the east coast is well-liked by families, but is far from most
International Schools (your kids will still be in preschools then, right?). although most int'l schools offer bus service, sometimes it takes about an hour for those on the east coast, so the kids will have to wake up quite early for pick up. not quite ideal if you have real wee ones.
perhaps you should decide first whether they will attend local or international, and then go from there. the harbourfront is easily accessible by MRT from pretty much all directions (if you're taking public transpo).