zirhk3355

Not sure if the situation had changed, but when I get the sand from the "appointed" contractor in late May'07, there wasn't much difference in price when I tell them I going to have timber flooring for all the rooms and some part of the living room. They quoted $1200 for whole 5-rm flat and only reduced to $1000 when they heard that I am not taking for whole flat.

Then its a matter of personal integrity - why would I withdraw and return to bookie only 90%?

This is very true. I must qualify, the worthiness of the place at $360k, to me, is ok FOR NOW. When the property bubble crashes later, I am not sure if its still worthwhile then, but nobody knows...

OIC...hehe...

You have the compare apple to apple. Is your Clementi flat near to any amenities (bus stop, mrt, hawker centre, wet market, etc)? If yes, then compare that to a flat in Bt Merah/Redhill that is also near to similiar amenities. I dun think a Bt Merah flat in a good location is only $360k - my friend just bought one unit near the Redhill MRT at $402k, new 5-rm flat, 110sqm. IMHO, if your flat is near amenities in Clementi, then its worth $360k. The resale market now is still higher than that. But don't take my words for it lah, go do some research in the area for similiar flats and find out the prices - best way is to make use of a property agent to furnish you some stats. Hehe...

haha...was about to say this as well...for the benefit of those people who can't read Chinese...

By 'applying' for 3-rm flat, its means new flat and the income ceiling applies. By 'gross monthly HOUSEHOLD income', it means the declared income of everyone in that HOUSEHOLD, which means combined income lor... Hope this helps...

The quality of such maids is definitely worth it; mine can speak perfect English and she could be easily employed by those ang-mohs or rich families for above $700/month. I was thinking mah, if I don't have her, I will have to settle for those new and young Indon maids, which can make you pull your hair out everytime... For the law, I believe they are more concerned about maid abuse; ie asking the maid to help out in the shop or hawker stalls. Such places will be very prominent, so easy to get complaint by public...

Think its ok lah; what can you do with only the account no and no password? You can only PUT money inside mah, nothing else. Let them settle it quickly lor...

OIC...but the domestic helper is still working as a domestic helper mah, got proper work permit, not illegal worker. Somemore its in our own house, nobody else will see and we are individuals, not corporations. Anyway I think there is a lot of way out of this: The maid can say that she is our friend and doing this for us for free, or the registered employer can say that they are our friend and leave the maid with us because they not at home, etc. The authority have to get a whole lot of evidence (observations, transactions, fees, etc) in order to get us, somemore we are the small player in this deal and thus lesser penalty. The heavier penalty would be on the registered employer and the maid themselves.

Erm I thought it only a problem for the registered employer? For us who engage their services, what kind of punishment will we get?

Ah yes, speaking of Indonesia...you like clubbing?? How about a clubbing weekend trip to Bintan? Check this out: http://www.silk-bintan.com/ - its located in Bintan Lagoon Resort The other time I rounded up a group of 4 couples and we shared a villa with 4 rooms, a private pool and personal golf buggy, just to go to Club Silk. Total damage is about $120/pax/night for the villa and breakfast, not including clubbing expenses and ferry. Think they got a special package for Singaporeans, S$99/pax/night including ferry, one night stay in standard room, one complimentary drink at Club Silk and breakfast. Two to go.

Would you consider those maids that are working freelance on their own? There are a handful of maids, which are registered with employers as their domestic helpers, but the employers do not pay them and only gave them a place to stay. Thus the maids are allowed to roam freely to do their own assignments. In return, the maids will go back to the employers' place and perform basic cleaning services. These maids are usually very experienced and do not want to be tied down to one employer for the miserable salary, thus their quality is good. I am using one for my mum's place (HDB 4-rm flat) that can vaccum, mop, clean windows, wash/iron clothes within two hours. She charges $20/hr and I use her once per week. PM me if you are keen... Erm, not sure if this is legal or not, but I believe the risk is on the registered employer (eg the maid do any funny things outside) but not on you...

Erm you lost me there - we are talking about a short holiday up north right? At RM$40 to RM$50 for two in a restaurant (eg sushi king, Kenny Rogers, Denny's, etc), after currency conversion, its still cheaper than in Singapore for that same restaurant mah. And for roadside stalls and coffeeshops, their prices are much cheaper. But if go there to work and get your salary in ringgit, then yes its not worth - my counterpart in Malaysia is getting paid lesser than me (in exact dollars, not even considering conversion) even though we are doing the same job!

Actually very simple to overcome this: We all bring the lockset and keys, then use masking tape to bind them together. Make a marking that only YOU know, don't tell the others. Throw them into a plastic bag and each one take one out - as long as you do not get one with your own marking, then its ok. Nobody else will know who took whose lockset... Wahh...so much lobangs!! Ok so next time your title will be "Lobang Queen"...

Sorry but I got a "bus on fire" article in that link you gave - sure you got the correct article? Hehe... Are you saying that the living standard in KL is higher than Singapore?? How could it be, unless you are talking about hi-end stuff like branded items. Otherwise, restaurants and lifestyle outlets (spas, hair salons, etc) are all cheaper.

Try telling the new company that you had just joined this current company for 3 weeks, and see what is their reaction. Better to be frank from the beginning. Same thing happened to my friend, but the new company waited for him for two years and the position remain vacant. He just joined them recently. Bottomline is you want to join a company that is sincerely appreciate your talents, not your customer base. If someone only employs you JUST to have you bring over the sales to them, regardless of your abilities and character, you won't be happy there. While your network is important, it should not be the ONLY reason why a company is paying you for.

Why not go up KL for a short break? Think that will be cheaper than staying in Singapore leh... If you drive even better, can stop over at Malacca...

Wow, u got lobang for locks also? I am definitely going to change the locks, because I passed a set to the ID and also a set to HDB for cement screeding, which is done by the haulage people. Can't be too careful about this, especially when we move in...

What is "hsh"? Anyway, its always very dangerous in such new estates; I suspect sakae sushi's place was targeted because they saw that the reno is almost done - hoping that got valuables inside. Speaking of the number lock, when my electrician found that his coil of cables was missing, he also added that the chain and number lock is missing, and my gate/door was wide open without anyone inside. Think tomorrow I will go change to a bigger lock liao...

Go to http://www.imageshack.us and upload the photo; click on "browse", find your pic, and click "Host It!" After the thing is done, there will be a page with various links to the pic. Find out that says "Direct Link to Image", copy the address. Then, come back to this forum, click "Reply" and click on the logo, . Enter that address you copied earlier - and its done! !!

When your flat is enbloc (SERS), its done jointly by SLA and HDB - SLA will take over your flat and pay you compensation, while HDB will give you the priorities and discounts. Thus after SERS, that piece of land, where your current flat is, does not belong to HDB anymore. It may be sold to private establishments for other developments, like what hdbfan said.

What is ROM march-in?? Did all of you chose Canon D because of "My Sassy Girl"?? Hehe...

Ok, for meeting place, maybe at the Building Office at Blk 89? I dun mind letting you guys come up to my flat also, but its up to you all lor.

Can try Art Seasons at Club St (actually is Gemmill Lane, but its a small road). Also Utterly Art at the back of Chinatown, where Kenko is. The gallery is before the mosque, one of the first few shophouses on the right. Both galleries are local artists, so should not be too ex. But take note these two do not just have paintings; they also have other art pieces like scrupltures and funny-looking stuff.