Sell flat for $300,000 profit? No way
Out of 60 residents polled, 58 say they are staying put in popular HDB estate.
Mon, Jan 11, 2010
The New Paper
By Desmond Ng with additional reporting by Aretha Loh, Lim Wei Li, Nurul Asyikin Nasir, Samuel Wee and Woo Sian Boon
RETIREE Wang Mei Ling is sitting on a potential profit of about $300,000 for her HDB flat in a prime location. But she's far from happy.
Every day, she contends with a letter box stuffed with brochures and flyers from property firms. Flyers are also often stuck into the front grille of the flats there.
Residents like Madam Wang, 53, are also plagued by cold calls from agents every day, bugging them to sell their homes. Sometimes they even get accosted by agents at lift landings.
This is the flip side to the HDB property boom. Residents say they are constantly hounded despite their insistence that they don't want to sell.
Madam Wang lives in one of the most premium HDB estates - Kim Tian Road at Bukit Merah - where prices are among the highest of the 25 public housing estates.
Highest price
The highest transacted price for a five-room flat there was $668,000 last November, based on resale transactions on HDB's website. Part of the attraction is the proximity to Raffles Place, a five-minutes bus ride away.
An agent who sells a five-room flat here for $650,000 can pocket about $13,000 (if paid 2 per cent commission). These flats were built under the Selective En-bloc Redevelopment Scheme (Sers) in the late 1990s.
The New Paper spoke to 60 residents living in the four blocks there and almost all were unhappy with the hounding and the flyers.
Madam Wang, who lives with her husband and two sons, said the cold calls and flyers began during the property boom in 2007. She bought her four-room flat from HDB for $250,000 in 2000 under the Sers programme.
Said Madam Wang in Mandarin: "There are so many flyers daily that I have no use for except to pick up my dog's poo."
Another resident, who only wanted to be known as Mrs Loh, said she's annoyed by the unsolicited calls from agents. The designer said: "In December, I received two such calls. When I asked them how they got my number, they just said that they have their ways."
A 69-year-old retiree, Mr Tham F L, who receives two to three flyers every day, said: "I just chuck them in the bin without reading. What for when we don't intend to sell?"
Top dollar
PropNex's chief executive, Mr Mohamed Ismail, said this estate gets more attention from agents because there is strong demand from potential buyers willing to pay top dollar.
He said: "These are considered lucrative properties. The commission from a successful deal can be quite high. Hence there is a lot of door-knocking and telemarketing done in that area."
Though they stand to make a sizeable profit, 58 of the 60 residents interviewed said they are not interested in selling.
Forty-one of the 60 had bought directly from HDB.
Most would have paid between $300,000 and $400,000 for their new five-room flats in 2000, depending on which floor they are on. Today, the units would fetch at least $600,000.
HDB resale prices rose 8 per cent last year, despite the economic slowdown. Administrator Peter See, 51, said he'll only sell his five-room flat if some "joker offers me at least $800,000". He paid $385,000 for it nine years ago.
Mr See said: "Even if I manage to sell my place at the market price today, I would have to buy high too, unless I downgrade to a smaller unit or move away from this area." Mr See lives with his wife and daughter in a 1,237-sq ft unit. He likes the convenience of having Tiong Bahru MRT station only a five-minute stroll away.
Retiree Fong Shao Chuan, 71, did sell his four-room flat for $540,000 in June last year. He paid HDB $270,000 for it nine years ago. He said he did it to help finance his daughter's $600,000 purchase of a new five-room flat in Pinnacle@Duxton.
Said Mr Fong in Mandarin: "I wouldn't have sold my flat if I didn't have to help my daughter. I am going to move in with her to take care of my grandchildren."
PropNex's Mr Ismail said flats in this estate command a premium due to its proximity to town. They are also newer than other flats in that area.
He said: "If these home-owners want to continue a certain lifestyle - the convenience of living near town - they'll have to pay a high price for a replacement unit in that estate.
"For those who are still working and can afford the monthly instalments, there's no urgency to sell."
And there's the possibility of their units fetching even higher prices in the future, he added.
Monday, January 11, 2010
ST : More Singaporeans have weekend homes in Iskandar, Johor
Jan 11, 2010
More Singaporeans have weekend homes in Iskandar, Johor
Four in 10 residents in south Johor special zone are Singaporean
By Kimberly Spykerman & Teh Joo Lin
AFTER a leisurely lunch on his patio, Mr Zulkifli Mansor can walk out to a putting green and practise a few strokes of golf - and he doesn't even have to leave his home.
From his balcony, Mr Tio Hong Tjoen sometimes casts a reel into the stream winding around his home. The Singapore permanent resident has caught fish weighing up to 3kg.
Mr Zulkifli, a 47-year-old civil servant, and Mr Tio, 53, who is in the furniture business, are among an increasing number of Singaporeans and permanent residents buying high-end homes across the Causeway, mainly as weekend residences.
From his doorstep, Mr Zulkifli can point out eight other properties belonging to Singaporeans in a neighbourhood of about 170 homes.
'In fact, the first group to welcome us to the neighbourhood was Singaporean,' he told The Straits Times. He bought his home about three months ago as a holiday retreat for his wife and son. His mother-in-law and sister-in-law live there permanently.
His two-storey house is in a gated estate fronted by burly security guards - a far cry from the days when Singaporean-owned homes in Johor Baru made headlines as prime targets for burglaries.
And with relatively few restrictions on home ownership in Malaysia - the houses have to be at least two-storeys high and until recently had to cost a minimum of just RM250,000 (S$103,000)- Singaporeans are finding it a breeze across the border. The minimum cost has just doubled to RM500,000.
Mr Zulkifli's roomy 2,140 sq ft house sits in a lush garden and cost him RM298,000 - much less than what he would have had to fork out for a three-room HDB flat here.
'Every month I pay a $630 instalment on the house which is less than the $800 I pay for my car - and I can't live in my car!' he quips.
Mr Zulkifli's house is on an estate known as Nusa Idaman, one of at least four sprawling housing estates within South Johor's Iskandar Malaysia project, which is being touted as a high-class resort area.
The Iskandar Regional Development Authority, which oversees the development of the 2,217 sq km area, says Singaporeans occupy about four in 10 homes there. Another three in 10 are occupied by other foreigners, mainly expatriates working in Singapore, with the remainder owned by Malaysians.
Iskandar Malaysia was designated as a special economic zone in Johor in 2006. Besides upmarket housing, plans are in the pipeline to build universities, top-notch medical facilities and theme parks.
The residential estates are none too shabby either, and home owners say the construction quality is good.
Homes in the luxurious Horizon Hills are set against a private golf course. Residents in the nearby Leisure Farm Resort have horse-riding facilities, and at Nusa Idaman, there is a kindergarten on the estate.
The fear of being a target of burglars has by and large been put paid to as well, with developers cottoning on to the concerns and touting high-levels security features to reel Singaporeans in.
Back in 2006, 37 Singaporeans launched a petition to the Malaysian High Commission for Singapore, asking for help following a spate of burglaries in a condominium in Bandar Seri Alam in Johor. Their units were completely ransacked and stripped of electrical wiring and light fixtures.
Mr Tio, who bought a weekend home in Leisure Farm Resort, says: 'It's very safe. Security is one of the reasons I bought a unit here.'
The neighbourhoods are fenced in and have several levels of security, such as CCTV monitoring and former Nepalese army guards on 24-hour patrol.
Developers Mulpha International even paid for a manned police station to be built just outside the main entrance of the the Leisure Farm estate.
'We have had a few attempted break-ins in the past 12 years but with no harm, casualties or monetary loss. We are trying our level best to keep our record low and as close to zero as possble,' a spokesman added.
With the promise of better security and property prices soaring at home in the last few years, Singaporeans have been looking northwards, charmed by the prospect of open space and quiet.
Developers say that interest has grown stronger in the past two to three years with the 'aggressive promotion of Iskandar Malaysia'.
There are advertisements in local newspapers, roadshows in hotels and even charter buses to take interested Singaporeans to South Johor - a 15 minute drive from the Second Link - to view the developments.
Mr Zulkifli makes the hour-long drive from his home - a flat in Jurong East - whenever he is on leave and his son is on vacation from school.
Sometimes he goes to the nearby kampung, a 15 minute drive away, for a walk to unwind.
Mr Tio, an Indonesian who is now a Singapore permanent resident, said: 'I come here with friends to eat and drink. In Singapore, where can you unwind?' He lives in a bungalow in the MacPherson area with his two daughters.
But there are drawbacks to living life far from the bustling city. The nearest supermarket is a 10 minute drive away. Many Singaporeans say that they prefer to live and work in Singapore,and have a weekend home to escape to.
Mr Zulkifli's wife, part-time wedding caterer Madam Amidah Ahmad, 47, said: 'Back in Singapore, I step out of my house and there is an NTUC there already.'
And home repairs are not always undertaken speedily.
Said 68-year-old remiser Tan Hui Nam: ' 'The system here is different, the work ethic and culture are different. You have to learn to be more patient.'
Also, while the estates are not far from the Second Link, the cost of driving back and forth can add up, with the tolls on both sides of the Causeway. A round trip can cost almost $20.
'I cannot live here on a full time basis because it's just too expensive to be driving in and out of Malaysia every day!' added Mr Tan.
Singaporean Arif Tan, 62, is shopping around for contractors to have a bungalow built to his specifications in Johor.
The owner of a transport company has made trips up to various showflats in the region and says he hopes to make the move with his wife and three grown children within three to five years.
It is part of his retirement plan, he says, adding: 'The cost of living in Singapore is just too high.'
Property experts say that buyers of property in the Iskandar Malaysia project should see their purchases as long-term investments, as the area is still in its developmental stages and not expected to realise its potential within the next five to 10 years. These properties are better off as holiday homes, they add.
Said PropNex chief executive Mohamed Ismail: 'There will be a continuous supply of more land and property, so new buyers will have a choice between resale homes and new properties. It will take some time for the development to attain maturity and for the resale market to become buoyant.'
More Singaporeans have weekend homes in Iskandar, Johor
Four in 10 residents in south Johor special zone are Singaporean
By Kimberly Spykerman & Teh Joo Lin
AFTER a leisurely lunch on his patio, Mr Zulkifli Mansor can walk out to a putting green and practise a few strokes of golf - and he doesn't even have to leave his home.
From his balcony, Mr Tio Hong Tjoen sometimes casts a reel into the stream winding around his home. The Singapore permanent resident has caught fish weighing up to 3kg.
Mr Zulkifli, a 47-year-old civil servant, and Mr Tio, 53, who is in the furniture business, are among an increasing number of Singaporeans and permanent residents buying high-end homes across the Causeway, mainly as weekend residences.
From his doorstep, Mr Zulkifli can point out eight other properties belonging to Singaporeans in a neighbourhood of about 170 homes.
'In fact, the first group to welcome us to the neighbourhood was Singaporean,' he told The Straits Times. He bought his home about three months ago as a holiday retreat for his wife and son. His mother-in-law and sister-in-law live there permanently.
His two-storey house is in a gated estate fronted by burly security guards - a far cry from the days when Singaporean-owned homes in Johor Baru made headlines as prime targets for burglaries.
And with relatively few restrictions on home ownership in Malaysia - the houses have to be at least two-storeys high and until recently had to cost a minimum of just RM250,000 (S$103,000)- Singaporeans are finding it a breeze across the border. The minimum cost has just doubled to RM500,000.
Mr Zulkifli's roomy 2,140 sq ft house sits in a lush garden and cost him RM298,000 - much less than what he would have had to fork out for a three-room HDB flat here.
'Every month I pay a $630 instalment on the house which is less than the $800 I pay for my car - and I can't live in my car!' he quips.
Mr Zulkifli's house is on an estate known as Nusa Idaman, one of at least four sprawling housing estates within South Johor's Iskandar Malaysia project, which is being touted as a high-class resort area.
The Iskandar Regional Development Authority, which oversees the development of the 2,217 sq km area, says Singaporeans occupy about four in 10 homes there. Another three in 10 are occupied by other foreigners, mainly expatriates working in Singapore, with the remainder owned by Malaysians.
Iskandar Malaysia was designated as a special economic zone in Johor in 2006. Besides upmarket housing, plans are in the pipeline to build universities, top-notch medical facilities and theme parks.
The residential estates are none too shabby either, and home owners say the construction quality is good.
Homes in the luxurious Horizon Hills are set against a private golf course. Residents in the nearby Leisure Farm Resort have horse-riding facilities, and at Nusa Idaman, there is a kindergarten on the estate.
The fear of being a target of burglars has by and large been put paid to as well, with developers cottoning on to the concerns and touting high-levels security features to reel Singaporeans in.
Back in 2006, 37 Singaporeans launched a petition to the Malaysian High Commission for Singapore, asking for help following a spate of burglaries in a condominium in Bandar Seri Alam in Johor. Their units were completely ransacked and stripped of electrical wiring and light fixtures.
Mr Tio, who bought a weekend home in Leisure Farm Resort, says: 'It's very safe. Security is one of the reasons I bought a unit here.'
The neighbourhoods are fenced in and have several levels of security, such as CCTV monitoring and former Nepalese army guards on 24-hour patrol.
Developers Mulpha International even paid for a manned police station to be built just outside the main entrance of the the Leisure Farm estate.
'We have had a few attempted break-ins in the past 12 years but with no harm, casualties or monetary loss. We are trying our level best to keep our record low and as close to zero as possble,' a spokesman added.
With the promise of better security and property prices soaring at home in the last few years, Singaporeans have been looking northwards, charmed by the prospect of open space and quiet.
Developers say that interest has grown stronger in the past two to three years with the 'aggressive promotion of Iskandar Malaysia'.
There are advertisements in local newspapers, roadshows in hotels and even charter buses to take interested Singaporeans to South Johor - a 15 minute drive from the Second Link - to view the developments.
Mr Zulkifli makes the hour-long drive from his home - a flat in Jurong East - whenever he is on leave and his son is on vacation from school.
Sometimes he goes to the nearby kampung, a 15 minute drive away, for a walk to unwind.
Mr Tio, an Indonesian who is now a Singapore permanent resident, said: 'I come here with friends to eat and drink. In Singapore, where can you unwind?' He lives in a bungalow in the MacPherson area with his two daughters.
But there are drawbacks to living life far from the bustling city. The nearest supermarket is a 10 minute drive away. Many Singaporeans say that they prefer to live and work in Singapore,and have a weekend home to escape to.
Mr Zulkifli's wife, part-time wedding caterer Madam Amidah Ahmad, 47, said: 'Back in Singapore, I step out of my house and there is an NTUC there already.'
And home repairs are not always undertaken speedily.
Said 68-year-old remiser Tan Hui Nam: ' 'The system here is different, the work ethic and culture are different. You have to learn to be more patient.'
Also, while the estates are not far from the Second Link, the cost of driving back and forth can add up, with the tolls on both sides of the Causeway. A round trip can cost almost $20.
'I cannot live here on a full time basis because it's just too expensive to be driving in and out of Malaysia every day!' added Mr Tan.
Singaporean Arif Tan, 62, is shopping around for contractors to have a bungalow built to his specifications in Johor.
The owner of a transport company has made trips up to various showflats in the region and says he hopes to make the move with his wife and three grown children within three to five years.
It is part of his retirement plan, he says, adding: 'The cost of living in Singapore is just too high.'
Property experts say that buyers of property in the Iskandar Malaysia project should see their purchases as long-term investments, as the area is still in its developmental stages and not expected to realise its potential within the next five to 10 years. These properties are better off as holiday homes, they add.
Said PropNex chief executive Mohamed Ismail: 'There will be a continuous supply of more land and property, so new buyers will have a choice between resale homes and new properties. It will take some time for the development to attain maturity and for the resale market to become buoyant.'
ST : Estate to get recycling bin at each block
Jan 11, 2010
Estate to get recycling bin at each block
Admiralty Drive pilot project part of efforts to achieve 60% national recycling rate by 2012
RESIDENTS in Admiralty Drive will have a recycling bin at every HDB block as part of a pilot project to get more people to recycle.
The six-month-long project by the National Environment Agency (NEA), recycling company SembWaste and Canberra constituency will involve 14 HDB blocks.
The current arrangement for such bins in HDB estates is for five blocks to share one bin, which is emptied by waste collectors every week.
MP for Sembawang GRC Lim Wee Kiak said at the launch of the programme yesterday: 'Some residents complain that it's now too far away for them to walk, so we hope having one bin under every block will solve that.'
He asked the National Development Ministry to consider including recycling chutes when building new flats, and making it a building requirement in the future.
The pilot project in his constituency, said Dr Lim, would be a small step towards helping to achieve the goal of a national recycling rate of 60 per cent by 2012. The current rate is 56 per cent.
Residents at Admiralty also had the option of keeping their recyclable items in their homes for two weeks before collectors came around fortnightly. This option will be suspended during the pilot scheme period to better assess how many residents prefer recycling bins.
Admiralty Drive resident Bernadette Sayson prefers making the trip downstairs to deposit her recycling instead of keeping it at home for two weeks.
Said the industrial engineer: 'Sometimes we have so many things we want to recycle. It gets too much such that we can't wait for them to come and collect it, so we just throw it out as garbage.'
The 29-year-old added: 'Having a bin downstairs would be much more convenient than having to walk a few blocks away.'
The extra recycling bins should also solve the problem of overflowing bins, said Dr Lim. SembWaste estimates that increasing the number of recycling bins will raise its costs by 10 to 15 per cent, but believes the extra recyclable material collected will make up the difference.
If the project proves to be a success, it could be rolled out to other neighbourhoods islandwide, said Dr Lim.
Estate to get recycling bin at each block
Admiralty Drive pilot project part of efforts to achieve 60% national recycling rate by 2012
RESIDENTS in Admiralty Drive will have a recycling bin at every HDB block as part of a pilot project to get more people to recycle.
The six-month-long project by the National Environment Agency (NEA), recycling company SembWaste and Canberra constituency will involve 14 HDB blocks.
The current arrangement for such bins in HDB estates is for five blocks to share one bin, which is emptied by waste collectors every week.
MP for Sembawang GRC Lim Wee Kiak said at the launch of the programme yesterday: 'Some residents complain that it's now too far away for them to walk, so we hope having one bin under every block will solve that.'
He asked the National Development Ministry to consider including recycling chutes when building new flats, and making it a building requirement in the future.
The pilot project in his constituency, said Dr Lim, would be a small step towards helping to achieve the goal of a national recycling rate of 60 per cent by 2012. The current rate is 56 per cent.
Residents at Admiralty also had the option of keeping their recyclable items in their homes for two weeks before collectors came around fortnightly. This option will be suspended during the pilot scheme period to better assess how many residents prefer recycling bins.
Admiralty Drive resident Bernadette Sayson prefers making the trip downstairs to deposit her recycling instead of keeping it at home for two weeks.
Said the industrial engineer: 'Sometimes we have so many things we want to recycle. It gets too much such that we can't wait for them to come and collect it, so we just throw it out as garbage.'
The 29-year-old added: 'Having a bin downstairs would be much more convenient than having to walk a few blocks away.'
The extra recycling bins should also solve the problem of overflowing bins, said Dr Lim. SembWaste estimates that increasing the number of recycling bins will raise its costs by 10 to 15 per cent, but believes the extra recyclable material collected will make up the difference.
If the project proves to be a success, it could be rolled out to other neighbourhoods islandwide, said Dr Lim.
ST : Landlord, agent sued over 'lost gold bars'
Jan 11, 2010
Landlord, agent sued over 'lost gold bars'
Tenant's mum claims $100,000 loss after being locked out of unit
By Mavis Toh
A 56-YEAR-OLD woman locked out of her daughter's rented Orchard Road apartment was let in only a week later and alleged that she then found her 20 gold bars missing.
Madam Lim Bee Lian, who lived in the Mount Elizabeth apartment with her husband and daughter Belle Lin, is now taking the landlord, Mr Lee Huay Kok, and his property agent, Mr Lee Wee Hong, to court for her alleged loss, estimated to be $100,000.
Last Oct 2, after having gone to the market, she returned to the unit to see the agent and a locksmith outside it.
In her statement of claim filed by lawyer Chia Boon Teck, she said the agent told her he had a court order to evict the family, and that she should let him in so that the locks could be changed.
He added that the family was to vacate the unit immediately.
Afraid of breaching the law, Madam Lim opened the door for the two men, but refused to leave the unit.
After the locks were changed, the agent threatened to lock her in if she refused to leave.
She contacted her daughter, who was stuck in a meeting but phoned her brother and the police.
Upon his arrival, Madam Lim's son found that the 'court order' was in fact only an unsigned draft letter from the landlord's solicitors.
He then left to attend to other urgent matters.
During this time, Madam Lim tried to retrieve her valuables from the apartment but was unable to reach the top cabinet in the master bedroom.
When Ms Lin finally got to the apartment, her mother, who has hypertension and diabetes, needed to be taken to the hospital for shortness of breath and cold sweat.
Mother and daughter lodged a police report that night and also tried - unsuccessfully - to reach the agent by phone and e-mail.
They were let in only on Oct 8, which was when they found the rectangular gold bars gone, they alleged.
A gold bracelet with diamonds was also missing, they claimed.
Problems with the tenancy started three months into the lease signed in July last year.
Ms Lin said she signed a tenancy agreement on behalf of her employer, the trading firm LVMH Couture International, to rent a place to accommodate its overseas guests and their families.
This was made known to the landlord.
In September, the landlord sent her and LVMH a warning letter, saying the rental agreement had been violated because people other than Ms Lin had been staying there.
Later that month, the property management stopped LVMH's guests from entering the property.
Embarrassed and angered by the incident, Ms Lin moved into the apartment with her parents, and put LVMH's guests in another apartment she rented.
Now, Madam Lim has charged that the landlord and agent have breached the contract and trespassed on the property, resulting in her suffering the alleged loss.
She is also seeking aggravated damages for the fear she felt and injury to her dignity.
The defendants are expected to file their defence by Jan 20.
Landlord, agent sued over 'lost gold bars'
Tenant's mum claims $100,000 loss after being locked out of unit
By Mavis Toh
A 56-YEAR-OLD woman locked out of her daughter's rented Orchard Road apartment was let in only a week later and alleged that she then found her 20 gold bars missing.
Madam Lim Bee Lian, who lived in the Mount Elizabeth apartment with her husband and daughter Belle Lin, is now taking the landlord, Mr Lee Huay Kok, and his property agent, Mr Lee Wee Hong, to court for her alleged loss, estimated to be $100,000.
Last Oct 2, after having gone to the market, she returned to the unit to see the agent and a locksmith outside it.
In her statement of claim filed by lawyer Chia Boon Teck, she said the agent told her he had a court order to evict the family, and that she should let him in so that the locks could be changed.
He added that the family was to vacate the unit immediately.
Afraid of breaching the law, Madam Lim opened the door for the two men, but refused to leave the unit.
After the locks were changed, the agent threatened to lock her in if she refused to leave.
She contacted her daughter, who was stuck in a meeting but phoned her brother and the police.
Upon his arrival, Madam Lim's son found that the 'court order' was in fact only an unsigned draft letter from the landlord's solicitors.
He then left to attend to other urgent matters.
During this time, Madam Lim tried to retrieve her valuables from the apartment but was unable to reach the top cabinet in the master bedroom.
When Ms Lin finally got to the apartment, her mother, who has hypertension and diabetes, needed to be taken to the hospital for shortness of breath and cold sweat.
Mother and daughter lodged a police report that night and also tried - unsuccessfully - to reach the agent by phone and e-mail.
They were let in only on Oct 8, which was when they found the rectangular gold bars gone, they alleged.
A gold bracelet with diamonds was also missing, they claimed.
Problems with the tenancy started three months into the lease signed in July last year.
Ms Lin said she signed a tenancy agreement on behalf of her employer, the trading firm LVMH Couture International, to rent a place to accommodate its overseas guests and their families.
This was made known to the landlord.
In September, the landlord sent her and LVMH a warning letter, saying the rental agreement had been violated because people other than Ms Lin had been staying there.
Later that month, the property management stopped LVMH's guests from entering the property.
Embarrassed and angered by the incident, Ms Lin moved into the apartment with her parents, and put LVMH's guests in another apartment she rented.
Now, Madam Lim has charged that the landlord and agent have breached the contract and trespassed on the property, resulting in her suffering the alleged loss.
She is also seeking aggravated damages for the fear she felt and injury to her dignity.
The defendants are expected to file their defence by Jan 20.
ST : Moneylenders target HDB sellers
Jan 11, 2010
Moneylenders target HDB sellers
By Melissa Sim
LICENSED moneylenders are changing tack, targeting HDB sellers in need of immediate cash.
Rather than advertise the availability of personal loans to all and sundry, some specify that only those intending to sell their homes need apply.
The reason: HDB owners will have cash after the sale of their flats, so repayment is almost guaranteed.
Mr David Poh, president of the Moneylenders' Association of Singapore, explained: 'If they take a personal loan which is based on their income, they may lose their job at any time, so it's not so secure for us.'
There were 187 licensed money lenders in Singapore as of July last year.
The moneylenders who spoke to The Straits Times said these HDB sellers are usually in need of quick cash, to pay credit card bills, medical bills, gambling debts, or renovation bills.
And even though they can liquidate their homes for cash, a sale can take up to five months.
Within this time, a seller will collect only up to $5,000 from the buyer, according to HDB rules, so some turn to money lenders referred through housing agents, or who advertise in the newspapers.
Some recent advertisements have been targeted at 'HDB Sellers Only', and promise cash of up to $100,000 at monthly interest rates that start from 1.5 per cent.
Usually, agents are also involved in the process. They introduce desperate sellers to money lenders, and may get a fee for the referral, usually about $500 a customer.
Mr Mohamad Ismail, chief executive of Propnex, said he is aware that this has been happening since late last year, and has warned agents in his company against the practice.
'Agents should not bring sellers to licensed money lenders for a referral fee. This is not within the ambit of their job,' he said.
But with HDB prices rising by 3.8 per cent in the last quarter and hitting new highs, moneylenders say they are more willing to lend large amounts of up to 80 per cent of the profits of the sale of each flat.
Mr James Lee, founder of James Lee Credit said his company now has about 25 HDB sellers asking for loans each month. This is about a fifth more than this time last year.
Moneylenders are willing to lend as sellers are likely to have 'positive sales proceeds' even after repaying their CPF, he added.
This does not always mean the loan will be repaid, however. Out of 10 loans, Mr Lee said one or two will not be honoured.
Moneylenders, however, have found ways to ensure that loans are repaid with interest of up to 10 per cent a month, depending on the borrower's income, guarantor, and loan amount.
For high-risk cases, moneylenders will usually lodge a caveat on the HDB flat. The seller's lawyer will then have to contact them about releasing the caveat so that the sale can continue.
Moneylenders can then lay claim to what they are owed, and make sure lawyers direct the money to them when the sale is completed.
Mr Lee said: 'It's a legal process that's all in black and white.'
But lawyer Derrick Wong said this is possible only if there is no prior mortgagee or if the prior mortgagee does not object.
Ms Tan Huey Min, assistant director of Credit Counselling Singapore, a non-profit group that advises people on debt repayment, warned HDB sellers to do their sums before borrowing.
'If there is a valid reason like an operation, then it may be okay,' she said.
'But if it's not urgent, they should not do it because the interest rates are high, and there is a high chance they may be digging a bigger hole and get into bigger debt.'
Moneylenders target HDB sellers
By Melissa Sim
LICENSED moneylenders are changing tack, targeting HDB sellers in need of immediate cash.
Rather than advertise the availability of personal loans to all and sundry, some specify that only those intending to sell their homes need apply.
The reason: HDB owners will have cash after the sale of their flats, so repayment is almost guaranteed.
Mr David Poh, president of the Moneylenders' Association of Singapore, explained: 'If they take a personal loan which is based on their income, they may lose their job at any time, so it's not so secure for us.'
There were 187 licensed money lenders in Singapore as of July last year.
The moneylenders who spoke to The Straits Times said these HDB sellers are usually in need of quick cash, to pay credit card bills, medical bills, gambling debts, or renovation bills.
And even though they can liquidate their homes for cash, a sale can take up to five months.
Within this time, a seller will collect only up to $5,000 from the buyer, according to HDB rules, so some turn to money lenders referred through housing agents, or who advertise in the newspapers.
Some recent advertisements have been targeted at 'HDB Sellers Only', and promise cash of up to $100,000 at monthly interest rates that start from 1.5 per cent.
Usually, agents are also involved in the process. They introduce desperate sellers to money lenders, and may get a fee for the referral, usually about $500 a customer.
Mr Mohamad Ismail, chief executive of Propnex, said he is aware that this has been happening since late last year, and has warned agents in his company against the practice.
'Agents should not bring sellers to licensed money lenders for a referral fee. This is not within the ambit of their job,' he said.
But with HDB prices rising by 3.8 per cent in the last quarter and hitting new highs, moneylenders say they are more willing to lend large amounts of up to 80 per cent of the profits of the sale of each flat.
Mr James Lee, founder of James Lee Credit said his company now has about 25 HDB sellers asking for loans each month. This is about a fifth more than this time last year.
Moneylenders are willing to lend as sellers are likely to have 'positive sales proceeds' even after repaying their CPF, he added.
This does not always mean the loan will be repaid, however. Out of 10 loans, Mr Lee said one or two will not be honoured.
Moneylenders, however, have found ways to ensure that loans are repaid with interest of up to 10 per cent a month, depending on the borrower's income, guarantor, and loan amount.
For high-risk cases, moneylenders will usually lodge a caveat on the HDB flat. The seller's lawyer will then have to contact them about releasing the caveat so that the sale can continue.
Moneylenders can then lay claim to what they are owed, and make sure lawyers direct the money to them when the sale is completed.
Mr Lee said: 'It's a legal process that's all in black and white.'
But lawyer Derrick Wong said this is possible only if there is no prior mortgagee or if the prior mortgagee does not object.
Ms Tan Huey Min, assistant director of Credit Counselling Singapore, a non-profit group that advises people on debt repayment, warned HDB sellers to do their sums before borrowing.
'If there is a valid reason like an operation, then it may be okay,' she said.
'But if it's not urgent, they should not do it because the interest rates are high, and there is a high chance they may be digging a bigger hole and get into bigger debt.'
First privatised wet market-cum-food court opens its doors at Sengkang
First privatised wet market-cum-food court opens its doors at Sengkang
By Hetty Musfirah, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 10 January 2010 2005 hrs
Kopitiam Square in Sengkang
SINGAPORE: Sengkang finally has a wet market. Located opposite Sengkang MRT station, "Kopitiam Square" is the first wet market and food centre to be built and run by a private operator.
It has some 60 cooked food stalls - half of which will open 24 hours - and another 60 stalls in its wet market area.
With a seating capacity of 1,200, Kopitiam says the market and food centre can cater to up to 20,000 people daily.
This is the first time Kopitiam is operating a wet market alongside a food centre.
Its cashless payment system can be used in both sections.
But those who prefer to use cash to pay for their food will still need a Kopitiam card if they plan to park at the complex, as the usual cashcards are not accepted.
The idea to set up the centre comes after a public consultation in August 2007, which sought ideas to promote community bonding and strengthen local identity.
By Hetty Musfirah, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 10 January 2010 2005 hrs
Kopitiam Square in Sengkang
SINGAPORE: Sengkang finally has a wet market. Located opposite Sengkang MRT station, "Kopitiam Square" is the first wet market and food centre to be built and run by a private operator.
It has some 60 cooked food stalls - half of which will open 24 hours - and another 60 stalls in its wet market area.
With a seating capacity of 1,200, Kopitiam says the market and food centre can cater to up to 20,000 people daily.
This is the first time Kopitiam is operating a wet market alongside a food centre.
Its cashless payment system can be used in both sections.
But those who prefer to use cash to pay for their food will still need a Kopitiam card if they plan to park at the complex, as the usual cashcards are not accepted.
The idea to set up the centre comes after a public consultation in August 2007, which sought ideas to promote community bonding and strengthen local identity.
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