WHP accommodation options

[patur]

Reply with quote Edit/Delete this post Delete this post PostPosted: Mon Aug 25, 2014 11:02 am Post subject: WHP accommodation options
Hi everyone!

Hopefully I will move to Singapore within few weeks on a Work Holiday Pass.
Since doing an internship and being homeless is not exactly an option, I started my quest of finding a room/flat-share. This is the part where reality hit me in the face: Singapore does not have the most positive attitude towards young foreigners .

Since I won't be allowed to cosily spend my evenings with local family in a reasonably priced HDB flat, what options am I left with? Is it only condos? To be fair, SG$1000+ for a room is reasonable, compared with similarly-priced cells in London, but they are still expensive in Singapore, and I would rather save a few $, than have value-for-money penthouse.

I am fine with a tiny room and long commuting bonanzas, as long as my landlord/flatmates are not a bunch of maniacs and I don't have to share my room with bedbugs and rats.
So what are my option in Singapore for 6-month accommodation? Is there anything I shouldn't expect to find on Google? Should I use website such as roomDB for my search or should I just hire an agency (I heard quite often they are scams)?

[Pal]

Search here too:
http://classifieds.singaporeexpats.com/ ... hp/cat/122

[taxico]

...my quest of finding a room/flat-share. This is the part where reality hit me in the face: Singapore does not have the most positive attitude towards young foreigners .

Since I won't be allowed to cosily spend my evenings with local family in a reasonably priced HDB flat, what options am I left with? Is it only condos? To be fair, SG$1000+ for a room is reasonable, compared with similarly-priced cells in London, but they are still expensive in Singapore, and I would rather save a few $, than have value-for-money penthouse.

I am fine with a tiny room and long commuting bonanzas, as long as my landlord/flatmates are not a bunch of maniacs and I don't have to share my room with bedbugs and rats.
So what are my option in Singapore for 6-month accommodation? Is there anything I shouldn't expect to find...

what do you mean by "does not have the most positive attitude towards young foreigners"?

why won't you be allowed to spend your evenings with a local family in an HDB flat?

$1000+ a room would be a master bed room with en suite. it's likely if you were to rent from a "live-in" family, that would not be available to you. a common room in most places costs less.

you can generally tell quite quickly if the flat is dirty or not when you view. rats - not likely (i think?) but bed bugs... i hear it's possible but likely in a very unkept flat.

get your own brand new mattress from ikea ($79?) and also fresh blanket/pillows at the same time. it's just more sanitary and worth every penny in my book.

as for maniacal house mates and landlords... your mileage may vary.

a 6-month rental's gonna be tough to land. landlords prefer 1 or 2 year contracts, so i guess you might just have to pay closer to $1000/month to secure a place...

why not look for home stay-type (usually for students) accommodation? tell them you're a "student intern" or intern on attachment (or the like) and it should do the trick...

sure, you pay a little more but you get (most) meals thrown in - home cooked meals do add up and the family will take a bigger interest in your life and will likely interact with you more. it's also usually in a condo or some other type of private property.

[the lynx]

...my quest of finding a room/flat-share. This is the part where reality hit me in the face: Singapore does not have the most positive attitude towards young foreigners .

Since I won't be allowed to cosily spend my evenings with local family in a reasonably priced HDB flat, what options am I left with? Is it only condos? To be fair, SG$1000+ for a room is reasonable, compared with similarly-priced cells in London, but they are still expensive in Singapore, and I would rather save a few $, than have value-for-money penthouse.

I am fine with a tiny room and long commuting bonanzas, as long as my landlord/flatmates are not a bunch of maniacs and I don't have to share my room with bedbugs and rats.
So what are my option in Singapore for 6-month accommodation? Is there anything I shouldn't expect to find...

what do you mean by "does not have the most positive attitude towards young foreigners"?

why won't you be allowed to spend your evenings with a local family in an HDB flat?

$1000+ a room would be a master bed room with en suite. it's likely if you were to rent from a "live-in" family, that would not be available to you. a common room in most places costs less.

you can generally tell quite quickly if the flat is dirty or not when you view. rats - not likely (i think?) but bed bugs... i hear it's possible but likely in a very unkept flat.

get your own brand new mattress from ikea ($79?) and also fresh blanket/pillows at the same time. it's just more sanitary and worth every penny in my book.

as for maniacal house mates and landlords... your mileage may vary.

a 6-month rental's gonna be tough to land. landlords prefer 1 or 2 year contracts, so i guess you might just have to pay closer to $1000/month to secure a place...

why not look for home stay-type (usually for students) accommodation? tell them you're a "student intern" or intern on attachment (or the like) and it should do the trick...

sure, you pay a little more but you get (most) meals thrown in - home cooked meals do add up and the family will take a bigger interest in your life and will likely interact with you more. it's also usually in a condo or some other type of private property.

But if he were to approach the student hostels, I think he needs to be under student pass to apply for these accommodations.

[taxico]

But if he were to approach the student hostels, I think he needs to be under student pass to apply for these accommodations.

ah, i wasn't clear earlier... not hostels... private home stay providers.

eg, a mom and dad in a condo offering room and board to foreign students (above 18 yo so no guardianship).

i see plenty of foreign college-going students in singapore on exchange (3 to 12 months) or gap year that stay with these families.

[patur]

[quote="taxico"]
what do you mean by "does not have the most positive attitude towards young foreigners"?

why won't you be allowed to spend your evenings with a local family in an HDB flat?

$1000+ a room would be a master bed room with en suite. it's likely if you were to rent from a "live-in" family, that would not be available to you. a common room in most places costs less.

you can generally tell quite quickly if the flat is dirty or not when you view. rats - not likely (i think?) but bed bugs... i hear it's possible but likely in a very unkept flat.

get your own brand new mattress from ikea ($79?) and also fresh blanket/pillows at the same time. it's just more sanitary and worth every penny in my book.

as for maniacal house mates and landlords... your mileage may vary.

a 6-month rental's gonna be tough to land. landlords prefer 1 or 2 year contracts, so i guess you might just have to pay closer to $1000/month to secure a place...

why not look for home stay-type (usually for students) accommodation? tell them you're a "student intern" or intern on attachment (or the like) and it should do the trick...

sure, you pay a little more but you get (most) meals thrown in - home cooked meals do add up and the family will take a bigger interest in your life and will likely interact with you more. it's also usually in a condo or some other type of private property.[/quote]

First few sentences were about me not being able to rent a room in HDB flat. I would be lot happier, if I was able to rent a cheap room over there (I cannot, due to the law).

Anyway, thank you for offering to stay with a host family. I hadn't had that in my mind

[hotandhumid]

from the way he/she writes, I doubt OP is from London.

[patur]

[quote="hotandhumid"]from the way he/she writes, I doubt OP is from London.[/quote]

I am not Actually, I have never said I am from London