Issue 108

Copyright 2011-2013 www.Propwise.sg. All Rights Reserved.

CONTENTS
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6 Tips to Help You Deal Successfully with
Renovation Contractors Property Selling Tip #1: All Markets are Cyclical Singapore Property News This Week Resale Property Transactions (May 29 June 4)

FROM THE

EDITOR

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 108

6 Tips to Help You Deal Successfully with Renovation Contractors

By Property Soul (guest contributor) Are you looking to renovate a property? I have done four major renovations and countless fixing projects for my properties in Singapore. Over the years, I manage to find at least one good electrician, plumber, carpenter, handyman, etc. But for whatever reason perhaps its because Im unlucky, or maybe its simply the nature of the business I have yet to find an honest contractor or a reliable renovation company. Yes, not even one. Bad experiences with contractors What I have had are some unpleasant experiences that you may have encountered before if you have commissioned any
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 108 renovation project: 1. After placing a deposit, the salespersons prompt responses become delayed or you get no reply. 2. The contractors are very busy and you have to bear with the fact that they are often late for (or absent from) any appointment with you. are not cheap. Those who provide good customer service, quality workmanship and acceptable completion timeframe usually have reasonable prices missing from their quotations. Tip #1 Get good recommendations I strongly recommend talking only to renovation companies or individuals with referrals from a trusted source. Dont just get anyone from the local paper, the yellow pages, a sales leaflet or a tradeshow. It is like going for a blind date. You never know who will show up. You really dont want to deal with any surprise and disappointment.

3. Timelines agreed beforehand are almost always delayed. As clients, you are expected to be flexible to cater to all unforeseen circumstances.
4. You can only expect 60 to 80 percent of what was originally agreed to be done. Be prepared to accept materials, end products and workmanship different from your expectations. Of course there are some good contractors who are different from the above. But they
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For small tasks like fixing the lights, giving the place a new coat of paint, repairing the leaking roof, etc., ask your trusted property agent for recommendations. Agents arrange handymen to do fixes for landlords and tenants every day. I am sure that they use
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 108 efficient and reasonably-priced ones to get the job done. It allows them to rent or sell the owners properties without any delay. Tip #2 Be firm with contractors I agree with the advice in Margaret Heffernans The Naked Truth: A Working Womans Manifesto on Business and What Really Matters: Once youve hired a contractor and negotiated a budget, my best advice for you is to be tough on them. If youre not, theyll think youre soft and a pushover. (Contractors) will try to get away with as much as they possibly can. If you call them on it, theyll shape up. Even if your contractor is a good friend or your close relative, having a friendly relationship doesnt automatically mean that you can trust a person. When evaluating
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whether a contractor can get the job done, differentiate between sociability and capability. Tip #3 Be clear and upfront about timing and the inflexibility of your budget If you need the job finished by a certain time, hold the contractors to that date. If you keep an eye on their work and act as knowledgeable as possible, you increase the chances that the contractors will respect you and get something done. Tip #4 Get at least three quotations from different companies

Compare quotes item-by-item. Before you get back to the selected one, draft your own listing of work items with full descriptions. For each item, add in what you think are the reasonable prices. If there is an obvious price gap of a work item between two contractors, negotiate to see whether your selected
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 108 contractor can match the price. Tip #5 Draft your own payment terms For example, 10 percent deposit after signing the contract, 30 percent of the fee payable when job commences, and another 50 percent after job completion. Always leave 5 to 10 percent to be paid after fixing all defects. Allow flexibility for delay in completion. However, do add a penalty clause for delay at the end of the contract. Tip #6 Put everything in writing In every subsequent meeting with the contractor, put everything in writing and take detailed notes. The notes can serve as both a proof and a reminder for both parties. It will also come in handy next time when there is any argument on what has been agreed. Good and bad times busy. It is more difficult to bargain on prices. Give a reasonable timeframe for completion but stick to the major deadlines. When times are bad, dont be too happy if you get too good a bargain. Contractors tend to cut corners to get your business. Be careful of commissioning a project when the market is recovering. Costs of raw materials and manpower will be on their way up when your place is work-in-progress. To make ends meet, the contractor may ask you to top up the difference so that they can afford to pay their suppliers and finish your job. Worse still, some contractors may go bust because of their under-quoting in too many projects. By Property Soul, a successful property investor and enthusiast who shares her experiences and knowledge on her blog.

When times are good, contractors are very

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 108

Property Selling Tip #1: All Markets are Cyclical

Investing in real estate requires patience but the rewards are immense.Once you have invested a sum of money as downpayment for a property, it is possible to have two-fold gains from both capital appreciation and rental income. The rental income is a good source of income to reduce or cover your monthly mortgage loan repayments, maintenance fees, property tax, fire insurance and all related expenses in this investment. During the investment period, you are actually accumulating equity in an asset which is a good hedge against inflation. However, do be aware that all markets are cyclical, and the real estate market is of no exception.In other words, if you have to sell your property at the wrong time, you could lose money! Having holding power is therefore important to ensure that you can hold the property till it appreciates.While there is no guarantee how much your property will appreciate, it does offer long-term investors an opportunity to earn a solid return when the property appreciates due to inflation, population or economic growth. By Eileen Tan and Ui Wei Teck, property investors and authors of Enjoying Mid-Life Without Crisis. This tip and dozens more are from their book.
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 108

Singapore Property This Week

Residential
Afiniti Residences sold out on first day of launch Afiniti Residences, a 147-unit condominium project in Iskandar Malaysia, was sold out on its highly anticipated launch by the 50:50 joint venture between Temasek Holdings and Pulau Indah Ventures. 25% of the buyers were Singaporeans, while the rest were mainly Malaysians. Some 88 units were open to the public and the remaining 59 units were for developers and partners. The residential project includes 21-storey towers with studio, 1+study, 2 and 2+study units. The selling price per square foot ranges from S$345 to $406, and unit sizes range from 484 square
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feet to 1,064 square feet. Construction for the residences is expected to finish in 2015.
(Source: Business Times) Room rates eased, occupancies remained strong Singapore room rates have softened for the first four months of 2013, yet occupancies remained strong. The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) estimates that the Average Room Rate fell by 2.2 percent year-on-year while the average occupancy only decreased by 0.3 percent. STBs figures put the number of visitor arrivals in Singapore in the first quarter of 2013 at 3.8 million, increasing 6.4 percent year-on-year.

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 108 The strong occupancy is said to help prevent any sharp fall in revenue per available room. (Source: Business Times) Private apartment resale prices decreases in May Resale prices of non-landed private apartments decreased slightly in May due to weak transaction volumes. The NUS Singapore Residential Property Index showed resale prices for May easing 0.5 percent from April, while April increased by 0.1 percent from March. Transaction volume for May is 40 percent lower than that of last May, which could be explained by a mismatch in expectations between buyers and sellers. The index decreased by 0.5 percent in the Core Central Region and 0.4 percent in the Rest of Central Region, while the Outside Central Region (OCR) gained 0.3 percent. The reason for the gain in OCR is thought to be
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the narrowed price gap between private residential homes and HDB resale flats to only 5 percent. (Source: Business Times) Pasir Ris Chalets to be used as quarantine housing The Home Team NS (HTNS) Pasir Ris Chalets will be on standby to be used as possible quarantine housing by the government from June 17. This is due to the the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERSCoV) with 55 cases confirmed worldwide, even though no such case has been discovered in Singapore. Members of HTNS can continue to use to chalets but they will have to check out within 3 hours if the chalets are needed as a quarantine facility. HTNS members who have booked the chalets on or after June 17 may choose to cancel the bookings.
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 108 In either cases, they will be given the full refund and vouchers of $100. (Source: Business Times) Commercial RMGs Thong Sia units up for tender sale Raffles Medical Group (RMG) has put the commercial podium at Thong Sia Building up for tender sale, after its plan of building a new medical centre failed. The podium consists of 8 strata-titled units from level 1 to 7. The retail and office unit sizes range from 710 square feet to 8,826 square feet, with their price between $2,500 and $6,000 per square foot. Thong Sia Building is opposite the Paragon shopping centre, and is a freehold mix-use commercial and residential property. Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) agent is the exclusive agent handling the sale. JLL claimed that the units can be up to $35 million in price and would provide more freehold, retail and office
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strata units in the Orchard Road area. Lower floors are expected to attract flagship store developers , while upper floors are suitable for offices. The tender ends at 3 pm on July 15. (Source: Business Times) The Sail @ Marina Bays 22 retail units sold for $105m The 22 retails units at the Sail @ Marina Bay were sold for $105 million to Wen Way Investments Pte Ltd, a Singaporeincorporated company controlled by China interests. This makes one square foot of the units priced at $4,582. All 22 units are leased mainly to food and beverage establishments. The units were reported to previously belong to a Singapore couple who paid $32 million for them in 2009. Upon acquiring the units, Wen Way Investments was said to be looking out for more strata retail units in Singapore
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 108 for long-term investment, not to subdivide and sell. Wen Way is also embarking on joint development of commercial and industrial property projects in Singapore. Wen Way has purchased about $200 million of real estate in Singapore. (Source: Business Times) Singapore REITs retain competitive edge amidst market volatility Despite Hong Kong being a strong contender in the real estate investment trust (Reit) field, Singapore Reits still have plenty of buying opportunities. Singapore Reits are believed to be more active in their managing asset portfolio through asset enhancement initiatives and portfolio renewal, according to John Stinson, executive managing director of Cushman and Wakefield Asia-Pacific. Even in the middle of market volatility, Mr Stinson said
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now is the time to buy because most Reits show strong returns and are trading at fiveyear highs on a year-on-year basis. Singapore Reits have average returns of about 6%. Industrial Reits offer the highest yields, but office Reits are considered the most attractive segment. (Source: Business Times)

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 108

Non-Landed Residential Resale Property Transactions for the Week of May 29 Jun 4
Postal District 1 1 3 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 8 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 10 10 10 10 Area (sqft) 710 1,119 797 1,819 592 1,421 1,335 1,292 1,302 1,012 2,476 1,098 678 1,313 1,410 1,109 1,141 689 1,055 3,681 624 1,830 2,745 2,368 Transacted Price ($) 1,739,500 1,010,000 1,180,000 1,966,000 990,088 2,028,000 1,850,000 1,744,200 1,738,000 1,275,000 2,308,800 1,000,000 1,000,000 3,282,500 3,313,500 2,343,000 2,290,000 1,380,000 1,700,000 5,889,600 1,260,000 3,300,000 4,800,000 4,120,000 Price Tenure ($ psf) 2,449 99 902 99 1,481 99 1,081 99 1,672 99 1,427 99 1,386 99 1,350 FH 1,334 956 1,260 FH 933 FH 911 FH 1,475 99 2,500 FH 2,350 FH 2,113 FH 2,007 FH 2,003 99 1,612 929 1,600 FH 2,018 FH 1,803 FH 1,749 FH 1,740 FH Postal District 10 10 10 10 10 10 12 12 12 12 14 14 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 16 Area (sqft) 667 1,066 1,701 1,238 1,981 4,349 570 904 1,249 1,119 1,313 1,152 2,207 1,313 2,336 1,055 721 1,356 1,163 990 2,024 1,195 2,088 1,313 Transacted Price ($) 1,125,000 1,790,000 2,710,000 1,885,000 2,500,000 3,600,000 830,000 1,200,000 1,520,000 1,260,000 1,500,000 928,000 3,480,000 1,980,000 3,200,000 1,420,000 890,888 1,600,000 1,320,000 1,040,000 2,100,000 1,220,000 1,668,000 1,680,000 Price Tenure ($ psf) 1,686 FH 1,680 FH 1,593 999 1,523 FH 1,262 999 828 FH 1,455 FH 1,327 FH 1,217 FH 1,126 FH 1,142 FH 806 FH 1,577 FH 1,508 FH 1,370 99 1,346 FH 1,235 FH 1,180 99 1,135 FH 1,050 FH 1,038 FH 1,021 FH 799 FH 1,279 99

Project Name MARINA BAY RESIDENCES PEOPLE'S PARK COMPLEX RIVER PLACE THE PEARL @ MOUNT FABER ONE-NORTH RESIDENCES ONE-NORTH RESIDENCES ONE-NORTH RESIDENCES THE PARC CONDOMINIUM CARABELLE PASIR VIEW PARK THE PARC CONDOMINIUM PALM MANSIONS CITYLIGHTS PATERSON RESIDENCE ONE DEVONSHIRE VISIONCREST LEONIE HILL RESIDENCES LEONIE STUDIO UE SQUARE BELLE VUE RESIDENCES SOMMERVILLE PARK AVALON ASTRID MEADOWS ONE JERVOIS

Project Name THE ASTON CLIFTEN VALLEY PARK DORMER PARK RIDGEWOOD BEAVERTON COURT D'LOTUS DE PARADISO PARC HAVEN CASA IRRAWADDY LE CRESCENDO CANBERLIN LODGE MEIER SUITES THE ESTA PEBBLE BAY CRYSTAL RHU CENTRINA SANCTUARY GREEN GALLERY 8 CAMELODGE EASTERN LAGOON BLU CORAL FORTUNE SPRING COSTA DEL SOL

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 108

Postal District 16 16 16 16 16 16 17 17 17 18 19 20 21 21 21 22 22 23 26 27 27 27 Area (sqft) 1,292 1,432 1,238 936 861 1,464 1,453 1,507 1,130 1,518 1,130 1,572 1,216 1,528 2,497 1,227 1,335 1,345 1,163 1,399 1,152 1,270 Transacted Price ($) 1,380,000 1,520,000 1,280,000 950,000 840,000 1,380,000 1,370,000 1,388,888 950,000 1,400,000 1,300,888 2,000,000 2,150,000 1,628,000 2,620,000 1,180,000 918,000 1,360,000 960,000 980,000 715,000 715,000 Price Tenure ($ psf) 1,068 99 1,062 99 1,034 99 1,014 99 975 99 943 99 943 FH 922 999 841 946 922 99 1,151 99 1,273 99 1,768 FH 1,065 99 1,049 FH 962 99 688 99 1,011 999 826 99 700 99 621 FH 563 FH

Project Name BAYSHORE PARK THE BAYSHORE THE BAYSHORE BAYSHORE PARK TANAMERA CREST CASAFINA EDELWEISS PARK CONDOMINIUM AZALEA PARK CONDOMINIUM CASA PASIR RIS THE TROPICA THE QUARTZ CLOVER BY THE PARK THE CASCADIA ASTOR GREEN CLEMENTI PARK THE MAYFAIR PARK VIEW MANSION HAZEL PARK CONDOMINIUM FOREST HILLS CONDOMINIUM YISHUN EMERALD THE SENSORIA THE SENSORIA

NOTE: This data only covers non-landed residential resale property transactions with caveats lodged with the Singapore Land Authority. Typically, caveats are lodged at least 2-3 weeks after a purchaser signs an OTP, hence the lagged nature of the data.

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