 |
Asia USA Realty
(Singapore)
asiahomes.com Pte Ltd
Estate Agents Licence No.
L3007306B
22 Mar 2011
|
Focus:
We
get for you affordable Singapore homes
Rent or Investment |
|
1. ASPEN HEIGHTS
Downtown Singapore
|
| |
606 units. 261/
263 River Valley Road. Completed: 1998. Tenure: 999 years.
2-bedroom: 82 - 105 sq. m.
3-bedroom: 122 - 142 sq. m.
4-bedroom: 146 - 149 sq. m.
Penthouse: 250 - 292 sq. m. One level and 2-level maisonettes.
A balcony off the living and master bedroom.
 |
 |
|
Aspen
Heights is located near Mohamed Sultan pubs, supermarkets,
Robertson and Clarke Quays food and beverage joints |
Ground
floor units with patios are in great demand for rent by young
Caucasian families. |
| |
 |
|
|
Interiors: The living/dining has light
cream coloured marble tiles. The bedrooms have teak strips.
The built-in wardrobe has good looking "wooden" doors. The kitchen
has Bosch German appliances including oven, microwave.
The maid's room has only sufficient room for a bed.
Facilities:
Swimming and bubble pool, big gym, saunas,
putting green, fitness centre and jogging track, tennis and squash
courts, BBQ pit, clubhouse and a
children's playground. A mini-mart, hair dresser and laundromat.
The Aspen Heights' swimming pools are interconnected and fanciful,
with statutes and water spouting fountains and the children's pool
has some frogs spouting water.
The large central pool flows into 2 jacuzzi pools and a bubble pool.
The UE Square has a rectangular lap pool, half the Olympic-length
and suits swimmers who want to practise for competition.
Tennis courts (one only in UE Square).
Spacious gym but UE Square has a bigger gym and higher ceiling.
The UE Square has 2 squash courts.
Playground (small one in UE Square), barbecue area (none in UE
Square), jogging track (none in UE Square), 24-hour security system,
covered car park (fees are payable in UE Square) and multi-function
room (huge hall in UE Square), sauna.
Mini-mart, hair dresser, video-rentals are present only in Aspen
Heights.
The well stocked Shop N Save supermarket, Delifrance cafe and
retail shops are at the door step of UE Square but Aspen Heights has
a mini-mart.
A big courtyard in UE Square, referred to as a "garden"
next to the swimming pool is a good serene meeting place for
tenants & visitors.
Advantages:
UE Square is 3-minute walk to a big supermarket but it takes around
8-minute walk for Aspen Heights.
Free shuttle service to City Hall subway outside UE Square
Office/Shopping Complex, just opposite UE Square Condo. No such
service for Aspen Heights residents who can walk to the Somerset
subway in around 15 minutes.
Aspen Heights is newer by around 6 months, being completed in 1998.
Aspen Heights looks residential as it has the tiled sloping roofs.
One main complaint is that UE Square apartments look like offices
while Aspen Heights look like residential homely apartments.
However the location is great and both condos are usually over
90% occupied at any one time in 2001.
Tall windows and small balconies (a table and 2 chairs) with
wrought-iron railings in most units. A very small percentage
of UE Square apartments have balconies.
Windows are
tinted green.
Natural stone is used in the common areas around the lift and pool.
Both condos seem to be breezy but Aspen Height's waterfalls on the
driving uphill to the Eastern Block seems to impress the expatriate.
A large number of children and Caucasian and Japanese families can
be seen at around 4.30 p.m at Aspen Heights.
Update on Aspen Heights & 18 pictures
Photo: Aspen Heights 2 blocks on a hill top (orange-coloured roofs)
Photo: Office-like
UE Square & Aspen Heights building
Aspen Heights - pictures of ground floor units with patios
|
|
2. UE SQUARE
Downtown Singapore
|
|
345 units.
205 & 207 River Valley Road.
Completed: 1997. Tenure: 929 years.
Studio: 47-93
sq. m
2-bedroom: 81-115 sq. m
3-bedroom: 120-166 sq. m
4-bedroom: 139 -205 sq. m
 |
 |
|
Location of UE Square &
Aspen Heights condos |
UE
4-bedroom 205 sq. ft with balcony floor plan. Only 6 units
have balconies |
Maisonette:
184 -199 sq. m.
Penthouse:
223, 287 sq. m. 2-level maisonettes with no balcony but huge family
area upstairs. Rents from $9,000 - $11,000..
Other features:
UE Square is within a 15-minute walk by the Singapore River to the
financial district (Raffles Place) and 5-minute walk to Clarke Quay
where all Caucasians will meet at least one for entertainment and
food.
5-minute taxi to Raffles Place. Add 8-15 minutes walk for Aspen
Heights to Raffles Place but young people should have no problem.
Around 8-10
minutes to walk to the Dhoby Ghaut Subway for UE Square and slightly
longer for Aspen Heights. Both are not really within walking
distance (5-minute walk) to the subway.
For Aspen
Heights, visitors get impressed by the grand entrance which has 2
waterfalls cascading down the fake rock walls. The uphill
winding entry road up the East Block will not fail to give a good
impression to visitors. The West Block has a shorter
winding road but no waterfalls.
Disadvantages:
Need to pay around S$110 parking fees by Tenant or Landlord for a UE
Square car parking. Free car parking lot in Aspen Heights.
Both Aspen Heights and UE Square have cable connections. UE Square
has it only after July 2000 as the developer did not provide for it.
You will have to confirm with the Landlord as regards cabling
connections to the various rooms as not all Landlords will cable
every room. In Aspen Heights, all rooms are cabled..
In 2002, the
rents for a 4-bedroom 1600 sq. ft Aspen Heights unit is around
$6,000. 3-bedroom rents around $4,500. Those ground floor
units with patio rent around $5,000. Much depends on views and
negotiations.
Characteristics:
 UE
Square is considered an office-like structure with flat roofs and no
balconies of majority of units (left of image).
Aspen Heights (right with reddish roof tiles) have been built on a
hill with apartments on a hill terrace.
2 blocks, each with 8 small point blocks from 5 to 17 stories high
rising up the slope of the hill and giving the impression that Aspen
Heights predominates other developments. The point blocks form
3 prongs, emanating from a central core of each of the 2 blocks.
Each point block has its own lift and they are linked by covered
walkways. Entrances to the apartments have a circular corridor
so that the atrium in the centre brings up the breezes and natural
ventilation.
2/3 of the units enjoy views of the city while the rest has pool
views. 20 designs from 915 to 3,230 sq. ft.
It has also been considered a hotel and a massive "city within a
city" by European expats who don't like high density living.
Beautiful UE
Square pictures |
|
FOR RENT |
 March
22, 2011
For Rent
Almost full
occupancy for both condos since completion. Email
judy@asiahomes.com or
tel: +65 9668 6468 for appointments to view. |
|
TIPS FOR
REALTORS |
|
Case Written:
July 14, 1998.
Case study: "Subject to Contract": Closing on the
Canadian Giant. This case study is meant to teach new associates
of Asia USA Realty.
"I have my professional
reputation to take care of, just like you" said co-broking agent
Ms P. She had shown the Asia USA client Mr S a high floor
3-bedroom 1,300 sq. ft with balcony and green tree/canal views
in the Tanglin Regency Condo, knowing that his budget was
$3,500.
Our associate knew the Landlord would not lease it at $3,500
fully furnished and in any event, he had an "offer" of $3,600.
After rejection, she wanted to show another similar one.
By not qualifying the
Landlord of the first unit, the co-broker and our associate
would be wasting the time of both prospective Tenant and
Realtors.
Mr S had little time off to house hunt and definitely would not
pay more than $3,500 (company contracted rental). He would lose
confidence in Asia USA if our associate showed units he could
not afford.
Mr S, being a 6.5-foot tall Canadian had a special requirement:
the shower bar in which the shower head can slide up and down
was positioned below his head in almost all units except the
bigger 3-bedroom and no Owner would risk damaging the marble
wall of the bathroom to relocate the shower bar.
Co-broking agents with
Owner base need to close quickly as the many Owners lose
confidence with time.
However, they need to qualify the Owner as regards the lowest
rental acceptable and how much the Landlord wants when renting
fully furnished. Ms P was told that the budget was $3,500 and no
more; therefore this would rule out Owners who wanted more.
3-bedroom in Tanglin Regency rents from $3,500 to $5,000 (in
July 1998).
"You can use the original
Letter of Intent to open the utilities account" hurried Ms P
when another unit was confirmed for Mr P.
The "Owner" had accepted the good faith deposit on a Letter of
Intent "Subject to Contract" but had not signed the Lease
Contract.
The starting date would be
in 7 days and yet proof of ownership had not been produced by
the co-broking agent who forgot about this aspect. The
"Owner" was a foreigner and proof of ownership is even more
important as the good faith deposit had been handed to him by Ms
P who gave to him.
If he was not bona fide, the $3,500 would be gone and it would
be costly to sue for recovery of the deposit as the "Owner" was
overseas and had to be served the Summons.
- Legal meaning
of "Subject to Contract". According
to the "Law of Contract" by Cheshire Fifoot & Furmston, 11th
Edition, pg. 38, the use of the formula "subject to contract"
creates a strong presumption that the Landlord and Tenant do
not intend an immediately binding contract. This
allows the Tenant time to investigate the title and survey the
condo.
In the present period of
decreasing house rentals, this formula appears unfavourable to
the Landlords as the Tenant could refuse to sign the formal
contract unless the Landlord would agree to a lower rental.
Recommendations:
In this case, it has been extremely difficult to find a unit for
Mr S, due to his shower height requirement and his wish to live
only in Tanglin Regency. A 1300- sq. ft unit usually rents more
than $4,000 fully furnished and this was the only one available.
The good faith deposit was
given to the co-broking agent and she was reminded she would be
responsible if it was a scam as she could not produce the proof
of ownership in time.
First-time Realtors have
to use their own judgment. If you follow the SOP (standard
operating procedure), you should verify proof of ownership, then
release the good faith deposit with the Letter of Intent.
However, the delay may result in you getting no unit for your
client as this unit is a bargain and it is one of the few 3
bedrooms with the shower head position slightly above his head.
A Letter of Intent with "subject to contract" is not a final
contract at all. The prospective Tenant could recover his good
faith deposit while the Landlord could rent his place to anybody
who forwarded a formal tenancy agreement. It is best to
get the tenancy agreement signed by both parties before
proceeding to open the utilities account.
Reference:
Tips For Realtors.
If you have any queries, email
judy@asiahomes.com, tel:
+65 9668 6468, 254 3326. |
|
|
|
|
Subdivisions
(condo & house details) has some of the details of the
advertised condos. |
|
|
Tel: +65 9668-6468,
e-mail
judy@asiahomes.com for viewings |
|
ŠAsia USA Realty (Singapore) asiahomes.com
Pte Ltd. Website:
asiahomes.com.
Blk 1002, Toa Payoh Lor 8,
#01-1477,
Singapore 319074, Republic of Singapore
Estate Agents Licence No. L3007306B
Salesperson Name/Registration No. Sing Kong Yuen/R030822Z
Asia USA Realty (Singapore) asiahomes.com Pte
Ltd
Finding Affordable Homes For Expatriates |
|
