25 Oxley Walk Belle Vue Residences Floorplan Reference

Belle Vue Residences - Block 25 Released
Bella Vue Residences - Wing Tai's new Oxley Luxury Low-rise Condominium Project

It’s a little late from my end and Belle Vue Residences units have been moving steadily, do download a copy of its latest release at block 25 for your reference.

Buyers who are interested in Belle Vue Residences, a Toyo Ito architectural production can enquire or register their interest with me to visit the showroom. Remember, the return on equity rebate offer and Deferred Payment Scheme is still on specially just for buyers.

Down a portion copy of Belle Vue Residences brochure for 25 Oxley Walk here

Singapore Primary School Registration Starts – Distance Guide

P1 Registration Exercise Starts - Image Credit: Ministry of Education
P1 Registration Exercise Starts - Image Credit: Ministry of Education
It’s almost the time of the year with parents flocking for their children’s primary school registrations. It’s a huge culture in Singapore and families tend to do move homes closer to their choice schools for enrolment.

The registration exercise for admission to primary one in 2010 will open from Tuesday, 7 July 2009 to Friday, 28 August 2009.

What’s the distance guide for Primary school enrolment and the priorities? How do you gauge the official distance of your home, your new home to your choice of school?

Ministry of Education Guideline

Parents can read the proximity guide which can be found on MOE’s website. Some abstracts coming from the official source,

Yes, you can register your child at any school of your choice. However if there are more applications than vacancies, then balloting will be conducted. Balloting will be conducted according to the following order of priority:

  1. Children living within 1 km of the school of choice;
  2. Children living between 1 km and 2 km of the school of choice;
  3. Children living outside 2 km of the school of choice.

You can find out more on how schools does their registration if they are undergoing PRIME (Programme for Rebuilding and IMproving Existing Schools) should they be relocated to another temporary site whilst the actual is undergoing renovation.

So what is the official source to determine a distance between my home and my choice school?

MOE provides schools with an updated list of Home-School distance categories each year, about 2 weeks before the start of the Primary 1 registration process. Parents are welcome to call up the schools to check their official distance from the school at no cost.

Singapore Land Authority’s (SLA) site INLIS will be the only official source that the school will use to determine whether you are in category Zone 1, Zone 2 or Zone 3. Unfortunately it isn’t a paid service, so you’ll have to fork out $2.10. The computation will be based by your postal code and your choice of school.

Example of how an official note from SLA will look like when you purchase one

ps. If you are serious about buying a house because of school registration, please make sure your apartment really falls under the Zone 1 category properly; Having a condominium apartment that is near your desired school doesn’t automatically means that it is within the 1km radius, different blocks of the project might give you a different reading between Zone 1, 2 or Zone 3 even.

I don’t feel like paying $2.10, what else can I use?

KiasuParents has an excellent guide on measuring home-school distance with other alternatives like using MyLifeStyleMap and StreetDB. There’s also alot of primary school resources for you to refer to in KiasuParents which are amazingly useful:-

Law Firm Pays $750,000 Difference for Not Exercising Option on Time

This will serve as a wake up call on the duties as a conveyancing law firm to or even to remind the client to exercise his/ her option to purchase on time.

June 20, 2009

A day late and $750,000 short for law firm

Clients win suit against firm for being late in filing purchase option for condo unit
By Desmond Ng

WHAT a difference a day makes.

For one couple, the mere delay of a day in buying their dream home cost them more than $700,000.

And the law firm, Toh, Tan & Partners, which had acted for them in the purchase, was made to pay them $750,000 in compensation.

The couple, Mr Chee Peng Kwan and Ms Jackelyn Sim, had instructed the firm to exercise their option to buy a property.

But the firm was one day late in doing so, resulting in the couple losing out on the chance to buy a unit at The Seafront on Meyer, a freehold condominium development along Meyer Road, in April 2007 at an offer price of $2.9 million.

Continue reading “Law Firm Pays $750,000 Difference for Not Exercising Option on Time”

Tierra Vue Vicinity Photos on 13th June 2009

The stroll in Tierra Vue was unbelievably serene and peaceful. Owners were collecting keys and there were even viewings already started.

Here are some photos for your viewing pleasure on this lovely development. MCL Land sure did a good job in the landscaping; I suppose some of the plants might still need to flourish before it looks more lush. Still it was zen.

Tierra Vue - Block 40 stack 15 14 19 & 18
Tierra Vue - Block 40 stack 15 14 19 & 18
Tierra Vue - Block 38 stack 5 & 12
Tierra Vue - Block 38 stack 5 & 12
Tierra Vue - Block 36 stack 2
Tierra Vue - Block 36 stack 2
Tierra Vue - Children's Playground
Tierra Vue - Children's Playground
Tierra Vue - BBQ Area
Tierra Vue - BBQ Area
Tierra Vue - Gymnasium
Tierra Vue - Gymnasium
Tierra Vue - Block 40 Stack 14 19 & 18
Tierra Vue - Block 40 Stack 14 19 & 18
Tierra Vue - Rock/ Mist Garden
Tierra Vue - Rock/ Mist Garden

The mist from the Rock/ Mist Garden disperses after 2pm every 2 hours. Very entertaining. Download the full Tierra Vue brochure (4.0mb) to reference the photos I have for a good full visual.

Tierra Vue Receives Temporary Occupancy Permit (TOP) Next Week

Tierra Vue
Tierra Vue
Owners of Tierra Vue are getting their keys next week, as a seller client informs me on the availability of his penthouse for sale on his intent to do a few days of open house.

As my colleague and I will be stationing on site in Tierra Vue next week, do contact me if you are interested to find out more about the available units for rental and sale.

Read More about Tierra Vue Condominium at St Patrick’s Road (District 15)

Which Should You Choose? Boutique Development or Full Facilities Condominium

The Colonnade designed by Paul Rudolph on Grange Road. Photo Credit: Pricey (Flickr)
The Colonnade designed by Paul Rudolph on Grange Road. Photo Credit: Pricey (Flickr)

This has always been a very tricky decision when it comes to buying a dream home of your choice.

Property A

A 65 unit boutique condominium development that has a pool, bbq, children’s playground and underground carpark facilities. The location is quiet, and considered quite close to amenities around the vicinity. Price is $850 psf for a 3 bedroom.

Property B

A 4,35 unit condominium development has full condominium facilities, location is about the same as Property A. Price is 950psf for a 3 bedroom, an additional of 100psf as compared to Property A.

Which would you choose?

Verdict

My advice to home buyers has always been selecting a home which allows you to have good capital gains even though subjected property is for their own stay. This ensures a good chance of making a profit when the property cycle is trending upwards, you have an option to lock in or even upgrading to a bigger and newer development.

I’d pick B because of better capital gain potential and also a healthy resale transaction levels.

The Deciding Factors

The Location

Grayscale photo of The Sail @ Marina Bay, photo credit: dearchivism_yanson
Grayscale photo of The Sail @ Marina Bay, photo credit: dearchivism_yanson

Look out for locations where they’re usually in demand. We all know that the crème de la crème in Singapore has got to be the old district numbers 9, 10 and 11 areas. For some reasons, many new areas are springing up to be potentials as the Government is focusing on spreading the central CBD hubs into different parts of Singapore (example, Paya Lebar Business District, Jurong East Business District and Marina Bay Financial Centre)

Getting a project in these area ensures a long interest from buyers on your purchase. Do not also drop the intention of looking at 99 years leasehold properties as most are strategically located close to MRT stations or prime district distances to malls and offices.

The Sail is a good example of most people missing the boat. At launch, The Sail went for $600+psf during launch amidst many skeptics on its tenure. The first owners who might have even held till today has the last laugh with sub-sale before TOP and resale prices hitting $3,387psf in April 2008.

The Layout

Odd layouts are usually unpopular with families if they’re not squarish or rectangular in shape (tsk, its okay with the balcony though). Typical families in Singapore prefer more built in spaces than Private Enclosed Spaces (PES) such as terraces and balconies though they’re welcomed.

Having a good size apartment with a good layout will safe guard your potential in selling your place in the future. During bad times, developers shrink sizes of the apartments to reduce the quantum so its much easier to sell, but during better times, families would ultimately prefer a decent sized apartment (good living and dining area, enough kitchen space, good sized rooms).

The Facilities

Condominium projects with full status (with tennis court, swimming pool and more) tends to edge a little over projects which only has a pool or basic amenities. The most important is the mixture of facilities with your landscaping of the surroundings is right in the condominium. We understand that land is scarce in Singapore and developers tend to squeeze in as many units as they can when they’re designing the project, but if its overdone it will make the whole living environment very cluttered.

Some of the unique projects that stands out in facilities and has unique factors on its own are like the recent Double Bay Residences which features band rooms with musical instruments, piano room and even a library, or conservation club houses such as the ones that The Wharf, The Seaview and Grand Duchess at St Patrick’s feature.

The Amenities

This ties very strongly with the first criteria of choosing a great location as whichever amenities it provides. Should the location be great, amenities will be the next critical factor. Good schools around the project ensures a very healthy sale and resale value. Look out for easy access to train stations, buses and eateries around. These are all selling points.

The Developer

Surprise surprise! A good developer always ensure quality is of a decent level as reputation is at stake. Hearing big names like UOL, Wing Tai, Wheelock Properties, MCL Land, City Development always put you in a comfort zone whenever you’re buying an uncompleted project as finishings are not disappointing. It makes a difference.

The Difference Between Boutique Development and Full Fledged Condominium

It boils down to the lifestyle of your choice in living. A boutique development ensures more privacy and less hectic in terms of the number of residents staying. That would be the most major difference. According to my observation, depending on the projects you choose (as all projects varies in quality), numbers between 10 – 50 are usually very, very quiet.

And you should check the maintenance too as the lesser the units supporting the project in terms of sinking funds and maintenance cost, usually the monthly management fees is much higher.

CPF Minimum Sums Adjusted With Effect on 1st of July 2009

The minimum sum(MS) for your CPF account will be raised from 1st of July 2009 from the existing $106,000 to $117,000. The new MS will apply to CPF members who turn 55 from 1 July 2009 to 30 June 2010.This is in line with the Ministry of Manpower’s annoucement in August 2003 that the CPF Minimum Sum will be gradually raised to $120,000 by year 2013.

Minimum Sum was introduced to curb inflation and to ensure that Singaporeans have set aside sufficient savings for their retirement.

How Will the Minimum Sum Affect Property Buyers who is using CPF

Having an increased MS in CPF means you would have to set aside more funds in CPF (can be in the form of both Special Account and Ordinary Account) if you are using CPF to buy a second property. You can wipe out your Ordinary Account for your first purchase of a property with your CPF account, but if you’re using CPF to purchase your second home, you’ll have to set aside $58,500 (SA or OA) in your account. This is applicable to your spouse or friends whom you might purchase the 2nd property under tenancy-in-common.

Under the approved Residential Properties Scheme (RPS), you can utilise your CPF OA savings for the following:

  1. To pay 100% of the Valuation Limit (VL). The VL is the lower of the purchase price or the value of the property at the time of purchase.
  2. To refinance your housing loan taken for the purchase of a residential property
  3. To pay your monthly instalments on your existing house loans.
  4. To pay all stamp duty, valuation and legal fees on transfer or conveyance for the purchase or mortgage of a property.

The CPF Board has a very comprehensive breakdown on how the Valuation and Withdrawal Limit works on their website.