AsianPrime Properties | Your Finest Property Experience

Posted: 28 September 2012 1130 hrs SINGAPORE: Singapore's population has increased, due to growth of both the resident and non-resident populations. The Department of Statistics (DOS), in its Population Trends 2012 report released on Friday, said the country's total population stood at 5.31 million as at end June 2012, up 2.5 per cent from a year ago. It said there were 3.29 million Singapore citizens and 0.53 million permanent residents, and the rest were non-residents. The number of Singapore citizens grew by 0.9 per cent, comparable to the growths in the last couple of years, while the number of permanent residents increased marginally by 0.2 per cent. Growth in the number of non-residents was at 7.2 per cent, slightly higher than last year's 6.9 per cent. But DOS said it was significantly lower than the double digit percentage increases of 14.9 per cent seen in 2007 and 19.0 per cent in 2008. An estimated 3.14 million Singapore

Friday, Sep 28, 2012 When Ms Daphnie Chong, 28, and her longtime boyfriend applied for a Build-To-Order (BTO) flat in Pasir Ris earlier this year, they were in for a surprise. It was their first time applying for a flat and they got lucky: They will get the keys to their four-room flat at the end of 2014. The first-time buyers had not had their hopes up, having heard stories from peers about repeated unsuccessful applications. Ms Chong, who works as an events coordinator, told my paper: "We didn't expect it. It's good that we got it now, because prices next year may go up." Shorter queues for units have been a boon for young couples such as Ms Chong and her boyfriend, as a result of the Government's ramp-up in BTO projects for this year and next year. But rising prices are still a source of worry for many. Yesterday, the Housing Board (HDB) announced that the total supply of BTO flats will hit 27,000 units for this year,

Thursday, Sep 27, 2012 SINGAPORE - HDB today launched 7,055 flats for sale under the joint Build-to-Order (BTO) and Sale of Balance Flats (SBF) Exercises in both non-mature and mature towns. This brings the total flat supply in 2012 to 27,000 units, including the 6,400 flats to be launched in Nov. This is 2,000 units more than the 25,000 units originally planned for the year. HDB said in a statement that the increase in HDB flat supply will help to meet the housing demand, especially those from first-time home buyers. It also advised applicants to apply for a BTO flat in the non-mature towns/estates for a higher chance in securing a unit as demand for flats in mature estates is expected to be high, Of the new flats offered in the seven BTO projects, 3,727 units are located in Choa Chu Kang, Woodlands, Ang Mo Kio, Kallang Whampoa and Tampines. First-timers will enjoy priority flat allocation with at least 95% and 85% of the BTO flat supply (exc

The New Paper Thursday, Sep 27, 2012 Does the purchase price of a home include the legal fees, valuations and fire insurance? Some banks here say yes, and have calculated them as part of the purchase price. When a loan is given out, it then covers the three items. But that's wrong, reminded the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in a letter sent to banks about two weeks ago. They pointed to Notice 632 which spells out the items banks can no longer include as part of the purchase price. Among them - stamp duty. On monday, some home buyers hunting for bank loans were told legal fees, valuations and fire insurance will no longer be absorbed. The New Paper understands banks are going to make an announcement on this on tuesday. The end of subsidies were part of a series of cooling measures, introduced by MAS that came into effect in January last year. Depending on the value of the property, these legal fees can range from S$2,400 for an