HOME SWEET HOME
(Finding the perfect home in Singapore):-
So you are moving to Singapore….Great! Congratulations!! You
are moving to one of the safest, cleanest and awesomest (I know this word does
not exist, but I had to put it to show how much I love Singapore) place to live
in….But…yes there has to be a But….But you are also moving to one of the most
expensive countries to live in….and probably the most expensive thing in
Singapore is the housing rent! This is where the majority of your $$$$s will
outflow.
Hope that my inputs below help you find the best accommodation
in Singapore.
There are mainly 5 options when it comes to choosing your
dream home in Singapore:-
Rent a Room –
This is the most preferred choice amongst Single people as
it helps them save on rent. It basically means that you rent a common room
(share your room & toilet with 2-3 other people) or a Master Bedroom (have
the whole room and toilet to yourself). Shared rooms should cost around 500-800
SGD per month. Master bedroom should cost around 1000-1500 SGD per month.
Rent a Studio /
Service Apartment–
This arrangement will usually include a 1 bedroom,
kitchenette, 1 toilet and may or may not have a living area. Sometimes there
might be no walls (except for the toilet). Studios are perfect for bachelors
who are earning well and who want to live in Singapore for a short duration. Sometimes
Service Apartments may have cleaning staff to take care of dusting, mopping,
washing and laundry. Studios usually cost 3000 SGD++ on an average.
Rent an HDB (Housing
and Development Board) apartment –
HDBs are Government subsidised flats which only Singaporeans
and Singapore Permanent Residents (PRs) can purchase. However, they can be
rented out to any nationality. The HDBs will usually start from 2 Bedrooms and
onwards. Finding a 1 bedroom HDB is very rare. Sometimes the owner of a 2
Bedroom flat will keep 1 bedroom locked & rent out the spare room. However,
this is illegal, so better not take a risk. HDBs do not have luxurious
amenities like swimming pools, gyms, club houses. But they do have a small play
area for the children. The HDBs also have barbeque (BBQ) pits. But you can
always look at the People’s Association’s community centres near your HDB
wherein you can enjoy all these facilities at a nominal fee (
www.pa.gov.sg). Depending on the number of
bedrooms, type of furnishing and location, the average rent should be around
2000 SGD – 2500 SGD per month.
Rent a Condominium
(Condo) –
Condos are private apartments which can be purchased by any
nationality and rented out to any nationality. These apartments will come with
posh amenities such as swimming pools, gyms, club houses, play areas, BBQ pits,
etc. Condos are notorious in putting a hole in your pocket ; ) The starting
rent for Condos will usually be 3000 SGD per month.
Rent a landed
property (eg. Villa, Semi-detached house, etc) –
This is a favoured mode with
most Western Expats. The houses are usually beautifully furnished with or
without gardens, swimming pools. They will cost you a whopping 4000 SGD++ on
monthly rent. These houses are usually unfurnished, so you will have the
pleasure as well as the headache of decorating and maintaining them.
NOTES–
·
It is easier to find furnished homes than
unfurnished ones.
·
If you don’t plan to or cannot afford to (more
likely) buy a car, then it is advisable to rent a home close to an MRT (Mass
Rapid Transit a.k.a train station) or at least a bus stop.
·
Most condos do not have ceiling fans and grills
on windows; so if Air Conditioners make you sick or if you have little naughty
tots in the house, you may want to re-consider these facts.
·
Do insist on a house with Air Conditioning as
the weather can make you pretty miserable at times.
·
HDBs will usually have the common toilet in the
kitchen (Eye Roll please!!!!). So if you have OCD, then you might not want to
rent one.
·
Most homes will have unwelcome guests such as
gigantic cockroaches and yukky lizards (due to the hot & humid weather, so
Pest Control is strongly recommended.
There are many free online property sites which will help
you find the perfect abode.
My favourite is:-
The others are:-
isgproperty.sg
singapore.gumtree.sg
You might come across shocking advertisements on the portals which
prohibit certain races (read -Indians!!) from becoming tenants. However, don’t
let such Xenophobic morons get down your spirits as majority of Singaporeans
are warm and welcoming towards foreigners.
Happy Moving : )
