The wife and I had originally intended to post this on Wednesday, since Dec 7th was the second anniversary of SG PropTalk. However, the Government's sudden decision to implement the Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty took centrestage over our little tribute during the past two days.
The past year has been a rather busy one for us on the property front: We sold our (tiny) apartment in District 10 at the end of 2010, decided to go on rental for a year, bought a 30+ year-old apartment in District 20 during 1Q 2011, embarked on a 3-month renovation stint whereby we practically gutted the entire interior of the apartment and rebuilt, and have moved into our "new" home about 2 months ago. But enough about us...
With the support from our readers, SG PropTalk has achieved over 360,000 page views and now averages more than 400 unique visits daily. Although the numbers are peanuts compared to the other more established (commercial) property web/blog sites , the wife and I are pretty proud of our "achievements": Just remember that we are merely a two-person outfit and running our blog during our spare time.
The wife and I can also proudly proclaimed that SG PropTalk has a small reader following now. We are continually encouraged by the discussions that are generated through our postings and in our forum page. We are also receiving more emails asking us for property recommendations or our opinions on specific projects. We still maintain that we are no experts in the property field but we have tried to answer all queries to the best of our abilities (and as promptly as we can managed).
There are certainly areas that the wife and I can do better: The number of new project reviews have dropped compared to last year. This is despite the over-whelming number of new launches in 2011. But due to the hectic demands of our day-jobs and the added parental duties after our son started primary school this year, we are struggling somewhat to find time to visit showflats. And the last thing we want to do is "go through the motion". We will continue to provide reviews/our thoughts on new projects as often as we can manage them and we seek your continual understanding and patience on our limitations.
Last but not least... the wife and I thank you for supporting SG PropTalk during the past year. Please continue to support our blog and if you feel up to it, do click on our "Nuffnang" ads from time to time. And come same time next year, we hope SG PropTalk will still be around for us to make our little tribute speech again...
P/S: We welcome any suggestions/comments/constructive criticisms that our readers may have about SG PropTalk. So please keep these coming!
Yours Sincerely,
The Folks @SG PropTalk
http://sgproptalk.blogspot.com/2010/12/we-are-one.html
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like!!keep it up...
ReplyDeleteloyal readers
Hello
ReplyDelete30+ yrs condo? so old? May I know LH or FH ? Thanks
Just c
Hi Anonymous (14/12/11, 11:55PM),
ReplyDeleteYes, the apartment is 30+ years old and is LH.
The wife and I have never ever bought a freehold property... yet. :)
Hi ... where did you more to in Dist 20?
ReplyDeleteHi again ... *move to in Dist 20?
ReplyDeleteDear Folks@PropTalk,
ReplyDeleteThere is a block of shophses after Sembawang Shopping Centre (on the same side just behind the bus stand). Are they LH or FH and what is the market value of each unit?
Question on Tiong Bahru flats: seriously, are they worth abt 1 mil?
Appreciate your help. Many thanks!
Hi Anonymous (28/12/11, 5:43 & 5:44PM),
ReplyDeleteThe wife and I would rather not say where we are staying exactly but it is in the Upper Thomson Road area. :)
And by saying so, we probably have already let the cat out of the bag... :)
Hi Anonymous (28/12/11, 5:52PM),
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately the wife and I do not have the information you wanted on the shophouses near to Sembawang Shopping Centre, so we are of no help here (sorry!).
On the Tiong Bahru flats, we are assuming that you meant those "pre-war, walk-ups" around/opposite to the Tiong Bahru market.
We have found a rather informative blog site that you may wish to check out:
http://tiongbahruestate.blogspot.com/
As far as we are concerned, the location of these flats are excellent but we will not pay 1 mil (or anywhere within the ballpark, for that matter)... not when there is only about 55 years of lease left on the flats with little chance of redevelopment (given their "conservation" status). And to top it all off, each flat (irregardless of size and layout) only comes with one toilet/bathroom!
Hello
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting! May I know what is the + points of your apartment?
Hope to hear from you and have a great year ahead :)
Hi Anonymous (29/12/11, 1:40AM),
ReplyDeleteFor starters, we like the regular layout (typical of older apartments), which makes it feels more spacious than new apartments of similar size.
The location is also excellent - relatively close to the city, easy access to CTE/PIE, amenities galore (esp. food) and a short walk to the MRT station.
But most importantly, the apartment is within our budget! :)
Huh? Is the Lutheran in Upper Thomson area? I thought u posted somewhere that you've gotten a good deal at the Lutheran... now your place of residence is at Upper Thomson. You two are a super couple!
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year Folks
Hello
ReplyDeleteThanks for your reply. I fully agreed with you that the location and view is excellent. But...but..it is so old, left with 60+ ...(now I should address myself KPO..haha..:) Hope you don't mind.
regards
Hi Anonymous (30/12/11, 11:08PM),
ReplyDeleteThe wife and I did consider Lutheran Towers previously. Although price for that unit was rather reasonable, we could not come to terms with the traffic noise along Farrer /Bukit Timah Road, which was deafening.
Also the peripheral roads around the development is prone to flash floods.
Hi Anonymous (30/12/11, 11:08PM),
ReplyDeleteThe wife and I are not too concerned about the age of the property. What is more important (to us) is the general upkeep of the estate, accessibility, proximity to amenities and to a certain extent, the potential of the site for future developments.
And contrary to the view that a 30+ year property may be a risky investment, we are in the opinion that not all "old development" are created equal. The Arcadia (at Hillcrest Road), for example, is more than 30-year old but units are still transacting in excess of $1,000psf. Same goes for Hillcrest Arcadia (another 99-year leasehold development over 30-year old) next door, which is also transacting close to $1,000psf.
Lakeview!...lol
ReplyDeleteHi Anonymous (31/12/11, 1:34PM),
ReplyDeleteAs per what those government people always say on TV: We can neither confirm or deny that. :)