Singapore Expats

We are planning on relocating to Singapore in Oct. We have 2 young (9 months and 2 1/2 ) children and think that the East Coast will probably be as good a place as any to live.

My wife has spent hours on the net and narrowed our choice down to the list below. We're looking for good family condo facilities, proximitiy to some grocery shops and I need to be able to get to Raffles place on the MRT and don't want to have to hike miles to get to the station : any views on the pros and cons of the list below, any experiences or advice would be very gratefully recieved.

In particular... we're planning on me coming out 4 weeks before to chose and close a deal... is 4 weeks enough? too little? too much? Ideally I'd like the family to be able to move straight in on arrival without the need for temp living. Does this sound sensible?

Many thanks

starville
heliconia
waterina
Butterworth lane
Paradise palms
Villa marina
Dunman place
Haig court
Costa del sol
East meadows
Country park

Hello!

East coast is a great area and some of the condos that you have mentioned out there are quite nice. Although I must tell you that if you want to be close to an MRT then maybe you are looking at the wrong areas.

Also, it is really not that important that you stay next to an MRT. The buses in Singapore are equally convinient. Also the taxis are quite cheap.

I live in east coast and although I believe it is a beautiful place to stay, I must confess that the prices here have gone too high. Also, the conectivity is an issue.

There are lots of good areas in Singapore and I honestly think taking the help of an agent is far better and easier than finding houses by yourself.

4 weeks would be good enough to search for a house. If your work provides you with an agent, it would be ideal. If not there are plenty out there.


Regards
S

heyshishir wrote:Also, it is really not that important that you stay next to an MRT. The buses in Singapore are equally convinient. Also the taxis are quite cheap.

Buses in Singapore are sloooooooooooow -- they stop every 100m and takes ages to travel longer distances. And while taxis certainly are cheap compared to back home (well, unless you're Thai), commuting from the East Coast in one twice a day adds up pretty fast. (Still probably cheaper than buying your own car though...)

Hi, good luck with your move.

I was more or less in a similar situation ... and spent about 2 weeks in Singapore recently finalising schooling / house etc. Am back in the UK now and we will be going out there around the 1st of August.

I looked at East Coast as well, primarily around meyer road / tanjong rhu - however as far as I know the MRT option dosen't really exist if you are staying in these areas. Atleast certainly not for places like Costa del Sol. People who stay here either drive / cab / use what is called an 'exec bus service' etc.

While I eventually decided to stay near Tanjong Rhu I don't intend to drive and will be testing out the cab / bus options. If MRT is a must for you, I guess there could be other areas which might be a better fit.

Let me know if any other questions...

Hi there... I suppose MRT is not a must... i just need to be able to get to work. How do the exec buses work? are they reliable? I suppose I really do need to get myself down to have a look for myself as there's only so much you can do from the net!

Hi, the 'exec buses' i believe are quite reliable. They operate like school buses ... and essentially pick up people from specific condos / pick-up points to the central business district / select drop-off points. I believe you can pre-book or go ad-hoc.

You are right re visiting in person - i spent the first couple of days orienteering. I had used couple of Singapore street maps with 'all' condos marked out ... which i found quite helpful. The good news is Singapore is small and organised ... and it is fairly easy to move around.

To your earlier question - I think 4 weeks is certainly adequate ... 2-3 should be enough in most circumstances.

Cheers.

the colemans wrote:We are planning on relocating to Singapore in Oct. We have 2 young (9 months and 2 1/2 ) children and think that the East Coast will probably be as good a place as any to live.

My wife has spent hours on the net and narrowed our choice down to the list below. We're looking for good family condo facilities, proximitiy to some grocery shops and I need to be able to get to Raffles place on the MRT and don't want to have to hike miles to get to the station : any views on the pros and cons of the list below, any experiences or advice would be very gratefully recieved.

In particular... we're planning on me coming out 4 weeks before to chose and close a deal... is 4 weeks enough? too little? too much? Ideally I'd like the family to be able to move straight in on arrival without the need for temp living. Does this sound sensible?

Many thanks

starville
heliconia
waterina
Butterworth lane
Paradise palms
Villa marina
Dunman place
Haig court
Costa del sol
East meadows
Country park

Some of the condos mention are in Geylang area (red light district). It is harmless and safe there but if you have children, you probably dont want to be living there.
Villa Marina is near a mosque. Some people find it a problem.
Costa Del Sol is nice and new but the facilities are always packed! I find the flats are generally not very spacious as others unless you are willing to splash out extra. Saying that, there is a huge expat community in there and you might feel much easier to settle in.

Hope that helps

Thank you very much for your help.... great to know and I really value your input (not sure my wife would believe it was an accident that we ended up in the red light district!)

Are there any condos missing from the list that you might suggest i look at? Any other helpful hints always welcome.

James

pebble bay is a beautiful place!

HunBunny80 wrote:Villa Marina is near a mosque. Some people find it a problem.

Care to explain?

the colemans wrote: starville
heliconia
waterina
Butterworth lane
Paradise palms
Villa marina
Dunman place
Haig court
Costa del sol
East meadows
Country park

Anyone have a clue what the going rates are for a 3-bedroom place at these condos? The prices on this website doesn't seem to reflect the true prices asked by agents.

Great question Audiojunkie..

whilst pebble bay is very nice - a 1 bed place is going for as much as $4,500 - and that was my budget for a 3 bed place.

Is $4,500 going to be enough for a 3 bed place?? I was sure it would be 3 months ago... now I'm not so sure! I do wonder if it's self-fulfilling... the more we all make each other paranoid about the rising rents, the more we're likely to pay over the odds... and so it goes on!!

Anyone rencently secured a decent 3 bed place on the East Coast for reasonable money?? Be interested to hear about actual rents paid/agreed as opposed to what's being asked for!

In La Salle street in Siglap area is a bungalow for rent, price half a year ago was 4,5K. Since it is still vacant, I would assume you'd have a good chance of negotiating the price down. That bungalow has at least three bedrooms, when looking from the outside, maybe even more. Big garden in front, quiet area as well.

Me and my partner got a 2 bedroom at costa del sol in bayshore rd for 3k - we negotiated it down from 3.5k.... Not sure what the 3 beddys are worth?

the colemans wrote:Great question Audiojunkie..

whilst pebble bay is very nice - a 1 bed place is going for as much as $4,500 - and that was my budget for a 3 bed place.

It's scary isn't it!! I know that this is not sustainable but still is a scary thought if you need to shell out more than half your salary for a 3-bedroom apt and a nice place in the East Coast!!!

the colemans wrote:Anyone rencently secured a decent 3 bed place on the East Coast for reasonable money?? Be interested to hear about actual rents paid/agreed as opposed to what's being asked for!

Yes, would be very interested in finding this out! Thanks!!