Loan givers have checks done on buyer’s profile In “Risk profiling for homebuyers?”(Dec 17), Mr Ee Teck Siew suggested that the Government and industry associations consider implementing a “fact finding process” to ensure that potential home buyers buy properties they can afford, based on their abilities to service mortgage loans. Most homebuyers would need to obtain a bank loan upfront. The...

7,100 units ready in next two years, buyers may face difficulties: Analysts JUST how vulnerable is Singapore's :souring economy to a wave of defaults from private home buyers who had made use of the popular Deferred Payment Scheme (DPS)? It's a question that continues to split analysts, even as the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) on Friday released, for the first time, data on private homes sold...

THE value of projects under construction in Singapore is expected to be slashed next year, with the biggest impact to be felt in the central business district. The value of construction activity in Singapore is likely to fall 32 per  cent to US$17 billion ($24.6 billion) next year from US$25 billion this year, said BCI Asia Construction Information, a construction industry research company that undertook...

10,450 private homes sold under the Deferred Payment Scheme are still uncompleted as of end November. This is according to figures released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority for the first time. The report comes amid concerns that a large number of uncompleted homes bought under the scheme may be sold at distressed prices as the property market softens. 68 per cent of uncompleted homes sold under the...

Close to 500 applications have been received for the public flats to be built at Dew Spring@Yishun. The Housing and Development Board (HDB) launched the 864-unit project on Thursday. Four-room flats were the most popular among home buyers. There were 393 applications for 504 units, while three-room flats had 81 applications so far. One home buyer said: "The design of the flat is very much like that of...

The construction sector in Southeast Asia and Hong Kong is expected to contract by 16 per cent next year, according to a report by regional construction information provider BCI Asia. BCI Asia predicts that in a worst-case scenario, the contraction could be up to 32 per cent. It released a preliminary four-year forecast for the construction markets of Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines,...

Country City awarded bid to develop more land FOR those who can't get enough of the chic hangout places at Dempsey Hill, the good news is, more units and land have been released for development. The Singapore Land Authority (SLA) has released a 20,146.9 sq m plot of land with a gross floor area of 7,502.8 sq m on the hill, made up of several blocks of old British army buildings, to add to the existing...

Increased supply of flats in Yishun a response to demand, says HDB BUOYED by demand for its previous Build To Order flats (BTO), the Housing and Development Board (HDB) announced yesterday the launch of its latest BTO project - Dew Spring@Yishun. "The previous BTO launch in Yishun - Jade Spring Phase One and Two was five times subscribed, and therefore, we feel that there could be demand for flats in...

FOR the past 10 years, this once-lovely icon has languished in disuse. Seven years and $1.51 million spent on feasibility studies, maintenance and reinstatement works led only to the eventual conclusion that the historic Capitol Theatre was "not viable" as a performing arts centre. So, it comes as some surprise that - in releasing a 1.46-hectare land parcel at the junction of Stamford Road and North...

Singapore’s construction sector looks set to ride out the current economic downturn, thanks to a strong orderbook of projects lasting for at least another year. These projects are expected to be valued at around S$30 billion by the end of 2008. That is 22.4 per cent higher than 2007. But some experts are predicting a prolonged economic slowdown lasting past 2010. This could mean tough times ahead for...