I refer to the Straits Times editorial “Watching HDB price behaviour, sensibly” dated 23 Sept 2009.
The writer wonders why buyers don’t exercise their democratic right to avoid paying a premium by looking at towns less “prime”. Because towns less “prime” aren’t exactly cheap either. The writer doesn’t understand that the rise in property prices is across the board, prime and not-so-prime. So whether one is looking at prime or not-so-prime, one cannot avoid paying a “premium” for nothing.
The writer denigrades the people’s concerns as being “grouses” while applauding Mr Mah’s address of those concerns as being timely. As has always been the case, the wretched people’s concerns are always grouses in the eyes and ears of our elites who have long taken for granted their million dollar salaries and can never understand let alone appreciate the citizens’ fear and panic of watching the cost of buying a flat increase by $100,000 overnight.
The statement “affordability influences supply” tells us that the writer knows absolutely nothing about what he is saying for there is one and only one pre-eminent supplier, the HDB, who monopolises and hence determines the overall price and affordability of flats.
The writer has chosen to parrot Mr Mah’s 30% rule for housing loan payment but fails to justify the use of such a rule. We are left to wonder why the government chooses to follow international benchmarks when it comes to extracting money from its citizens but when it comes to paying themselves, they choose not to follow international norms, but to pay themselves obscene and astronomical millions instead? Under what circumstances are international benchmarks adhered to becomes arbitrary at best.
The writer has little doubt that state housing is affordable. Nevertheless, many old folks have to sell their houses now for retirement funds despite having poured all their hard earned money into their homes all their lives. And that’s what “affordable” means in Singapore, you can “afford” to pay all your life and still end up with nothing in the end.
The writer is sure that HDB has every conceivable flat type and location for every budget. If only the writer can explain what that means in light of the expected 20,000 applications for the 2,000 flats released recently.
The writer puts the blame squarely back on us wretched citizens for creating problems for ourselves by buying biggers places than we can afford. But would banks or the HDB have lent us money if there had been serious doubts about loan repayment in the first place? Sounds just like the US sub-prime crisis isn’t it? Whereas in the US, banks are being blamed for lending money to folks who can’t afford housing, here in Singapore, we the wretched citizens are being blamed instead.
The writer blames us wretched citizens for selfishly wanting to stay near parents for child minding convenience. But as far as child minding convenience is concerned, nothing beats having a maid. With maids, what need is there to stay near parents? So surely there must be something altogether different for wanting to stay near parents? But the writer probably wouldn’t understand. He probably doesn’t care if his children stays in Siberia or Zimbabwe as long as there is Internet connection for him to see them via facebook.
The writer reasons that the farthest points on this island are reachable inside an hour by public transport. I wonder if the writer has ever used public transport in his entire life. I take more than an hour to travel to my workplace via public transportation and that’s not even half the distance from Changi to Tuas South. This must be the loudest bullshit the writer has managed so far. Or he could be thinking that every spot in Singapore is within 2 min of walking to the nearest MRT.
But the writer would go even further, by chastising us wretched citizens to stop hectoring the HDB for impossible concessions due to our own obstinance. Of course concessions are impossible, since when has it been possible for the government to give concessions? Bus concession for children and old folks perhaps but little else. Notice that the writer uses the word “hectoring” which means “bullying”? Wow, we wretched citizens of Singapore have started bullying the authorities. Now that is something new, like lambs bullying the big, bad wolf. But lambs will never be smart enough to come together to bully the wolf. Lambs can only scream for help when being pushed into a tight corner.
The writer wonders why buyers don’t exercise their democratic right to avoid paying a premium by looking at towns less “prime”. Because towns less “prime” aren’t exactly cheap either. The writer doesn’t understand that the rise in property prices is across the board, prime and not-so-prime. So whether one is looking at prime or not-so-prime, one cannot avoid paying a “premium” for nothing.
The writer denigrades the people’s concerns as being “grouses” while applauding Mr Mah’s address of those concerns as being timely. As has always been the case, the wretched people’s concerns are always grouses in the eyes and ears of our elites who have long taken for granted their million dollar salaries and can never understand let alone appreciate the citizens’ fear and panic of watching the cost of buying a flat increase by $100,000 overnight.
The statement “affordability influences supply” tells us that the writer knows absolutely nothing about what he is saying for there is one and only one pre-eminent supplier, the HDB, who monopolises and hence determines the overall price and affordability of flats.
The writer has chosen to parrot Mr Mah’s 30% rule for housing loan payment but fails to justify the use of such a rule. We are left to wonder why the government chooses to follow international benchmarks when it comes to extracting money from its citizens but when it comes to paying themselves, they choose not to follow international norms, but to pay themselves obscene and astronomical millions instead? Under what circumstances are international benchmarks adhered to becomes arbitrary at best.
The writer has little doubt that state housing is affordable. Nevertheless, many old folks have to sell their houses now for retirement funds despite having poured all their hard earned money into their homes all their lives. And that’s what “affordable” means in Singapore, you can “afford” to pay all your life and still end up with nothing in the end.
The writer is sure that HDB has every conceivable flat type and location for every budget. If only the writer can explain what that means in light of the expected 20,000 applications for the 2,000 flats released recently.
The writer puts the blame squarely back on us wretched citizens for creating problems for ourselves by buying biggers places than we can afford. But would banks or the HDB have lent us money if there had been serious doubts about loan repayment in the first place? Sounds just like the US sub-prime crisis isn’t it? Whereas in the US, banks are being blamed for lending money to folks who can’t afford housing, here in Singapore, we the wretched citizens are being blamed instead.
The writer blames us wretched citizens for selfishly wanting to stay near parents for child minding convenience. But as far as child minding convenience is concerned, nothing beats having a maid. With maids, what need is there to stay near parents? So surely there must be something altogether different for wanting to stay near parents? But the writer probably wouldn’t understand. He probably doesn’t care if his children stays in Siberia or Zimbabwe as long as there is Internet connection for him to see them via facebook.
The writer reasons that the farthest points on this island are reachable inside an hour by public transport. I wonder if the writer has ever used public transport in his entire life. I take more than an hour to travel to my workplace via public transportation and that’s not even half the distance from Changi to Tuas South. This must be the loudest bullshit the writer has managed so far. Or he could be thinking that every spot in Singapore is within 2 min of walking to the nearest MRT.
But the writer would go even further, by chastising us wretched citizens to stop hectoring the HDB for impossible concessions due to our own obstinance. Of course concessions are impossible, since when has it been possible for the government to give concessions? Bus concession for children and old folks perhaps but little else. Notice that the writer uses the word “hectoring” which means “bullying”? Wow, we wretched citizens of Singapore have started bullying the authorities. Now that is something new, like lambs bullying the big, bad wolf. But lambs will never be smart enough to come together to bully the wolf. Lambs can only scream for help when being pushed into a tight corner.
