Websites

[monkey]

I've been hunting online for apartments in Singapore online to get an idea of the property market for when I come over and have found very few reasonable websites available online except this website with affordably priced apartments.

Is this because most of the apartments below 5000 per month are not advertised on the web ?

Are there any other good companies who do bother to advertise online ?

I can't believe that people can afford these mega-furnished, superfluous apartments in the middle of every shopping district... etc etc whilst earning an Asian salary.

As a sidenote, as a user of this website and as a prospective tenant, it would be more useful to display pictures of inside the apartments, instead of the swimming pool outside which when I see that displayed, I interpret it as a warning sign that something is not quite right, or something is being hidden from view.

[sundaymorningstaple]

I've been hunting online for apartments in Singapore online to get an idea of the property market for when I come over and have found very few reasonable websites available online except this website with affordably priced apartments.

Is this because most of the apartments below 5000 per month are not advertised on the web ?

Obviously you haven't read many of the thread on this forum regarding rental increases. You don't seem to have read many local newspapers either. There are but those that are available aren't available long enough to put on any site. If they did, then you would complain that all the properties are no longer available so why are they on the site. Can't win them all.

Are there any other good companies who do bother to advertise online ?

As this is a real estate portal I guess you will have to search on your own for additional online realtors. Why would we suggest competitors?

I can't believe that people can afford these mega-furnished, superfluous apartments in the middle of every shopping district... etc etc whilst earning an Asian salary.

The don't. 94% of Singaporean own their own HDB Flats or landed property. It's the foreigners who are buying up the properties or the locals who then rent it out to foolish expats that think that they MUST live in districts 9, 10 & 11. Fools and their money I say. The whole island can be traversed from east to west in an hour. Additionally what is an Asian salary? I know Asians who make megabuck right here in Singapore and can afford anything anybody else can. Not all Expats can afford them either even on expat salaries as you have already hinted at by complaining about 5000 rentals.

As a sidenote, as a user of this website and as a prospective tenant, it would be more useful to display pictures of inside the apartments, instead of the swimming pool outside which when I see that displayed, I interpret it as a warning sign that something is not quite right, or something is being hidden from view.

I would think then that your interpretation is a bit narrow or flawed then. Fortunately you are a very, very small minority. Without the external view you would not even bother to look at the property. Also, This site probably has more photos than any other (over 5000 I believe) and bandwidth is expensive.

[monkey]

I've been hunting online for apartments in Singapore online to get an idea of the property market for when I come over and have found very few reasonable websites available online except this website with affordably priced apartments.

Is this because most of the apartments below 5000 per month are not advertised on the web ?

Obviously you haven't read many of the thread on this forum regarding rental increases. You don't seem to have read many local newspapers either. There are but those that are available aren't available long enough to put on any site. If they did, then you would complain that all the properties are no longer available so why are they on the site. Can't win them all.


Thanks for your reply. I do appreciate your comments to my post although judging by your response I seemed to of personally offended you, which was not my intention. I will buy you a beer when I arrive if you want, we just seem to of started on the wrong foot.

No, i've not had a chance to read every single thread and reply therein. I look forward to learning more over the coming weeks.


Are there any other good companies who do bother to advertise online ?

As this is a real estate portal I guess you will have to search on your own for additional online realtors. Why would we suggest competitors?


I guess this is your business, so I would'nt expect you to suggest some competitors, but if that's the case, then I would hope that as a public forum that others will be more verbose.

I like to take the philosophy that it's a show of confidence to talk openly about your competitors and to let the consumer make a decision. A good business can withstand scrutiny.


I can't believe that people can afford these mega-furnished, superfluous apartments in the middle of every shopping district... etc etc whilst earning an Asian salary.

The don't. 94% of Singaporean own their own HDB Flats or landed property. It's the foreigners who are buying up the properties or the locals who then rent it out to foolish expats that think that they MUST live in districts 9, 10 & 11. Fools and their money I say. The whole island can be traversed from east to west in an hour. Additionally what is an Asian salary? I know Asians who make megabuck right here in Singapore and can afford anything anybody else can. Not all Expats can afford them either even on expat salaries as you have already hinted at by complaining about 5000 rentals.

Is it not something to complain about ? Rents that high are ridiculous and it's only human nature to complain about them.

Asian salary was a bad choice of words, I meant a local salary.


As a sidenote, as a user of this website and as a prospective tenant, it would be more useful to display pictures of inside the apartments, instead of the swimming pool outside which when I see that displayed, I interpret it as a warning sign that something is not quite right, or something is being hidden from view.

I would think then that your interpretation is a bit narrow or flawed then. Fortunately you are a very, very small minority. Without the external view you would not even bother to look at the property. Also, This site probably has more photos than any other (over 5000 I believe) and bandwidth is expensive.


Ouch. I don't think that those comments are very nice. I would of thought that people who are visually orientated would certainly put more emphasis on the apartments with pictures, but then again, I noticed some pictures focusing too much on the palm trees and swimming pools and not pictures from inside the condo/apartments

[sundaymorningstaple]

We didn't get off on any wrong foot that I'm aware of nor have you offended me. I'm just an ole farmboy who never learned the art of tact. Unfortunately, I'm well known for that. My apologies. I tend to be blunt and lack the verbal finesse of the academia based crowd. Anyway....

1. We currently have a number of threads running on the first or second pages of the relevant forums. While I understand your asking questions, a good feel of the market and feeling about which way it's going can be gleaned from those recent ongoing threads. What I said about flats under 5K still holds. They are showing flats to 3 or 4 people/couples at a time and they are having bidding wars on the spot with chequebooks in hand (an this is at the initial viewing!). Why bother to try to put in on a website or even in the newspapers. Most agents have lists of people living in those short-term furnished apts at astronomical prices while hunting for something affordable.

2. This is not my business but it is the wishes of this board's owners, who are realtors, to set the S.O.P. of the boards. With that in mind, you also have to remember that this is Singapore and not wherever it is you are coming from. Here, they just don't allow the competition or whatever might have a negative impact on their bottom line to be "advertised" on their boards. It is not just this one. Our posters here can make recommendation about anything or any business except that which is in direct conflict with the owner business or advertising their own businesses (we provide a free classifieds section for the purpose of keeping the threads clear of garbage). As I said, welcome to Singapore. You will find that the other main expat board is even worse. There you cannot recommend anything to anybody by name regardless whether or not the owners are involved in that business or not.

Others posting about other agencies will have the details deleted as per Admin directives.

3. Rentals here, while high and rising fast, still are way below what the same positions/rentals ratio are in Hong Kong and, for that matter, New York.

4. Fair enough, maybe my last comment wasn't the best it could have been but at the end of the day, It would seems that this real estate portal has grown from strength to strength. If it continues to grow, then it may well be able to even have walk-throughs online. Also, the other thing to realize is that even if interior photos are taken, it's possible that it's not what you would see when you visit the flat. The photos might be several years old or as is the penchant here, the flat would be completely renovated after the former tenant left thereby making the photos out of date.

Again, I did not mean to offend you. I just don't beat around the bush (although I'd like to beat a certain 'bush'!)

[muratkorman]

To find a flat here within your budget is a big pain in the ass. But first try to decide which area you want to live in. Staying close to city center costs more and it depends on how much you want to travel to work and back. Choosing a location close to MRT will solve all your transportation problems so that can be a main criteria. Prices mentioned even in this site can be misleading as demand on condos is very high recently. I would say determine your criteria for the flat and when you arrive, you start searching. Even if you find something according to your preference, it could go in 2 days. Good luck.