From BTO to HDB Resale: A homeowner’s personal house-buying journey
We moved from a BTO to HDB Resale.
By Shannon Osztonits -
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Sometimes, the universe has other plans. That was the exact case for these Singaporean-born-and-bred homeowners.
Six years can seem like forever when you’re looking into buying your first home. But a lengthy waiting period is not uncommon in a country like Singapore.
We sat down with homeowner Chloelle, who experienced her own home-buying journey, which began in 2017 and finally completed its move-in cycle on National Day 2023. Yet it wasn’t the timeline that was interesting about her house-hunting journey, but rather a change of events.
This publishing editor, now enjoying her time with her six-month-old son as a stay-at-home mom (for the time being), and her husband met at polytechnic as students, and started dating in 2012. Spending much of their 20s together, marriage for the soul mates was inevitable, and so even before they got married in 2020, they kicked off their house-hunting process years before.
Both growing up in Tampines, a home in East Singapore was a no-brainer.
“We have this east-siders thing. The air smells freshest in the East. But jokes aside, we like being near the beach, and this area is very near Pasir Ris Beach, Changi Beach and East Coast Park,” says Chloelle.
The original BTO plan
Picturing their first home, this husband and wife were initially set on going the whole BTO route.
“We applied for a BTO Sales Exercise and actually got a ballot number. We even went down, selected the unit, and paid the deposit to secure the number.”
However, the universe had other plans.
Timeline
If you’re considering purchasing a BTO, you’re already prepared to wait 3 to 5 years for your built-to-order unit, and so timelines were never an issue for these homeowners.
Trusting your gut
Generally speaking, this new mom is someone who always trusts her gut. A believer of ‘things happen for a reason,’ Chloelle does regret not sticking to her usual guns after she and her husband settled on their BTO. Listening to outside noise and negative hearsay about the expenses of a BTO, there were a few people in their lives at the time who made them second-guess their choice.
Questions like ‘would we be able to afford this’ and ‘is this too big a burden’ popped up, and ultimately, the couple decided to let their BTO go, albeit it would come with some consequences.
The repercussions of this in Singapore? Penalties are unique to the situation. For this husband and wife, they were banned from applying for purchasing a flat or any other BTO Sale Exercises for a full year.
Their 5-room HDB Resale Dream Home
As time has the ability to do so, the years flew by, the couple got married, the pandemic hit, and when life finally returned to normal for the world, the couple reevaluated their home-buying thoughts.
“After time passed, we decided to go for a resale flat. I told my husband that I didn’t want to wait until I was 40 to get my own house. By then, we could apply for a BTO again, but wait times were quite long. I wanted something that we could put in an offer for and get fast, instead of having to wait the years for it to be built,” she explains.
Up until this point, the couple were staying with Chloelle’s in-laws in Tampines, and weren’t sure if they wanted to have kids.
A DIY kind of woman
“I’m very much a DIY kind of person. I didn’t get a property agent. I am the admin guru in our home,” the homeowner jokes. “I started looking at different flats in the different locations: Pasir Ris, Tampines, Simei, and I think we looked at Bedok as well,” she says. “I was very particular about what I wanted: the look and feel, the location, I wanted my house to feel bright and airy, and I wanted windows that did NOT face walls. I wanted windows so that when I looked up, I could see the sky and the greenery.”
After viewing plenty of homes, there was never quite that feeling of this is the one. Until they stepped inside their now-home. It was instant, and the husband and wife just knew that very day that they had found their dream home.
A smooth sailing buying process
Post viewing the 5-room Resale, the excited butterflies feeling hit, and the husband and wife immediately started chatting about how it felt, and how much they loved it. Her husband had a good feeling about it, as did her in-laws, who joined them for the initial viewing.
Luckily for the couple, the original owner also happened to have his property agent license, meaning he facilitated the sale of his own home. After initial discussions, they finalised and locked in the sale that same day.
The previous owner’s only requirement was that he asked for an extension of three months before Chloelle and her hubby could take over, as his BTO was still in the process of being built. Of course, they agreed, and everything went through without any hiccups. In fact, three months were shortened to two!
“We didn’t have any troubles. We didn’t have to fight with anyone or anything. The owner was going to move to a BTO with his elderly mum. And they required an extension of stay. If we were able to give that to him, he would happily sell the flat to us. He wasn’t looking to earn money from it basically.”
On top of that, the new homeowners didn’t have to pay any cash-over-evaluation either, as the agreed-upon sum and the HDB evaluator’s value were spot on: $600,000. Double bonus!
Next, it was time for the renovations to begin.
Home Reno Process
The homeowners completely gutted the entire flat from its original condition. They decided to hack the walls down between the storeroom and one former bedroom and the old master bedroom, combining these into one massive primary. They also hacked the walls separating the former kitchen and outside area to create a big, open-plan kitchen.
Another special attribute is the couple’s master bedroom’s en suite, inspired by their first trip to Phuket together, and the design of the hotel they were staying at, with the vanity on the outside of the bathroom and a free-standing bathtub.
“The tub is also freestanding, so if we ever want to convert it into a pure standing shower, it’s easy to transfer out,” says Chloelle.
Requirements for their interior designer included an open-plan kitchen with an island, and plenty of curved edges around the home, extending all the way down to the curvature of the tiles.
Any regrets?
Looking back, the homeowner has a few regrets, including opting for polished floor tiles over vinyl flooring (as they are far easier to maintain), not going with a walk-in wardrobe (now dealing with too little space), and the non-bi-fold shutters (now, air creeps in and out of the bathroom).
Lastly, not originally opting for a pet-friendly sofa from the get-go.
“We purchased a sofa with removable washable covers, thinking we were smart. But we ended up replacing it with a proper pet-friendly sofa instead–because ain’t nobody has the time to wash sofa covers diligently.”
The Simei Neighbourhood
As an aficionado of the whimsical, Chloelle loves the meaning behind the word ‘Simei,’ meaning “Four Beauties” in Mandarin.
The homeowners absolutely LOVE their neighbourhood. Their Pomsky, Miya, has lots of friends as the little town is super dog-friendly.
“It feels part of Tampines, but it’s not. It’s a very small town, we can walk around quickly, it’s quieter, there are a lot of green spaces, and it is peaceful. You’ll discover lots of little parks scattered around, and it’s also a very good location if you’re driving–we have a car– as it’s right by the express highway,” the homeowner tells. “It’s connected by the PCN. Before our son was born, we used to cycle to East Coast Park and Gardens by the Bay very easily.”
A National Day Anniversary
It just so happened that the couple moved in three years ago, on National Day 2023, once renovations were officially complete.
“We chose this day because it was a public holiday, so it gave us the day to be at home with our animals, our dog Miya, Nyxie our cat and Nami the rabbit, and make sure they were okay in a new environment and get them settled.”
Everyone’s story is different
For many Singaporeans, their home-buying journey is unique.
Due to the country’s housing landscape, it’s often not as straightforward as it can be in other countries, where you simply need to apply for a mortgage/bond and place an offer on a property, regardless of the type of property that it is. After approval, the house is yours. There are no yearly long waiting lists. Or MOPs.
The majority of homeowners in Singapore experience a different process, whether they are purchasing an HDB, private apartment, condominium or a landed house.
Most often, it’s distinct to individual circumstances, needs and personal preferences, just like Chloelle and her husband.