delirious_jeff

I was told that downlights can classified as 1) With ballast 2) Without ballast I am currently considering the pros and cons here... With Ballast ======== 1) Current going to bulb is controlled, so bulb last longer 2) Cost more with the ballast 3) If the ballast is damaged, it is difficult to replace the ballast since ballast is inside the false ceiling. 4) Bulb of this kind (push in and snap into position type) is cheaper. 5) Brightness is controlled and constant. Without Ballast ========== 1) An avalanche of current flows into bulb when bulb is turned on, so bulb tends to spoil more easily 2) Cost less since there is no ballast 3) Easy maintenance cos the only thing that needs replacing is the bulb 4) Bulb of this kind (screw into position type) is more expensive 5) Bulb gets brighter only after leaving the bulb switched on Any advice? Did anyone had any bad experience using either the one with ballast and the one without?

FYI: Here is how I was charged... $26 / Light point $8 / Light installation $45 / Single Socket point $55 / Single Socket point $90 / TV point $45 / Telephone point $90 / Heater installation $280 / DB I had my entire unit re-wired because I did wall plastering and decided to have false ceiling, etc. I need to re-route the inlet and outlet for the kitchen sink and washing machine and add hot and cold water piping for both bathrooms. So, we might as well replace the pipe from the living room to the kitchen. I chose stainless steel water pipes cos I was told they cost the same. Are you doing any carpentry? If you are, make sure you make the ID/contractor declare everything... what kind of doors are used. where if the door is sliding or with hinges, or the number of drawers, etc. Those are hidden costs that I failed to see!

One pic... that was all I took. Forgot to upload the pic earlier. http://www.flickr.com/photos/26034119@N03/2442712291/

At the corner of a wall, the contractor will lay a piece of material (I do not know what this is) at the obtuse corner of the wall. This material is in between two wall tiles. Noticed that for all the other corners of other walls, the contractor uses one piece between end to the other end. Sad to say, there is this one corner where they failed to do the same. I was thinking of kicking a fuss over this to the coordinator. Sad to say again, the coordinator is not in control of his various contractors. Before I do kick up a fuss, I would surely appreciate the opinions from you guys. http://www.flickr.com/photos/26034119@N03/2442712291/

1) Yes, there will be complication. The top tiles may crack in the future. They are like a ticking time-bomb. You won't know when they will just give way. I think it is better to hack existing and re-lay the tiles. 2) Are you going to plaster the wall? If you are, then you have to re-wire the entire house. 3) Stainless steel is better. 4) Your ID/contractor will most probably bring you to a place to choose the tiles. Contractor brought me to Hafary. I think it is S$2++ per sq ft???, i think... I cannot remember? 5) Have you walk across a floor laid with laminates with your bare feet? You may not like that feel. I wanted to overlay laminates at first but chose to have homo tiles later because we did not like that laminate feel. We gave up having a built-in wardrobe so that we can use that money to hack off the floors in the bedrooms for laying of homo tiles later.

Sorry seems to be the hardest word...

I think the agent was not dishonest. I am guessing the agent just did not realise there was an error until it was too late. After the OTP was signed, very little can be done to correct any errors that will be mutually beneficially for all parties involved. Most agents that I have come across looks "blur". When I ask some of them questions about rules and regulation, they cannot give an immediate answer. They have to check with someone else before calling me back. This is why we engage lawyers to handle the transfer process.

Does the price difference include the stamp fees? Stamp fees is based on the agreed selling price. In your case, the total area of the apartment was misrepresented. As as result, the selling price AND the stamp fees you paid are incorrect.

If you are selling the unit yourself, you may get harassed by the buyers' agent. That was what happened to my colleague when he tried to sell his HDB apartment himself. Also, you have to find a buyer who is also willing to purchase the unit without engaging the services of an agent.

I know of 4 friends and 1 colleague who have decided to wait for another couple of months. I was told that the valuation price remained unchanged since Jan 08 but COV has dropped a lot and is still dropping. In Dec 07, for EM/EA near MRT COV is about 40k, now only about 25k... We should have waited.

Look on the bright side, you did not have to pay for the agent's commission, which is maybe 1% of the agreed price.

Is ho bee a project coordinator?

The name of the HDB officer attending to my case is not Ting. Day after day, the HDB officer must have seen so many of such cases. I felt that the HDB officer know more about resale transaction rules than my agent. He gave us some good advice. At the end, he stressed that HDB will not act as a mediator, and can only help to process the transaction and documents. So, what role does the agent play? I personally think they are useful for collecting magic "COV"s.

Since the seller is not a certified real estate agent, he is just representing the HSR. I dont know. I think you should seek legal advice here. These people prey on our lack of understanding of the property law to take advantage of us.

1. From what I have seen, if the apartment that the agent is selling is good, the seller's agent do not want to co-broke. This means the seller's agent shall earn the 2% commission from the seller and 1% from the buyer. -> Do the searching yourself. 2. Seller's agent represented the seller, and we had no one. The agent told us that the seller can vacate by mid Jan. However, on the 1st appointment, the sellers said they needed more time to move out. The agent said he also did not know about this until that they. Legally, the sellers are given 8 weeks to move out. No choice, we have to agree to their terms. So, we had to give them another 2 weeks. -> Always be prepare for such things. 3. We refused to pay the agent commission until he ensure that the sellers moves out by the date agreed AND everything has to be removed when we inspect the unit prior to the completion (some owners leave behind a ton of junk) AND all keys are surrendered (some owners fail to give keys to some of the doors in the house). He got his commission on the last day. -> Schedule to inspect house 2 days before completion, schedule the completion in the afternoon so you schedule to go the purchased apartment in the morning to check that the keys you get open all the doors and window grille locks in the house.

DON'T SIGN THE HSR AGENT COMMISSION AGREEMENT, if you have not done so!

It looks to me that the ventilation fan and the securing screws are situated inside of the apartment and not outside. Since this is the case, why is a HDB approval still required?

You can refer to these website for information. http://www.etcpublishing.com/fengshuiformfreechapter.htm http://lessons.astrology.com/course/show/T...-the-Feet-Point http://www.metaluck.com/archives/feng_shui...alth/index.html http://img.quamut.com/chart/211/08Goodbed_rev.jpg If you are really into Fengshui, I think you should pay a Fengshui master to survey your apartment and advise you accordingly.

I agree with h4happy. Bedhead should be against a solid wall and not under a window. Placing under window can cause health problem, which sounds logically in a way. You can check websites on Fengshui for this info. The basic stuff on arranging furnitures you can go to fengshui.about.com If you are really into Fengshui, I think you should get a geomancer to advise you. They shall inform of where to place the furnitures, the directions that these furnitures should be facing based on the profile of your unit and the bazi of the occupants, etc. Is the stove and sink facing each other?

After exercising the OTP, the buyer has another 2 weeks to consider before the submitted the application to purchase. During this period, buyer can negotiate with seller on the valuation report, etc. I think the valuation report is needed for resale application and/or during the 1st appt.

I think it is better to avoid having problems. So, I think you should give this place a miss if the situation is really that bad. With FS, I have learnt that it is better to find a place suitable with our bazi than to do a makeover of the place to correct the FS. There is a limit to we can do to correct the imprefections.

There are a lot of renovators in the Yishun area. As for your quotation... Wetworks:- Cheaper than most renovators I have visited. Carpentry:- Slightly more expensive Painting:- Relatively the same Electrical:- Relatively the same Some renovators do not charge debris removal and HDB application Yes, renovator do need to visit site to give the accurate quotation.

Can i check with you guys.. are all fees payable done during the 1st appointment? Yes. During the 1st appt, OA in your CPF shall be wiped clean, sucked dry, down to virtually zero. The administrative fees are paid in cash. Will there be any 'left over' amount payable for the 2nd appointment? To HDB? I do not think so. When the officer present the financial plan, are the info accurate and up-to-date? Yes, I think 95% accurate. Do they calculate your CPF amount using the statement that we provide or they can extract our latest amount via their network? I notice they got the info from the computer so I am guessing they got the info via a network. I do not it is real-time information but information obtained very recently. Is there anyway that they can calculate the information wrongly? Unlikely, they can calculate the info wrongly, but there is always this small chance. We need to check just in case. Cant be too complacent.

These are the cases that makes you wonder if we really need housing agents in buying and selling of HDB flats. As zirhk3355, considering suing the agents. Their negligence is the root of your problems. If all the owners of the unit has signed the OTP, I think they would not dare to delay the transaction. The seller should understand that the property market has already peaked and is just starting to show signs that prices shall soon fall.

OTP is a legal binding contract between sellers and buyers. Is the OTP valid even though only one of the two sellers agreed to the sale of the unit?