Same floor flat different price

Brother wanted to buy a 4 rm flat next to another brother but found price increased by $84k. It was $280k a year ago when his brother bought it from HDB. It is now $364k from HDB. This is reported in the New Paper. The price has gone up as it is marked according to market resale value of flats in the area. And this brother is unhappy. He found it unreasonable as the costs of building the two flats were the same. But he forgot. When his brother bought the flat at $280k, it was already subsidised. Now if he is going to pay at the same price, the subsidy will be whatever plus $84k! Now that is a very huge market subsidy. Further, the $364k is also cheaper than market price. I think he is expecting too much. Too unreasonable. $364k, good price, fair price. Cheaper than market price, and subsidised some more. What more does he want?

In praise of smelliness

Jayandran Sandra Alison posed an interesting perspective about giving Jalan Kayu a clean makeover and 'why smelly Jalan Kayu' should not be clean up like Chinatown. Chinatown has lost its charm and authenticity as the residents are moving out and all that was retained or came in to replace them were commercial outlets and business people. Chinatown will not be the same again. It will be clean, not smelly, and not very real. Should Jalan Kayu be retained for its smelliness and chaotic nature? One thing for sure, the tourists would want to see an old dilapidated Chinatown, with all its squatters and squalors than a clean and modern one.

No Estate Duties

This is a good piece of news for all Singaporeans, including the HDB dwellers. With the world's rich and infamous coming here to park their money and buy up the properties, anyone holding on to one will be seeing its value double or triple. This is better than the asset enhancement scheme. While the rich foreigners are buying up the high end properties, and some locals cashing out and downgrading, they will be a filtering down effect to HDB flats as well. How about a 3 room flat costing a million bucks? If such a price can be attained, who needs Long Life Annuity Schemes? Practically everyone will become a millionaire, in strong Sing dollars of course. While all the rich who are holding on to their properties and counting the gains, some thoughts must go to the new flat buyers, the young people starting out to buy their first HDB flat. How are they going to earn enough money to buy a 3 rm flat which by then the prices will outstrip their income? We can't be sitting on our fat arses and waiting for things to happen and say it is due to external forces, nothing can be done.

Anti Competition Practices

Two articles in Today were on anti competition practices and abuses here. It is good that more people speak out on this issue and those who were victims take up legal suits against the perpetrators of such practices. Organisations that allowed such practices to continue should be made to own up and face 'the consequent loss of reputation and goodwill' as stated by Lim Bee Khim from the Ministry of Trade and Industry. So far all is talk and no action despite the prevalence of such abuses and unethical practices.

Celebrating Singaporean - Lily Neo

MP Lily Neo As an MP she may not be given enormous projects to tackle, so nothing too visible. But in her own ways she has contributed very significantly to the downtrodden and otherwise taken for granted group of desperate people in paradise. Without her challenging their cause, these people may still be getting $250 a month to get by. Now, not only that they are getting $290, they are going to get $330 soon! And people now realised how pathetic and difficult it is to live with that kind of money. Maybe some people may think that for such people, the money will be too much for 3 packs of maggie mee a day. Now don't ever think that this is an easy thing to do. For raising it in Parliament, she was embarrassed. She took it quitely. She is a true champion for the poor and deprived, with a real heart. She is sincere in what she is doing. Don't be surprised that one day she will be honoured as the new Goddess of Mercy of Paradise.