L’Viv @ 23 Newton Road For sale

L’Viv @ 23 Newton Road For sale

District: 11 ( Novena, Newton, Thomson, Watten Estate )
Property Type: Condominium
Asking Price: $ 1,938,000
Tenure: Freehold
Bedroom: 2
Built up: 979 sq. ft.
Fixtures: Built in wardrobe and kitchen cabinet
Facing: North South facing
Amenities: Novena MRT, Newton MRT

Mindy Yong 杨雯诗

Tel: (+65) 91002985

Fax: (+65) 64021826

mindy@mindyyong.com

Kovan Melody @ Kovan Road For Sale

Kovan Melody @ Kovan Road For Sale

District: 19 ( Serangoon, Hougang, Punggol, Sengkang )
Property Type: Condominium
Asking Price: $ 930,000
Built up: 1216 sq. ft.
Amenities: Kovan MRT / Heartland Mall

Mindy Yong 杨雯诗

Tel: (+65) 91002985

Fax: (+65) 64021826

mindy@mindyyong.com

Floridian @ Bukit Timah Road For Sale

Floridian @ Bukit Timah Road For Sale

District: 21 ( Upper Bukit Timah, Ulu Pandan )
Property Type: Condominium
Asking Price: $ 1,800,000
Tenure: Freehold
Bedroom: 3
Bathroom: 1
Family/Hall: 1
Utility: 1
Built up: 1346 sq. ft.
Fixtures: Built in wardrobe. kitchen cabinet
Facing: North South facing
Amenities: King Albert Pk, Bt Timah Shpg Ctr

Mindy Yong 杨雯诗

Tel: (+65) 91002985

Fax: (+65) 64021826

mindy@mindyyong.com

Newton Edge @ Makeway Avenue For Sale

Newton Edge @ Makeway Avenue For Sale

District: 09 ( Cairnhill, Orchard Rd, River Valley )
Property Type: Condominium
Asking Price: $ 590,000
Storey: 18
Tenure: Freehold
Bedroom: 1
Built up: 450 sq. ft.
Carpark: Basement CarPark
Air Cond: Fully Aircon

Mindy Yong 杨雯诗

Tel: (+65) 91002985

Fax: (+65) 64021826

mindy@mindyyong.com

SUPER PENTHOUSE @ 11 Amber Road For Sale

SUPER PENTHOUSE @ 11 Amber Road For Sale

District: 15 ( Amber Rd, Joo Chiat, Katong, Marine Parade, Meyer, Tanjong Rhu )
Property Type: Condominium
Asking Price: $ 3,500,000
Tenure: Freehold
Bedroom: 4
Built up: 2842 sq. ft.

Mindy Yong 杨雯诗

Tel: (+65) 91002985

Fax: (+65) 64021826

mindy@mindyyong.com

Rescue fund not panacea, says Paulson

Rescue fund not panacea, says Paulson

WASHINGTON: United States Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson yesterday rejected using the government’s financial rescue programme as a ‘panacea’ for economic difficulties, clashing with lawmakers who want the funds to help beleaguered homeowners and carmakers.
‘The rescue package was not intended to be an economic stimulus or an economic recovery package,’ Mr Paulson said in testimony to the House Financial Services Committee.

The US$700 billion (S$1 trillion) Troubled Asset Relief Programme (Tarp) was meant to stabilise financial markets and the flow of credit and ‘is not a panacea for all our economic difficulties’.

Representative Barney Frank, who heads the House panel, took issue with Mr Paulson’s remarks.

Democrats are pursuing legislation to deploy part of Tarp to prevent General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler from collapsing.

Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said at the hearing that using Tarp funds to buy stakes in banks is ‘critical for restoring confidence and promoting the return of credit markets to more normal functioning’.

Focusing the Tarp on infusing billions into banks to pump up their capital and bolster lending to customers was deemed a faster and more effective approach to stabilising the financial system than buying rotten assets from financial institutions, Mr Paulson said.

And as conditions worsen, it has become clear that the first instalment - US$350 billion - for buying toxic debts ’simply isn’t enough fire-power’.

BLOOMBERG, ASSOCIATED PRESS

Source : Straits Times - 19 Nov 2008

Singapore Property - Buy, Sell, Rent, Invest

Mindy Yong

(+65)91002985

mindy@mindyyong.com

Sands raises $3.2b for projects

Sands raises $3.2b for projects

By Lim Wei Chean

CASINO operator Las Vegas Sands announced yesterday that it had raised the additional US$2.1 billion (S$3.2 billion) required to complete its development commitments, including Singapore’s integrated resort in Marina Bay.
Its ability to do so also prompted its auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to remove a warning that there was ’substantial doubt’ the company could continue operating.

The fate of the Marina Bay integrated resort came into question after PwC, in a regulatory filing last week, said Las Vegas Sands could go bust.

The news had Singapore worried that the casino operator would not be able to complete the US$4.5 billion project as promised.

However, Sands’ top executives affirmed last week that the Marina Bay Sands IR remained its ‘top priority’.

To ensure that it could complete the Singapore development, it has suspended projects in Macau and Las Vegas. It also went on a drive to raise new capital through selling of stocks and warrants. The latest amount raised will be used as collateral for Sands to draw on its loan for the local project, among others.

On Monday , Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry

S. Iswaran assured Parliament that the project was still going ahead, and that the authorities were working with the company to complete it.

He also stressed that there was no concession from the Government in allowing the number of gaming tables to be upped from 600 to 1,000. The restriction on the casino remains at 15,000 sq m.

Source : Straits Times - 19 Nov 2008

Singapore Property - Buy, Sell, Rent, Invest

Mindy Yong

(+65)91002985

mindy@mindyyong.com

PayPal to allow bank top-ups

PayPal to allow bank top-ups

Instead of using credit cards, consumers can transfer funds from their local bank accounts

By Tan Weizhen

PAYPAL, the giant United States-based Internet payment service, has launched a new feature which allows Singapore users to tap their local bank accounts.
In the past, PayPal users had to have a credit card linked to their accounts. Now, the payment service has arranged with local banks to allow Internet shoppers or sellers to transfer funds directly from their bank accounts into their PayPal accounts.

The new online service was launched yesterday here, and in Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Mexico and Hong Kong, making a total of 18 countries which have the service.

It works for those who still do not feel safe leaving their credit card details with PayPal - a large outfit with 65 million active accounts worldwide.

With this new service, Singaporeans will now have peace of mind using websites which predominantly use PayPal, such as www.eBay.com

The move comes none too soon as from Jan 15 next year, sellers on the auction site will not be able to list items for sale, unless they have PayPal or certain merchant credit card accounts. Cheques or money orders will no longer be accepted.

The new PayPal service will also open up a myriad of other online, US-based stores which use only US-issued credit cards or PayPal.

To use it, consumers need to log on at www.paypal.com.sg and select the ‘Top-up’ option. Instructions will follow on how to link the user’s bank account to his PayPal account, and how to transfer the money.

Sellers with premier PayPal accounts - that is, higher-tier accounts with credit cards linked to them - will incur fees of 3.4 per cent when they accept payments directly from topped-up accounts.

On the flipside, sellers have the assurance of cash, said Mr Mark Ho, 26, who runs an online business buying clothes from suppliers in India and China, and selling them to online customers in the United States and England.

‘I use PayPal regularly for my transactions, and a direct top-up will do away with the risk of fraudulent credit card transactions,’ he said.

Source : Straits Times - 19 Nov 2008

Singapore Property - Buy, Sell, Rent, Invest

Mindy Yong

(+65)91002985

mindy@mindyyong.com

Market-based pricing fairest for new Singapore HDB flats: Mah

Market-based pricing fairest for new Singapore HDB flats: Mah

By Aaron Low

WHEN pricing a new HDB flat, costs are not taken into account. Its price is based on what the unit is worth at the point of purchase.
Calling it a market-based approach, National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan said it was the fairest way of pricing new flats.

‘It reflects what the flat is worth at the point of purchase, which may have no relation to what it cost to build,’ he added.

Mr Mah gave this response in Parliament yesterday to Mr Liang Eng Hwa (Holland-Bukit Timah GRC), who had asked if the Government would consider pricing flats according to costs.

The minister also said that as the HDB did not take into account costs, its building programme suffered losses of $530 million a year over the last three years.

He said a typical four-room flat in Sengkang costs more than $300,000 to build. This is above the $200,000 to $260,000 price at which HDB sells it.

He noted that there were concerns over the high prices of premium flats like those in Pinnacle@Duxton, with prices ranging from $457,000 to $645,000.

But the prices reflected the value of the flats, which are located in Tanjong Pagar. For every unit on sale, seven people wanted to buy it, said Mr Mah.

It shows people are willing to pay for flats with good value, he added.

That the market is the main driver of prices of resale HDB flats was also highlighted by Senior Minister of State for National Development Grace Fu.

Madam Ho Geok Choo (West Coast GRC) had asked why the cash that a buyer pays on top of the official valuation of a flat - known in the industry as cash- over-valuation (COV) - is proportionately so high for two- and three-room flats. Latest figures show the median COV for a two-room flat is $16,000 and for a three-room unit, $19,000.

Ms Fu said COV is based on several factors and varies in different segments of the HDB market.

COV also depends on market conditions and how much each buyer is prepared to pay, she added, noting it could drop and enter negative territory.

However, it is often positive. For instance, the median COV for two-room flats range from $4,100 in Ang Mo Kio to $23,000 in Bukit Merah.

Source : Straits Times - 19 Nov 2008

Singapore Property - Buy, Sell, Rent, Invest

Mindy Yong

(+65)91002985

mindy@mindyyong.com

Singapore Govt won’t let good businesses go down

Singapore Govt won’t let good businesses go down

By Robin Chan

THE Government will soon enhance schemes to help cash-strapped businesses secure bank loans, Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam said in Parliament yesterday.
This is to avoid a scenario where good businesses are forced to close down owing to a lack of access to credit, he said.

Mr Tharman said the new measures will enhance existing loan schemes, and will mostly involve the Government sharing the risk of the loans with the banks.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had said on Sunday that with a protracted economic slowdown looming, some measures to help businesses and workers would be announced this week.

Yesterday, Mr Tharman told MPs that while total bank lending to non-bank customers has continued to grow in the 12 months to September, some credit tightening is ‘inevitable’ given the current economic downturn.

‘The Monetary Authority of Singapore’s assessment is that while there is no large scale credit crisis in Singapore, some segments of borrowers may face higher borrowing costs.’

With recent feedback showing that banks had stopped lending to some businesses, MP Lee Bee Wah (Ang Mo Kio GRC) asked: ‘Is there any channel that businesses can turn to should this really happen at the ground? Because we would not want to see good businesses being killed prematurely.’

In response, Mr Tharman said: ‘I quite agree with Ms Lee that we would not want to see good, viable businesses, which are the majority, having to cease business or scale down significantly… because of a lack of access to credit.

‘So the Government has been studying this carefully, taking in feedback, and will be making announcements soon on the enhancement of loan schemes which involve risk sharing with the banks so as to ensure that we maintain access to credit on the part of our companies.’

In terms of the interbank market, in which banks lend to each other, he told MPs that there has been ’sufficient liquidity in the system’.

‘We have not seen the market freeze up, as happened in some other global financial centres in recent months. Banks have been able to obtain Singapore dollar funding among themselves in an orderly manner.

‘We are unlikely to see this (tightening of bank credit) happen on the scale that is occurring in many other parts of the world, where banks are tightening credit not only because of increased risks that they perceive in a downturn but because they are short of capital.’

In fact, as at Sept 30, total bank lending to non-bank customers was still growing, he said.

Loans to the building and construction sector increased by about 50 per cent in the 12 months to Sept 30, compared with the same period last year.

He said small- and medium-sized enterprises have lifted their use of existing schemes significantly, citing that the amount of loans under both the local enterprise finance scheme and the loan insurance scheme grew by more than 55 per cent in the first eight months over the same period last year.

He added that it would be inappropriate for the Government to direct banks to lend or to get involved with to whom they should lend.

‘These are commercial decisions which banks themselves have to take, based on their assessment of the risks as well as the relationships they maintain with their customers… Our banks make these assessments carefully, and take into account both the short-term risks and their long-term interests in keeping their customers. We should continue to leave these decisions to them.’

Source : Straits Times - 19 Nov 2008

Singapore Property - Buy, Sell, Rent, Invest

Mindy Yong

(+65)91002985

mindy@mindyyong.com