1. zirhk3355 2. TYM 3. sohzai 4. The Guru 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

If the agent's services were not engaged by you, you are not liable to pay any commission. Period. I would also like to add: 1. Letter of Intent (LOI) - By Tenant 2. Tenancy Agreement (TA) - By Landlord 3. Payment of Stamp Duty - By Tenant 4. Transfer of Utilities - By Tenant The tenancy process is that the tenant would give you a LOI + 1 mth's rental to offer to rent your property, where you would reject/accept. If you accept, you take the money, sign on the LOI and revert with your TA. Immigration docs (work permit, employment pass, NRIC, etc) should be furnished at this point by the tenant for the landlord to check. Once the TA is negotiated and signed, the tenant is pay you the remaining monies, proceed to stamp the TA with IRAS, pay the stamp duty and apply for transfer of utilities. All above duties will be done by the respective agent who is representing the respective person; ie if tenant got agent, such agent will perform the tenant's duties, if landlord got agent, such agent will perform the landlord's duties. Of course, the party who does not have agent will perform their OWN duties himself/herself. Thus coming back to your case, since your tenant got an agent, ask him/her to work! Help your tenant here, dun let the agent take commission for nothing and dun do the agent's work yourself also... Good luck!