Your Say: Relook resale levy for long-time HDB owners who want to sell their first flats

After a long lull, with Covid making us all serious, we return once again to the wonderful world of the self-centred. Today's story is about a man who would like two bites of the cherry and thinks he should be given those two bites. (I have mellowed in my old age, and am unable to come up with sarcastic remarks for his arguments, so, feel free to add your own. I have found that such self-centred and self-absorbed people aren't worth arguing with or even debating with. They just believe the world is unfair to them, and nothing you say will change their minds.)

Mr Teo Kueh Liang bought his first flat in Clementi in 1984 and has been living there for nearly 40 years.

TEO KUEH LIANG

May 3, 2022


I was glad to learn that the Housing and Development Board (HDB) will launch around 1,600 Build-To-Order (BTO) flats at Farrer Park in three years’ time.

However, as a second-time HDB buyer, I am concerned about paying the HDB’s resale levy if I choose to buy a new flat.

I bought my first flat in Clementi in 1984 and have been living there for nearly 40 years.

The HDB’s website says that the resale levy is meant to reduce the subsidy given for a second subsidised flat, ensuring a fairer allocation of subsidies. This must be paid using the flat sale proceeds or in cash.

HK unrest shows why Singapore must guard against class divisions and curb rising private-property prices

By Jeremy Teo Chin Ghee

09 November, 2019

A key factor in the recent unrest in Hong Kong has been unaffordable housing for the younger generation.

In Singapore, we are fortunate to have the Housing and Development Board (HDB), but this alone may be insufficient for social harmony. Measures must be taken to ensure continued social mobility and prevent inequality from giving rise to a two-class society causing social division.

Unfair to say SG Climate Rally does not take into account societal concerns: Organisers

By Ajay Nair, SG Climate Rally

01 December, 2019

I am writing on behalf of my co-organisers of the SG Climate Rally. We refer to the commentary, “In calling for action on climate crisis, it is not enough to say ‘listen to the science’” (Nov 25).

SG Climate Rally acknowledges the need for climate movements to listen to broader social concerns. As part of these efforts, we published a statement last week in support of the food delivery workers affected by the ban on personal mobility devices on footpaths. 

[Lip service followed by an example of tokenism.]

6 in 10 S'poreans think Government should regulate prices of new condos: Survey

[Note that this is NOT a letter to the Forum Page. Stupid letter writers are getting fewer. I would like to think it is because of this blog, but I am not that egotistical.

However, that does not mean that there are no stupid writing. Or writing about stupid ideas. Or expressing stupid ideas.

Except now they get PAID to write them.

Whereas this blog is still... not bringing in any income for me.

So I guess I'm the stupid one? 

Well, the poorer one.]

By Janice Lim

About half of the respondents who took part in a survey by PropertyGuru said that they expect private property prices to continue going up in the second half of 2019.

16 October, 2019

SINGAPORE —  A higher proportion of Singaporeans would like the Government to regulate prices of new private homes compared to six months ago, based on a survey by property portal PropertyGuru. 

Out of 794 respondents polled in the first half of this year, 58 per cent said that there should be more price regulation — up from 49 per cent in the second half of last year. 

The survey, which is conducted half-yearly, also found that a majority of Singaporeans — eight out of 10 — were dissatisfied with the current real-estate climate chiefly because they felt that private property prices were overpriced. 

[Let me tell you what that statistic tell me: It tells me that 8 out of 10 Singaporeans do not own private property. Or want to buy private property. Put it another way: If you own a private property for investment, is private property prices too high?]

Based on the third-quarter flash data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority, private property prices have gone up by 0.9 per cent since the last quarter.

The quarter-to-quarter increase was 1.5 per cent previously.

About half of those surveyed by PropertyGuru expect private property prices to continue going up in the second half of this year.

[And they expect this because...?]

Comparatively, only about one-third felt that the prices of Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats would go up. This could be due to ongoing concerns about the depleting leases of HDB resale flats. 

Commenting on the prices of property in Singapore, Dr Tan Tee Khoon, country manager of PropertyGuru Singapore, said that the property market here continues to be "positively differentiated" from other markets in the region and it is a "relative safe haven given its political stability and good governance". 

[Wow. so the country manager of a real estate agency, the same one that carried out this survey and revealed these findings, thinks the property market here is safe. So, no shame about conflict of interests? That's like a restaurant giving out Michelin stars to themselves.]

"Investors with diversified portfolios continue to see Singapore’s real estate as an asset class that can ride out volatility in the medium to long term,” he said.

When it comes to buying a property, the PropertyGuru survey found that Singaporeans were more cautious. The Property Purchase Intent index — which measures the likelihood of respondents buying a property here in the next six months — fell to an all-time low since the survey started nine years ago. 

The overall sentiment, which took into account other concerns such as affordability, the general real-estate market climate, interest rates, property prices and perceived government intervention in the property market, was also less upbeat.

This corresponds to the gloomier outlook of Singapore's economy, with 51 per cent of the respondents feeling that the economy was not performing well — up from 37 per cent in the second half of last year. 

[Must be a slow news day for the newspaper to publish such fluff. Or maybe it is "sponsored content"? Or a paid advertorial?]

Cross Island Line: Besides a direct and skirting route, how about a semi-direct one?

By Chew Seng Yian

21 September, 2019

I refer to the report, “Through nature reserve or around? Residents, nature groups stick to guns on Cross Island Line paths” (Sept 3).

The environmental-impact assessment carried out for Phase 2 of the project is commendable for its extensive coverage of the impact and mitigation for the two alignment options. It also shed more light on the pros and cons for the direct (Option 1) and skirting (Option 2) routes.

While the former would be more economical and efficient with a faster travelling time, nature groups are rightfully concerned about boring a tunnel right under the heart of MacRitchie Reservoir.

Let women contribute by doing NS in the community

By Cho Ming En

The writer proposes that women do National Service for a year in areas such as healthcare, eldercare, environmental conservation and community building.

TODAY

27 August, 2019

[Every few years (or months sometimes), someone with an overblown sense of "fairness" stews about the unfairness that men have to do National Service and women gets a "free ride"... and then they suggest well maybe women don't have to do military service. They could be nurses, care-givers, maybe even child-care teachers etc.

Isn't that a good idea?

No. It's a sick idea arising from a sick mind with wrong assumptions and a perverse sense of fairness.

So to right the "wrong" of men being forced to do NS, we should similarly subject women to the same "slavery"?

Like I said, sick.

Build highways for personal mobility devices, bicycles

[I will let the words of this... moron, speak for themselves. I will just highlight the more... ludicrous parts.]

By Su Sicheng

21 July, 2019

You know, it's like one day everything was fine,
and the next there were these fuckin' scooters everywhere.

There has been much talk about errant users of personal mobility devices (PMDs).

While regulations are in place to minimise inconsiderate behaviour, many pedestrians still feel that their sense of space and security is infringed upon when such vehicles pass too close or too fast.

It is too simplistic, however, to only blame users. Talk to PMD or electric-bicycle riders, or cyclists, and they will likely say they are frustrated that they have nowhere to ride freely.

The limited space on footpaths and the pace of pedestrians frustrate them.

PMDs are banned from roads, and most casual cyclists also restrict themselves to pedestrian paths, as those riding on roads must wear helmets.

It is clear there is rising demand by people here for such devices.

Waste management and Recycling

[Note: This is NOT a letter to the Editor. This is ACTUALLY an article. Written by "a Research Fellow at the Lee Kuan Yew Centre for Innovative Cities, Singapore University of Technology and Design and an Assistant Professor of anthropology at the university. As us plebes would say, "oo tak cheh eh lang". And they write like this?]

Why waste management is such a knotty issue in Singapore 

By Julienne Chen and Lyle Fearnley

There are many considerations in how to implement a system for waste management that is convenient, fair, equitable, hygienic, and cost-effective. Reuters file photo

10 April, 2019



How cities deal with household trash, or ‘waste management’ in urban planning jargon, is not a sexy topic. One thing that can make it even less palatable to talk about?

Paying fees based on how much trash we generate – a hot-button topic that’s received some coverage in the media lately.

[I may be out of touch, but I haven't read anything recently about trash collection fees based on volume. This suggests this paper was started some time ago (when "pay as you throw" was current... over a year ago?)]

Unintended ‘problems’ could surface with new curriculum for secondary schools

[So after many years and robust defence of the streaming policy, the Ministry of Education decided in 2019 that streaming has had its day, and should be retired to the chorus of cheers from parents, educators, and social commenters and pundits.

Well... 

Let's just say you can't please everyone. 

Here's an unpleased one:]


ROBIN CHEE MING FENG

06 MARCH, 2019

I refer to the report detailing the Government’s decision to abolish streaming in the near future.

While we must appreciate the Government’s efforts in slaying this sacred cow, we should not be under the delusion that this major change in policy would lead to a significant reduction in the stigma experienced by students who are less academically inclined.

Under the new system, students would no longer be labelled as belonging to the Express, Normal (Academic) and Normal (Technical) streams.

However, it is just an effort in repackaging or renaming the streams.

‘Archaic attitudes’ have to change, modern universities should prepare students to enter the workforce

By Jonathan Tiong Soon Yi

31 October, 2018

I agree with Assistant Professor Woo Jun Jie's commentary “Why graduates from S’pore’s newer universities find it easier to get jobs” (Oct 16).

The 2017 Joint Graduate Employment Survey found that graduates from the Singapore University of Technology and Design, the Singapore Institute of Technology, and Singapore University of Social Sciences fared better in the job market than those from the traditional “big three” of the National University of Singapore (NUS), Nanyang Technological University and Singapore Management University.

Asst Prof Woo explained that the newer universities have a “strong commitment to an industry-centric and practice-oriented education”, which employers prefer over the “more traditional and academic” style adopted by the older institutions.

Redefining the Singaporean that we know

By Mike Hou

 TODAY file photo

Are Singaporeans being defined only by our achievements, asks the author.

22 May 2018

Hard not to be stressed when basic food and play will incur more tax

By Hazelyn A Yuen 

23 February, 2018

I foresee that the increase in our Goods and Sevices Tax (GST) in future will push up the cost of living further.

[Wow! A psychic! I wish I had the power to foresee the future, like her. I wanna know what numbers will be in the Hong Bao draw.] 

We can cut back on more luxurious travels, expensive cars, premium houses, etc, but we still have to eat, so shouldn’t the most basic food items be largely exempted from GST? 

Such goods are relatively inelastic in price, and if they cost more, demand for them will still not fall.

[OMG! This psychic is predicting that once GST increase, Singaporeans will take fewer holidays, buy fewer expensive cars, and fewer premium houses! What's the GST on houses? Oh wait! There's no GST on property purchase. That's "covered" by Buyer's Stamp duties. WHICH HAS ALREADY INCREASED (for million dollar property)!] 

A GST hike will not benefit producers and consumers, but likely compound the already stressful cost of living domestically.

Even leisure or play is going to cost more, as seen by the tax on digital services which include entertainment content. So, too, will a visit to theme parks or gym classes or the buying of sports gear. How are we encouraged to maintain a healthy lifestyle — which could help to reduce stress — in a pressure-cooker society?

Right! The solution to a "pressure-cooker society" is to spend lavishly on theme parks and gym classes. 

Parents with premature babies need more financial support

[A well-intentioned writer who is not aware of Medishield Life.]


By Ng Chee Kheon

19 December, 2017


Whenever the subject of how to raise Singapore’s total fertility rate is being discussed, the focus is invariably on things like increasing maternity and paternity leave, providing affordable childcare services and education, and enhancing work-life balance.

However, the emotional trauma experienced by parents with pre-mature babies, as well as their financial plight, have not been highlighted enough.

Pre-mature babies need to be warded in an intensive care unit for weeks, if not months. The resulting total medical bills could run into tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Sarcasm, rudeness and personal attacks on social media

By Teo Kueh Liang

TODAY/VOICES

23 November, 2017

In today’s context, technology has made it instant and convenient for people to get information and news.

Everyone is able to read news online, and readers may express his or her views on any particular issue or topic on social media.

However, on these platforms, including Facebook and Twitter, the common but unhealthy experience for anyone reading or taking part is that when online users do not agree with someone’s opinions, they often resort to personal attacks by using sarcastic comments and vulgarities on the other party.

[That's because your opinion is STUPID! Oh. Was that rude?]

To me, it is not necessary and meaningless to use such an approach in any discussion or debate. It only reflects the person’s character, personality and his or her level of civility.

It seems that people have lost their emotional intelligence (EQ) or even just their intelligence (IQ) in these public spaces.

[No. I suspect they lost their patience with unthinking boors who have an over-inflated sense of the importance and intelligence of their half-baked opinions and who think nothing of inflicting their ignorance and ignorantly-conceived opinions on others and expect others to be unthinkingly grateful for their "pearls" of swine droppings. Oh. Was that rude too?

Offer public transport subsidies to help S’pore become car-lite

[I am beginning to suspect a conspiracy. But let's go with the Forum Letter to TODAY first.]

Francis Cheng

March 11, 2017

If Singapore is aiming to be a car-lite nation where Singaporeans and non-Singaporeans alike, regardless of class, travel on public transport, then subsidies to ensure affordability may be a necessary element (“Khaw signals that transport fares will go up in future, TODAY March 9”).

Subsidies to public transport are common in many countries. A shift towards greater use of public transport can help reduce emissions and congestion. Public transport subsidies are all the more necessary for low-income households and the elderly.

Water a necessity - shouldn't Govt bear cost for it?

[Water tariffs are increasing. Let the complaints begin!

Oh here's one!]

ST Forum

Forum writer Ng Chun Jin has not heard of many countries or cities that would raise water charges by so much.

23 Feb 2017

The Government, by proposing a 30 per cent tax hike, clearly views water as an economic good rather than a basic necessity. This is a disconnect in principle that requires further examination.

The United Nations, on July 28, 2010, acknowledged that clean drinking water and sanitation are essential to the realisation of all human rights.

Stand aside: Walking up and down escalators benefits health, brain age

W SHON LAIRD
TODAY ONLINE

JANUARY 12, 2017

I am writing in response to Mr Timothy Tang’s letter, “Rushing on escalators a bad habit that should be discouraged” (Jan 10), where he mentions that moving quickly on the steps of escalators is stressful to the joints, and should be avoided by those with weak legs. And the practice of keeping left on escalators to clear a path for those who wish to move faster should be reconsidered.

However, my opinion is that walking on escalators is good for you.

I am encouraged to exercise vigorously for a few minutes several times a day, and since I have a desk-bound job, the escalators at MRT stations and malls serve to keep me active to a small degree — exercising my heart, legs and lungs. Surely, this is better than standing still on the moving steps?

[You know what would be even better? Taking the FREAKING STAIRS, YOU LAZY EXCUSE MAKING ASS!]

In Sweden, they turned a staircase [Note: Staircase. Not Escalator. Lazy ass!] into a giant working piano keyboard, so that people can make musical notes while moving up and down, promoting exercise. In Singapore, then, our modern transport network could not possibly be actively encouraging inertia?

My body was tested to the extreme last week on the Holborn, the undergound line in central London. There were four long escalators with a vertical height of 24m to reach street level.

A 2002 study on the London Underground’s escalators found that the standing-only side of an escalator can carry a maximum of 54 people per minute, while the walking side can carry a maximum of 66 people per minute.

A further report found that brain age improves by 0.58 years in individuals who climb at least one extra flight of stairs a day [Again, "stairs" not "escalator", lazy ass!] — perhaps not relevant in my advancing years. To those on the escalators, please keep to the left (or right, if you are in London) as I whizz past — do not stand in the way of (my health’s) progress.


https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/8b/00/9d/8b009d2e2c472a6a35bdb454849f1a50.jpg

[So if you are going to the gym, do you take the escalator or the stairs in the picture above?

Below, the letter he was replying to.]

Rushing on escalators a bad habit that should be discouraged

TIMOTHY TANG

JANUARY 10, 2017

The practice of keeping left on escalators to clear a path for those who wish to move faster should be reconsidered. Rushing on escalators is a bad habit and should not be encouraged.

Keeping left can cause unnecessary crowding at the entrance of escalators, while standing on both sides can ease the congestion.

Rushing on escalators can also put other commuters at risk if someone falls. It can also cause escalators to wear out more easily from the impact. Why not be more punctual, rather than rush up and down?

Walking down steps is also stressful for the joints, and should be avoided by those with weak legs. Even world-class tennis players suffer from joint pain due to overuse of their joints.

We should take our time and not rush, especially on shopping mall escalators, where we are supposed to relax.

Does ethical consumption have to cost so much?

[This was not a forum page letter. But it is silly enough to get my dander up. So here it is and here I go.]

TODAY

VAIDEHI SHAH

MAY 13, 2016

Eat organic food. Drive an electric car, not a gas-guzzler. Buy clothes made by fairly paid workers: Such calls have grown louder and more frequent in recent years.

While responsible consumption advocates mean well, they often overlook the fact that not everyone can afford these sustainable goods, which are usually more expensive than mass-market products.

The poor are being priced out of sustainable and ethical consumer options, and this is wrong for many reasons.

[But not as wrong as your inability to see that arguing for the right of the poor to drive electric cars instead of gas guzzlers, presumably to reduce carbon emission, in order to save the planet, is the WRONG solution to saving the planet. We should move towards aggregated transport, i.e. public transport. But a great start to a blinkered, ill-informed, unthinking essay.]

Recast the S’porean identity based on inclusivity, fairness — not materialism

[I clip and pasted this article to this blog because I thought it was a reader's letter. Only at the end, did I realise that it was supposed to be a commentary or opinion piece. But seriously, I found the quality of thought to be no better than some forum letters. And the verbosity hinted at some insecurities or immaturity.

Maybe I am being too harsh... NAAAAHHHH! 

Or, rather, why don't you decide. I found his writing rather pompous.]

Want more babies? Help families afford cars

[This was not a forum letter. But it might as well have been. It is not an original blackmail point. Many car-loving would-be parents have written in before threatening to withhold their sperm or eggs unless they get a car. 

The tactic is so transparent. Let's see how this one does.]


Ezra Ho

April 27 2016


Last month, officials from the National Population and Talent Division, led by Senior Minister of State Josephine Teo, went on study trips to Denmark and South Korea to understand how these countries dealt with their falling fertility rates.

The consensus is that we need a holistic approach that cultivates a more family-friendly society. Raising the fertility rate would require an equalising of the demands of childcare by enhancing paternity leave, promoting a more supportive work culture, providing adequate infantcare and fostering a shift in societal attitudes.

So here is a crazy idea to add to the mix: help families afford cars.

[If this is a crazy idea, there are lots of crazy people in Singapore. If there are enough of them, they are no longer crazy. Just a vocal minority.]