A lot of jewelries

Mrs. Johnson decided to have her own portrait painted by a very famous artist.

She told the artist, "Paint me with 3-carat diamond earrings, a large diamond necklace, glimmering emerald bracelets, and a beautiful red ruby pendant."

"But ma'am, you are not wearing any of those things."

"I know," said Mrs. Johnson. "My health is not good, and my husband is having an affair with his secretary.When I die I'm sure he will marry her, and I want the bitch to go nuts looking for the jewelries..."

Breaking news...

Late last night a large hole was made in the walls surrounding Openview Nudist Camp.

Police are looking into it.

Business Times: Marina Bay Suites priced around $3,000 psf

January 17, 2008

Marina Bay Suites priced around $3,000 psf.
Over 600 potential buyers, half foreigners, have registered interest to buy units in 221-unit project. By ARTHUR SIM

AT around $3,000 psf, the next luxury development to go on sale - Marina Bay Suites - looks like it could actually be quite reasonably priced, especially as luxury home prices have trended towards the $4,000 psf range.

Revealing the estimated selling price at a press conference for the upcoming sales preview of Marina Bay Suites, slated to be before Chinese New Year, Marina Bay Financial Centre (MBFC) head of residential marketing Kan Kum Wah said: 'As a developer, we believe in leaving something behind for capital appreciation.

'Asked if this meant giving speculators more incentive to buy, Mr Kan said he doubts there will be speculative activity, but added that several investors have already expressed their interest in the development.

Marina Bay Suites is part of Marina Bay Financial Centre, being developed by joint venture (JV) partners Cheung Kong Holdings/Hutchinson Whampoa, Hongkong Land and Keppel Land.

So far, over 600 potential buyers (of whom half are foreigners) have registered their interest to buy into the 221-unit Marina Bay Suites. Mr Kan added that over 100 of these potential buyers already own a unit at the JV's earlier-launched development, Marina Bay Residences.

On the projected pricing, Mr Kan cited some sub-sale transactions for Marina Bay Residences at above $3,000.

Mr Kan also said that Marina Bay Suites will have only 218 three- and four-bedroom units ranging between 1,600 and 2,700 sq ft in size. This means units could cost in the range of $5 million to $8 million, putting them out of reach of the average property speculator. DTZ Debenham Tie Leung (DTZ) executive director Ong Choon Fah added: 'At this price range, it will attract the investors.

'These investors will be looking for capital appreciation.

Joseph Tan, executive director (residential) at CB Richard Ellis (CBRE), which is marketing the development together with DTZ, said that capital appreciation for developments in the vicinity has been between 35 and 75 per cent in the previous two years. 'Some have even seen 100 per cent gains,' he added.

But news of a possible US recession does seem to have affected market confidence.

According to caveats lodged, a unit at Marina Bay Residences (excluding penthouses) did cross the $3,000-level last August. However, sub-sale caveats lodged in December show transactions at between $2,400 and $2,700 psf.

Marina Bay Suites will be initially sold through private previews.

Sun Vs. Moon

Once there was a debate between two countries, USA and China, one thousand years ago.

Ten distinguished people from each country met in the Himalayas for the debate.

The debate was on who was most important - the sun or the moon.

Each side presented their arguments and counter-arguments for days but they could not settle.

Finally on the 11th day the Americans defeated the Chinese in the debate and concluded that it was the moon which was more important than the sun, "because the moon gives us light in the night when it is dark, but sun gives us light in the day-when it is not necessary!!"

Straits Times Forum: Review criteria of HDB design-&-build scheme

Jan 8, 2008

THE recent sale of City View@Boon Keng has brought property prices to a new level.
It seems the prices offered are cheaper than other private properties in the area. However, one question that needs to be asked is whether this is an HDB property or a private one. All reports have labelled it HDB, but are these HDB prices?

As part of the Design, Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS), the HDB has allowed private developers to buy the site and then develop it for sale. Benefits of this scheme have been widely publicised in the media as well as on the HDB website. On paper, it seems a wonderful prospect for both the public and the HDB. The public get flats with better quality, while the HDB does not have to build them itself.

One criterion set by the HDB was that the combined income of applicants must be below $8,000. Thus, if a couple buy the most expensive flat in City View@Boon Keng at more than $700,000, they face the prospect of paying over $2,000 in instalments, based on a 90 per cent loan over 30 years. To service that amount, they have to fork out additional cash on top of their CPF contributions. The rationale is about the same, even if they buy an average priced flat for about $500,000. Unless applicants have healthy savings, they will spend a significant portion of their lives paying off their loans.

The HDB may need to review the criteria it has set for the DBSS. Although they may have worked for past HDB projects, they may no longer apply to the DBSS. If the HDB decides the DBSS is the concept for Singapore's future housing development, it should take into serious consideration the prices private developers will set. Affordable housing may no longer be realistic if we leave these issues unaddressed.

Chan Han Jun