More is going to be done to promote cycling in Singapore. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) will spend S$43 million to design and construct dedicated cycling tracks next to pedestrian footpaths in HDB estates. The first phase of this programme will be implemented in Tampines, Yishun, Sembawang, Pasir Ris and Taman Jurong. Foldable bicycles will also be allowed on MRT trains and public buses during...
General
Singapore Foreign Affairs Minister George Yeo has said the offer by Hong Kong celebrity Jackie Chan to donate some old Chinese houses to Singapore's new university would be a wonderful symbol of the proposed partnership between the upcoming university and a leading Chinese university. The collaboration initiative was agreed to between Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong...
The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) will extend S$70 million to help airport partners tide over the economic downturn. This is over and above the S$130 million Air Hub Development Fund announced earlier. The CAAS had, in December last year, announced an extension on this fund till end-2009. The money will go towards rental rebates and a Promotions Development Fund for retail, food and...
Bargain-hunting now comes with probability that prices could fall further PRIME properties in key cities such as London and New York have long been out of the price reach of most Singaporeans. However, the slide in prices and currencies caused by the global financial crisis has made such markets much more affordable for those who dare. Particularly attractive to potential Singapore investors are the...
HONG Kong prime office rents may fall a further 26 per cent this year as the global financial crisis prompts banks and investment companies to control spending, according to a report by property agency Colliers International. "The prime office market is predicted to experience a further downward adjustment due to the consolidation of the financial markets and the global economic outlook," Colliers...
DEVELOPERS of at least six mass-market private condos could release their projects in the next few months, riding on buying momentum generated lately by the Caspian condo near Jurong Lake - despite the recession. Property consultancy CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) tips Oasis @ Elias, The Gale on Flora Road in Upper Changi and Ascentia Sky on Alexandra Road among projects for possible launch in the next two...
I DISAGREE with the recommendations to build "no-frills" housing to meet the needs of young couples who cannot afford resale flats or even new flats direct from HDB. Firstly, not having features such as playgrounds or BBQ pits in such a no-frills housing estate will have social repercussions. The idea contradicts the Government's campaign of encouraging couples to start a family or have more children....
OF LATE, relatives and friends looking into investing in property have found the process very difficult, with the Inland Revenue Authority Of Singapore (Iras) asking for details pertaining to their property transactions. These investigations are highly detailed and intrusive; tend to drag on for months and may even involve face-to-face meetings with a panel of senior tax officials. Iras typically takes...
I REFER to the report "No-frills housing, please" (Feb 9). MP Lim Wee Kiak is right to note that 3- and 4-room flats cost only $15,000 and $20,000, respectively, in the '70s. In fact, even 5-room flats cost only $27,500 to $35,500 then. How did they all come to cost 10 to 30 times more in a matter of 30 years? Have construction costs and salaries gone up that much? Not only have prices gone up, the sizes...
IN DISMISSING yesterday the last-ditch appeal by 10 minority owners against the collective sale of Gillman Heights, Singapore's highest court has set down the clear criteria, going forward, for all other privatised HUDC estates that wish to go en bloc. In a case that hinged on the completion date of the estate, the Court of Appeal ruled that the age of HUDC estates should be pegged to the date when they...