Where should we consider staying!?

[olibear]

So, my wife and I are moving to SG in August. Really looking forward to it. I've done a lot of reading and had a lot of contradictory advice on where the best places would be for us to consider staying. Hoping to draw on the collective expertise

Thanks!

Priorities:
- Budget $3 - $3.5 K
- Bukit Batok and Tanglin area
- Size: 1000 sq feet, would consider any type of apartment. 2 bedrooms minimum Fully Furnished. Amenties. Pool and gym minimum
- We will not have a car
- Proximity to transport - ideally close to any metro serving tanglin area, I am happy to cycle, but close proximity to any MRT would be great
- no accompanying children-

Nice to have:
It would be nice to have local shops, cafes and restaurants and possibly a larger chain supermarket in close proximity
I would like to play football, cycle, run, rollerblade (essentially anything) having these close would be great, but not a major disadvantage if some travelling is required


Your current home and commute:
We both have some travelling to do in our morning commute (15 mins and 45 mins), public transport is not an issue for us, but travel time to our jobs could be a deciding factor assuming all other factors are equal-
We have a smallish flat at the minute which is ideal for our needs and allows people to stay over if visiting. this would be important for us, as we anticipate several family members coming to visit in the following months!


Thanks again for all of the help so far, it's a great forum and I really appreciate all the help!

[JR8]

Hi Olibear, welcome to the forum.

Can I just clarify one thing, where are any locations of employment situated? Not co. name, or exact address, just so it can considered down to say 100 metres.

I ask as 'Tanglin' is arguably a large area, esp. if you're considering it to be 'Tanglin Road area'. The downtown section of the latter is perhaps the most $$$ area in the country.

[olibear]

Hi JR8, thanks

A little more detail on work places -

Very close to One-North MRT and close to St Luke's hospital in Bukit Batok


Is there any reason why I shouldn't disclose my work place?

Thanks again!

[the lynx]

Hi JR8, thanks

A little more detail on work places -

Very close to One-North MRT and close to St Luke's hospital in Bukit Batok


Is there any reason why I shouldn't disclose my work place?

Thanks again!

A condo around Bukit Batok would be cheaper than say, a condo around Clementi, Dover or Holland Village (in reference to proximity to One-North station). Bukit Batok is pretty local so if you need specific Western comforts (meat selection etc), you might want to consider living around the latter cluster where you have Cold Storage and Fairprice Finest.

To travel you might need a bus ride from Bukit Batok MRT station to reach St Luke's area. Other than that, MRT will be sufficient (you need to change twice in Jurong East station and Buona Vista station to reach between these two).

Speaking of cycling, there is Park Connector Network (PCN) between Buona Vista to Bukit Batok where they have specific cycling lane. I know it doesn't cover all the way to St Luke's and One-North but we are talking about additional 500m on each end so you're good. You can check here: https://www.nparks.gov.sg/gardens-parks ... or-network

This PCN is also jogger- and rollerblade-friendly. And you can use the network to explore other parks connected to it like Kranji, Bukit Timah, Dairy Farm and Southern Ridges/West Coast Park area.

[olibear]

Thanks for the info about cycling/running/rollerblading. this would be ideal!

Appreciate your opinion. I think for the first while having the home comforts would help with the move, but having spoken to people who have lived centrally amongst other expats, they enjoy the more 'local' area and, as you said, what you are getting for your money in this area is much more

[MikeJones]

Well I can't give as detailed advice as the others here as I only moved to Singapore in November. However I am living in Hillview which is kind of an offshoot of Bukit Batok, for reference I'm in a 2 bedroom furnished condo for $2900. I can't remember the square footage off the top of my head but it was 950ish. You'll probably be able to get cheaper around the area as well as the block I'm in is brand new and I was pushed for time to find a place so didn't negotiate too hard, so your 3-3.5k budget should be fine in this area.

Hillview is about 10 minutes on a bus to Bukit Batok MRT station so not really walkable. But some of the condo complexes will have shuttle buses and if not there are a few public bus routes to the station. Travel time to One North (from BB MRT) will be somewhere around 20-25 minutes depending on waiting times when changing trains and as you will be heading the same direction as every one else during rush hour the trains will be pretty packed. For Hillview to St Lukes you'll be looking at two buses and 20-30 minutes depending on where exactly you are. It's mentioned elsewhere on the forum but gothere.sg is a pretty helpful website for working out how to get places on public transport and how long journeys are likely to take.

For shopping there is a Fairprice (MRT station) and a Cold Storage (West Mall) right near Bukit Batok station and also a Cold Storage Marketplace at the Hill V2 mall which is at the top end of Hillview. The last is a bit pricey but does have more of a selection of western style foods if that's what you are after. Hill V2 also has a whole bunch of restaurants though I've no really eaten there much myself as I tend to cook.

I would say though definitely look at places in a variety of areas before you decide on a spot. I was originally looking around Woodlands area (near where I work) and further down the North South line towards central areas but didn't have any luck finding somewhere that I liked and was in budget. It was only when I expanded the search area a bit that I started seeing places that suited me better.


Hope this helps

Mike

[JR8]

Is there any reason why I shouldn't disclose my work place?

Oh, really because being that precise doesn't add to the discussion, but does detract from your privacy.

Same reason few of us are specific about our employers, or real names etc. I recall one poster here describing someone (a stranger) who worked in an adjoining office building to them out on in an East Coast business park. Next post was another regular replying with 'Oh, I know him, he's X, from Y, working with Z'.

It's a very small place.

[olibear]

No worries!

I've been looking at the SG . a lot for weeks now. It's probably pointless at this time, since it will be August before we arrive.

On a side note, is that the best way to find a place to rent, or should I be considering other places too?

[JR8]

No worries!
I've been looking at the SG . a lot for weeks now. It's probably pointless at this time, since it will be August before we arrive.
On a side note, is that the best way to find a place to rent, or should I be considering other places too?

I think the best you can do at this point is what you've already done. Consider what kind of place will fit in with your needs, and hence identify candidate areas. That's a good start, but keep in mind that if this is your first time in SG (as a non-tourist) your impressions might change somewhat when you get here. I'm just noting that so if it happens you're ready for it. For example if when you land, your employer puts you up in temporary accommodation, then there's likely to feel like a pull that that area is ideal, but if it's central as most Serviced Apartments/hotels are, you're drawn to the $$$-'known known', rather than the pragmatic '$$-known-somewhat-unknown'.

So don't be surprised if when you land, your thinking begins to evolve. But on the +ve side you've distilled many considerations re: housing ahead of time, which is sure to make things easier when you get here.

I'm not quite sure what you last point/question is, and for the sake of not waffling on too much I won't try and second-guess it

[olibear]

I think I meant to type is Singapore . the best site to use to find/compare property rental, or should I be looking at other websites too?

Thanks

[JR8]

I think I meant to type is Singapore . the best site to use to find/compare property rental, or should I be looking at other websites too?

IIRC this website is hosted courtesy of a major realtor's servers. That doesn't mean we bang their drum, it just means it would be very impolite/ungracious to suggest alternatives on '''their''' forum (as such).

Seek and though shalt find.

[olibear]

and now I look closely, I see what has happened!

Thanks again for the reply!

[rarkins]

Unfortunately, your two office locations don't seem to be a great pairing, as I am not aware of any condos within 30 minutes public transport of both, even at any budget.

Increasing commute time a little to the St Luke's location doesn't really add any great options either, except a few small places in the Bukit Timah area.

If you extend your commute time a little further from the One-North office instead it finally provides a few options: Regent Heights, Parc Vista, and Parc Oasis. The latter two are in Jurong area though rather than Bukit Batok, but now's not the time to be too picky. All three of these have grocery stores easily reachable by foot.

Interestingly, an increase of budget to $4k doesn't actually improve things much until you extend up to 45 minutes commute from both workplaces.

[olibear]

Thanks.
Would you imagine things changing much in/for August?

[rarkins]

There's definitely a downward momentum on rent prices that *seems* like it will continue. At least, not many people would predict that they'd stop going down and start going back up again. However as I mentioned previously, a 10-15% increase in your budget doesn't really add any new options that I'm aware of, so I don't think there'd be much difference by August from that perspective. That then leaves the possibility of a new condo becoming available in the area, but I'm not sure of any easy way to track those down!