Malaysian Heirs In Legal Fight Over Four Firms

The descendants of a Malaysian property mogul are fighting in Singapore’s High Court over four family-owned firms, one of which owns 32 units in the Bukit Timah Shopping Centre. Notably, the late Mr Loong Yoke Phin’s eight daughters, who hold minority stakes in the four companies, have taken to court their only brother and his … Read more

Maids Still Can’t Use The Pools And Other Facilities

Some condominiums in Singapore continue to enforce strict rules preventing domestic helpers from using the facilities, such as swimming pools and gymnasiums, as they are meant for homeowners only. PropertyGuru understands that this is a long-standing practice implemented by a number of Management Corporation Strata Titles (MCSTs), also known as condo managing agents, due to … Read more

Total Debt Servicing Ratio (TDSR) Tweaked For Refinancing Of Home Loans

SINGAPORE — The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has refined the Total Debt Servicing Ratio (TDSR) framework to allow all homeowners to be exempted from meeting the 60 per cent threshold when refinancing mortgages of the home they reside in. In a statement on Thursday (Sept 1), the central bank said the move was taken … Read more

Singapore: No Easing Of Property Curbs Until 2017

Although home prices may start bottoming out in the next few quarters, which could prompt a moderate recovery from 2018, easing of property cooling measures are not expected until next year at the earliest, according to property experts at the Real Estate Developers’ Association (Redas) property market seminar on Tuesday (12 July), and reported TODAYonline. … Read more

Australia’s Post Commodity Outlook

Having travelled the world in search of real estate opportunities for our clients, we can state that Australia is one of the most manageable and stable markets when it comes to property. While it presents excellent upside opportunities, the downside risks remain relatively minimal with prices well supported by strong market fundamentals. Take Melbourne for an … Read more

Homeowners Not Liable For Damage To Neighbour’s Property

Property owners are not expected to supervise the work of contractors whom they hire, revealed the High Court in rejecting a move by a neighbour to make a homeowner liable for the damages caused by the contractor. “It would be intolerable if the law were to hold that all landowners who seek to construct homes … Read more

Private Residential Leasing Market To Soften Further

Weakening demand and record levels of new housing supply have contributed to a softening private residential leasing market over the past two-and-a-half years, with the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s (URA) rental index for private homes falling by 9.1 percent from Q3 2013 to Q1 2016, revealed a JLL report. To meet pent-up demand following the 2008 … Read more

Singapore: The World’s Fourth Most Expensive City

Singapore has maintained its ranking from last year as the world’s fourth most expensive city for expatriates, according to Mercer’s 2016 Cost of Living Survey. Hong Kong topped the list, pushing Angolan capital Luanda to second place. Zurich remained in third place, while Tokyo climbed to fifth. Kinshasa and Shanghai took the sixth and seventh … Read more

Some Developers Offer 30% Discount

To avoid paying hefty extension charges, some property developers are resorting to big discounts and creative marketing schemes to move units at various high-end residential projects, according to UOB Kay Hian and reported Singapore Business Review. Wheelock Properties, for instance, is offering an ABSD assistance package at Ardmore Three, offering buyers discounts of 13 to … Read more