Year 1996, I purchased a 5room flat at Jurong West Central. It cost me S$197,500.
If 12 yrs ago, it should be yr 2000. All I can say is 1996 (@16yrs ago), Jurong West Central 1, 5room flat already cost me @S$200K. And 4room flat cost @$135K.
If u talk abt uluness, not much difference between Woodland and Jurong West (16yrs ago) that time ya.
Allenboy, I hear you.
In 1997, after several years of work/savings, we (both NUS graduates in late 20s) paid $245,000 for a 5rm at Yishun Central from HDB.
After Govt grant, we paid $215,000.
We paid off everything by depleting our CPF and every month CPF contribution in 5 years (MOP).
It is 600m walk to Yishun MRT and near to Yishun Central.
We sold it for $420,000 after 10years and with this money, moved into private.
Of course by then, our salaries have increased considerably, so the $420,000 we received was not the reason we moved but buying the next property, at the right price, at the right location, was more important.
These days, the newer generation want to go fast - very different expectations.
Mind you, those days, when we said we had paid $245k for 5rm HDB in "ulu" Yishun, people were saying it's crazy prices too.
Some of our neighbours were young couples like us, some were with families, some white collar, some blue collar - and many were also worried if they could afford to pay for their brand new homes, at that time!
Amongst our friends, we also lamented that we had "missed the boat" and that the generation before us, ie those batch who graduated or went to work earlier, like some 5 years earlier, "had it easy", "so lucky", etc... were able to buy HDB so much cheaper and then moved into private earlier, etc...
Well, it does seem like deja vu and is not much different today - again you hear the laments of the younger generation that the previous generation had it easier, etc etc...
It was certainly not true - as I recall in the early 1990s the starting salaries of a new graduate was around S$1500 - well, below today's - and we did not have it easy too, with all kinds of recessions and retrenchments as industries changed and some even structurally moved out of Singapore permanently.
But for every down cycle, there were equally great up cycles and equal opportunities for many to fight for livelihood and prosper.
It took many of us, several years of work and savings, investing, sacrifices, step by step, to afford today's better living standards - Rome was certainly not built in a day or two!
In the end, all I want to say is that it is certainly not cheap to live in Singapore today but look around you, in Asean, in Asia, in Europe, in USA, etc... where can you find any free lunch?