Low floor living area

Kitchen

Roof top pool

Living cum dining area

Master bedroom

Balcony

Riverside View Serviced Apartment: The living area with balcony facing Singapore River. Privacy and extremely competitive rental pricing strategy.

Such serviced apartments have attracted many single Caucasians as they provide maid's services and complimentary breakfast. The Clarke Quay is a 5-minute walk away. Full of pubs and cafes in this Robertson Quay & Mohammed Sultan Road neighbourhood. Shuttle bus to the subway.

Living area

Case study. Tips for first time asiahomes realtors.
THE MOBILE PHONE EARLY BIRD CATCHES THE WORM

I remember September 11, 2002 as the anniversary of a momentous event in which over 3000 people died last year but also for this interesting case.

At 10 am, I received a phone call from a tall Caucasian expatriate from an American multinational bank, Mr Formicelli, asking me whether I had any Scotts 28 3-bedroom, low floor for rent at $6,000. He had to decide on a Balmoral Residence 3-bedroom 1750 sq. ft at $5,500 soon and he had lost out a Scotts 28 low floor unit just 2 days ago.  

3 realtors advertising Scotts 28 were contacted urgently. The asking rentals were $6,500, $7,000 and $8,000.
Only one responded as she had a mobile phone. Why bother to advertise when you don't respond, I can't understand many of the Singapore agents. Some still use pagers and voice mail which they never answered.

Mr Formicelli wanted to view at noon on the same day. The co-broking agent Rose said she would be there.

Mr Formicelli had seen 48 apartments and condos! I was not surprised as many expatriates did not know what they wanted. But today was decision time and this was good for any realtor. Could I close this case with only one Scotts 28, low floor offered? At least I had what he wanted.

He told me that his wife who had not arrived in Singapore or seen Scotts 28, preferred Scotts 28 to Balmoral Residences but the latter has a nicer kitchen and was bigger. His wife wanted a low floor as they had a 4-year-old and it would be safer living on low floors. Many Caucasian husbands usually defer to their wives and this case had one great advantage for Scotts 28 in this sense. 

Agent Rose was late for 30 minutes. I had to ensure that the prospective tenant did not run away, but there was so much conversation I could make with the banker as we were strangers. We could not see the facilities since Scotts 28 had another security access to the pool and I did not want to miss Agent Rose when she arrived at the lobby.

The Scotts 28 unit was below the 5th floor. The living area faced green trees and Scotts Road. Surprisingly, there was no traffic noise.  The upscale condo had good sound proofing. Actually, the lower the condo, the less the traffic noise as noise travels upwards.  

Mr Formicelli offered a rent of $5,500. Agent Rose had a word with the Landlord and rejected him.  So he walked off as there was no other units to see. Besides, one of the rooms in this apartment was facing a vacant piece of land and there could be a condo construction. Agent Rose said that the land was vacant for some years and Singapore was in the deepest of recessions and the developer would be suicidal to commence construction this year.  No need to tell that to the banker.

"Wait, Mr Formicelli," I stopped him. "Give a counter offer!" I had been answering my mobile phone when Agent Rose rejected him and now he was going to Balmoral Residences. That's the trouble with not paying attention at this crucial time.

Mr Formicelli offered $5,600 with the tenancy starting on October 1, 2002. Agent Rose had a few minutes of talk to the Landlord but this offer was rejected. He said he would think about the offer of $6,000 wanted by the Landlord. 

Once the expatriate left Scotts 28, it would be the end of the case. Here was a sole unit and the only obstacle was the rental amount.

"Let's see the swimming pool and the big gym," I delayed Mr Formicelli from leaving Scotts 28.  The indoor tennis court impressed Mr Formicelli. He was telling me how much he liked Scotts 28 and Agent Rose was selling the condo on great location and facilities. It would be futile if we could not close the gap of $5,600 and $6,000. I guessed the Landlord could get $6,000 if he or she played hard to get since Mr Formicelli had a budget of $6,000.

"Why not offer $5,900?" I asked Mr Formicelli in a last desperate attempt. I had run out of ideas to close this case. This case was so close to closing.

"I offer $5,800," Mr Formicelli said to Agent Rose. Agent Rose had an idea and said, "Can you start the tenancy one or two weeks earlier, so that the Landlord can earn income earlier?" That was clever of her and maybe that was why she was so successful if you judge her by her BMW Roadster. 

Well, Mr Formicelli could start the tenancy one week earlier. The Landlord agreed to the $5,800. The Letter of Intent was signed first by the Landlord and all Mr Formicelli had to do was to sign and give me a cheque for the good faith deposit. I asked Agent Rose to fax to him the tenancy agreement immediately. 

This was a most unusual case for me. It shows that the mobile phone helps you get business if you make sure it is switched on the whole day. Of course, if you have a website like www.asiahomes.com, you might be able to get prospective expatriate tenants to contact you to enquire about housing. That will be another story. 

For first-time realtors, just by being available on the mobile phone anytime, most of the time, you can be successful in real estate rentals if you have the Landlord's listings. Well, if you have both, the opportunities to grow your business will be tremendous!   

The Paterson Edge is the first choice but the Riverside View Serviced Apartment had so many paid for maid's services like house-keeping, phone and utility bills.  The small balcony fronted the green Singapore River and was unique in urban living. However, the serviced apartment operator was not agreeable to providing furniture of tenant's choice.

Grange 80 and JC Draycott were also short listed.

A single expatriate usually likes to be as close to the subway as possible. The Paterson Edge condo was well sited being 3-minute walk to the Orchard subway/Road.

Being an Information Technology expert, he was impressed with Paterson Edge's high technology gadgets starting from the entry security system and the stainless steel kitchen appliances.
The Riverside View apartment with water frontage was  2nd choice. It was on the door-step of cafes and pubs and it had so many goodies that saved a lot of pocket expenses for any expatriate.

Grange 80 was considered good too except that it was not that close to Orchard Road (but an 8-minute walk) and it had the wrong numerology.

Based on numerology, Grange 80's ground floor had a unit number of #01-01.  Adding up the digits, the sum was 2 (01+01) which was no good.

Unit's number totaling 3, 5 and 7 are the best for the career of this believer of numerology.

JC Draycott's #11-03 was all right.  So was The Riverside View condo. 

The problem was that Paterson Edge's landlords usually did not want a one-year lease as they know their apartments were extremely lettable.

This case was going to be a headache for the Asia USA Realtor, trying to find a one-year lease from an apartment with the right numbers.  The apartment must be new, in Orchard Road and the Landlord must provide furniture of Tenant's choice, maid's services to clean and iron, all for $6,000. 

Would a rental realtor who practise numerology ever succeed in life since he would be restricted in recommending only good numbers to clients for rent and that would cut off more than 50% of the condos available in Singapore?

The expat had good reason to believe in house numerology because his predecessor rented a house with the wrong numbers and was "returned to the USA" before the completion of his term of contract in Singapore, due to poor performance. 

There was a Singaporean dog owner who consulted a veterinary surgeon because the practice's number 01-1477 was considered excellent in numerology. What do you think. readers?

Ardmore Park for rent.
4+1 2885 sq. ft $12,000 - $15,000.  Pictures of upscale condos below.


Raffles Girls' Secondary School (extreme right, bottom) to the right of Anderson Green building (pink) as at December 1, 2001.

Avalon condos are to the right of Anderson Green.  The balcony is the 22nd floor of Ardmore Park  - 9 Ardmore Park  22-02 which has a beautiful hill and city view.

Sound-proof windows work very well on high floors although we could hear traffic
rumbling noise on floor #02-02. Has electronic security devices. Has 3-bedroom apartments renting from $6,500.

A premier condo. Characterized by stainless steel sinks, oven and microwave and a perception of an exceptionally high quality finishes in the apartment and outside.

6. Grange 70  upscale
3+1 1,356sq. ft  $7,000. Ground floor.
#01-01 Brand new. Low density of 10 units.  4+1 renting from $10,000.

Small pool and gym. Steam and sauna. Basement car park and security.  Tennis court and other facilities of Orchard Parksuites Serviced apartment available for tenant. Air conditioned kitchen, ice-making fridge, American-sized washer and dryer.

Audio visual intercom near master bedroom as well. Card system to lift and 24-hour security.  The other 9 units are 4 bedroom apartments renting from $10,000. 8-minute walk to Orchard subway and Orchard Road.

A premier condo.  Characterized by stainless steel sinks, oven and microwave and a perception of an exceptionally high quality finishes in the apartment and outside.

7. Riverside Serviced Apartments

2 bedroom 1010sq. ft  $6700
4th floor but need to walk up several steps.
3 years old (August 1999). 72 units.

No lift in this block with waterfront. Brown marble flooring in living area. Unobstructed green Singapore river view.

Complimentary breakfast, Rent includes:
Utilities max. of $400/month (average of tenant's bill is $250/month), Singapore Cable Vision 34 channels,
Fort Canning, The Legend (golf) and Raffles Country Club membership at around $120/month,

House-keeping 3x/week($100 deduction if once/week),
Phone bills except for international calls.
Shuttle services 

Light bulb maintenance
Gym, swimming pool, 100 car park lots.5-minute walk to Clarke Quay.

Near UE Square. Free shuttle to City Hall/Raffles Place subways Mon-Sat 7.30-8.30 am, 6-7.30pm except Sat evening.

Free shuttle to Takashimaya Shopping Center 12.30 and 1 p.m. Mon-Sat.

A 10-minute walk to Dhoby Ghaut subway.
Extremely attractive incentives to rent.

8. JC Draycott 3+1 1033sq. ft  $4000 partially furnished. #11-03.  35 units.

Cable vision points all rooms. No shower cubicle in master bedroom's bathroom but the master bedroom is sufficiently big for king-sized bed and side tables.

The living room is spacious but the view is that of The Claymore condo.  Low density. No pool but a Jacuzzi.

No tennis court or gym. Card for door access
but not lift. 24-hour security. Bend going down basement 2 car park is rather narrow for a big car.  Has 2-bedroom apartments.
10-minute walk to Orchard Rd, 2-minute walk to the American Club. 

9. Scotts 28
upscale. 136 units. 2 years old.

Full condo and cable vision facilities 2-bedroom apartment renting from $5000.


December 2001. For Rent. The Claymore Blk A is now painted white. Scotts 28 (extreme left) and Falcon Crest (low building on right).

3-bedroom units available for rent from$8000.  Penthouse renting from $18000 - $22000. 

5-min walk to Orchard Rd/subway.

A 3-minute walk to Newton subway and to the American Club. Big pool and gym. Indoor tennis court, tight security, spa pools.

Many ladies love this condo as it is so close to the shopping belt of Orchard Road.

Shop till you drop everyday.
A premier condo.  Characterized by stainless steel sinks, oven and microwave and a perception of an exceptionally high quality finishes in the apartment and outside.

SCOTTS 28

Scotts 28:  The living area has the same floor to ceiling 
windows of Paterson Edge. The kitchen is on the right side. The hob is stainless steel. It has sound-proofed windows. The kitchen of the Penthouse is really luxurious and spacious.

Full condo facilities including a covered tennis court.  The deep blue well designed swimming pool with water features makes you feel like swimming.  In the image below, the road behind Scotts 28 is the Scotts Road, leading to Orchard Road (5-min walk)  on the left and to Newton subway on the right (3-min walk).

SCOTTS 28 is extremely popular with Caucasian expatriates and investors owing to its great location near Orchard Road and its high quality finishes and facilities. It has an indoor tennis court as well as squash court. 

The jacuzzi spas are there to pamper you and Orchard Road shopping malls are within a 5-minute walk.
A 2-bedroom apartment rents from $6,000 upwards. The penthouses have been rented from S$15,000 - $20,000.