Living in JB

[wuqi256]

The electricity bills seem low for a house. We are contemplating whether to install ceiling fans or just use air cons. Has anyone ponder over this and arrive at one decision or the other?

Wow, my electrical bills are like 200 plus to 300 RM only monthly, this is for a semi-d. Ceiling fans are actually good mostly, use the 3 bladed ones though as though they are slightly noiser, they actually give quite good ventilation. Aircon wise, you can get the cheaper brands like Haier or Midea that has 2 years support and pretty cheap. Yes i pondered and in the end got both. Aircon for when its really unbearable and fans for general ventilation.

[wuqi256]

Hey gin, thanks for the warm welcome , yeah i find the Duta estate to be very nice, clean n to a certain extent chic, i feel that its good as it will pave the way for other future new developments to follow the trend and set new benchmark, slowly but surely changing the johor property landscape.

Just curious which house model did u buy? and at what price if i may ask (can pm me if u feel more comfortable doing so) cos i do find the new cluster for sale there to be rather pricey, all conveniently priced slightly above the 500k mark...obviously targeting sporean buyers

Hi GP, welcome! :)
It is pretty nice, cheapest one is 519,800k if i remember correctly. (remember, if nothing else, the 800 at the back can often be bargained down ;) )

The new clusters are pricier than the earlier batches BUT you can still ask around in case they have owners who gave up because of upgrading, etc and get a good deal. Thats what i learnt when i went with my relatives for house hunting recently.

The prata at the prata shop just outside (Habib) is nice but the Nasi Brani is.......slurps

[2bFree]

Hi euphony and wuqi256,

Thanks for the welcome!

Will check out Streamyx. Like bro euphony, can't live without a good internet connection! :P

Realize there are couple of things I need to sort out:
1. Water filter
2. Refrigerator (Looking at Panasonic)
3. MY credit card (probably MayBank)
4. Hydraulic car jack (DIY car maintenance :))
etc.



Congrats 2bfree, its good to hear you are joining us. No unifi at HH yet but you can use Celcom (quite ok) and Streamyx as well. Don't use Maxxis if you can as they will charge you if you use too much data. Celcom will just throttle your bandwidth but at least they don't overcharge.

[euphony]

The hsbb (unifi) is really reliable at LF, I am using the 5mbps plan which is good enough for me. The wifi router that comes with it may not be as reliable but u can just add another wifi router to one of it's port to make it work, perfectly.

No u can't receive any SG telco services at LF.

Welcome to LF.

Cheers

thanks for the info 29ers. This is actually what I am doing on P1 as well coincidentally 'cept there's no coverage there for now. thanks for the welcome =) whereabouts are you in LF? Will be in bwv for me.

[euphony]

Guys, i can actually use M1 quite reliably here but i shall not post often about M1 as i noticed that the last time i shared here, it went off for a week. Luckily i was able to use one of my other place (also in HH) where reception was still ok. I use my data plan here as well. :)

take care of yourself! to employers we're all dispensable but not to ourselves. Perhaps you're in the hills higher grounds can tap into the network. I won't have that luck i guess. =(

[Grago]

Maintenance fees for Semi-D's is Rm150 and Bungalows is Rm300. Not sure about terrace and links. Maybe one of the fellow forummers can help on this.


Just for reference, our maintenance fees here cost like 100 plus at HH.

The Samsung digital shop is located at:
Jalan Mutiara Emas, Mount Austin
Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia

Not affliated with them but pretty impressed, they have many branches
but i like this boss at this place. He will straightaway give you a discount
without you asking but he dislikes haggling so i try not to haggle when
i talk to him.

[29ers]

thanks for the info 29ers. This is actually what I am doing on P1 as well coincidentally 'cept there's no coverage there for now. thanks for the welcome =) whereabouts are you in LF? Will be in bwv for me.

I am at BWV too. Pm me if u need more info, will be more then happy to answer ur ?s.

Cheers

[mallow]

[QUOTE=echanbonfire01;698374]Iskandar Malaysia To Get RM1.23 Billion Inter-City Commuter Train

Grateful for the info, and will post on my own weblog - hope that is ok with you, as the info is for mainly Singaporeans who need info about moving to and living in Johor.

[contra]

Hi friends,

In order to live in JB, it is also important to understand the Malay culture. In Malaysia, a Malay must be Muslim. And this is where the sensitivities arise and we need to know in order to avoid hurting feelings unknowingly. Pigs and dogs are considered unclean animals. Former cannot be eaten while the latter cannot be touched when wet. So say if a dog licks a Muslim, he/she has to perform some ceremony to cleanse. Thus you can understand that walking dogs in public is not common in public spaces. Exceptions are police sniffing dogs that are doing a 'greater good'.

As for tudungs, it is recommended by the culture to avoid arousing unwanted attention from hair attraction. There is a safety element in it for the ladies. In many part of the Middle East (not all, eg. Dubai), it is even more extreme. At least in Malaysia, colours are prevalent and Muslim ladies can also opt to not wear tudung and will not be breaking any law.

Bikini is for sure not in the Muslim culture. But I do agree that this is where the Iskandar authorities themselves struggle in their vision in wanting to be more westernised. I am sure many of them are themselves western-educated esp in UK (the traditional destination for higher education in the land of the former colonial masters).

All said, we need to appreciate the Malays in particular and Malaysians in general as they are very tolerant, gracious and hospitable people. You can see that yourself from the fact that bah kut teh shops exists.

(As for drinking water, the typical Malaysian home boil their water with the large kettles. Water Filter is mostly to filter larger impurities from aged pipes underground (being green sites, Nusajaya may not have this issue). Then boiling the filtered water kills the unseen germs that may not have been killed off by the chlorine. Definitely tap water quality far from Singapore's. I share this only for us to understand personal options).

I am not a Muslim so if I am not accurate in my understanding, do tell me. Point is lets understand each other to avoid stress in this forum and more importantly avoid unnecessary offensiveness in real life in JB.

Happy weekend! :) I am dreaming of those Ramly burgers, yummy...

[contra]

Last weekend, the Berita Minggu of SPH had its own feature of living in JB and they interviewed 4 Malay families.

http://cyberita.asia1.com.sg/mistimewa/story/0,6879,185843,00.html?
(Do by Google Chrome and then hit the "Translate to English" keys).

Summary is people did it for economic reasons with pro > con (daily commuting) and was a positive article with no crime. One of the ladies is a former primary school teacher who tutors her own kids after-school (who go to RGS ).

[avalon74]

Hi All,
Been following the thread since the early days in 2009 & in fact had purchased a terrace in Setia Eco garden & collected the keys early this year.
For me, intend to have the place done up as a weekend home instead of staying in it as I have a boy in preschool.

One of the main reasons I took the plunge to buy the property was to leave some memories for my boy when he grows up..
In sinkieland, there is always constant renewal and the landscape where we used to live are replaced with new buildings/infrastructure..

With this property I hope to provide some childhood memories for my boy in time to come..
At least it also provides something I can leave for future generations as everything in Sinkie is on lease.. (HDB, cars etc)

Yup, Cathy is right in the sense that my initial visit to JB property was with the setia office in habourfront, we were suppose to visit setia tropica but somehow there was some mixed up & was brought to eco gardens instead.. the rest is history after i convinced wifey...

So now is the renovation phase & hope it can be done up prior Q3..

Cheers

[euphony]

I am at BWV too. Pm me if u need more info, will be more then happy to answer ur ?s.

Cheers

=) elated to have chanced upon a neighbor here!

[horizonhills]

2.43? wow, what time was that? I called up Money matter today (15/4, 11.30am) and they quoted me 2.407 only. Another money changer at The Arcade said they have no more stock and one more quoted me 2.406 for cash, 2.415 for remittance.

It was after 5pm on Friday afternoon but I wasnt sure of it as my friend walked past and I asked him to compare for me. Well it does looks like Money Matters get best rate so far as their RM 240.7 is better than the RM 240.5 that I get in Bukit Indah on Friday.

[Investor]

But there was a bro who mentioned that someone living in Sentosa Cove would take a yatch to Puteri Harbour.

I just could not stop LMAO off..

6th of May, Wednesday, 10am saw a group of us from SSA(SuperYacth Singapore) departing from OneDegree15 Marina(Sentosa Cove) to Puteri Harbour at Nusajaya.
http://www.superyacht.sg/galleries/121-ssa-cariad-puteri-harbour

Photos of SuperYacths in Sentosa Cove:
http://www.superyacht.sg/galleries/154-2009-12-superyacht-month

Founding members of SuperYacth Singapore:
http://www.superyacht.sg/members/founding-members

[Investor]

Please feel free to share your views.

Everyone is entitled to their views and opinions.

Lets have a healthy discussion.

Knowledge to all and offence to none:):)


But there was a bro who mentioned that someone living in Sentosa Cove would take a yatch to Puteri Harbour.

I just could not stop LMAO off..

I hope you practice what you preach and let others share their views instead of "Laughing Your Ass Off" somebody's harmless opinion. That was pure rudeness! Where's your manners?

[Batok Seri]

Last weekend, the Berita Minggu of SPH had its own feature of living in JB and they interviewed 4 Malay families.

http://cyberita.asia1.com.sg/mistimewa/story/0,6879,185843,00.html?
(Do by Google Chrome and then hit the "Translate to English" keys).

Summary is people did it for economic reasons with pro > con (daily commuting) and was a positive article with no crime. One of the ladies is a former primary school teacher who tutors her own kids after-school (who go to RGS ).

No mention of crime but slant of article was the long school commute will take its toll on children.

It was mentioned that the family leaves Majidee home by 5.15am to send their girl to RGPS first.

Many parents are willing to put up with long travel time to send kids to good school in Singapore.

For instance, RGPS girls who take school bus to get to school from Pasir Ris have to be ready for pickup as early as 5.20 am.

So this is not a problem unique to those who choose to live in JB.

[Analytical Professor]

My apologies Investor.

I know you are:mad::mad::mad:

Hope the apology makes you :):):)

In fact i did not even mention it was you. So you should have not taken offence. But since you did i still apologize for having been insensitive to your 'harmless remarks'.

Moving on i am gonna ruffle some feathers now:

1) What you showed me at Puteri HArbour was a one-off. Does not happen everyday. If it did it would be consistently upgraded like Spores ferry terminals. Anyway the objective of the SSA is to promote Singapore as an attractive destination for the rich and famous as they wanna get a slice of the pie of the superyatch industry. (Which is expected to grow at 8 to 10% annually. the current value of all superyatchs in the world are estimated at $105 billion). So its objective is to make Spore attractive not bring them to Puteri Harbour.

2) Sentosa Cove residents being super rich would possibly like to explore other Harbours as well. Not just Puteri. So this wont happen in the long term. they would also wanna visit harbours/ferry terminals in and around indonesia apart from advancing into the waters further just for the fun of driving off to places further up and afar.

3) Since you got me to apologise i would also like to add that there was another remark on lambo, ferrari etc Let me tell you i traversed in and out of Malaysia several times this week but hardly gotta see any lambos/ferraris (even when i took Linkdua) today. Even when i used to regularly take Link dua earlier i could never see any of these nice cars. Ofcourse i see the occassional audi/spruced up Mercs and BMWs. But thats where it stops. I also traverse the N-S Hway regularly but hardly see these cars.

4) What i was trying to drive at was that for Iskandar to turn around based on a few lambo here and a few ferraris there... it will never happen. This is my opinion

5) What Iskandar needs is what Spore is doing now.... A critical mass of talent pool and a critical mass of population. Now obviously a critical mass of talent pool will never be reached unless salaries match Spore standards or atleast thereabouts. A critical mass of population (average joes like most Singaporeans like me are required to reside there and purchase their goods and services)

6) That is when the economy will boom, wages will rise, there will be a dearth of talent and thus an all round increase in the strength of the economy and its fundamentals.

7) For now you can point me to wikipedia/IM website and several others. But they are all talking about the same projects over and over again. The same words tipping points are being used all the time.

8) Now if the average joe gets a pay of Rm 1000 including commission you tell me how the economy will improve? Do you even think it will? How many high paying jobs abound? How many? I know I was pointed to a website but i could not find jobs with the kind of pay that will make businesses feel confident about the economic climate and sink their teeth into IM

9) Visit any mall in Spore. See how crowded it is. This is critical mass. Visit any store in IM. Chances are that most of the time the stores are with very few or no people inside unless they are low end stores.

This should give us a pretty decent idea (especially 9) that IMs economy is not on the upswing now. For an economy to upswing it takes a couple of years of govt intervention. In Spore post SARS crisis the govt took several measures which no doubt increased cost of living but also resulted in an all round robust growth of the economy for a country with hardly any resources.

This was the original discussion when you pointed about Puteri HArbour. Whether you were being harmless in your opinion or you were forcefully making your idea is for all to see.

But still i bow down to your harmless remarks since you consider them rude and therefore i ought to apologise.












I hope you practice what you preach and let others share their views instead of "Laughing Your Ass Off" somebody's harmless opinion. That was pure rudeness! Where's your manners?

[Analytical Professor]

Very difficult sia.

If i choose to move to JB i will possibly buy a unit (G&G) from a decent developer pretty close to Causeway and find a good chinese school in Spore not too far from the Causeway.

I really cant do the to and fro if the school is far everyday.
I salute those parents who do.



Many parents are willing to put up with long travel time to send kids to good school in Singapore.


So this is not a problem unique to those who choose to live in JB.

[Avonup]

Hi,
I've have been reading this blog and find it to be very interesting and informative. Many here are really very helpful, willing to share and it a meaning community.

I wonder if anyone could help to provide information on MM2H. I am aware of the pre-requisites. Somehow I am not too sure on how go about applying. Is there any reliable agent and what is the fee? Appreciate, if someone with experience could help. Thank you.

[Avonup]

Hi Wuqi,

I would like to know more about MM2H. I am aware of the pre-requisites but not very sure on how to go about applying. Is it easy to apply on your own or is there any reliable agent and what are the charges. Thanks you.

[Analytical Professor]

Hi Wuqi really nice to hear from you again. :):):):)
Welcome back.

You would have known by now that you have helped me a fair bit in getting accustomed to JB and helping me source for things as well.

So obviously i would not wanna hurt you.

Sometimes in the midst of a thick debate comments flow thick and fast causing heartburn amonst forummers. We mean no malice to anyone. Recently i ended up annoying Investor. Bro Investor my apologies to you. I should not have been rude. Yes it was rude.

And you Wuqi you have given me so much info, why would i wanna piss you off ?

But like i said when we are debating we may sound getting at each others nerves but i am sure most of us here are not like that.

And that is why you hardly see any flaming.

Very nice thread lots of information.

Occassionally we may cross the OB marker (like i did with investor) and its then for the affected forummer to decide to forgive/otherwise.

Wuqi i look forward to more help from you.







Hi Prof, thanks for sharing about the Thistle hotel. I have never
stayed there but it sounds like a good place though.

I finally had some time for myself this week, i checked through the crime thing
and i definitely owe you an apology, i got mixed up with another forummer comments.
Again my apologies.

[Investor]

Hi Professor,
I have no further argument on your views. It is stated in your profile that your interest is to "Raise, analyse and debate issues". Unlike you, I'm just here to share my views and to learn from others. Thanks for making me :):):) I appreciate that. Have a great Sunday.

[Analytical Professor]

At the moment i think Celcom and Maxis provide the most stable and reliable service in IM.

Digi signals are not available at all locations. Today i was at Eminent Massage in the toilet and realise there was no Digi signal.

Also noticed certain parts of N-S hiway no digi signal.

For prepaid internet i suggest Hotlink. Expensive but very fast. My wife loves it.

For prepaid mobile services i use Digi for the moment (previously i was on Maxis).
I changed to Digi cause its real cheap.
Once you spend Rm 1 per day either for text/call/international call your charges drop:
12sen to any network voice/video call per min
1sen per text to any network

Cant get cheaper than that at the moment i guess.

And i activated superlong life by paying Rm 30 per sim. So now the money topped up does not expire in 30 days etc.

All top ups stored for the validitly period of the sim after super long life activation.

[LeMans2011]

the website not updated.
tomorrow i go and ask the developer about that before i proceed.
u seems don't like NI a lot...:)

House,

I did a little eye-ball check on Nusa Idaman Phase 5 to Phase 6B and this is what i found. The present state is:
- Phase 5 - not fenced up
- Phase 6A - fenced up
- Phase 6B - not fenced up

According to my wife, the reason they did not fence up was for easy access to construction work. It seems the cement pavement surrounding the perimeter of Phase 5 was completed only recently. They have also just installed some stone dustbins, seats, etc. It looks like they will be fencing up the place real soon since the perimeter pavement is now done. My suspicion is also, Phase 6A could have been sold out earlier than Phase 5, hence the readiness of Phase 6A compared to Phase 5.

Phase 6B looks even less ready. But all 3 precint have their guard post. I tried to sneak into Phase 6B as i walked my dog, but the guards were quick to appear.

On the whole i think UEM might have taken things a little bit easy as they probably never thought it could be a problem to do the perimeter fencing that late. Otherwise the whole place looks ok to me. I guess they need a bit of push.

Do share what you found out from the developer over the weekend.

[LeMans2011]

Hi Professor,
I have no further argument on your views. It is stated in your profile that your interest is to "Raise, analyse and debate issues". Unlike you, I'm just here to share my views and to learn from others. Thanks for making me :):):) I appreciate that. Have a great Sunday.

Investor bro
I've seen the plump guy in the first pic at Puteri Harbour before, he seems to be a regular there. What do you think of the condo "Imperia" at the harbour?
I found out over the weekend the launch has been delayed to August. They took whole lot of registration last year "pre launch", but this year they totally changed
the plan. The 3 BR used to be 1690 sft, but it is now 1997 sft minimum, and the larger 3 BR is about 2400 sft. The psf price seems to have been dropped to about 500 psf.
In other words, although it was almost fully booked last year, the bookings now have little relevance since sizes have changed. You can re-register to be in the loop.

[Grago]

Hi AP,

Could you kindly expand on what 'G&G' and 'IM' :confused: Would appreciate it. Thanks.


Very difficult sia.

If i choose to move to JB i will possibly buy a unit (G&G) from a decent developer pretty close to Causeway and find a good chinese school in Spore not too far from the Causeway.

I really cant do the to and fro if the school is far everyday.
I salute those parents who do.


At the moment i think Celcom and Maxis provide the most stable and reliable service in IM.

Digi signals are not available at all locations. Today i was at Eminent Massage in the toilet and realise there was no Digi signal.

Also noticed certain parts of N-S hiway no digi signal.

For prepaid internet i suggest Hotlink. Expensive but very fast. My wife loves it.

For prepaid mobile services i use Digi for the moment (previously i was on Maxis).
I changed to Digi cause its real cheap.
Once you spend Rm 1 per day either for text/call/international call your charges drop:
12sen to any network voice/video call per min
1sen per text to any network

Cant get cheaper than that at the moment i guess.

And i activated superlong life by paying Rm 30 per sim. So now the money topped up does not expire in 30 days etc.

All top ups stored for the validitly period of the sim after super long life activation.

[wuqi256]

Cheers Prof.

Went to Nusa Duta with a friend of mine today, he is putting down for a home here. I am glad for him as his family deserves the happiness he is giving to them.

Went to Scienxxx place today(near Nusa Bestari), its kind of in the middle of nowhere and the design is quite bad although 2 pluses it has, one is it has 3 storeys, 2 is that the second and third floor all have balconys. To be fair, its the design of the showflat that was bad. One particular bad part was that one of the shower area had no raise floor or no sunk in areas.

We also went again to the D'Grande place and had a look at the Link Bungalows (880k) and Orion Bungalow (over 1m) Design for both is not so good but at least the Orion one made more sense. The Link Bungalow although sounds big but internally is really small, it has such a wide staircase and a very low (headroom) store.

There isn't even a family area on the 2nd floor but i guess its because the concept is different. Setia showroom was pretty packed with some cars abound. Their clusters, to be launched soon is about 800k though so its pretty pricey as compared to Nusa Duta which is still at 519-544k.
(The 800 dollars at the back, you can shave off)
Might not work for everyone but one can at least try. As my learned boss once said, if one never asks, one never gets. ;)

The newly launched units at The Hills starts from around 729k, up from the original expected start of 680k.

[wuqi256]

Hi AP,

Could you kindly expand on what 'G&G' and 'IM' :confused: Would appreciate it. Thanks.

G&G = Gated & Guarded. IM = Not sure, Iskandar, Malaysia? Need Prof to enlighten.

I went to Eminent as well, they have a new service with moxibustion done with glass bottles on the soles of the feet. They also have a new fetch and massage service where they come to your place to fetch you to their place for massage.

[wuqi256]

Wow, ok, so people really did do it then. Hats off to them but this may be a once off thing.


6th of May, Wednesday, 10am saw a group of us from SSA(SuperYacth Singapore) departing from OneDegree15 Marina(Sentosa Cove) to Puteri Harbour at Nusajaya.
http://www.superyacht.sg/galleries/121-ssa-cariad-puteri-harbour

Photos of SuperYacths in Sentosa Cove:
http://www.superyacht.sg/galleries/154-2009-12-superyacht-month

Founding members of SuperYacth Singapore:
http://www.superyacht.sg/members/founding-members

[house]

Hi lemans bro,

as i know.... phase 5 havent complete as the phase 5c will only be complete end of the yr.
phase 6A already issue key to owner thats why fenced up.
phase 6B... i dont know.

NI didn't launch the house according to phase ... for example - phase 8 is launched last yr but phase 7 just going to be launch....

NI phase 8 have access card for security.... for the other phase, i guess they have to press harder for it. its almost an essential for the access card system now. developer definitely have to do something on this to attract new buyer....

new buyer at NI should request UEM to provide that access card systems as put up by the committee at phase 3.

I am looking forward to move over there soon....:D


House,

I did a little eye-ball check on Nusa Idaman Phase 5 to Phase 6B and this is what i found. The present state is:
- Phase 5 - not fenced up
- Phase 6A - fenced up
- Phase 6B - not fenced up

According to my wife, the reason they did not fence up was for easy access to construction work. It seems the cement pavement surrounding the perimeter of Phase 5 was completed only recently. They have also just installed some stone dustbins, seats, etc. It looks like they will be fencing up the place real soon since the perimeter pavement is now done. My suspicion is also, Phase 6A could have been sold out earlier than Phase 5, hence the readiness of Phase 6A compared to Phase 5.

Phase 6B looks even less ready. But all 3 precint have their guard post. I tried to sneak into Phase 6B as i walked my dog, but the guards were quick to appear.

On the whole i think UEM might have taken things a little bit easy as they probably never thought it could be a problem to do the perimeter fencing that late. Otherwise the whole place looks ok to me. I guess they need a bit of push.

Do share what you found out from the developer over the weekend.

[wuqi256]

Prof, my 2 cents inline:

3) Since you got me to apologise i would also like to add that there was another remark on lambo, ferrari etc Let me tell you i traversed in and out of Malaysia several times this week but hardly gotta see any lambos/ferraris (even when i took Linkdua) today. Even when i used to regularly take Link dua earlier i could never see any of these nice cars. Ofcourse i see the occassional audi/spruced up Mercs and BMWs. But thats where it stops. I also traverse the N-S Hway regularly but hardly see these cars.

I see good cars pretty regularly here and i mean the really good ones. Agree that this won't change things significantly though
4) What i was trying to drive at was that for Iskandar to turn around based on a few lambo here and a few ferraris there... it will never happen. This is my opinion

Agreed, it is a surprise though that they are really starting to come in, i have passed G&G estates (brought in to view houses) where more than 6 houses had good (not just B&W or Merc) type. I actually see these cars quite regularly for some reason, maybe just the right timing. :)

5) What Iskandar needs is what Spore is doing now.... A critical mass of talent pool and a critical mass of population. Now obviously a critical mass of talent pool will never be reached unless salaries match Spore standards or atleast thereabouts. A critical mass of population (average joes like most Singaporeans like me are required to reside there and purchase their goods and services)

The salary is a part of it, that is very true. The way i see it, it is only a part though, people from out of the state will have to form the nuclei of any initiative with the government forming the backbone of support. They are trying to do exactly that, by attracting people to set up companies and businesses here. (I just learnt recently that a business can be set up quite easily here, company wise is more complicated)
More and more people are starting to build businesses here especially in certain parts here, i saw how quickly shoplots were taken up as well as even the newly launched ones.

There are basically 4 groups of people who will help to support:
1. Foreigners who have or starting businesses here
2. The influx of foreign investment, Japanese, etc (shall not mention too much as i was requested) in key projects that has multi-government stakes in.
3. Government linked officials who have vested interest to promote investment and the new location of several key government infrastructure and projects
4. Internal Malaysia folks local and from KL who are investing in shops and houses here currently and also creating more jobs. I went to a few launches of shops recently, most were sold out and to my surprise, it wasn't just Singaporeans buying.

6) That is when the economy will boom, wages will rise, there will be a dearth of talent and thus an all round increase in the strength of the economy and its fundamentals.

Its by no means a boom town now or even 3-6 months from now but things are clearly falling in place, with the political climate stabilizing slowly and barring major incidents, we will know for sure in 2 years time. Whether it is sustainable or not can be argued but we know that they are serious this time about doing something.

7) For now you can point me to wikipedia/IM website and several others. But they are all talking about the same projects over and over again. The same words tipping points are being used all the time.

There are new projects, projects without involvment of foreign governments may falter but at least those related to infrastructure are getting into shape. The ones that have foreign government vested interests will likely to suceed and there are enough of these that more big government firms are going over here.

8) Now if the average joe gets a pay of Rm 1000 including commission you tell me how the economy will improve? Do you even think it will? How many high paying jobs abound? How many? I know I was pointed to a website but i could not find jobs with the kind of pay that will make businesses feel confident about the economic climate and sink their teeth into IM

There was one website i sent previously(not sure if you are referring to the same), the pay scale is much higher than the normal rate. The title and responsibilities are also very much different. There are hiring that are already going on much quicker than we realise. Things will still take their time to take shape.

9) Visit any mall in Spore. See how crowded it is. This is critical mass. Visit any store in IM. Chances are that most of the time the stores are with very few or no people inside unless they are low end stores.

This is very true but it is also because they have more land/space and are spread out much more.
How many Giants do you know are there in Singapore? I can go to at least 5 here. Carrfour, they have lesser, only a couple but Tesco, i can easily hit quite a few in a single day. Because their people go to SG to work on the weekdays, during the daytime, you see fewer people. Even on weekends, you may not see the crowd, thats because some are shopping in SG. I have neighbours who drive their cars to SG at certain times of night to SG, to casinos or to buy another branded bag.

I see people shopping until 1am at Tescos on Friday & Saturday nights and people at Giant until 12am on Saturday night (Sunday morning) but again, because there is so many malls around, you won't see that much people due to the sprawl. Things will be slightly different in a few years time as some developers are going to develop more commercial projects geared towards business. They won't throw good money if they were not confident. It used to be such a pain to find higher end items here for cars, IT stuff, its starting to be much easier now.

Visit the Jusco on the weekends at Tebrau city and you will see that things are busier there. This is as its a perceived high end area and the well heeled visit the Jusco there. Even Timberland is there. Speaking of which(they do have pretty nice (higher end) car accessories there at this Jusco)

[euphony]

Hi All,
Been following the thread since the early days in 2009 & in fact had purchased a terrace in Setia Eco garden & collected the keys early this year.
For me, intend to have the place done up as a weekend home instead of staying in it as I have a boy in preschool.

One of the main reasons I took the plunge to buy the property was to leave some memories for my boy when he grows up..
In sinkieland, there is always constant renewal and the landscape where we used to live are replaced with new buildings/infrastructure..

With this property I hope to provide some childhood memories for my boy in time to come..
At least it also provides something I can leave for future generations as everything in Sinkie is on lease.. (HDB, cars etc)

Yup, Cathy is right in the sense that my initial visit to JB property was with the setia office in habourfront, we were suppose to visit setia tropica but somehow there was some mixed up & was brought to eco gardens instead.. the rest is history after i convinced wifey...

So now is the renovation phase & hope it can be done up prior Q3..

Cheers


hope everything goes smoothly for you as you make the transition. tell us more about setia eco living there etc if you could when the time comes. =)

[Analytical Professor]

Dude but definitely not needle people. Thats not my style. Though i was rude to you. Sorry again. I have to be more careful next time. I just did not realise i was being rude. But now that you have pointed it out, its good cause i will be more careful next time. I really think its good you whacked me there.

Yeah i love to raise issues.... any issues.... issues which some may think are non important while others may think are very important. So i like to raise them, learn from peoples analysis and add my 0.5c worth which sometimes is annoying. I agree.

Bear with me. No malice to anyone out here.



Hi Professor,
I have no further argument on your views. It is stated in your profile that your interest is to "Raise, analyse and debate issues". Unlike you, I'm just here to share my views and to learn from others. Thanks for making me :):):) I appreciate that. Have a great Sunday.

[Analytical Professor]

Wuqi your right with regards to both abbreviations.

I was at Eminent yesterday and today. I must agree that their service is pretty good. Thanks Wuqi for introducing this place to me.

I just get irritated when they try to push extras to me. I tried a couple of the extras but found them ineffective like the herbal powder they use to soak your feet, the plant oil etc.

Another thing i din like but i bought was the foot scrapping service. Actually it was silly of me to take it cause my feet are actually quite nice.

Pretty wasted!

I agree with you regarding the cupping for the feet. I saw an elderly man (husband of the woman who ranted about making a loss at Bukit Indah) doing it.

They are quite innovative in terms of service and good at service as well.

I took my daughter who is 7 years of age there and she got hooked onto the foot reflex. Asked me to bring her there again today. So yesterday i ended up spending Rm 180 and today Rm 100 (approx)

The counter girl asked me to sign up the membership card cause she now recognises me pretty well and told me that i can get rm 50 off for a membership of rm 300.



G&G = Gated & Guarded. IM = Not sure, Iskandar, Malaysia? Need Prof to enlighten.

I went to Eminent as well, they have a new service with moxibustion done with glass bottles on the soles of the feet. They also have a new fetch and massage service where they come to your place to fetch you to their place for massage.

[Analytical Professor]

Congratulations avalon74.

Thank you for having followed this thread and once again we thank Wuqi for having spent a considerable amount of his spare time to keep this thread active, relevant and hot.

I am at Setia Tropika. Care to share with us your Setia Eco Garden experience?

How is the place? ST design or different? Got shops inside/around it etc?

welcome again.


Hi All,
Been following the thread since the early days in 2009 & in fact had purchased a terrace in Setia Eco garden & collected the keys early this year.
For me, intend to have the place done up as a weekend home instead of staying in it as I have a boy in preschool.

Cheers

[Analytical Professor]

Another thing that i have noticed a couple of times:

1) Jalan Nusa Bestari (hope the road name is correct) the one with the Eminent massage shop and Lebuhraya Pasir Gudang gets terribly flooded on one side during heavy downpours.

As a result everyone avoids the flooded lane creating a mini traffic jam.

Any other roads with similar conditions?

[Analytical Professor]

Im looking for a tailor who can stitch dresses (western style).

Anybody care to recommend a good tailor with reasonable rates?

[Analytical Professor]

Where do i get mattresses? Some visitors home this Easter weekend need some reasonably priced mattresses (not the expensive ones at Courts)

[ginfreely]

Hi, anyone knows where to get good, reputable, and affordable car servicing for Toyota cars in JB? Thanks.

[Analytical Professor]

Wuqi our best bet on car servicing for the moment!


Hi, anyone knows where to get good, reputable, and affordable car servicing for Toyota cars in JB? Thanks.

[ginfreely]

Hey gin, thanks for the warm welcome , yeah i find the Duta estate to be very nice, clean n to a certain extent chic, i feel that its good as it will pave the way for other future new developments to follow the trend and set new benchmark, slowly but surely changing the johor property landscape.

Just curious which house model did u buy? and at what price if i may ask (can pm me if u feel more comfortable doing so) cos i do find the new cluster for sale there to be rather pricey, all conveniently priced slightly above the 500k mark...obviously targeting sporean buyers

Hi GP, yeah the new clusters launched are more pricey than those launched in 2009. Some consolation is that the new clusters are bigger, design nicer (in my opinion) and the price include the legal fees, stamp duty and MOT compared to last time when the price was not inclusive of these fees. Oh I also just bought during this year and paid above RM500k. The price is RM523k (cluster house Type A).

[ginfreely]

Hello to everyone

I have been following the thread for quite sometime. Owner of Cluster at Nusa Duta. Anyone took ADT security system or their home?



Hi fellow Duta owner, how much does it cost to install ADT security system? Does it include CCTV and alarm?

[ginfreely]

Nusa Duta is actually quite good, i am happy for you, remind them
to give you your goody bag. I think the draw for the 2 Toyota Vios
is in May. I wish you will win one. :)


Hi wuqi, thank you for the info. I didn't know got goody bag and lucky draw. Do you know is it opened to all buyers or only the latest phase, understand they just released new phase of cluster house in March. BTW what are the goodies in the bag? Anything worthwhile to fight for? :D

[GorengPisang]

Hi wuqi, thank you for the info. I didn't know got goody bag and lucky draw. Do you know is it opened to all buyers or only the latest phase, understand they just released new phase of cluster house in March. BTW what are the goodies in the bag? Anything worthwhile to fight for? :D

oh yeah, when i was at showhouse lastweek i saw the promo banner with a toyota vios haha...but seriously, they shd've just adjust the price to 550k nett n throw in a free vios (1st launch was like 400+k only), throw in free vios no need coe. im sure many would jump in, solve housing problem, solve car problem lol....ok, i knw im prob still in my dream but who knws, IJM pls come in n read my post, give us free vios :D

[horizonhills]

Can anyone advise on the price of Curtains for a full 3-storey semis? The first time I went to ask at Nusa Bestari, the boss told us its RM 10K and above for sure. That really shocks us. ITs not that high quality material, just shield against the sun.

My auntie who was with us told us that her 2 storey terrace at Tangkak cost her just RM 600+.. went to buy materials, do measurements and then get some other auntie to sew.

I just cant believe that my 3 storey can be rm10k and more when my condo in Singapore cost just RM 1300..IF its RM 3000 I can still accept.. anyway its for 2nd and 3rd storey only.. 1st floor dont even need any curtain!

[euphony]

Can anyone advise on the price of Curtains for a full 3-storey semis? The first time I went to ask at Nusa Bestari, the boss told us its RM 10K and above for sure. That really shocks us. ITs not that high quality material, just shield against the sun.

My auntie who was with us told us that her 2 storey terrace at Tangkak cost her just RM 600+.. went to buy materials, do measurements and then get some other auntie to sew.

I just cant believe that my 3 storey can be rm10k and more when my condo in Singapore cost just RM 1300..IF its RM 3000 I can still accept.. anyway its for 2nd and 3rd storey only.. 1st floor dont even need any curtain!

did you mention your area of residence? i suspect these merchants think can add 'premium' to certain tamans and think all of us are carrot heads. perhaps also say you need curtains for 2 levels. Don't tell them you've got 3.

[house]

thanks v good information
UEM should make it right since the first moment. feedback to them about the security, if they never improve, i guess i will back out on the deal.


I actually do like NI and did consider the semi-D which cost abot 700k some time back. The "Lemanz" in the website is not me, btw. Yes a site visit is the best. It looks like i am outdated about NI already... there is an increase in security fee for Phase 2A residents recently, from RM50 to RM70. They also manage to squeeze out some money to hire a full time cleaner to sweep the precinct, because town council only cuts the grass like once a month. A handful of residents refused to pay for the security fees even before the increase. At Kiara Hills a short distance away, they ended the security service without a new contractor. Hence a very real consideration if you stay at a mixed development is, fellow residents might be resistance to pay the common fund which could render running the place difficult.

The committee at such development usually would register itself, but my understanding is it does not have legal right to compel residents who refused to pay. This is unlike a condo in SG which is governed by Strata Act where the outstanding fees stays with the property and can't run away. Therefore as far as possible avoid development with a high mix of single storeys or low cost units (disclaimer: i am not saying poor people will not pay, or single storey owners are poor people, i am just saying this is the best gauge :)

[euphony]

for those who are interested in nusa duta, I chanced upon their (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Nusa-Duta-Talk/189589517723553?sk=wall) facebook site on the wall their redirect to a MY forum where owners discuss and put up photos. Have a visit if interested. Forum is mainly in mandarin though.

[g3abc]

Can anyone advise on the price of Curtains for a full 3-storey semis? The first time I went to ask at Nusa Bestari, the boss told us its RM 10K and above for sure. That really shocks us. ITs not that high quality material, just shield against the sun.

My auntie who was with us told us that her 2 storey terrace at Tangkak cost her just RM 600+.. went to buy materials, do measurements and then get some other auntie to sew.

I just cant believe that my 3 storey can be rm10k and more when my condo in Singapore cost just RM 1300..IF its RM 3000 I can still accept.. anyway its for 2nd and 3rd storey only.. 1st floor dont even need any curtain!

Hello All,

I am driving a private-plate van.
If there is anyone who wants to transport stuff from SG into your place in Nusajaya,
perhaps you may contact me privately / email at g3abc@yahoo.com
Just cover my petrol expenses, plus troubles,...and share more information
thanks

[horizonhills]

Initially I dint mention then he asked. After that he claimed that he do many houses ( 3 storey ) in the Gateway in Horizon Hills the rate averages RM 10,000. I dont know if he is lying but please, the grills for my entire 3 storey semi cost about RM 11K .. how can curtains cost RM 10K I really dont know. Dint know that clothes are costlier than metals!


did you mention your area of residence? i suspect these merchants think can add 'premium' to certain tamans and think all of us are carrot heads. perhaps also say you need curtains for 2 levels. Don't tell them you've got 3.

[house]

Initially I dint mention then he asked. After that he claimed that he do many houses ( 3 storey ) in the Gateway in Horizon Hills the rate averages RM 10,000. I dont know if he is lying but please, the grills for my entire 3 storey semi cost about RM 11K .. how can curtains cost RM 10K I really dont know. Dint know that clothes are costlier than metals!

sound ex.... but did u choose v high quality clothes?? its wise to get another quotation, dont b carrot head~~~

[rw6akr]

sound ex.... but did u choose v high quality clothes?? its wise to get another quotation, dont b carrot head~~~
10,000 RM is a realistic estimation as if you are to buy some good quality curtains it should cost you 30 - 70 RM per square meter and overall windows space in Semi-D would be 3-4 times bigger than of an average condo. You can have a look at a sample price calculations provided by one of my contractors using the link below:
https://www.yousendit.com/download/VnBxQmtiTERtUUd4dnc9PQ

[aangsc]

I just cant believe that my 3 storey can be rm10k and more when my condo in Singapore cost just RM 1300..IF its RM 3000 I can still accept.. anyway its for 2nd and 3rd storey only.. 1st floor dont even need any curtain!

if it is just to block the sun as you mentioned, then do measurement of length and height, buy the ready made from Giant hypermart. It is around S$20 per piece. Can always get a handyman to do the curtain rods for you. Should be below S$1000. Fanciful and good quality curtain can goes in 10K . Mentioning those place like HH and EL ,not a good idea.

[horizonhills]

sound ex.... but did u choose v high quality clothes?? its wise to get another quotation, dont b carrot head~~~
Yeah I plan to go back to my auntie kampong and buy clothes straight and do measurements myself. Then get someone to sew. Its not that far to drive to Tangkak, probably 1 hour 30 minute but I get to save many thousands :)

[horizonhills]

Great. Thanks for your input. I only need curtains for 2nd and 3rd floor so I am quite shocked at the price when my auntie told me that her 2 storey terrace at Tangkak cost her less than RM 1000 for the curtains..


10,000 RM is a realistic estimation as if you are to buy some good quality curtains it should cost you 30 - 70 RM per square meter and overall windows space in Semi-D would be 3-4 times bigger than of an average condo. You can have a look at a sample price calculations provided by one of my contractors using the link below:
https://www.yousendit.com/download/VnBxQmtiTERtUUd4dnc9PQ

[Analytical Professor]

Approach to cooling homes:

1) Fans
2) Solar Films
3) Curtains

With the above 3 the home is reasonably cool. Atleast mine is.

Add aircon for comfort feeling.

[Analytical Professor]

Initially i wanted to get the ready made curtain rods from giant. But then i realised my window sizes are not standard and it would be a pretty difficult task if i bought them.

So i had to engage services of a KEdai Curtain shop at ST. Cost me Rm 1000. Of course charged more what to do!

But there was no way i could do it myself. Not much of a DIY person.

[wuqi256]

Ok, quickly logged on to add 2 cents worth:

1. Fixing of cars, i fixed all my cars at the Michellin place opposite the Station One cafe (sometimes Sutera Mall side) No issue with Korean/Jap, only the more expensive cars you need to wait slightly longer as they get parts for you.

Most of my car issues has been fixed by them with no issues, a relative of mine got his fixed there recently, so far, very happy with the results (auto gear problem)

2. Curtains - Got to Plentong Giant(Near to the Tesco Extra), first floor. They have a wide range of curtain cloth, accessories etc and cheap too. Can bargain a bit as well. Just buy and go to those curtain or seamstresses to get it down up. You save at least 60-90% off curtains and you can customize it to your own taste as well. Takes a bit more time, for those who have not much time, Noble Curtain(at the old Attack Curtain premises) (Its opposite the Shell station at Nusa Bestari) is where you want to go. Remember to bargain though.

[wuqi256]

I also put in exhuast fans for all toilets, you might want to explore having that in the family area on the 2nd floor as some friends did that and found that the house was much cooler especially for those west facing ones.

There are also vents or whirly birds that you can add on:
http://www.turbovent.co.za/turbine_whirlybird.html
http://www.ascentonline.com.au/html/products_gallery/roof_ventilation_products_gallery.html
http://www.savenrg.com/venting.htm
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1135874

[wuqi256]

Forget to add, the whirlybird types cost about 1000-1300 RM to install. I would also recommend having bamboo blinds if you have a patio at your terraced area to keep out the sun and the rain. Its about 700 plus for 3 big sides. Got it done at Ulu Tiram, quite good workmanship and cheap too.

[wuqi256]

Where do i get mattresses? Some visitors home this Easter weekend need some reasonably priced mattresses (not the expensive ones at Courts)

Mattresses - Giant (Skudai) The 2nd floor has a furniture shop, look for Madam Ong(very friendly) and ask about the mattresses. She does give good discounts and she will help you if you are short on budget.

If its just normal foldable ones though then go to the Carrefour(very near Tebrau city) or Tesco (Tebrau city) and buy it from there.

[wuqi256]

Hi ginfreely, only for the latest phase but my relatives bought the ones from previous phase, still eligible though they only recently signed up. Goodybag, can ask from Cora or Marcus i think but i think not expensive stuff. I wish they could throw in the car though. Their sales people starting to be a bit like HH now. After comparing the latest pricing, it seems Nusa Duta is really looking to be more a bargain as time goes by as compared to developments in the same league here.

I might get one for my sister so that she at least have a home here.

[wuqi256]

2.5-3 storey Semi-D should not be that ex, i did up mine like around 4k (humble double storey Semi-D) but thats because i choose the good (but not the best) materials. My rental houses have better curtains than my own actually as i did double layers for each. The smallest house(terrace) curtains costs more than 4k already.

Plentong (Giant) remains the best bet if you have some time to spare, Tampoi area (Tampoi Lighting side) also has good curtain shops(cheap too)

[wuqi256]

Tailor wise, i don't know of much in JB,my apologies though i am sure there are good ones around.
I find that Thailand is still the best place to make tailored clothing with amongst the best materials
at ones disposal.

By the way prof, the Eminent place has this new thing of using glass bottles under the soles of ones
feet (moxibustion), quite good. You should try it as its only 20 RM on top of your normal reflexology.

[Charlie258]

Why MoneyChangers in Singapore give such a lousy Rate? MR was 2.4297 today, even lower at times, but MoneyChangers are selling MR at 2.4050 to 1 Singapore Dollar. Huge spread!!!!!! Why? Is it because it is Monday? I notice Mondays, the spread is often bigger.

[Skippy]

I also put in exhuast fans for all toilets, you might want to explore having that in the family area on the 2nd floor as some friends did that and found that the house was much cooler especially for those west facing ones.

There are also vents or whirly birds that you can add on:
http://www.turbovent.co.za/turbine_whirlybird.html
http://www.ascentonline.com.au/html/products_gallery/roof_ventilation_products_gallery.html
http://www.savenrg.com/venting.htm
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1135874

Hi Wuqi,
May i ask more abt the exhuast fans you mentioned for the toilets as well as for the house? Seems like the fixture needs to make some changes to the roof, in this case will there be any issue with the developer or void any warranty any period of time? My dad was exploring on this but so far i've not seen many houses has fix this ventilation or maybe i missed them as they are on top.. In Sg, my neighbour fix the fan like in their toilet for ventilation purposes. Not too sure if this could be similarly in HH? Seek your kind advise.

I've also tried to look for the furniture shop you mentioned.. the giant i went was when i exit sutera mall and make a u turn to head back to woodlands where the signage shown on the bridge very clearly to U turn and lead the road in where you'll see row of shop houses. There's also a furniture shop at the corner. I guess i must have gone to the wrong one. I'll have to try to look for the shop again. Since now you mentioned it's on the 2nd floor.

Oops sorry i didnt really know how to place the multiple quote as use by others.. i'm still pretty newbie here..

On the exchange rate, got a friend in JB to ask.. it's abt 2.41 today.. this is surely a good news to us hee hee

[Skippy]

I also put in exhuast fans for all toilets, you might want to explore having that in the family area on the 2nd floor as some friends did that and found that the house was much cooler especially for those west facing ones.

There are also vents or whirly birds that you can add on:
http://www.turbovent.co.za/turbine_whirlybird.html
http://www.ascentonline.com.au/html/products_gallery/roof_ventilation_products_gallery.html
http://www.savenrg.com/venting.htm
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1135874

Hi Wuqi,
May i ask more abt the exhuast fans you mentioned for the toilets as well as for the house? Seems like the fixture needs to make some changes to the roof, in this case will there be any issue with the developer or void any warranty any period of time? My dad was exploring on this but so far i've not seen many houses has fix this ventilation or maybe i missed them as they are on top.. In Sg, my neighbour fix the fan like in their toilet for ventilation purposes. Not too sure if this could be done similarly in HH? Seek your kind advise.

I've also tried to look for the furniture shop you mentioned.. the giant i went was when i exit sutera mall and make a u turn to head back to woodlands where the signage shown on the bridge very clearly to U turn and lead the road in where you'll see row of shop houses. There's also a furniture shop at the corner. I guess i must have gone to the wrong one. I'll have to try to look for the shop again. Since now you mentioned it's on the 2nd floor.

Oops sorry i didnt really know how to place the multiple quote as use by others.. i'm still pretty newbie here..

On the exchange rate, got a friend in JB to ask.. it's abt 2.41 today.. this is surely a good news to us hee hee

[Jogs1]

S'pore billionaire plans Johor medical centre

http://business.asiaone.com/Business...17-274062.html

SINGAPORE - Singaporean billionaire Peter Lim is currently working on bringing Thomson Medical Centre across the causeway and into Johor.

The Straits Times reported that the, The Edge weekly said: Mr Lim who took over the Singapore-listed Thomson Medical private last year, has bought 14ha of land in the southern Malaysian state for the project.

The land, in the Stulang Laut area, about 2km from the Johor Causeway, was bought for a purported RM200 million (S$83 million), it reported.

Click here to find out more!
A source added that 'Mr Lim is working to bring in Thomson Medical group to possibly build a health-care facility on that land, probably in an effort to capture more of the medical tourism market.'

The Edge also said he was eyeing a piece of land near Singapore's Botanic Gardens that is currently owned by Johor royalty.
SingaporeCity no está en línea Reply With Quote

[horizonhills]

Hi Wuqi,

Nobel Curtain is the one which offer me RM 10,000. The previous owner, Attack curtain is a nice young couple but heard that they have gone back to Batu Pahat to continue their business. They charges really decent price and the service is excellent. Now this Nobel, I have nothing good to say about them, seriously.. Once he heard that mine is a 3 storey semi d at Horizon Hills, he started to say all the houses there cost RM 10k at least for curtains


Ok, quickly logged on to add 2 cents worth:

1. Fixing of cars, i fixed all my cars at the Michellin place opposite the Station One cafe (sometimes Sutera Mall side) No issue with Korean/Jap, only the more expensive cars you need to wait slightly longer as they get parts for you.

Most of my car issues has been fixed by them with no issues, a relative of mine got his fixed there recently, so far, very happy with the results (auto gear problem)

2. Curtains - Got to Plentong Giant(Near to the Tesco Extra), first floor. They have a wide range of curtain cloth, accessories etc and cheap too. Can bargain a bit as well. Just buy and go to those curtain or seamstresses to get it down up. You save at least 60-90% off curtains and you can customize it to your own taste as well. Takes a bit more time, for those who have not much time, Noble Curtain(at the old Attack Curtain premises) (Its opposite the Shell station at Nusa Bestari) is where you want to go. Remember to bargain though.

[horizonhills]

Hey... today, 18 Apr I changed mine at Nusa Bestari.. RM 2.412!!

When I called up Singapore money changer, they quoted me RM 2.402!

What a big difference. I wonder if Money Matters give better rates today.


Why MoneyChangers in Singapore give such a lousy Rate? MR was 2.4297 today, even lower at times, but MoneyChangers are selling MR at 2.4050 to 1 Singapore Dollar. Huge spread!!!!!! Why? Is it because it is Monday? I notice Mondays, the spread is often bigger.

[maxpark]

Bros, sistas,

I'm going to sign one of the mortgage loans with one of the banks soon.

Does anyone have/know a better rate currently than BLR minus 2.4%
Seems this is the best I've come across so far.
Any savings will be useful as it is for longterm, thanks in advance for info!

[LeMans2011]

Hi Wuqi,

Nobel Curtain is the one which offer me RM 10,000. The previous owner, Attack curtain is a nice young couple but heard that they have gone back to Batu Pahat to continue their business. They charges really decent price and the service is excellent. Now this Nobel, I have nothing good to say about them, seriously.. Once he heard that mine is a 3 storey semi d at Horizon Hills, he started to say all the houses there cost RM 10k at least for curtains

Actually the main thing is to find an honest and reliable vendor with good workmanship.. i am not very familiar but my feel is for a semi-D i won't be surprised that curtains cost RM10k, grilles cost RM20k... but so far those shops i saw at Nusa Bestari quality looks so so..

[horizonhills]

For friends into massage, I received a brochure from Reborn in Sutera Utama, along Tea Garden that whole day massage cost RM 110.. ANY TYPE OF MASSAGE. Anyone who has dropped by and tested, please do give FR.

[LeMans2011]

Bros, sistas,

I'm going to sign one of the mortgage loans with one of the banks soon.

Does anyone have/know a better rate currently than BLR minus 2.4%
Seems this is the best I've come across so far.
Any savings will be useful as it is for longterm, thanks in advance for info!

I guess that must be 5 years lock in? Or maybe Citibank. I am paying BLR-2.3% so you are better off

[LeMans2011]

Hey... today, 18 Apr I changed mine at Nusa Bestari.. RM 2.412!!

When I called up Singapore money changer, they quoted me RM 2.402!

What a big difference. I wonder if Money Matters give better rates today.

Do you mind letting me know which shop? Is it along the side where the Khor clinic is? Do you have the name?

[horizonhills]

Hi Leman, my grills for 3 storey semis, which includes all three levels from back to front, and with two shelter one at the 2nd floor and one at the backyard cost just RM 11,000.. I was really surprised that curtains can cost RM 10k though but I am quite sure if I were to drop by Tangkak and research, I can cut on the cost by at least RM 5k. I am lucky that Tangkak is famous for nice quality but cheap clothes and that my relatives stay there. IT really helps.


Actually the main thing is to find an honest and reliable vendor with good workmanship.. i am not very familiar but my feel is for a semi-D i won't be surprised that curtains cost RM10k, grilles cost RM20k... but so far those shops i saw at Nusa Bestari quality looks so so..

[horizonhills]

I dont know their name but when u are coming from Jusco side, pass by eminent massage to your right and the first small left turn ( u can see a temple on your left ).. its along that row of shophouses where the corner is a motorbike business with a few red volvo convertibles/SUVs etc..

The one that I went is the FIRST money changer after you reach this motorbike corner shop.. Inside got sell kites too..


Do you mind letting me know which shop? Is it along the side where the Khor clinic is? Do you have the name?

[BalikKampung]

I recall seeing some tilum (mattress) shops at Johor Jaya near the sports complex. It is near the store. One or two lanes behind it.

You can try thereabouts

Anyway Johor Jaya is pretty close by to Setia Tropika so should be quite convenient for you to go scout ard


Where do i get mattresses? Some visitors home this Easter weekend need some reasonably priced mattresses (not the expensive ones at Courts)

[gregorian]

Bros, sistas,

I'm going to sign one of the mortgage loans with one of the banks soon.

Does anyone have/know a better rate currently than BLR minus 2.4%
Seems this is the best I've come across so far.
Any savings will be useful as it is for longterm, thanks in advance for info!

Hey HSBC is fighting for me for -2.45% to -2.5% although chance very low. -2.45% quite likely.

[euphony]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOnURtRaG98

I chanced upon this grand plan to build a trade center closer to pasir gudang. the plan is grand and the animation looks like sim city 4 on steriods haha. i wonder whether it will take although i read this (http://www.forbes.com/global/2009/1130/companies-lakehill-bill-chng-singapore-iskandar.html) article which states its potential. if the pasir gudang highway is not improved i guess it'll be miserable trying to get in and out of the area. Seriously why did they not consider building it closer to nusajaya if it is going to be such an important role and at least with better road connections. Apparently the site is hoarded up and construction work has started. Anyway, just throwing this into the air about the Jb developments for a casual supper reading.

[Serenity]

Hey HSBC is fighting for me for -2.45% to -2.5% although chance very low. -2.45% quite likely.

Other things to consider besides just the interest rates:
1. Lock In period
2. Penalty for early redemption (vary for different bank)
3. Monthly Admin Charges (HSBC RM10 for Smarthome Loan) others no charge.

My personal experience with UOB when I redeemed my outstanding loan of RM220K during lock in period, paid a total of RM10K in penalty (painful experience).

[echanbonfire01]

Hi fellow Duta owner, how much does it cost to install ADT security system? Does it include CCTV and alarm?

i went to the homefair at persada. got the adt systems for $299rm with free motion sensor, keypad, door contacts and siren. mthly $75rm for 3 years contract.

[LeMans2011]

I dont know their name but when u are coming from Jusco side, pass by eminent massage to your right and the first small left turn ( u can see a temple on your left ).. its along that row of shophouses where the corner is a motorbike business with a few red volvo convertibles/SUVs etc..

The one that I went is the FIRST money changer after you reach this motorbike corner shop.. Inside got sell kites too..

Thanks bro, i know exactly where you are referring to, it is 2 doors away from a hair salon, and it is before the Khor clinic... will check it out soon

[rhino]

Thanks to lemans and others who have responded to my queries.:)
I stayed at Euro Rich Hotel but was a little disappointed cos' it does not look like what it appears on the net. :(

Anyway, I am quite impressed by the resort feeling at leisure farm and thinking of buying one terrace unit, which is resonably priced at about RM 550 to 675 excluding discount. The interior design is lovely! However, there is limited land for gardening and you can't make changes to the exterior. The other drawback is the small dark road that leads to the highway...not sure if this is the key reason that there are still unsold units there?

Also viewed a few corner units at HH but finds it quite hot due to the vast landscaping and the lack of greenery which leisure farm offers...the interior looks quite bad as well. Otherwise like the extra land for gardening and its proximity to Jusco. The price for corner is a little ex...starting from RM650.

May go to East Ledang to take a look soon.
Any kind advise from bros here?

[Analytical Professor]

Thank you BalikKampung.


I recall seeing some tilum (mattress) shops at Johor Jaya near the sports complex. It is near the store. One or two lanes behind it.

You can try thereabouts

Anyway Johor Jaya is pretty close by to Setia Tropika so should be quite convenient for you to go scout ard

[Analytical Professor]

Thanks Wuqi, Was almost gonna check it out today. But my wife had other ideas.

So maybe wed/thurs i gotta do it.


Mattresses - Giant (Skudai) The 2nd floor has a furniture shop, look for Madam Ong(very friendly) and ask about the mattresses. She does give good discounts and she will help you if you are short on budget.

If its just normal foldable ones though then go to the Carrefour(very near Tebrau city) or Tesco (Tebrau city) and buy it from there.

[horizonhills]

No problem. Their rates are usually quite high but not always the highest.. just that its more convenient for me to change that as there are no suspicious looking character loitering around. If your funds are big, you can request to go to the individual rooms.

Side issue, today I was at Horizon Hills Customer Care to meet up with the guy there.. then I saw a few photographs of a SLEEPING guard being taken. I stared at it and found that a guard has been caught SLEEPING at night duty and was caught on camera and he dint even know it while lying on the ground with a few clothes supporting his head. God bless him and I think he will be fired.


Thanks bro, i know exactly where you are referring to, it is 2 doors away from a hair salon, and it is before the Khor clinic... will check it out soon

[horizonhills]

[QUOTE=rhino;700386]Thanks to lemans and others who have responded to my queries.:)
Hi, I have to agree with you that Horizon Hills houses interior are rather cheapskate. These are comments which are made by my dad and relatives when they spotted the main gate, which pales in comparison to those RM 100K properties along Tun Aminah, Bukit Indah and Nusa Bestari area.

Once you go in, you will be disappointed at the quality of the doors, windows etc.. very low end material which is unbecoming of a grand landscape housing development cost RM 800K. I mean, since you price it so high, why not spend another RM 50k or so doing up the interior?

East Ledang is in a different class of its own. The interior ooz class, very elegant and fine materials are used.

[wuqi256]

Taken from Yahoo:
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/malaysian-metropolis-taking-shape-near-singapore-20110417-154530-833.html

A new metropolis three times the size of neighbouring Singapore is taking shape in the foothills of southern Malaysia, where officials and investors have equally huge ambitions for the city.

Dust billows across the horizon as sun-scorched construction crews lay roads, drainage canals, street lamps, power stations and other key installations for a development known as Iskandar Malaysia.

Rolling terrain once covered with palm oil plantations and bush has been bulldozed to make way for theme parks, luxury homes, international schools, hotels, hospitals, a movie studio and a business district by 2025.

In short, a new Singapore is being built in an area covering 2,217 square kilometres (887 square miles) in Johor state.

Iskandar, one of five "economic growth corridors" Malaysia is developing, was launched in 2006 and will integrate existing towns, seaports and an airport with the new projects being built from scratch.

But instead of pitting it as a rival to the rich city-state, Malaysia is asking Singapore investors to take part in the project.

"We see ourselves as collaborating because both countries realise that in order to create more wealth and better distribution of the wealth, we need each other," said Ismail Ibrahim, chief executive of the Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA).

"Investors see Iskandar as something that is believable, something that is working," he told AFP.

From his 33rd-floor office in Singapore's financial district, Keith Martin exuded the same optimism.

"It's really positive that the momentum is picking up massively," said Martin, chief executive of Global Capital and Development (GCD), an Abu Dhabi-backed consortium tasked to develop a prime portion of Iskandar called Medini.

"Our strategic advantage is to ride the wave of Singapore. Singapore is all grown up and lacking space to build, business costs are escalating," he said.

Asia's strong recovery from the 2008-2009 global recession and the improved bilateral ties between Singapore and Malaysia have made the environment more conducive to promote the Iskandar region to investors, analysts said.

Singapore was ejected from the Malaysian federation in 1965 and ties since then were often testy, but new leaders who have emerged over the past decade have made an effort to promote cooperation and resolve irritants.

Because of its size, Iskandar -- which covers Johor state's capital Johor Bahru -- will be developed in phases, with plans to improve rail, sea and air connections to Singapore and facilitate easier immigration clearance.

Malaysia is offering generous incentives, including corporate and personal income tax perks, 100 percent foreign ownership of businesses and unrestricted hiring of foreign "knowledge" workers.

IRDA's Ismail said investor concerns over crime in Malaysia were being addressed by a strong police presence, more guards, surveillance cameras and creative urban planning.

Investor response has been encouraging so far, and the first wave of projects aimed at spurring more investment are due for completion in the next 18 months.

"I've been there with my muddy boots on and I've got my construction knowledge so they can't fool me on the progress," Martin, a veteran of Asia's construction business, said when asked if the development was on track.

By the end of 2010, investment commitments in Iskandar totalled 69.5 billion ringgit ($23 billion), surpassing its target by 48 percent, with more than 40 percent coming from overseas, Ismail said.

The US-based Chelsea Premium Outlets chain -- known for no-frills suburban shops selling luxury brands at discounted prices worldwide -- will open an outlet in the Iskandar region in November.

Britain's Newcastle University Medical School -- one of six universities in Iskandar's planned "educity" complex -- will admit its first batch of students later this year.

Marlborough College, a leading British independent boarding school established in 1854, will also open its first campus outside England in Iskandar this year for students aged 11-18.

Marlborough's campus will occupy 36 hectares (90 acres), including soccer, rugby and cricket fields.

Other schools in the "educity" complex include the Netherlands' Maritime Institute of Technology, England's University of Southampton and Singapore's Management Development Insitute.

Tuition will be priced in Malaysian ringgit.

Legoland Malaysia -- Asia's first Lego theme park -- is slated to open in the Medini sector in late 2012, next to a Legoland Hotel and a lifestyle retail mall.

A 300-bed and 150-suite Gleneagles Medini Hospital costing $156 million is also in the works.

Gleneagles is a popular private hospital in Singapore that caters to wealthy locals, expatriates and "medical tourists" who combine treatment with leisure.

Asian movie production will get a boost with a Pinewood International Studio, supported by an attached "media village."

Houses, luxury apartments and waterfront enclaves are being built to meet the needs of those relocating to the area.

An original masterplan to build a New York or Hong Kong-style financial centre with towering skyscrapers in Medini was redrawn after the global recession in 2008/2009, said Martin.

The new plan calls for a low- to medium-rise business district that will serve the requirements of small and medium businesses seeking cheaper locations but enjoying quality living standards.

It also hopes to attract multinational firms seeking to establish support operations.

Singapore's state-linked investment firm Temasek Holdings and its Malaysian counterpart Khazanah Nasional Berhad are planning to build an "iconic project" in Iskandar, according to Ismail.

He revealed that the project is likely to be a township "promoting healthy living" and covering more than 200 hectares (494 acres).

The Singaporean and Malaysian prime ministers will announce details by mid-year, Ismail added.

Martin said such a project will "almost overnight change the landscape" as it will be another strong vote of confidence on Iskandar.

"It will turbo-charge the already positive momentum," said Martin, who is house-hunting in Iskandar before relocating his family from Singapore.

"I've got my four kids already registered for Marlborough College. We're just looking forward to Medini picking up," he said.
...

[wuqi256]

[QUOTE=rhino;700386]Thanks to lemans and others who have responded to my queries.:)
Hi, I have to agree with you that Horizon Hills houses interior are rather cheapskate. These are comments which are made by my dad and relatives when they spotted the main gate, which pales in comparison to those RM 100K properties along Tun Aminah, Bukit Indah and Nusa Bestari area.

Once you go in, you will be disappointed at the quality of the doors, windows etc.. very low end material which is unbecoming of a grand landscape housing development cost RM 800K. I mean, since you price it so high, why not spend another RM 50k or so doing up the interior?

East Ledang is in a different class of its own. The interior ooz class, very elegant and fine materials are used.

Agreed with that, i once questioned the developer about this, their reason was that when they first came out here, they did a poll and found that most people will make lots of changes to their place, do A&A once they move in and customize to their desire once they purchased. A case in point is a 2.5 storey being converted into a gigantic/gargantuan/behemoth of a place. They started the renovation halfway BEFORE i even purchased and moved in. 2 years on, its finally looking to be 90% complete.

A Semi-D in HH costs 800k 2 years ago, the same one in EL costs a bit more. Both appealed equally to me.

The only reasons i picked HH was:
1. Golf course/Chinese Primary school
2. Its already built and infrastructure/amenities are already there, i can't get my parents "buy in" if they have to drive far to get anything. I will not leave my family especially parents/siblings behind so they factor a lot in my plans.
3. Cheaper as compared to development of the same tier. I could get a Semi-D AND a cluster/terrace (and rent out the extra place)
with enough money to spare for internal works.

[wuqi256]

No problem. Their rates are usually quite high but not always the highest.. just that its more convenient for me to change that as there are no suspicious looking character loitering around. If your funds are big, you can request to go to the individual rooms.

Side issue, today I was at Horizon Hills Customer Care to meet up with the guy there.. then I saw a few photographs of a SLEEPING guard being taken. I stared at it and found that a guard has been caught SLEEPING at night duty and was caught on camera and he dint even know it while lying on the ground with a few clothes supporting his head. God bless him and I think he will be fired.

I try to subtly wake up the guard by coughing when i see them sleeping or dozing off. My neighbours are not so forgiving, one of them goes around with his cameras. I once saw their guard commander/boss scolding 1 in the middle of the night as he did a spot check. Never saw that guy again.

[wuqi256]

Thanks Wuqi, Was almost gonna check it out today. But my wife had other ideas.

So maybe wed/thurs i gotta do it.

Great, i hope you can get the mattresses you want/need. For a quick fix for mattresses, there is always Hing Fuat at the Perling side.

[wuqi256]

By the way, the 2 fishing ponds at Perling area have competitions every weekend. Mainly mangrove jacks/ang zo ki (biggest i saw was 3kg plus)

Not bad but most fish with floaters (light sticks)

[whiteoak]

I guess the standard of the security is already much better than Singapore, where they hire grumpy old man in condos as their main gate security guards.

[horizonhills]

Oh u mean that 3 storey semi-d owned by the Perling Photoshop owner? I was told by a neighbour that their renovation alone now exceeds RM 1 million. What the? haha

I had a walk around the park at the Gateway facing the golf course today to inspect on my new purchase along the Golf which faces the golf course and was marvelled by the scenic views once again, that same feeling I got when I visited their showhouse 3 years ago. Only that 3 years ago, the view is breathtaking and now there are houses littering by the edge at the Golf.

I dont think I will regret buying houses in Horizon Hills. Will save enough for future launches.


[QUOTE=horizonhills;700553]

Agreed with that, i once questioned the developer about this, their reason was that when they first came out here, they did a poll and found that most people will make lots of changes to their place, do A&A once they move in and customize to their desire once they purchased. A case in point is a 2.5 storey being converted into a gigantic/gargantuan/behemoth of a place. They started the renovation halfway BEFORE i even purchased and moved in. 2 years on, its finally looking to be 90% complete.

A Semi-D in HH costs 800k 2 years ago, the same one in EL costs a bit more. Both appealed equally to me.

The only reasons i picked HH was:
1. Golf course/Chinese Primary school
2. Its already built and infrastructure/amenities are already there, i can't get my parents "buy in" if they have to drive far to get anything. I will not leave my family especially parents/siblings behind so they factor a lot in my plans.
3. Cheaper as compared to development of the same tier. I could get a Semi-D AND a cluster/terrace (and rent out the extra place)
with enough money to spare for internal works.

[Jogs1]

Anyone know where to get a good quality outdoor/patio furniture?

[Jogs1]

This one is near to Causeway link..

UM Land, Singapore’s Raffles Campus plan RM35m campus in Malaysia
Written by Joseph Chin of theedgemalaysia.com Monday, 18 April 2011 17:46
http://www.theedgemalaysia.com/busin...-malaysia.html

KUALA LUMPUR: UNITED MALAYAN LAND BHD’s unit Seri Alam PROPERTIES Sdn Bhd is teaming up with Singapore’s Raffles Campus Pte Ltd to undertake a RM35 million campus in Iskandar Malaysia.

The MoU, which was signed on Monday, April 18, is to form a joint venture company to build the Raffles International School in Bandar Seri Alam. It will be managed and operated by Raffles as its first campus in Malaysia.

The parties will acquire 15 acres of freehold land within Bandar Seri Alam and develop it into an international school to be tenanted to Raffles on a long term lease.

“The cost of developing the bare campus and land purchase are estimated to be in the region of RM35 million. The development of the campus will span into two or three phases over a four to five year period, with its projected first student intake by end of 2013,” it said.

[Skippy]

Hi Folks,

anyone has got any idea where can buy teak furniture in Jb? No offence, am looking for the darker woody furniture which is more bali style not the malay type. I did check out one over in Indah, limited selections.

Thanks & Cheers...

[wuqi256]

Anyone know where to get a good quality outdoor/patio furniture?

There is a Giant near Tampoi where its next to an Indian Hindu temple. The Giant there has a few selection, mainly made of metal.
Hing Fuat at Perling also has a few.

[fairies]

This one is near to Causeway link..

UM Land, Singapore’s Raffles Campus plan RM35m campus in Malaysia
Written by Joseph Chin of theedgemalaysia.com Monday, 18 April 2011 17:46
http://www.theedgemalaysia.com/busin...-malaysia.html

KUALA LUMPUR: UNITED MALAYAN LAND BHD’s unit Seri Alam PROPERTIES Sdn Bhd is teaming up with Singapore’s Raffles Campus Pte Ltd to undertake a RM35 million campus in Iskandar Malaysia.

The MoU, which was signed on Monday, April 18, is to form a joint venture company to build the Raffles International School in Bandar Seri Alam. It will be managed and operated by Raffles as its first campus in Malaysia.

The parties will acquire 15 acres of freehold land within Bandar Seri Alam and develop it into an international school to be tenanted to Raffles on a long term lease.

“The cost of developing the bare campus and land purchase are estimated to be in the region of RM35 million. The development of the campus will span into two or three phases over a four to five year period, with its projected first student intake by end of 2013,” it said.


Seri Alam? Who are they targetting? I don't see many Singaporeans or expats in that area, not even many upper class Malaysians. Roads and transportation access to Seri Alam is another nightmare

[Jogs1]

There is a Giant near Tampoi where its next to an Indian Hindu temple. The Giant there has a few selection, mainly made of metal.
Hing Fuat at Perling also has a few.

Great! I will go to check this weekend. Tks bro wuqi!

[wuqi256]

The original one that started it all (for me)
http://www.uemland.com/about/UEML-Information-Pack.pdf

Newer
http://www.iskandarmalaysia.com.my/pdf/brochures/Investing_in_Iskandar.pdf
http://www.btimes.com.my/articles/IIB28/Article/

Older - 2008 - 2009

http://www.worldreport-ind.com/pdfs/malaysia1.pdf
http://www.irda.com.my/IRDA_Annual_Report_2008.pdf
http://www.midf.com.my/project/midf/media/2009/08/24/090924-264.pdf

[house]

guys..any opinion about taman laguna in the future?

[wuqi256]

Hi Folks,

anyone has got any idea where can buy teak furniture in Jb? No offence, am looking for the darker woody furniture which is more bali style not the malay type. I did check out one over in Indah, limited selections.

Thanks & Cheers...


The Giant at Skudai, one of the shops near the Giant(near the main road) there are a few.

[wuqi256]

Great! I will go to check this weekend. Tks bro wuqi!

Sure, small matter, hope this works out for you.

[wuqi256]

guys..any opinion about taman laguna in the future?

Good design, ok place, a bit far in though and next to deserted coastal area plus some may not like living next some squatter areas. Still, for nature/seafood lovers, etc its actually a good place.

[vileong]

This will be the fifth university after Uni KL, Mara Uni, Masterskill Uni, HELP Uni. Also new Mara Science Jr. College and Malaysia At School are here. Moreover the Eastern District Police Headquarter is here too (opposite the Japanese Int'l School). Sri Mutiara Apartment have units from 840 sqft to 1680 sqft (starting from RM 150 sqft) available in Bandar Seri Alam. Stay here and use the new highway to CIQ, only 18 mins away. For more info., please contact me at vileong@gmail.com. Be early for this investment

[Skippy]

The Giant at Skudai, one of the shops near the Giant(near the main road) there are a few.

Wow great! I'll go check out this place. Thanks again Wuqi for sharing good lobangs.

Oh yes i was trying to ask previously on the exhaust fixture... any idea if we would to fix such equipment, will the developer void any warranty or will i need to bear full cost since they cover us some kind warranty or defects period. Pls advise.

Cheers

[vileong]

Hi,

The western side of JB is getting too expensive to invest. Look at the eastern side and everntually Desaru (industrial land). There are money to be made. Watch out for news on the 3rd Link via Tg Puteri. This maybe the gateway to Pasir Gudang & Desaru via Senai-Desaru highway and Bandar Seri Alam (City of Knowledge) and LRT/MRT link to JB, Nusajaya, PTP, etc. The property prices there is a fraction of those in Horizaon Hill or Bukit Indah.

[whiteoak]

If you've been to Dubai, you can see what the locals mean by 'Old Dubai' vs 'New Dubai', separated by just one highway, the lifestyle and property are so much different. I guess that is the vision of what Johor will be like in the next century.

And in the next few years to come, if someone wants a property in the 'New Johor', basically everywhere is pretty much the same, weighing the price, proximity to amenities and CIQ. However if someone wants an exclusive property in 'New Johor' with fairway views, proximity and security ..... I guess there's only one place to go ... now that's Horizon Hills' selling point IMHO.

my 2 cents .... don't flame me!

[vileong]

Seri Alam? Who are they targetting? I don't see many Singaporeans or expats in that area, not even many upper class Malaysians. Roads and transportation access to Seri Alam is another nightmare

When there is development, people will come. Universities are major attractions. Specialist Center can use CPF for medical expenses.

Check out the Southern Link Highway from CIQ to Mega Ria/Taman Rinting, connects directly into Bandar Seri Alam. Travel time 18 mins. Need to visit and understand for yourself. Also can check out these links:

http://www.umland.com.my/serialam/alam.htm#
http://www.umland.com.my/serialam/constructionupdate.htm
http://www.oaprealty.com.my/sub.sales.php?keyword=sri+mutiara+apartment&category=All&type=All&location=All&priceFrom=0&priceTo=999999999&search=Search
http://www.fullhouse.com.my/public/pub_building_profile.asp?id=1353
http://www.regencyspecialist.com/
http://www.amansari.my/
http://christineresort.com/

[euphony]

This will be the fifth university after Uni KL, Mara Uni, Masterskill Uni, HELP Uni. Also new Mara Science Jr. College and Malaysia At School are here. Moreover the Eastern District Police Headquarter is here too (opposite the Japanese Int'l School). Sri Mutiara Apartment have units from 840 sqft to 1680 sqft (starting from RM 150 sqft) available in Bandar Seri Alam. Stay here and use the new highway to CIQ, only 18 mins away. For more info., please contact me at vileong@gmail.com. Be early for this investment

i don't know about the rest but to me this reeks of sales pitch and you've obviously registered yourself here with ulterior motives. we've been a fairly harmonious community here giving useful advise and info sharing about living in JB how we overcome obstacles etc. If you want to sell please go somewhere else or at least have the courtesy to contribute something meaningful. And don't even get me started about sri mutiara. All of us here are not vege heads.

[house]

i am undecided on nusa idaman vs taman laguna..... headache when it come to buying a house....

the house that i am looking now - NI -smaller, at center of nusajaya vs laguna , much bigger, at a bit out skirt...

[vileong]

i don't know about the rest but to me this reeks of sales pitch and you've obviously registered yourself here with ulterior motives. we've been a fairly harmonious community here giving useful advise and info sharing about living in JB how we overcome obstacles etc. If you want to sell please go somewhere else or at least have the courtesy to contribute something meaningful. And don't even get me started about sri mutiara. All of us here are not vege heads.

Forum is to share information. I happened to know a lot more about the development in Bandar Seri Alam. Most friends asked me about Iskandar project. It took me a while to fully understand it's potential. This place is just one part out of the 5 zones that will be developed. You can get much info from Google but it will easier if some links are given directly. Many friends are afraid to visit JB, how many really dare to stay here but things are changing. Behaviour is important, don't be the target. Peace....

[fairies]

i am undecided on nusa idaman vs taman laguna..... headache when it come to buying a house....

the house that i am looking now - NI -smaller, at center of nusajaya vs laguna , much bigger, at a bit out skirt...

I have a friend staying in taman laguna ... currently little bit out of the way ... but once the coastal highway is ready hopefully by end this year, the taman laguna folks will be smiling for they are in the middle between CIQ1 and CIQ2 ... less than 15 min to either

price said to be picking up steadily there, but rumours have it that it will shoot up when coastal highway is open

[vileong]

Hi Folks,

anyone has got any idea where can buy teak furniture in Jb? No offence, am looking for the darker woody furniture which is more bali style not the malay type. I did check out one over in Indah, limited selections.

Thanks & Cheers...

There are 2 furniture shops inside the compound where the Nissan and Huydai workshops are, in Johor Jaya. I feel quite expensive.

[whiteoak]

Irritating making decisions isn't it! Crappy place at a nice location, or a nice place at a crappy location ..... Grrrrrrr!

[euphony]

If you've been to Dubai, you can see what the locals mean by 'Old Dubai' vs 'New Dubai', separated by just one highway, the lifestyle and property are so much different. I guess that is the vision of what Johor will be like in the next century.

And in the next few years to come, if someone wants a property in the 'New Johor', basically everywhere is pretty much the same, weighing the price, proximity to amenities and CIQ. However if someone wants an exclusive property in 'New Johor' with fairway views, proximity and security ..... I guess there's only one place to go ... now that's Horizon Hills' selling point IMHO.

my 2 cents .... don't flame me!


Irritating making decisions isn't it! Crappy place at a nice location, or a nice place at a crappy location ..... Grrrrrrr!



i am undecided on nusa idaman vs taman laguna..... headache when it come to buying a house....

the house that i am looking now - NI -smaller, at center of nusajaya vs laguna , much bigger, at a bit out skirt...

Erm whiteoak gentle note: self moderate your comments lo, sounds a bit condescending if you don't mind me saying. I don't think you should put down other developments like that, remember one man's poison another man's house. No development is perfect not even horizon hills that you're so fond of.

house: well distance is relative really especially if you drive will negate the difference. NI is closer to the hypermarts definitely + 2nd link and Laguna is closer to danga, 1st link, if I am not wrong the US-based Chelsea Premium Outlets chain and will be enjoying good access to coastal highway which will be up real soon. I guess the crux of the matter is the house itself really. When you step into the house how you feel about it that's the most important especially if you're buying to stay unless you can afford the extra cash to do major renovations to your liking (buying to invest is a different ball game altogether). Between the 2 if both are equally good. The next thing is general safety (some people place this as 1st priority) and then other factors. One has water elements the other has hills. Hope you find your dream home and paradise!

[horizonhills]

Laguna is much larger in terms of size.. I have visited their showroom and the parking space is huge too. Its quite convenient though if u are using causeway and 2nd link but I wont choose laguna for investment as its a pretty decent place to stay but probably not invest. It is a good place for family stay I would say. Dont have the WOW factor in Horizon Hills.

But the quality/finishing are definitely much better than HH though


i am undecided on nusa idaman vs taman laguna..... headache when it come to buying a house....

the house that i am looking now - NI -smaller, at center of nusajaya vs laguna , much bigger, at a bit out skirt...

[horizonhills]

I kind of agree with you. Lets do keep this place for sharing, not for sales pitch and cheap advertising. This aint 88DB or Mocca


i don't know about the rest but to me this reeks of sales pitch and you've obviously registered yourself here with ulterior motives. we've been a fairly harmonious community here giving useful advise and info sharing about living in JB how we overcome obstacles etc. If you want to sell please go somewhere else or at least have the courtesy to contribute something meaningful. And don't even get me started about sri mutiara. All of us here are not vege heads.

[rw6akr]

If you've been to Dubai, you can see what the locals mean by 'Old Dubai' vs 'New Dubai', separated by just one highway, the lifestyle and property are so much different. I guess that is the vision of what Johor will be like in the next century.
The important thing is that in Dubai they have built much more private properties than number of residents and that created a bubble as most of those were sold as a speculative investment.

Hope we wouldn't experience something like that in IDR.

[wuqi256]

i am undecided on nusa idaman vs taman laguna..... headache when it come to buying a house....

the house that i am looking now - NI -smaller, at center of nusajaya vs laguna , much bigger, at a bit out skirt...

House, i would suggest NI or Nusa Duta rather than Laguna. :)
My humble 2 cents view.

[wuqi256]

This will be the fifth university after Uni KL, Mara Uni, Masterskill Uni, HELP Uni. Also new Mara Science Jr. College and Malaysia At School are here. Moreover the Eastern District Police Headquarter is here too (opposite the Japanese Int'l School). Sri Mutiara Apartment have units from 840 sqft to 1680 sqft (starting from RM 150 sqft) available in Bandar Seri Alam. Stay here and use the new highway to CIQ, only 18 mins away. For more info., please contact me at vileong@gmail.com. Be early for this investment

Thanks for sharing but this really smells of a sales pitch, please help to keep this thread commercial free. :D

[wuqi256]

Wow great! I'll go check out this place. Thanks again Wuqi for sharing good lobangs.

Oh yes i was trying to ask previously on the exhaust fixture... any idea if we would to fix such equipment, will the developer void any warranty or will i need to bear full cost since they cover us some kind warranty or defects period. Pls advise.

Cheers

Sure, don't mention, i am glad to help any little way i can. Exhaust fans internally will not as i have installed these and other devices in my little roof without voiding any.

Antennas/Astro on the other hand will, so i would advise against installing antenna until after the warranty is over at least . Best alternative is to install Astro at the 2nd floor balcony area(at the edge) or in somewhere unobtrusive and not on the roof tiles(i know, not much options at times)

[wuqi256]

Laguna is much larger in terms of size.. I have visited their showroom and the parking space is huge too. Its quite convenient though if u are using causeway and 2nd link but I wont choose laguna for investment as its a pretty decent place to stay but probably not invest. It is a good place for family stay I would say. Dont have the WOW factor in Horizon Hills.

But the quality/finishing are definitely much better than HH though

Agree, 2 of my neighbours and myself would pick the design ANY DAY. Definitely better than HH and in some ways, even better than EL even.

Its a good place to stay certainly (except the edges near to the side road) but its saving grace is at least although it has some weak fencing it has good multi layered concertina wire and lots of cameras along the edges. I did a couple of tests at night, security wise is actually not that bad but its just the neighbourhood may not be too appealing to some.

G&G (Gated & Guarded) properties still seems to be the way to go, at least there is security, passive security features like fences, barbed wires rather than none.

[wuqi256]

[QUOTE=euphony;700987]Erm whiteoak gentle note: self moderate your comments lo, sounds a bit condescending if you don't mind me saying. I don't think you should put down other developments like that, remember one man's poison another man's house. No development is perfect not even horizon hills that you're so fond of.

Agree, there are no perfect place, neither HH nor EL. Then again, there is no one perfect place (perharps heaven?) Everything has its pros and cons and the degree of compromise or factors that we must face when we pick one.

[wuqi256]

I guess the standard of the security is already much better than Singapore, where they hire grumpy old man in condos as their main gate security guards.

We are lucky to get grumpy old men, the worse is to get sleeping old men.
I know of guards who think its part of their job scope/ duty to sleep back
when i was in SG.

[wuqi256]

My 2 cents inline:


Hi euphony and wuqi256,

Thanks for the welcome!

Will check out Streamyx. Like bro euphony, can't live without a good internet connection! :P

Realize there are couple of things I need to sort out:
1. Water filter

An Osim one would do very nicely at key taps. Don't need to buy those external ones unless you really need filtered water for your garden hose or your toilet bowl

2. Refrigerator (Looking at Panasonic)

Panasonic is good. There is an electronic store in Perling mall, 1st floor. It costs about 980 RM for a pretty nice Samsung one. Panasonic costs around there as well, cannot go far wrong with Panasonic.

3. MY credit card (probably MayBank)

Have you considered CIMB as well?

4. Hydraulic car jack (DIY car maintenance :))
etc.

Good idea, Tesco has some. They also have tyre repair kits (less than 16 RM) and 12v dc pumps (less than 30 RM) to inflat your tyre should you need to.
So for less than RM 50, you have some mighty good insurance against flats. You can also use the better ones (that show correctly the pressure) to inflate
your tyres to the desired pressure so you don't have to visit a gas station(especially if you want to head out somewhere far and its late at night).

Tyre pressure is very important to get the proper mileage and to prevent tyre blow out(under inflated tyres would cause this quite easily at high speed and over long distances)

[wuqi256]

Also, Tesco has good towing cables, fire extinguishers for cheap. I have all these plus solar charger for my cars batteries (cigarette lighter type) in case i need to travel and won't use them much. Jusco in Tebrau city has the highest amps jumpstart cables that i have seen so far that you don't have to visit a mechanic to customize. 1000amp, normally 400 is ok but depends on the type of vehicles you have.

[wuqi256]

The important thing is that in Dubai they have built much more private properties than number of residents and that created a bubble as most of those were sold as a speculative investment.

Hope we wouldn't experience something like that in IDR.

Dubai doesn't have much land scarce neighbours who:
1. Lacks space 2. Who is also keen to share development 3. Send its people over there to retire/leisure.

[wuqi256]

i went to the homefair at persada. got the adt systems for $299rm with free motion sensor, keypad, door contacts and siren. mthly $75rm for 3 years contract.

Thanks for sharing, that sounds like a good and sound investment. I have a neighbour who installed those very bad ones though which will sound off every single time some one lets off a firework or when a heavy vehicle drives by it seems.

[wuqi256]

For those just moving in:

Do remember to check your water meter and fuses for TNB and quickly report prior to moving in/renovation. That way, you won't be charged additional in case someone used your water(not that it really matters) or most importantly, stole your water meter. Most contractors know what to do to get temporary power if your fuse is stolen and they can still continue to renovate your house.

Water wise they can't do much if its connected yet so be prepared for smelly toilets, delayed construction.

Hence power and water is very important prior to renovation. Once you have the basics, the rest will be much easier. Also, have a broom and dustpan for them to clean up after.

[avalon74]

hope everything goes smoothly for you as you make the transition. tell us more about setia eco living there etc if you could when the time comes. =)

Thanks.. one interesting thing for me is that I somehow gotten the contact numbers of my neighbours in JB even before renovation starts, however I do not have contact number for my neighbours in SIN even after staying 7 yrs in the existing flat..

[avalon74]

Congratulations avalon74.

Thank you for having followed this thread and once again we thank Wuqi for having spent a considerable amount of his spare time to keep this thread active, relevant and hot.

I am at Setia Tropika. Care to share with us your Setia Eco Garden experience?

How is the place? ST design or different? Got shops inside/around it etc?

welcome again.

Hi Prof,
Agreed that this forum is definately useful to many.. esp with all the valued comments/contributions from everyone..

Amongst the 4 developments in Johor under Setia, think Eco Garden was the most affordable at that point in time.. The design is fairly plain but i like things simple as well..:) The latest in ST has covered carpark even:cool:

For shops, Setia said that they intend to discuss with operators when there is sufficient critical mass of residents so nothing as yet.. however a drive of 10 mins will bring me to Aeon Bukit Indah which is good enough for me..

With regards to what Wuqi mentioned on the walls, think it may be a problem for the single storey units as I checked the walls are fairly ok for my unit..

Cheers

[mallow]

Also, Tesco has good towing cables, fire extinguishers for cheap. I have all these plus solar charger for my cars batteries (cigarette lighter type) in case i need to travel and won't use them much. Jusco in Tebrau city has the highest amps jumpstart cables that i have seen so far that you don't have to visit a mechanic to customize. 1000amp, normally 400 is ok but depends on the type of vehicles you have.

Hi Wuqi
Some neighbours complained that they had installed anti-surge plugs because they had a few bad experiences with appliances that had been damaged beyond repair by power surges. They paid RM$75 per unit.
I have not suffered this problem at all, and on checking on Amazon, some anti-surge devices were as affordable as US$9 each. Do you or anyone else reading this have any bad experience with power surges and damaged appliances? The lower US device price is ok, but is it being over-cautious? Appreciate some opinions.

[LeMans2011]

i am undecided on nusa idaman vs taman laguna..... headache when it come to buying a house....

the house that i am looking now - NI -smaller, at center of nusajaya vs laguna , much bigger, at a bit out skirt...

Hey, go for NI. I know the coastal link brings taman laguna closer to civilization but really... it is nestled within a kampong... too far off

[wuqi256]

Hi Wuqi
Some neighbours complained that they had installed anti-surge plugs because they had a few bad experiences with appliances that had been damaged beyond repair by power surges. They paid RM$75 per unit.
I have not suffered this problem at all, and on checking on Amazon, some anti-surge devices were as affordable as US$9 each. Do you or anyone else reading this have any bad experience with power surges and damaged appliances? The lower US device price is ok, but is it being over-cautious? Appreciate some opinions.


Hi Mallow, for landed properties, you might get this more. I invested in UPS units about 200-300 plus each that gives me power surge protection as well as standby in case of power trip. Not really so far, except maybe thunderstorms when we get a trip but so far tv, APs, printers, laptops are all ok. Might be worthwhile to get a cheap one for the critical devices as well as one for the ADSL modem.

[vincentck]

Hi, quick question. I'm in BKK now; just saw a taser with a LED torchlight selling for 650 baht, before negotiation. Should I buy it? To keep in the NI house as a future safety device against intruders. Also, if i buy, what r the chances I'll be stopped at Changi customs? Thanks.

[wuqi256]

Hi, quick question. I'm in BKK now; just saw a taser with a LED torchlight selling for 650 baht, before negotiation. Should I buy it? To keep in the NI house as a future safety device against intruders. Also, if i buy, what r the chances I'll be stopped at Changi customs? Thanks.

Don't buy, very likely you won't need it. There are lots of things you can buy over in JB for self protection. There is always a chance as they are quite strict with the scanning, etc. Don't risk it as there are other alternatives.

[mallow]

Hi, quick question. I'm in BKK now; just saw a taser with a LED torchlight selling for 650 baht, before negotiation. Should I buy it? To keep in the NI house as a future safety device against intruders. Also, if i buy, what r the chances I'll be stopped at Changi customs? Thanks.

Don't buy, very likely you won't need it. There are lots of things you can buy over in JB for self protection. There is always a chance as they are quite strict with the scanning, etc. Don't risk it as there are other alternatives.
While you are probably right Wuqi, and "If you live by the sword you will die by the sword", the bad news is that some tasers have already made their way into Malaysia and are apparently in use by the triads.
From my personal experience, you would need to have immediate access to any weapon and be well trained how to use it - and it should not be first available to an intruder while you are groggily waking up.
Vigilance, all sensible actions and precautions, top quality security ... necessities in our adopted land where these are totally worth implementing against the superb benefits enjoyed.

[horizonhills]

I plan to fill up the drains at the backyard and carpark pouch with floor tiles so that kids wont accidentally fall into the drain.. anyone got any nice contact?

[wuqi256]

I plan to fill up the drains at the backyard and carpark pouch with floor tiles so that kids wont accidentally fall into the drain.. anyone got any nice contact?

I would suggest Mr Liew at: +60197310958, he is pretty ok.

[wuqi256]

Hi, quick question. I'm in BKK now; just saw a taser with a LED torchlight selling for 650 baht, before negotiation. Should I buy it? To keep in the NI house as a future safety device against intruders. Also, if i buy, what r the chances I'll be stopped at Changi customs? Thanks.

While you are probably right Wuqi, and "If you live by the sword you will die by the sword", the bad news is that some tasers have already made their way into Malaysia and are apparently in use by the triads.
From my personal experience, you would need to have immediate access to any weapon and be well trained how to use it - and it should not be first available to an intruder while you are groggily waking up.
Vigilance, all sensible actions and precautions, top quality security ... necessities in our adopted land where these are totally worth implementing against the superb benefits enjoyed.

Yes it is but so far i haven't seen it although i know it was sold here in fact some time back. Its good to equip yourself with stuff though.
Bestmart, there is a supermarket inside which sells good stuff. I saw a kukri there once. There are also other places where you can get telescopic batons, etc.
The tasers they have are the handheld types that must be held close to you

[toyohon]

Got this from another forum -


Will they be using this dated blueprint???
http://www.iskandarmalaysia.com.my/pdf/cdp/19._Chapter16_-_Transit_Oriented_Development.pdf

[austin_hts]

echanbonfire01 :

Hi, I have installed ADT at my Austin Hts home. RM75 per mth for three years. Up front charges about RM2K+. V happy with the service so far (since Jan 11). I have a mixture of vibration & contact sensors (for windows/sliding doors) + 2 montion sensors + 1 smoke sensor. Two keypad units (one at ground flr main door, one in 1st flr master bedroom). Keypad allows different messages to be sent to the call centre, eg medical, fire, intrusion emergency ..etc There is backup battery and I am using sim card system - so no worry for power failure or telephone line cut-off.

Response from the call centre is very fast (less than 10 secs)- based on a few false alarms (accidental activitation on our own) I have experienced so far.

My system was activitated on a few occasions when there were strong vibrations from my neighbour's renovation work. The alarm went on for about 15 mins and remained active after which. ADT will help monitor the situation. If alarm is triggered by both contact/vibration and motion sensor(in the house), then there is likely to be intrusion and the police can be called in.

I did not install grills. But the system gives me peace of mind.


Exchange Rates :
19 Apr 11 (lunch time) - Funan RM2.40, Chinatown RM2.402, Arcade RM2.406
19 Apr 11 (830 pm) - opposite Plaza Pelangi RM2.41



Hope we can get this moving - Restaurants / Eateries :

1. Meng Meng Roasted Duck, Taman Mount Austin. New branch open recently. Great mix plate (duck, pork, char siew - RM9 per pax. Big portions RM18 good for 3 pax) and a variety of herbal soups.

2. Zhi Char (Hong Ming Food Services), Setia Indah. Very popular, clean and good food. Tel : 012-7187782. On weekends, popular dishes (eg crabs) are sold out by 9pm.

3. 007 food centre, Setia Indah. Great hawker centre with Karaoke stage. Bring yr own DVD from 7pm onwards. Performances later in the night. BBQ, ngoh hiang, clay pot dishes, frog leg porridge (fantastic), satay. There is also a DVD stall (RM4 per disc - buy three get one free)



Btw, I have made a deposit for a link house at The Hills over the weekend - officially a HH member. Very exicted with the developments in JB !

Cheers.

[house]

Hey, go for NI. I know the coastal link brings taman laguna closer to civilization but really... it is nestled within a kampong... too far off


Laguna is much larger in terms of size.. I have visited their showroom and the parking space is huge too. Its quite convenient though if u are using causeway and 2nd link but I wont choose laguna for investment as its a pretty decent place to stay but probably not invest. It is a good place for family stay I would say. Dont have the WOW factor in Horizon Hills.

But the quality/finishing are definitely much better than HH though


House, i would suggest NI or Nusa Duta rather than Laguna. :)
My humble 2 cents view.


Agree, 2 of my neighbours and myself would pick the design ANY DAY. Definitely better than HH and in some ways, even better than EL even.

Its a good place to stay certainly (except the edges near to the side road) but its saving grace is at least although it has some weak fencing it has good multi layered concertina wire and lots of cameras along the edges. I did a couple of tests at night, security wise is actually not that bad but its just the neighbourhood may not be too appealing to some.

G&G (Gated & Guarded) properties still seems to be the way to go, at least there is security, passive security features like fences, barbed wires rather than none.


Good design, ok place, a bit far in though and next to deserted coastal area plus some may not like living next some squatter areas. Still, for nature/seafood lovers, etc its actually a good place.


I have a friend staying in taman laguna ... currently little bit out of the way ... but once the coastal highway is ready hopefully by end this year, the taman laguna folks will be smiling for they are in the middle between CIQ1 and CIQ2 ... less than 15 min to either

price said to be picking up steadily there, but rumours have it that it will shoot up when coastal highway is open

Thanks guys... appreciate for the feedback....

Taman laguna
- security good - cctv all the corner and guard looks impressive and cheap maintenance fee
- v big unit which not much other area provide the same space/ built up area as other development getting smaller and smaller...
- a bit inside and not developed at surrounding area in between danga bay & kota iskandar
- location good for woodland custom or 2nd link with the coastal highway (mostly will shoot up when coastal highway open)
- i got quite a number of family members so the bigger the better.
- more local family in the garden.
- away from amenities.
- need to go through a malay kampung to reach the garden.
- higher entry cost- all loan, lawyer fees not free + higher downpayment.

Its really pro and cons..... nothing is perfect. headache headache.....

[horizonhills]

I have been getting RM 2.412 consistently for Monday and Tuesday.. Not sure if the rate is still the same today. Nusa bestari money changer is where I recommend.

[jasonjst]

hello bros,
Is it true that Singaporean need to pay 20% levy to buy ppty ? Which mean if house is 500K , levy is 100K ? Two years ago when I bought my house in Sutera it was only 10K leh :) ...

(Got this info fr Yahoo forum : -
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/malaysian-metropolis-taking-shape-near-singapore-20110417-154530-833.html )

BTW very disguested that these bastards keep on talking bad thingy about JB , yet they go in doves to shop and pump petrol in JB almost every weekend and cause such a big jam for us !

[Analytical Professor]

Who u referring to ah?


hello bros,

BTW very disguested that these bastards keep on talking bad thingy about JB , yet they go in doves to shop and pump petrol in JB almost every weekend and cause such a big jam for us !

[Analytical Professor]

Traffic snarls at the Causeway will begin to build up tomorrow right. (Hopefully not today)

For me i will go in on Friday afternoon/evening.

LEts see how ICA and the malaysian immigration handle the traffic during the long week end.

[Analytical Professor]

From what i know its still 10k


hello bros,
Is it true that Singaporean need to pay 20% levy to buy ppty ? Which mean if house is 500K , levy is 100K ? Two years ago when I bought my house in Sutera it was only 10K leh :) ...

[jasonjst]

Who u referring to ah?

Talking about those people who comments at yahoo forum ...

[horizonhills]

Hi Jason,

The levy is still RM 10k.. I just got a semi d at the Golf last month and its RM 10k.. no increase

Hows the development over at Sutera? Any new launches? I used to drop by Sutera One a few times a year to admire the Cotina and the 3 storey semis. Indeed the price has shot up beyond control. Used to be RM 700k and now even normal terraces at the Hills at HH are launching at RM 750K. Sweat

For those keen on money rates, today ( 20 apr ) I change RM 2.415!! Highest this year I think


Talking about those people who comments at yahoo forum ...

[Serenity]

Wonder any one here can help.

If Singaporean already own a property in Johor and subsequently purchase another, would one need to go through State Consent again and pay the RM12,000? Or, if Singaporean buy 2 properties in a project at one go, does one need 2 State consent and pay RM24,000

[austin_hts]

Title : Singapore, Malaysia to reduce mobile roaming rates from May 1
Date : 20 April 2011 1534 hrs (SST)
URL : http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/123888/1/.html

SINGAPORE: Singapore and Malaysia will gradually reduce mobile roaming charges between both countries from May 1.

This means mobile phone users in Singapore will pay up to 30 per cent less for voice calls and up to 50 per cent less for SMSes when in Malaysia.

This is according to the Infocomm Development Authority (IDA), which added that it will be cheaper to call and SMS across the causeway.

IDA's director general, Leong Keng Thai said: "When Singaporean consumers travel to Malaysia, they will have a lower bill, or they can make more calls; longer calls, send more smses, without having to worry about high roaming charges."

He added that traditionally, roaming charges have been high and there is even more room for it to be lowered.

The reduction came about after a meeting of ASEAN's Information and Telecommunication Ministers in 2008, where they agree to initiate a study on intra-ASEAN roaming changes.

IDA said the new price reductions will be implemented in two phases.

From May this year, incoming and outgoing voice calls will be cheaper by 20 per cent, and in total will be cheaper by 30 per cent in May next year.

Similarly, SMSes will be cheaper by 30 per cent in May this year, and up to 50 per cent in May next year.

Analysts say consumers generally welcome the move and can look forward to other reductions with ASEAN countries; whom IDA are in talks with.

However, for mobile operators, the lowered roaming charges mean they will be seeing a loss in both retail takings and also from inter-operator tariffs.

Research house Synovate has also released a study, saying most retail roaming charges in Asean are significantly higher than local substitutes for calling home, which it attributed to high inter-operator tariffs.

Such tariffs are a wholesale amount payable by a mobile operator to another when they use their network - for example, when SingTel make use of Malaysia's Celcom's network for their subscribers to make calls or SMSes.

But, IDA's Mr Leong said, "Of course there is a reduction in terms of retail revenue for the operators, but we believe that when consumers find it more competitive to use roaming services, they might generate more traffic in terms of more calls or longer calls whenever they go to Malaysia and vice versa when Malaysians come to Singapore."

Meanwhile, for data roaming charges, IDA said Singapore and Malaysia are still in discussion, while not revealing a timeline.

The government body added that the charging formula for data roaming is more complex than voice and SMS rates and the details need to be iron out.

But if it comes through, it means consumers can tweet across the causeway in the future.

Malaysia is the biggest roaming market for Singaporeans, with bilateral talktime back and froth between both countries amounting to 100 million minutes in 2008.

- AFP/fa

[jasonjst]

Sutera curent launch is Estoria , terace 24x80 size should be about 720K , also The Seed which is condo units and townhouse .
This place is not bad too , we got very friendly neighbours . Was suprise to receive a bundle of bananas from their garden last weekend while I was there :)

[euphony]

Btw, I have made a deposit for a link house at The Hills over the weekend - officially a HH member. Very exicted with the developments in JB !

Cheers.

Congrats! I wonder how many properties did all of us here snapped up just from this forum alone? hurhur. is it an investment property or planning to shift into?

[Avonup]

Hi, I am interested in MM2H program. Does anyone know of any reliable agent and the charges?

[echanbonfire01]

echanbonfire01 :


Hi, I have installed ADT at my Austin Hts home. RM75 per mth for three years. Up front charges about RM2K+. V happy with the service so far (since Jan 11). I have a mixture of vibration & contact sensors (for windows/sliding doors) + 2 montion sensors + 1 smoke sensor. Two keypad units (one at ground flr main door, one in 1st flr master bedroom). Keypad allows different messages to be sent to the call centre, eg medical, fire, intrusion emergency ..etc There is backup battery and I am using sim card system - so no worry for power failure or telephone line cut-off.

Response from the call centre is very fast (less than 10 secs)- based on a few false alarms (accidental activitation on our own) I have experienced so far.

My system was activitated on a few occasions when there were strong vibrations from my neighbour's renovation work. The alarm went on for about 15 mins and remained active after which. ADT will help monitor the situation. If alarm is triggered by both contact/vibration and motion sensor(in the house), then there is likely to be intrusion and the police can be called in.

I did not install grills. But the system gives me peace of mind.


Exchange Rates :
19 Apr 11 (lunch time) - Funan RM2.40, Chinatown RM2.402, Arcade RM2.406
19 Apr 11 (830 pm) - opposite Plaza Pelangi RM2.41



Hope we can get this moving - Restaurants / Eateries :

1. Meng Meng Roasted Duck, Taman Mount Austin. New branch open recently. Great mix plate (duck, pork, char siew - RM9 per pax. Big portions RM18 good for 3 pax) and a variety of herbal soups.

2. Zhi Char (Hong Ming Food Services), Setia Indah. Very popular, clean and good food. Tel : 012-7187782. On weekends, popular dishes (eg crabs) are sold out by 9pm.

3. 007 food centre, Setia Indah. Great hawker centre with Karaoke stage. Bring yr own DVD from 7pm onwards. Performances later in the night. BBQ, ngoh hiang, clay pot dishes, frog leg porridge (fantastic), satay. There is also a DVD stall (RM4 per disc - buy three get one free)



Btw, I have made a deposit for a link house at The Hills over the weekend - officially a HH member. Very exicted with the developments in JB !

Cheers.

thanks for sharing. Whats the rm2k+ up front charges for?

[LeMans2011]

Forum is to share information. I happened to know a lot more about the development in Bandar Seri Alam. Most friends asked me about Iskandar project. It took me a while to fully understand it's potential. This place is just one part out of the 5 zones that will be developed. You can get much info from Google but it will easier if some links are given directly. Many friends are afraid to visit JB, how many really dare to stay here but things are changing. Behaviour is important, don't be the target. Peace....

Johor is a very big state. Every zone is touting to be a high potential development zone, which is not necessarily wrong. The only trouble is, in terms of attractiveness as a place to stay, Bandar Seri Alam is likely to rank behind many other areas, and what makes it stand out? I would anytime choose Permas Jaya before i think about Bandar Seri Alam, or be it Bandar Datuk Onn, Taman Molek, Adda Heights, etc

[LeMans2011]

Thanks guys... appreciate for the feedback....

Taman laguna
- security good - cctv all the corner and guard looks impressive and cheap maintenance fee
- v big unit which not much other area provide the same space/ built up area as other development getting smaller and smaller...
- a bit inside and not developed at surrounding area in between danga bay & kota iskandar
- location good for woodland custom or 2nd link with the coastal highway (mostly will shoot up when coastal highway open)
- i got quite a number of family members so the bigger the better.
- more local family in the garden.
- away from amenities.
- need to go through a malay kampung to reach the garden.
- higher entry cost- all loan, lawyer fees not free + higher downpayment.

Its really pro and cons..... nothing is perfect. headache headache.....

House,

That's a good summary. Btw, i think the houses at Taman Laguna will be built at the area further in, closer to the water tank tower, do get a better idea of the exact location should you decide to buy. The sales also loves to highlight the fact that although this is a private company, the land is fully paid for. So do bear in mind this is a company even lesser known than the likes of KSL, IJM Land, etc and you will have to deal with a developer who might be less concerned with publicity.

The other point is, whilst the coastal highway connects Taman Laguna to JB city, you have very little amenities in the immediate surrounding. To get to Perling or Bukit Indah, you will have to drive through the kampong, passing by Taman Baiduri, etc. Hence this might be a concern should you need to commute at night.

Obviously where they lack in location, they make up for it with very generous built-up space. However, i find the design rather old fashion... the double volume ceiling does not really bring out the beauty of such design, compared to places like Impian Heights or Straits View Residences. I dislike the long corridor upstairs.

Hey, i'm playing devils's advocate. After all these negative comments, if your heart still goes for it, you should not hesitate. Property investment is never about right or wrong but risk appetite.

[Analytical Professor]

Please share more ideas and thoughts on the Eastern side of JB.

I am keen to know about the 3rd link as well. I am very certain that the 3rd link will happen some time in the future.

It connects to Changi? OR which part of Spore does it connect to?

Now my question lets say the property prices there are a fraction of the Nusajaya side but the Rm 500k still remains. Right? So unless you are looking for huge land what difference will it make?

Please share more info bro. But please do not advertise cause this thread is for IM or JB or NusaJaya but nothing to do with advertising properties.


Hi,

The western side of JB is getting too expensive to invest. Look at the eastern side and everntually Desaru (industrial land). There are money to be made. Watch out for news on the 3rd Link via Tg Puteri. This maybe the gateway to Pasir Gudang & Desaru via Senai-Desaru highway and Bandar Seri Alam (City of Knowledge) and LRT/MRT link to JB, Nusajaya, PTP, etc. The property prices there is a fraction of those in Horizaon Hill or Bukit Indah.

[Analytical Professor]

Jasonjst you referring to this post???

S'porean driver chased by 20 road bullies in JB

A SINGAPORE-REGISTERED car was smashed by a group of men in Johor Baru early Sunday morning because he had failed to give way to a Malaysia-registered car.

In a contribution to citizen journalism website, Stomp, the driver of the Singapore car said that his car was chased by two Malaysian cars and at least 10 motorcycles that night.

The incident occurred at Stulang Laut (the ZON), a popular destination for Singaporeans, at around 3am.

Car smashed by JB road bullies
Click on thumbnail to view. Story continues after photos. (Photos: Stomp)



He claims that the attack started from a misunderstanding due to his failure to give way to a red Malaysian car that emerged from a small lane.

"I had proceeded following behind the car in front of me and shortly, trouble came. My car was stopped by another man at the gate of the ZON," wrote the driver, who is a frequent visitor to JB.

According to him, the passengers in the red car rushed to his door and smashed the window with their fists. He also saw a man with a steering wheel lock.

"I quickly drove off and soon, I saw more people chasing after my car. These were people on motorcycles and everything turned chaotic," he added.

The attack happened all the way from Stulang Laut to the JB customs. Throughout the entire time, helmets were being thrown at his car and the two cars attempted to corner him sveral times.

Related stories

Car windows smashed in JB, same items stolen


Carjacking ploy: Beware of newspaper strewn on M'sian roads
As the driver drove into the JB customs to seek protection from the police, he said that they followed him all the way and carried on smashing the car.

Police officers managed to get him and two of his friends out of the car but the attackers carried on smashing the car and even jumped onto the roof.

According to the driver, about 20 men attacked his car that night. He later found out that nine had been arrested by the Malaysian police. Three 15-year-olds were among the group.

The contributor said that he wanted to warn fellow drivers that JB is "totally not safe at all we are always the vulnerable victims".

[Analytical Professor]

S'pore and M'sia to reduce mobile roaming rates
AsiaOne Wed, Apr 20, 2011

MOBILE roaming rates will be reduced for Singapore and Malaysia mobile phone subscribers when they use the service while travelling betewen the two countries.

Prices for voice calls and SMSes will be reduced by up to 30 per cent and 50 per cent respectively from May 1.

This does not apply to roaming data service, MMSes and video calls, as telecom regulators in Singapore and Malaysia are still reviewing the charges.

The price reductions will be implemented in two phases for both prepaid and postpaid subscribers.

This was announced today after telecom regulators Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) and the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) concluded discussions to reduce roaming rates.

"This is a significant effort for Malaysia and Singapore as it marks the close cooperation between our two countries. It is also the first bilateral cooperation to reduce roaming charges within ASEAN and paves the way for other similar efforts among ASEAN countries," said Dr Rais Yatim, Malaysia's Minister of Information, Communications and Culture.

Mr Lui Tuck Yew, Singapore's Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, said that he hoped to see regulators on both sides "continue to identify new initiatives to enhance connectivity between Singapore and Malaysia".

He also applauded the commitment of mobile operators for this endeavour which will help promote greater communication linkages between the countries.

Example of reduced rates in Singapore-Malaysia roaming rates from 2011 to 2012:

http://www.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne%2BNews/Singapore/Story/A1Story20110420-274697.html

[contra]

New Malaysian metropolis taking shape near Singapore

By Martin Abbugao | AFP News – Mon, Apr 18, 2011 6:45 AM SGT

A new metropolis three times the size of neighbouring Singapore is taking shape in the foothills of southern Malaysia, where officials and investors have equally huge ambitions for the city.
Dust billows across the horizon as sun-scorched construction crews lay roads, drainage canals, street lamps, power stations and other key installations for a development known as Iskandar Malaysia.
Rolling terrain once covered with palm oil plantations and bush has been bulldozed to make way for theme parks, luxury homes, international schools, hotels, hospitals, a movie studio and a business district by 2025.
In short, a new Singapore is being built in an area covering 2,217 square kilometres (887 square miles) in Johor state.
Iskandar, one of five "economic growth corridors" Malaysia is developing, was launched in 2006 and will integrate existing towns, seaports and an airport with the new projects being built from scratch.
But instead of pitting it as a rival to the rich city-state, Malaysia is asking Singapore investors to take part in the project.
"We see ourselves as collaborating because both countries realise that in order to create more wealth and better distribution of the wealth, we need each other," said Ismail Ibrahim, chief executive of the Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA).
"Investors see Iskandar as something that is believable, something that is working," he told AFP.
From his 33rd-floor office in Singapore's financial district, Keith Martin exuded the same optimism.
"It's really positive that the momentum is picking up massively," said Martin, chief executive of Global Capital and Development (GCD), an Abu Dhabi-backed consortium tasked to develop a prime portion of Iskandar called Medini.
"Our strategic advantage is to ride the wave of Singapore. Singapore is all grown up and lacking space to build, business costs are escalating," he said.
Asia's strong recovery from the 2008-2009 global recession and the improved bilateral ties between Singapore and Malaysia have made the environment more conducive to promote the Iskandar region to investors, analysts said.
Singapore was ejected from the Malaysian federation in 1965 and ties since then were often testy, but new leaders who have emerged over the past decade have made an effort to promote cooperation and resolve irritants.
Because of its size, Iskandar -- which covers Johor state's capital Johor Bahru -- will be developed in phases, with plans to improve rail, sea and air connections to Singapore and facilitate easier immigration clearance.
Malaysia is offering generous incentives, including corporate and personal income tax perks, 100 percent foreign ownership of businesses and unrestricted hiring of foreign "knowledge" workers.
IRDA's Ismail said investor concerns over crime in Malaysia were being addressed by a strong police presence, more guards, surveillance cameras and creative urban planning.
Investor response has been encouraging so far, and the first wave of projects aimed at spurring more investment are due for completion in the next 18 months.
"I've been there with my muddy boots on and I've got my construction knowledge so they can't fool me on the progress," Martin, a veteran of Asia's construction business, said when asked if the development was on track.
By the end of 2010, investment commitments in Iskandar totalled 69.5 billion ringgit ($23 billion), surpassing its target by 48 percent, with more than 40 percent coming from overseas, Ismail said.
The US-based Chelsea Premium Outlets chain -- known for no-frills suburban shops selling luxury brands at discounted prices worldwide -- will open an outlet in the Iskandar region in November.
Britain's Newcastle University Medical School -- one of six universities in Iskandar's planned "educity" complex -- will admit its first batch of students later this year.
Marlborough College, a leading British independent boarding school established in 1854, will also open its first campus outside England in Iskandar this year for students aged 11-18.
Marlborough's campus will occupy 36 hectares (90 acres), including soccer, rugby and cricket fields.
Other schools in the "educity" complex include the Netherlands' Maritime Institute of Technology, England's University of Southampton and Singapore's Management Development Insitute.
Tuition will be priced in Malaysian ringgit.
Legoland Malaysia -- Asia's first Lego theme park -- is slated to open in the Medini sector in late 2012, next to a Legoland Hotel and a lifestyle retail mall.
A 300-bed and 150-suite Gleneagles Medini Hospital costing $156 million is also in the works.
Gleneagles is a popular private hospital in Singapore that caters to wealthy locals, expatriates and "medical tourists" who combine treatment with leisure.
Asian movie production will get a boost with a Pinewood International Studio, supported by an attached "media village."
Houses, luxury apartments and waterfront enclaves are being built to meet the needs of those relocating to the area.
An original masterplan to build a New York or Hong Kong-style financial centre with towering skyscrapers in Medini was redrawn after the global recession in 2008/2009, said Martin.
The new plan calls for a low- to medium-rise business district that will serve the requirements of small and medium businesses seeking cheaper locations but enjoying quality living standards.
It also hopes to attract multinational firms seeking to establish support operations.
Singapore's state-linked investment firm Temasek Holdings and its Malaysian counterpart Khazanah Nasional Berhad are planning to build an "iconic project" in Iskandar, according to Ismail.
He revealed that the project is likely to be a township "promoting healthy living" and covering more than 200 hectares (494 acres).
The Singaporean and Malaysian prime ministers will announce details by mid-year, Ismail added.
Martin said such a project will "almost overnight change the landscape" as it will be another strong vote of confidence on Iskandar.
"It will turbo-charge the already positive momentum," said Martin, who is house-hunting in Iskandar before relocating his family from Singapore.
"I've got my four kids already registered for Marlborough College. We're just looking forward to Medini picking up," he said.

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/malaysian-metropolis-taking-shape-near-singapore-20110417-154530-833.html

It is an unstoppable train because it just makes perfect sense.

[Analytical Professor]

AH ok! i thought u were referring to the Asiaone post on Crime.

Talking about those people who comments at yahoo forum ...

[LeMans2011]

Jasonjst you referring to this post???

S'porean driver chased by 20 road bullies in JB

A SINGAPORE-REGISTERED car was smashed by a group of men in Johor Baru early Sunday morning because he had failed to give way to a Malaysia-registered car. In a contribution to citizen journalism website, Stomp, the driver of the Singapore car said that his car was chased by two Malaysian cars and at least 10 motorcycles that night.

The incident occurred at Stulang Laut (the ZON), a popular destination for Singaporeans, at around 3am.


I din't know that Singaporeans frequent The ZON. The place is infested with vice and drugs activities... don't go there unless you are with a group of local friends.

[house]

House,

That's a good summary. Btw, i think the houses at Taman Laguna will be built at the area further in, closer to the water tank tower, do get a better idea of the exact location should you decide to buy. The sales also loves to highlight the fact that although this is a private company, the land is fully paid for. So do bear in mind this is a company even lesser known than the likes of KSL, IJM Land, etc and you will have to deal with a developer who might be less concerned with publicity.

The other point is, whilst the coastal highway connects Taman Laguna to JB city, you have very little amenities in the immediate surrounding. To get to Perling or Bukit Indah, you will have to drive through the kampong, passing by Taman Baiduri, etc. Hence this might be a concern should you need to commute at night.

Obviously where they lack in location, they make up for it with very generous built-up space. However, i find the design rather old fashion... the double volume ceiling does not really bring out the beauty of such design, compared to places like Impian Heights or Straits View Residences. I dislike the long corridor upstairs.

Hey, i'm playing devils's advocate. After all these negative comments, if your heart still goes for it, you should not hesitate. Property investment is never about right or wrong but risk appetite.

thanks leman... I am having difficult time to decide on it.
nusa idaman also good but just a bit too small for the new hase 7.
headache.....

[ginfreely]

Thanks guys... appreciate for the feedback....

Taman laguna
- security good - cctv all the corner and guard looks impressive and cheap maintenance fee
- v big unit which not much other area provide the same space/ built up area as other development getting smaller and smaller...
- a bit inside and not developed at surrounding area in between danga bay & kota iskandar
- location good for woodland custom or 2nd link with the coastal highway (mostly will shoot up when coastal highway open)
- i got quite a number of family members so the bigger the better.
- more local family in the garden.
- away from amenities.
- need to go through a malay kampung to reach the garden.
- higher entry cost- all loan, lawyer fees not free + higher downpayment.

Its really pro and cons..... nothing is perfect. headache headache.....

Hi, just curious, what is the pricing and size like for Taman Laguna? I've not visited there before.

[Analytical Professor]

Agree with HH and euphony. No sales pitch or advertisements on this thread please.


I kind of agree with you. Lets do keep this place for sharing, not for sales pitch and cheap advertising. This aint 88DB or Mocca


i don't know about the rest but to me this reeks of sales pitch and you've obviously registered yourself here with ulterior motives. we've been a fairly harmonious community here giving useful advise and info sharing about living in JB how we overcome obstacles etc. If you want to sell please go somewhere else or at least have the courtesy to contribute something meaningful. And don't even get me started about sri mutiara. All of us here are not vege heads.

[ginfreely]

echanbonfire01 :

Hi, I have installed ADT at my Austin Hts home. RM75 per mth for three years. Up front charges about RM2K+. V happy with the service so far (since Jan 11). I have a mixture of vibration & contact sensors (for windows/sliding doors) + 2 montion sensors + 1 smoke sensor. Two keypad units (one at ground flr main door, one in 1st flr master bedroom). Keypad allows different messages to be sent to the call centre, eg medical, fire, intrusion emergency ..etc There is backup battery and I am using sim card system - so no worry for power failure or telephone line cut-off.

Response from the call centre is very fast (less than 10 secs)- based on a few false alarms (accidental activitation on our own) I have experienced so far.

My system was activitated on a few occasions when there were strong vibrations from my neighbour's renovation work. The alarm went on for about 15 mins and remained active after which. ADT will help monitor the situation. If alarm is triggered by both contact/vibration and motion sensor(in the house), then there is likely to be intrusion and the police can be called in.

I did not install grills. But the system gives me peace of mind.


Exchange Rates :
19 Apr 11 (lunch time) - Funan RM2.40, Chinatown RM2.402, Arcade RM2.406
19 Apr 11 (830 pm) - opposite Plaza Pelangi RM2.41



Hope we can get this moving - Restaurants / Eateries :

1. Meng Meng Roasted Duck, Taman Mount Austin. New branch open recently. Great mix plate (duck, pork, char siew - RM9 per pax. Big portions RM18 good for 3 pax) and a variety of herbal soups.

2. Zhi Char (Hong Ming Food Services), Setia Indah. Very popular, clean and good food. Tel : 012-7187782. On weekends, popular dishes (eg crabs) are sold out by 9pm.

3. 007 food centre, Setia Indah. Great hawker centre with Karaoke stage. Bring yr own DVD from 7pm onwards. Performances later in the night. BBQ, ngoh hiang, clay pot dishes, frog leg porridge (fantastic), satay. There is also a DVD stall (RM4 per disc - buy three get one free)



Btw, I have made a deposit for a link house at The Hills over the weekend - officially a HH member. Very exicted with the developments in JB !

Cheers.

Hi, congrats on your new house purchase! Thanks for sharing about the ADT system. Just curious, did you also install CCTV? Does ADT security system have an option to have both alarm and CCTV together? Like to find out more about alarm and CCTV.

[Analytical Professor]

Yeap i mentioned this several times before as well though i may not have used the right words to get my message across.

1) If you notice there is always a glut of property in IDR both in the primary and the secondary market
2) Apart from (1) there is also plenty of land available which is limited by the horizon far far away
3) Most developers/Sales people from the top companies tell you buy for own stay (not for investment)
4) A critical mass of population is yet to be attained
5) The critical mass of population must also have the wages to purchase the properties and maintain these high properties (when lots of low end properties are still available at <rm 300k)
6) A learned friend of mine once said JB properties are bound to lose value especially when you try to sell. Not sure how true this statement is.





The important thing is that in Dubai they have built much more private properties than number of residents and that created a bubble as most of those were sold as a speculative investment.

Hope we wouldn't experience something like that in IDR.

[ginfreely]

thanks leman... I am having difficult time to decide on it.
nusa idaman also good but just a bit too small for the new hase 7.
headache.....

Hi, for Nusa Idaman, I've only been to look at the new semi d as was told terraces are beow RM500k (not eligible) and the corner lots that are above RM500k are all sold or foreigner ratio met. I recall that there is mosque nearby though. Not sure whether the house you're looking is near mosque or you've any concern of the daily broadcasts? BTW what is the pricing and size like for the Idaman house?

[ginfreely]

Ok, quickly logged on to add 2 cents worth:

1. Fixing of cars, i fixed all my cars at the Michellin place opposite the Station One cafe (sometimes Sutera Mall side) No issue with Korean/Jap, only the more expensive cars you need to wait slightly longer as they get parts for you.

Most of my car issues has been fixed by them with no issues, a relative of mine got his fixed there recently, so far, very happy with the results (auto gear problem)

.

Thanks, wuqi.

[Analytical Professor]

Seri Alam to start rail project in two years 15 MARCH 2011 , BY THE STAR

Seri Alam Properties Sdn Bhd hopes to start developing an integrated transportation hub project for the Eastern Gate Development Zone in Iskandar Malaysia in the next two years.

Seri Alam acting head of subsidiary Frankie Tan Kiat How said a 3.19ha land next to a private specialist centre in Bandar Seri Alam township here had been identified as the site for the project.

“We have submitted the development plan to the Iskandar Regional Development Authority (Irda) and it will liaise with relevant authorities for approvals,'' he told StarBiz.

There were several options in developing the hub. The project could be undertaken as a private finance initiative, build-operate-transfer or build-operate-lease of funding from the Government Facilitation Fund, Tan said this after hosting an appreciation lunch for the members of Johor Baru media and the company's corporate clients here recently.

Tan said the hub would have an integrated transportation system encompassing commuter train interconnected with the rail network at KTM Kempas Baru station, feeder bus and taxi services.

Kempas Baru station in Johor Baru would be developed into an integrated transportation hub in Iskandar and to be known as Kempas Sentral, which was expected to be several times bigger than the KL Sentral, Tan said.

Seri Alam Properties, a wholly-owned subsidiary of United Malayan Land Bhd, currently undertakes the development of the 1,347.60ha Bandar Seri Alam township.

To date, 60% of the area has been developed with 10,000 residential and commercial properties occupied by 50,000 residents since its launch in 1992.

Tan said the transportation hub would cater to the needs of residents in the Eastern Gate Development Zone, which is one of the five flagship development zones in Iskandar.

“The hub will improve connectivity to the Eastern Gate Zone and a possible link with Singapore's mass rapid,'' said Tan.

The Eastern Gate Development Zone spans over 31,132ha of Pasir Gudang area, including Pasir Gudang Port, Pasir Gudang industrial estate, Tanjung Langsat Port and Tanjung Langsat industrial complex.

Key economic activities in Pasir Gudang are electrical and electronic, chemical, oleochemical, chemical biofuels, food products, engineering based industries, plastic, ports and logistics, warehousing and research and development.

Pasir Gudang also has the largest concentration of palm oil refinery industries and downstream activities in the world and to date, there are more than 300 factories here providing more that 30,000 jobs.

[ginfreely]

i went to the homefair at persada. got the adt systems for $299rm with free motion sensor, keypad, door contacts and siren. mthly $75rm for 3 years contract.

Thanks, echanbonfire. RM299 sounds very low. Does the price include installation and wiring? Is the wiring concealed type of wiring?

[Analytical Professor]

"Pasir Gudang also has the largest concentration of palm oil refinery industries and downstream activities in the world and to date, there are more than 300 factories here providing more that 30,000 jobs."

I hope i did not understand this wrongly. ONly 30000 jobs?

How many high end jobs that can afford high quality high end homes? Maybe 1% of that?

My assumptions. So dun flame me if i am wrong above.

[ginfreely]

I try to subtly wake up the guard by coughing when i see them sleeping or dozing off. My neighbours are not so forgiving, one of them goes around with his cameras. I once saw their guard commander/boss scolding 1 in the middle of the night as he did a spot check. Never saw that guy again.

Good that your neighbours are reporting them, I think better to report such security lapses so that the estate security can improve overall.

[mallow]

Hi, I am interested in MM2H program. Does anyone know of any reliable agent and the charges?
May I shamelessly invite you to my web on this?
http://www.puterim.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=93:-malaysia-my-second-home-mm2h-welcomes-long-stayers&catid=25:property&Itemid=29

It is possible to do it on your own. The rules change from time to time, and it is getting more expensive in terms of deposits.
It is not a necessity, but we chose to do it as our move over here is hopefully permanent.

[horizonhills]

Hi, just curious, what is the pricing and size like for Taman Laguna? I've not visited there before.

Terraces cost slightly above RM 500k now and semi d estimated 850k-900k. The sizes are bigger than HH terrace or semi d though. You have to see it for yourself. If you are buying for your own stay, its quite a good place but for rental to expats, maybe not that good as expats are flocking to East Ledang or Horizon Hills at the moment.

[horizonhills]

Hi Maloow, I have sent u a friendly PM. Please do check and revert suitably. Thanks.
May I shamelessly invite you to my web on this?
http://www.puterim.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=93:-malaysia-my-second-home-mm2h-welcomes-long-stayers&catid=25:property&Itemid=29

It is possible to do it on your own. The rules change from time to time, and it is getting more expensive in terms of deposits.
It is not a necessity, but we chose to do it as our move over here is hopefully permanent.

[Analytical Professor]

1) Avalon74, (Just guessing .... were u born in 1974)?

Mate i dun think Eco Garden was cheaper than the rest. I think it was always more expensive. No offence ah. How did you find it more affordable?

I thought that Setia Indah would be the cheapest.

I thought they had pretty impressive plans for Setia Eco Garden. My wifes friends bought there as well.

They said its very much like a resort inside at Setia Eco. I have never been there though.

ST = u referring to Setia Tropika ?

Car park covered?


Hi Prof,
Agreed that this forum is definately useful to many.. esp with all the valued comments/contributions from everyone..

Amongst the 4 developments in Johor under Setia, think Eco Garden was the most affordable at that point in time.. The design is fairly plain but i like things simple as well..:) The latest in ST has covered carpark even:cool:

For shops, Setia said that they intend to discuss with operators when there is sufficient critical mass of residents so nothing as yet.. however a drive of 10 mins will bring me to Aeon Bukit Indah which is good enough for me..

Cheers

[iamapseudoneem]

For those of you interested in checking out Nusa Idaman, I believe they will be having a launch party for their Phase 7 this Sunday. That's what I heard from the sales rep when I visited a couple of weeks back. Even if it's not a party you can still ask them about it and walk around. Not advertising but merely reminding that you have to really come down and get a feel for the place and its surroundings before making any purchasing decisions.

[cathylmg]

1) Avalon74, (Just guessing .... were u born in 1974)?

Mate i dun think Eco Garden was cheaper than the rest. I think it was always more expensive. No offence ah. How did you find it more affordable?

I thought that Setia Indah would be the cheapest.

I thought they had pretty impressive plans for Setia Eco Garden. My wifes friends bought there as well.

They said its very much like a resort inside at Setia Eco. I have never been there though.

ST = u referring to Setia Tropika ?

Car park covered?

I think he meant the mezzo.

[2bFree]

Just collected my keys for my rented terrace at The Gateway HH. Looking forward to the move next week!

[cathylmg]

Congrats! I wonder how many properties did all of us here snapped up just from this forum alone? hurhur. is it an investment property or planning to shift into?

We would like our property to appreciate in value even if its for our own occupations. Being Singaporean who went through decades of property boom, most are experienced (albeit new to the land) to know what it takes to give it an edge. Amplified sale pitch is unnecessary.

[cathylmg]

Just collected my keys for my rented terrace at The Gateway HH. Looking forward to the move next week!

Congratulations for taking a step forward. Just my own thought, why do you want to rent a place when you can easily get a small terrace house to start with? I mean you can just sell it if you find it unsuitable?

[cathylmg]

Johor is a very big state. Every zone is touting to be a high potential development zone, which is not necessarily wrong. The only trouble is, in terms of attractiveness as a place to stay, Bandar Seri Alam is likely to rank behind many other areas, and what makes it stand out? I would anytime choose Permas Jaya before i think about Bandar Seri Alam, or be it Bandar Datuk Onn, Taman Molek, Adda Heights, etc

Some area gets to be develope first, others next and then the others later. Baring in mind that Iskandar Malaysia has 5 economic zones, one gets to choose the area that suits ones needs. Ranking is really not upmost important.

[2bFree]

Testing waters first :)



Congratulations for taking a step forward. Just my own thought, why do you want to rent a place when you can easily get a small terrace house to start with? I mean you can just sell it if you find it unsuitable?

[cathylmg]

Seri Alam to start rail project in two years 15 MARCH 2011 , BY THE STAR

Seri Alam Properties Sdn Bhd hopes to start developing an integrated transportation hub project for the Eastern Gate Development Zone in Iskandar Malaysia in the next two years.

Seri Alam acting head of subsidiary Frankie Tan Kiat How said a 3.19ha land next to a private specialist centre in Bandar Seri Alam township here had been identified as the site for the project.

“We have submitted the development plan to the Iskandar Regional Development Authority (Irda) and it will liaise with relevant authorities for approvals,'' he told StarBiz.

There were several options in developing the hub. The project could be undertaken as a private finance initiative, build-operate-transfer or build-operate-lease of funding from the Government Facilitation Fund, Tan said this after hosting an appreciation lunch for the members of Johor Baru media and the company's corporate clients here recently.

Tan said the hub would have an integrated transportation system encompassing commuter train interconnected with the rail network at KTM Kempas Baru station, feeder bus and taxi services.

Kempas Baru station in Johor Baru would be developed into an integrated transportation hub in Iskandar and to be known as Kempas Sentral, which was expected to be several times bigger than the KL Sentral, Tan said.

Seri Alam Properties, a wholly-owned subsidiary of United Malayan Land Bhd, currently undertakes the development of the 1,347.60ha Bandar Seri Alam township.

To date, 60% of the area has been developed with 10,000 residential and commercial properties occupied by 50,000 residents since its launch in 1992.

Tan said the transportation hub would cater to the needs of residents in the Eastern Gate Development Zone, which is one of the five flagship development zones in Iskandar.

“The hub will improve connectivity to the Eastern Gate Zone and a possible link with Singapore's mass rapid,'' said Tan.

The Eastern Gate Development Zone spans over 31,132ha of Pasir Gudang area, including Pasir Gudang Port, Pasir Gudang industrial estate, Tanjung Langsat Port and Tanjung Langsat industrial complex.

Key economic activities in Pasir Gudang are electrical and electronic, chemical, oleochemical, chemical biofuels, food products, engineering based industries, plastic, ports and logistics, warehousing and research and development.

Pasir Gudang also has the largest concentration of palm oil refinery industries and downstream activities in the world and to date, there are more than 300 factories here providing more that 30,000 jobs.

Nevertheless, its a good start. The central and the west side is getting more expensive and out of reach by their locals now and most of its developments have yet to be fully completed. This leaves a window for the rest to catchup. Come to think of it, this is the real reason why I see new developments in the north and the east now.

[Analytical Professor]

What i am trying to understand is IF Nusajaya is the new capital of the State of Johor then why is the Transport Hub which is so crucial to Nusajaya situated at Kempas?



Nevertheless, its a good start. The central and the west side is getting more expensive and out of reach by their locals now and most of its developments have yet to be fully completed. This leaves a window for the rest to catchup. Come to think of it, this is the real reason why I see new developments in the north and the east now.


Seri Alam to start rail project in two years 15 MARCH 2011 , BY THE STAR

Seri Alam Properties Sdn Bhd hopes to start developing an integrated transportation hub project for the Eastern Gate Development Zone in Iskandar Malaysia in the next two years.

Seri Alam acting head of subsidiary Frankie Tan Kiat How said a 3.19ha land next to a private specialist centre in Bandar Seri Alam township here had been identified as the site for the project.

“We have submitted the development plan to the Iskandar Regional Development Authority (Irda) and it will liaise with relevant authorities for approvals,'' he told StarBiz.

There were several options in developing the hub. The project could be undertaken as a private finance initiative, build-operate-transfer or build-operate-lease of funding from the Government Facilitation Fund, Tan said this after hosting an appreciation lunch for the members of Johor Baru media and the company's corporate clients here recently.

Tan said the hub would have an integrated transportation system encompassing commuter train interconnected with the rail network at KTM Kempas Baru station, feeder bus and taxi services.

Kempas Baru station in Johor Baru would be developed into an integrated transportation hub in Iskandar and to be known as Kempas Sentral, which was expected to be several times bigger than the KL Sentral, Tan said.

Seri Alam Properties, a wholly-owned subsidiary of United Malayan Land Bhd, currently undertakes the development of the 1,347.60ha Bandar Seri Alam township.

To date, 60% of the area has been developed with 10,000 residential and commercial properties occupied by 50,000 residents since its launch in 1992.

Tan said the transportation hub would cater to the needs of residents in the Eastern Gate Development Zone, which is one of the five flagship development zones in Iskandar.

“The hub will improve connectivity to the Eastern Gate Zone and a possible link with Singapore's mass rapid,'' said Tan.

The Eastern Gate Development Zone spans over 31,132ha of Pasir Gudang area, including Pasir Gudang Port, Pasir Gudang industrial estate, Tanjung Langsat Port and Tanjung Langsat industrial complex.

Key economic activities in Pasir Gudang are electrical and electronic, chemical, oleochemical, chemical biofuels, food products, engineering based industries, plastic, ports and logistics, warehousing and research and development.

Pasir Gudang also has the largest concentration of palm oil refinery industries and downstream activities in the world and to date, there are more than 300 factories here providing more that 30,000 jobs.

[Analytical Professor]

What i am trying to understand is IF Nusajaya is the new capital of the State of Johor then why is the Transport Hub which is so crucial to Nusajaya situated at Kempas?



Nevertheless, its a good start. The central and the west side is getting more expensive and out of reach by their locals now and most of its developments have yet to be fully completed. This leaves a window for the rest to catchup. Come to think of it, this is the real reason why I see new developments in the north and the east now.


Seri Alam to start rail project in two years 15 MARCH 2011 , BY THE STAR

Seri Alam Properties Sdn Bhd hopes to start developing an integrated transportation hub project for the Eastern Gate Development Zone in Iskandar Malaysia in the next two years.

Seri Alam acting head of subsidiary Frankie Tan Kiat How said a 3.19ha land next to a private specialist centre in Bandar Seri Alam township here had been identified as the site for the project.

“We have submitted the development plan to the Iskandar Regional Development Authority (Irda) and it will liaise with relevant authorities for approvals,'' he told StarBiz.

Tan said the hub would have an integrated transportation system encompassing commuter train interconnected with the rail network at KTM Kempas Baru station, feeder bus and taxi services.

Kempas Baru station in Johor Baru would be developed into an integrated transportation hub in Iskandar and to be known as Kempas Sentral, which was expected to be several times bigger than the KL Sentral, Tan said.


Tan said the transportation hub would cater to the needs of residents in the Eastern Gate Development Zone, which is one of the five flagship development zones in Iskandar.

“The hub will improve connectivity to the Eastern Gate Zone and a possible link with Singapore's mass rapid,'' said Tan.

The Eastern Gate Development Zone spans over 31,132ha of Pasir Gudang area, including Pasir Gudang Port, Pasir Gudang industrial estate, Tanjung Langsat Port and Tanjung Langsat industrial complex.

Key economic activities in Pasir Gudang are electrical and electronic, chemical, oleochemical, chemical biofuels, food products, engineering based industries, plastic, ports and logistics, warehousing and research and development.

Pasir Gudang also has the largest concentration of palm oil refinery industries and downstream activities in the world and to date, there are more than 300 factories here providing more that 30,000 jobs.

[wuqi256]

"Pasir Gudang also has the largest concentration of palm oil refinery industries and downstream activities in the world and to date, there are more than 300 factories here providing more that 30,000 jobs."

I hope i did not understand this wrongly. ONly 30000 jobs?

How many high end jobs that can afford high quality high end homes? Maybe 1% of that?

My assumptions. So dun flame me if i am wrong above.

Prof, lets analyse this together.

Singapore - Low ranking job = 3 room HDB or worse
Johore - Low ranking job = Single storey terrace, medium cost or low cost home (government ones)

Singapore - Medium ranking job = 5 room HDB and above
Johore - Medium ranking job = Single storey - Double storey Terrace, cluster, Semi-D

Singapore - High end job = Terrace, Semi-D
Johore - High end job/business = Semi-D - Bungalow

They are a step up on us in terms of housing, cars. This is only one economic area. There are multiple. Kempas is to serve those living in the first link area as well as to help to link up key infrastructure/cities internally (something like PIE on a grand scale) Its more federal to me whereas Nusajaya is more Johore centric.

[wuqi256]

May I shamelessly invite you to my web on this?
http://www.puterim.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=93:-malaysia-my-second-home-mm2h-welcomes-long-stayers&catid=25:property&Itemid=29

It is possible to do it on your own. The rules change from time to time, and it is getting more expensive in terms of deposits.
It is not a necessity, but we chose to do it as our move over here is hopefully permanent.

Actually MM2H is not a key requirement, i have get by almost 2 years without needing it but still its a good to have especially if you have tax concerns and want to stay here for up to 10 years and get 2 cars in here without paying taxes. ;)

[cathylmg]

What i am trying to understand is IF Nusajaya is the new capital of the State of Johor then why is the Transport Hub which is so crucial to Nusajaya situated at Kempas?

A transport hub is macam CityHall or Raffles Place MRT station. Certainly nothing like high class Orchard Roads. Its a centralised location for people travelling from all over the place to transit to another location. Even from the east or the west or the south all the way up and down KL. This kind of location is good to be developed into commercial office area because of transport convenience which brings in the crowd. Hence the the government building and more to come. And hopefully Setia Tropika can become macam Duxton lah. Low in price as compared to Orchard but higher % of rental returns in time to come. IMHO. Cross my fingers. ;-)

[rhino]

Hey all any one has bought property at leisure farm and/or east ledang?
I would like to compare both but have yet to visit east ledang.
I am attracted to leisure farm though but the small road leading to it turns me off.
Headache!!!

[LeMans2011]

For those of you interested in checking out Nusa Idaman, I believe they will be having a launch party for their Phase 7 this Sunday. That's what I heard from the sales rep when I visited a couple of weeks back. Even if it's not a party you can still ask them about it and walk around. Not advertising but merely reminding that you have to really come down and get a feel for the place and its surroundings before making any purchasing decisions.

Haha yeah they have "Super Sunday" during the last Sunday of alternate months

[wuqi256]

Went with a friend to look at some places yesterday and went to look at some new developments as well.

He said something to me which kind of made sense.

He said, You know crime in JB is taken so seriously, whenever we hear of a robbery here or there in JB, its such a big thing in SG. It will then become something really big.

When a bag with a body or body parts are discovered at sea or in the rivers in SG or even a head in our MRT, its taken as something normal. Same when we find people murdered in their flats or find a body in some bushes. Its normal, nothing big deal.

Perharps people thought they floated out from JB or murdered in JB and then got dragged out to SG? Someone even mentioned in other threads that coming out to JB is risking life and limb and its 1000x the danger in Singapore.

I do definitely agree that SG is relatively safer but if JB is really 1000x the danger, i think there will be nobody left over in JB in a couple of years. We should fear danger but not be controlled just by fear itself.

There are cities in EU/US where the danger of being mugged, etc are higher but yet people still go there and live there. Its just ways to manage the risk i guess.

Someone once mentioned to me, our dear Ms Grace Quek got into trouble not in the usual places but in London.

[cathylmg]

When people point fingers at JB saying that its infested with crime, they are refering to the whole of JB. Infact its not true. So I would not point fingers at any a particular spot and say that it is infested with crime. Crime happens everywhere. Lets help each other to improve on it.

Wuqi, taking pictures of lazy sleeping security guards is a very good way to deter them from do it again, hence will help in lowering the crime of the estate.

[wuqi256]

Some quotes to share:

If you do not hope, you will not what is beyond your hopes - St Clement of Alexandria

Don't bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself. - William Faulkner

You can come out of the furnace of trouble two ways; if you let it consume you, you come out a cinder; but there is a kind of metal
which refuses to be consumed and comes out a star. - Jean Church

As a rule, men worry more about what they can't see than about what they can. - Julius Caesar

Better to light one small candle than to curse the darkness - Author Unknown.

Take a chance! All life is a chance. The man who goes the furthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare - Dale Carnegie

Dedicated to certain people in my life:
The man who makes no mistakes does not usually make anything - Bishop W.C. Magee

Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal - Henry Ford

Nothing can stop the man with right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help a man with the wrong
mental attitude. - W.W. Ziege

Always do what you are afraid to do. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle - Plato

Choice, not circumstances, determines your success - Author Unknown.

[wuqi256]

True, its too often that we hear the refrain. No country is 100% safe (ok, closest is Japan) but even then its not perfect. There is no perfect place in the world. Everything we do carries an element of risk, its how we mitigate it.

[wuqi256]

For those of you interested in checking out Nusa Idaman, I believe they will be having a launch party for their Phase 7 this Sunday. That's what I heard from the sales rep when I visited a couple of weeks back. Even if it's not a party you can still ask them about it and walk around. Not advertising but merely reminding that you have to really come down and get a feel for the place and its surroundings before making any purchasing decisions.

iamapseudoneem- Thank you for sharing sir, i have friends coming over tomorrow, will let them know about this. Went with a friend to Nusa Duta again yesterday, was shocked with the few units of clusters left. I am sure NI is doing well too.

Its all looking good.

[cathylmg]

Wow! Wuqi, you are a walking literature. I like this especially:-

Take a chance! All life is a chance. The man who goes the furthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare - Dale Carnegie

:)

[wuqi256]

Just collected my keys for my rented terrace at The Gateway HH. Looking forward to the move next week!

Congrats again, i hope you will like it here. Enjoy :)

[cathylmg]

Yesterday my property agent friend in Singapore keep asking my about my property in JB. Said it came out on newspapers and internet that many people go there to buy up houses. Wanted to go to my house in JB to take a look. Wow!

Recently my naysayer relatives and friends getting interested and is waiting for me to move and invite them for house warming so that they could come over to see what its like.

Things sure pick up pace already.

[euphony]

What i am trying to understand is IF Nusajaya is the new capital of the State of Johor then why is the Transport Hub which is so crucial to Nusajaya situated at Kempas?

AP: My feeling is that the decision is based on geographical location rather than importance. We'd want a central transport hub where coming from all sides is convenient. If the transport hub is in nusajaya then it doesn't make sense because people won't go there as a connecting point to go else where in the state or away because of its distance. Nusajaya is not like London or other similar cities for example. London has always been the center of attention and developments are always focused in and around there.

Unfortunately, the JB sentral was not built with the future in mind even though I'm sure there were earlier plans to built nusajaya right into the old JB but the infrastructure and the loads of residents holding freehold land titles would have made it impossible e.g. the EDL circumvents rather than cut into Pelangi. So the only way by convenience was to built nusajaya out of JB sentral into new land and built from scratch which they are doing now.

So now that there is 1 side nusajaya and 1 side old JB sentral. How do they connect the 2 dots? Right in the middle I guess.

[wuqi256]

Wow! Wuqi, you are a walking literature. I like this especially:-

Take a chance! All life is a chance. The man who goes the furthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare - Dale Carnegie

:)

Thanks Cathylmg, i am not, just that the more i read, the more i find i lack and thats why reading and learning is something i would always like to do.

A successful person needs just one reason to succeed, a person who seeks to fail is never lacking excuses.

[wuqi256]

Yesterday my property agent friend in Singapore keep asking my about my property in JB. Said it came out on newspapers and internet that many people go there to buy up houses. Wanted to go to my house in JB to talk a look. Wow!

Recently my naysayer relatives and friends getting interested and is waiting for me to move and invite them for house warming so that they could come over.

Things sure pick up pace already.

Good for you Cathylmg, i would humbly suggest, if they are still not keen or tell you confidently that Singaporeans can still buy houses there for 100k SGD what! Smile nicely and say, Why yes, you are absolutely right! I just got asked this in fact, someone just asked my wife how come our place so expensive when her brother can get one for below 100k SGD? I asked if they were really Singaporeans, she said yes and claimed that no way houses in JB will be over 150k SGD.

I just gave up, I do that nowadays unless its very close friends, otherwise i can't afford to do this every weekend visiting so many developments. I just give excuses as i really want to rest or minimize the tours. My petrol costs though still cheap is going to kill me soon with the many places i go to.

[cathylmg]

AP: My feeling is that the decision is based on geographical location rather than importance. We'd want a central transport hub where coming from all sides is convenient. If the transport hub is in nusajaya then it doesn't make sense because people won't go there as a connecting point to go else where in the state or away because of its distance. Nusajaya is not like London or other similar cities for example. London has always been the center of attention and developments are always focused in and around there.

Unfortunately, the JB sentral was not built with the future in mind even though I'm sure there were earlier plans to built nusajaya right into the old JB but the infrastructure and the loads of residents holding freehold land titles would have made it impossible e.g. the EDL circumvents rather than cut into Pelangi. So the only way by convenience was to built nusajaya out of JB sentral into new land and built from scratch which they are doing now.

So now that there is 1 side nusajaya and 1 side old JB sentral. How do they connect the 2 dots? Right in the middle I guess.

Yeah! That! :)

[Grago]

A transport hub is macam CityHall or Raffles Place MRT station. Certainly nothing like high class Orchard Roads. Its a centralised location for people travelling from all over the place to transit to another location. Even from the east or the west or the south all the way up and down KL. This kind of location is good to be developed into commercial office area because of transport convenience which brings in the crowd.
Hence the the government building and more to come. And hopefully Setia Tropika can become macam Duxton lah. Low in price as compared to Orchard but higher % of rental returns in time to come. IMHO. Cross my fingers. ;)

Nice one Euphony, I'm sure AP knew this and just wanted someone to co
e along and put up the reason:)


AP: My feeling is that the decision is based on geographical location rather than importance. We'd want a central transport hub where coming from all sides is convenient. If the transport hub is in nusajaya then it doesn't make sense because people won't go there as a connecting point to go else where in the state or away because of its distance. Nusajaya is not like London or other similar cities for example. London has always been the center of attention and developments are always focused in and around there.

Unfortunately, the JB sentral was not built with the future in mind even though I'm sure there were earlier plans to built nusajaya right into the old JB but the infrastructure and the loads of residents holding freehold land titles would have made it impossible e.g. the EDL circumvents rather than cut into Pelangi. So the only way by convenience was to built nusajaya out of JB sentral into new land and built from scratch which they are doing now.

So now that there is 1 side nusajaya and 1 side old JB sentral. How do they connect the 2 dots? Right in the middle I guess.

[cathylmg]

Good for you Cathylmg, i would humbly suggest, if they are still not keen or tell you confidently that Singaporeans can still buy houses there for 100k SGD what! Smile nicely and say, Why yes, you are absolutely right! I just got asked this in fact, someone just asked my wife how come our place so expensive when her brother can get one for below 100k SGD? I asked if they were really Singaporeans, she said yes and claimed that no way houses in JB will be over 150k SGD.

I just gave up, I do that nowadays unless its very close friends, otherwise i can't afford to do this every weekend visiting so many developments. I just give excuses as i really want to rest or minimize the tours. My petrol costs though still cheap is going to kill me soon with the many places i go to.

Wuqi, you can choose which one to help and which one not to. Afterall, we are not obligated to and don't have enough time to help each and everyone of them.

And also, about your friend who claim that no way JB house is going beyond $150k, they don't have money to buy lah! LOL!

[wuqi256]

Hey all any one has bought property at leisure farm and/or east ledang?
I would like to compare both but have yet to visit east ledang.
I am attracted to leisure farm though but the small road leading to it turns me off.
Headache!!!

Hi Rhino, if you like that area then i would suggest East Ledang. :)
There are also upcoming places like Nusa Sentral (Gelang Patah) and Nusa Bayu.
Between these 2, Nusa Sentral is better IMHO.

[Grago]

Wuqi, you can choose which one to help and which one not to. Afterall, we are not obligated to and don't have enough time to help each and everyone of them.

And also, about your friend who claim that no way JB house is going beyond $150k, they don't have money to buy lah! LOL!

Cathy you are being 'cruel' to say that!! Have they ever been to Johor ...... Maybe they are still under the impression that 'tigers' and other 'wild creatures' are still wandering about in the outskirts of JB . The homes that we have bought are in the middle of Paim tree plantations still!! So houses will not go higher than $150K. We got duped into buying our 'expensive' homes :(

[cathylmg]

Cathy you are being 'cruel' to say that!! Have they ever been to Johor ...... Maybe they are still under the impression that 'tigers' and other 'wild creatures' are still wandering about in the outskirts of JB . The homes that we have bought are in the middle of Paim tree plantations still!! So houses will not go higher than $150K. We got duped into buying our 'expensive' homes :(

I am just joking! hehe! Its my way of telling myself its ok that they don't listen to me. :P

Yeah, they think we are stupid people who got conned by some con man who pressure sell it to us. They are out to cheat us of our money. And that we are stupid enough to buy into places infested with crimes. These are the impression that people gave to me when I started to talk about my JB house. Jokes aside. Its very real that they think like that.

Try talking to them now and you can sense the change in attitude.

And yes, Singapore have gone through years of economic boom and yet you can still find people who could not afford to buy! Its a fact! :)

[cathylmg]

Nice one Euphony, I'm sure AP knew this and just wanted someone to co
e along and put up the reason:)

Its is also good to bring it out on the table for healthy comparisons so that people can choose base on their needs. I notice that not much about developments in other economic zones are mentioned here except for crimes.

[Grago]

Good for you Cathylmg, i would humbly suggest, if they are still not keen or tell you confidently that Singaporeans can still buy houses there for 100k SGD what! Smile nicely and say, Why yes, you are absolutely right! I just got asked this in fact, someone just asked my wife how come our place so expensive when her brother can get one for below 100k SGD? I asked if they were really Singaporeans, she said yes and claimed that no way houses in JB will be over 150k SGD.

I just gave up, I do that nowadays unless its very close friends, otherwise i can'
t afford to do this every weekend visiting so many developments. I just give excuses as i really want to rest or minimize the tours. My petrol costs though still cheap is going to kill me soon with the many places i go to.


I am just joking! hehe! Its my way of telling myself its ok that they don't listen to me. :P

Yeah, they think we are stupid people who got conned by some con man who pressure sell it to us. They are out to cheat us of our money. And that we are stupid enough to buy into places infested with crimes. These are the impression that people gave to me when I started to talk about my JB house. Jokes aside. Its very real that they think like that.

Try talking to them now and you can sense the change in attitude.

And yes, Singapore have gone through years of economic boom and yet you can still find people who could not afford to buy! Its a fact! :)
I know Cathy, just being mischievous:)
Yes it sad. But as the quote that Bro Wuqi posted earlier states if you hesitate, the opportunity passes. "No venture No Gains" that what I say!;)
Bro Wuqi, if there are more people like you ( I hope there is .....) this would be a better place to be in! Taking the time to show people around ...... I say those people should know lucky they are........!

[cathylmg]

I know Cathy, just being mischievous:)
Yes it sad. But as the quote that Bro Wuqi posted earlier states if you hesitate, the opportunity passes. "No venture No Gains" that what I say!;)
Bro Wuqi, if there are more people like you ( I hope there is .....) this would be a better place to be in! Taking the time to show people around ...... I say those people should know lucky they are........!

Although there is a slight change of atitude toward jb property, now some people start to compare with me how much they make for a Singapore property vs how much I can make for a jb property...hurrrrrrr.......no ending!

[euphony]

Hey all any one has bought property at leisure farm and/or east ledang?
I would like to compare both but have yet to visit east ledang.
I am attracted to leisure farm though but the small road leading to it turns me off.
Headache!!!

LFer here, just bought. =) A few other nice bros around are LF'ers as well. EL also have fair share of owners. this (http://expatjohor.blogspot.com/) webpage documents the experience of an expat living in EL.

[LeMans2011]

iamapseudoneem- Thank you for sharing sir, i have friends coming over tomorrow, will let them know about this. Went with a friend to Nusa Duta again yesterday, was shocked with the few units of clusters left. I am sure NI is doing well too.

Its all looking good.

Nusa Duta is really a very good proposition. The clusters are quite spacious. When i went there 2 months back there were 13 units left. In that sense the take-up is still slow, probably because it is not publicise very much. *Hidden Gem*

[Chillout]

Hi, appreciate the mountain of information in this forum. Kudos to everyone

Started scouting around for property early last year. Started with Setia Venus (don't like the design), then to Nusa Duta, better design and reserve a SD but decides against it after seeing HH. Only a few SD at Golf (I think) with partial view of golf course. Again reserve but decides to check out LH for land. Like the idea of building own house and put down money. Get the deposit refunded as information from sale guy rgdg improvement to the estate does not pan out. Take a look at EL but the villas that we like sold out. Then went to LF and likes the ambience and bought a piece of land.

So presently still working on the design with Architect and keeping fingers cross I can have my house in 2 years.

Like other forumers, I hope they do open the 3rd gate to Medini

Toying with the idea to get a unit at EL or HH. What is the rurrent rental for SD in these 2 estates and is there any difference in demand too?

[Chillout]

Hi, appreciate the mountains of information in this forum.

Personally bought LF last year after 6 mths searching around.

Would like to buy into EL or HH for investment. Anyone care to share what is the current rent and rental demands in these 2 estates.

[austin_hts]

euphony : I am not sure yet. Will decide in two years' time when we collect our keys. Meanwhile, we are staying at Austin Heights ...


Congrats! I wonder how many properties did all of us here snapped up just from this forum alone? hurhur. is it an investment property or planning to shift into?

[austin_hts]

Hi echanbonfire01 / ginfreely ,

I signed up for the 3 yrs contract (+RM299) and took up the 'Home Saver 3' package (+RM1500). Include the following

1 smoke detector
1 GSM dialer (use sim card, thus no worry of tel line being cut-off)
1 outdoor siren
1 indoor siren
2 Keypad
12 contact points (vibration/contact sensors)
1 motion sensor (for ground floor)

I add on these items (+about RM800) :
1 motion sensor (for 1st floor)
+15 contact points (RM 40 each pt)

One time payment of about RM2700.

No CCTV - understand that ADT doesn't provide.



Hi, congrats on your new house purchase! Thanks for sharing about the ADT system. Just curious, did you also install CCTV? Does ADT security system have an option to have both alarm and CCTV together? Like to find out more about alarm and CCTV.

[euphony]

Hi Rhino, if you like that area then i would suggest East Ledang. :)
There are also upcoming places like Nusa Sentral (Gelang Patah) and Nusa Bayu.
Between these 2, Nusa Sentral is better IMHO.

i read recently over here (http://cforum1.cari.com.my/archiver/?tid-2228099.html) nusa sentral have got issues with fencing. need to clarify with developer if interested...
I fell in love with EL's twin villas. Very nice!

[euphony]

Yesterday my property agent friend in Singapore keep asking my about my property in JB. Said it came out on newspapers and internet that many people go there to buy up houses. Wanted to go to my house in JB to take a look. Wow!

Recently my naysayer relatives and friends getting interested and is waiting for me to move and invite them for house warming so that they could come over to see what its like.

Things sure pick up pace already.

yeh it does! I actually can't wait to see what 2012 will bring since articles are referring to it as tipping point. but at the same time also do not want too much sg interest lest the both causeways get even more choked up especially for daily commuting. if only there is a dedicated lane for naysayers at the checkpoints. haha...

[euphony]

iamapseudoneem- Thank you for sharing sir, i have friends coming over tomorrow, will let them know about this. Went with a friend to Nusa Duta again yesterday, was shocked with the few units of clusters left. I am sure NI is doing well too.

Its all looking good.

i noticed its been like that recently. all the choice developments have only got a few units left.

[euphony]

Nice one Euphony, I'm sure AP knew this and just wanted someone to co
e along and put up the reason:)

cheers! just realized i am more or less saying the same thing as cathy. haha oops.

[Analytical Professor]

I had a couple of people questioning me thus:

1) If you want to buy in JB why dun you buy in Spore? Spore better what? So convenient
2) IF you want to invest in JB, why JB? No better place to invest ah? Spore is still the best place to invest!
3) What returns can you get in JB if ever? How long you must wait for your returns? In Spore in less than a year can see capital appreciation?
4)Aiyo JB change rules all the time. Spore more consistent

for me i bought me it maybe to retire or maybe to escape out of Spore and spend time with my precious family. If i was in spore even during the weekends i would be working during the weekends as well... So this IM home has helped me put an end to the constant working.




Although there is a slight change of atitude toward jb property, now some people start to compare with me how much they make for a Singapore property vs how much I can make for a jb property...hurrrrrrr.......no ending!

[Analytical Professor]

Yeah i cant stand the jams at the Causeway if a greater portion of Spore evinced interest!

So its best most of the Sporeans stay outta this.


yeh it does! I actually can't wait to see what 2012 will bring since articles are referring to it as tipping point. but at the same time also do not want too much sg interest lest the both causeways get even more choked up especially for daily commuting. if only there is a dedicated lane for naysayers at the checkpoints. haha...

[Analytical Professor]

I dun think there is any chance of a crime in Wuqis estate.

Very nicely secured.

When people point fingers at JB saying that its infested with crime, they are refering to the whole of JB. Infact its not true. So I would not point fingers at any a particular spot and say that it is infested with crime. Crime happens everywhere. Lets help each other to improve on it.

Wuqi, taking pictures of lazy sleeping security guards is a very good way to deter them from do it again, hence will help in lowering the crime of the estate.

[Analytical Professor]

Very nice..



a person who seeks to fail is never lacking excuses.

[Analytical Professor]

the long weekend begins

Woo hoo!

[whiteoak]

Anyone taking up housing loans with hsbc or standard chart? I'm comparing these 2 banks at the time being ... might need some feedback.

Thanks!

[avalon74]

Hi Prof,
Yup, dead giveaway.. born in 74..
I thought most guys will have abbreviations like HH, EL, LH & ST.. (yup.. ST for Setia Tropika)
Though SEG sounds more short form for segamat than Setia Eco Gardens..

Cathy is right.. (Mezzo for the double storey garage homes)
Eco Garden is riding on the success of Eco Park using the similar concept, they say that ard 11% of the entire development will be occupied by greens hence the eco garden theme..

Initially wanted to get dictyo rave but its sold out for foreigners, Alexandre d_cube is more expensive than the available units in SEG then..

[Grago]

the long weekend begins

Woo hoo!

To All my fellow forummers, have a nice weekend, relax and be SAFE........ I look forward to reading your posts coming Monday.... or sooner and enjoy the "wicked" comments and banter....... Happy weekend ALL:D:D:D:D

[echanbonfire01]

Thanks, echanbonfire. RM299 sounds very low. Does the price include installation and wiring? Is the wiring concealed type of wiring?

rm$499 if you want it concealed. this price include 1 keypad, 1 siren, 2 door contact and 1 motion sensor with installation. i got another motion sensor free as i manage to get 3 ball dart on target. for cctv i suggest you install separately. CCTV must be for you too see at any time via mobile phone or laptop. ADT will monitor for you via alarm from door contact, motion sensor. If they call you to verify an alarm, you may go and view your CCTV

[wuqi256]

Thanks Prof and Cathylmg.

I really have quite a schedule,
8am morning - 1 couple - Already in HH, Likely Laguna and Nusa Duta
11am morning - Another friend - Already in HH, Probably buy Nusa Duta
2pm afternoon - Future brother in law - HH and Nusa Duta
Saturday morning - Look at Nusa Sentral
Saturday afternoon - 1 couple - My neighbour, going to Nusa Sentral and Nusa Duta
Sunday - Finally alone time with family and wife (who has been quietly complaining, only the complaining has become slightly louder)

[wuqi256]

Guys, for those who have older folks, you can get the Philips type of sensor lights at Homefix at places like Thomson Plaza. It turns on when you are going to walk or walking past so that even if there is a power trip, they won't need to worry about lights.

Also, for those into fishing or those who knows what night glow paint is, buy those good ones in arts stores in SG or order online via ebay, get those thin tube types. Now you have a cheap way to get night glow lights on your fishing gear as well as on the light switches points. That way, even in the dark, you can still see where to turn that switch on. It glows for quite long too for those really good ones. Even past 5am, still glowing strong. If you can't find these, fear not, Daiso (in Jusco, Bukit Indah) has some night glow tapes and stickers. You can use those too. Even to mark staircases for kids and old folks.

[wuqi256]

Yes its the weekend. Went in early today. :) Was in before the crowds started out.
Prof and Cathylmg, folks who diss you about investing meant well. They do not know this place nor are they keen to. Its fine and good. Do what you can for those you care about, i will ping my good friends at least 3-4 times, those i care a lot, i will ping another 3 times. Then i give up. :)

Quite a few enquiries, some funny ones still. Sigh, cough blood. Some people even asked me if mosquitoes here are ping pong ball sized.....Makes you want to put that ping pong ball up their XXX and then XXXX XXXXX XXXX XXX XXXXXXX until they XXXX XXX XXXX XXX and XXXX XXXX XXX. (Self censorship is so useful at times and yet expresses the full extent of ones feelings, don't you think?)

[wuqi256]

Anyone taking up housing loans with hsbc or standard chart? I'm comparing these 2 banks at the time being ... might need some feedback.

Thanks!


Go for neither, go for local banks if you can, i think well of HSBC in SG but in JB, its Hi Sir, Buay Chye?
Some of their learned people told friends i introduced to them that foreigners cannot buy shops and
houses in Johore. Made some of my friends pissed off and myself very malu.

Their people frankly CMI. SCB is better but they offer Klibor mainly. I will go to other banks unless you are really keen on them.
We really don't need to go to banks we know in SG as the local banks here stand to lose more than you

[rhino]

Thanks Wuqi and Euphony for your reply! =)
East Ledang may be more suitable for me and bf, considering Leisure Farm's dark-road entry, lower rental potential and strata title.
My bf is a free-spirited person who likes to not build his own house, but also change the house exterior and design his garden. So he does not like the idea that he can't touch the exterior at Leisure Farm.
2 questions here:
1. Is there land for sale at East Ledang where we can build house? Can't seem to find such advert.
2. If not, are there still terrace units left over from the developer? And the cost?

Gum siah bery much!! =)

[wuqi256]

Hi Rhino, i am not sure for EL but you can certainly buy Ledang Heights which is right beside EL and gives you the freedom to buy your own bungalow land to build the house of his (and hopefully yours) dreams. :)

[euphony]

Thanks Wuqi and Euphony for your reply! =)
East Ledang may be more suitable for me and bf, considering Leisure Farm's dark-road entry, lower rental potential and strata title.
My bf is a free-spirited person who likes to not build his own house, but also change the house exterior and design his garden. So he does not like the idea that he can't touch the exterior at Leisure Farm.
2 questions here:
1. Is there land for sale at East Ledang where we can build house? Can't seem to find such advert.
2. If not, are there still terrace units left over from the developer? And the cost?

Gum siah bery much!! =)

1. no dun have. like ro wuqi mentioned LH actually LF also have land lots you can buy too but the road is your main concern I see.
2. no more liaow perhaps if still interested buy subsale. they say no more terraces in future phases.

[wuqi256]

Saw reports of someone being chased by multiple cars and motorcycles in JB today. While my sympathies are with him, i fear we may not have the full side of the story. This is the very first time i have heard of such extreme measures, being done to someone even when he already drove into the customs.

I have driven SG plate cars alot here but i normally give way in SG, so i do the same here. I noticed though, there are many rough and rude drivers driving SG plates who do not hesitate to horn and do not give way to others. Hogging the right lane on the highways as they do in SG.

I noticed this several times, i must say one good thing i noticed about the drivers here (locals) is that 9 out of 10, they will give way to you if you are driving fast on the right lane of the highway, Malaysian car or not. You won't get this in Singapore, 9 out of 10, as soon as you signal to move right, 9 will try to cut you off, its fine however if you don't signal though.

Some also still do not carry their driving license, i once asked a learned bro, you have been in US, Europe and Australia, do you carry driving license when you are over there, in your rental car and driving? He said yes, then i asked, why not here?

I implore and urge bros here to please respect others when you are in their homeland. Purposely teasing them when driving or tailgating/beeping them/high beam unnecessarily here will just give more trouble than its worth. I have friends here who told me that some SG drivers drive like madmen once they are in JB, they asked me this, would you like it if you see a Malaysian plate car driving wildly or endangering you while in SG?

[LeMans2011]

Thanks Wuqi and Euphony for your reply! =)
East Ledang may be more suitable for me and bf, considering Leisure Farm's dark-road entry, lower rental potential and strata title.
My bf is a free-spirited person who likes to not build his own house, but also change the house exterior and design his garden. So he does not like the idea that he can't touch the exterior at Leisure Farm.
2 questions here:
1. Is there land for sale at East Ledang where we can build house? Can't seem to find such advert.
2. If not, are there still terrace units left over from the developer? And the cost?

Gum siah bery much!! =)

Hi Rhino

Sounds like the best option for your bf is to buy land and build. Why not rent a place for a start? You could then understand the locality better and decide if you really want to build a house here. If Leisure Farm is not good for you, then it will have to be Ledang Heights. You can purchase this through subsale as developer has managed to sell off the entire area. Market price should be between RM60 - RM70 psf.

For East Ledang you can't do anything to your house other than perhaps a translucent shelter. When you purchase a property at East Ledang, you will sign a Deed of Covenants on top of the usual Sales and Purchase Agreement. The Covenant is your undertaking that you will not alter your house and will abide by the rules of the management committee, etc In that sense it is similar to Leisure Farm although it is not strata-titled.

The picture shows the entrance to Ledang Heights. There are 2 current advertisements for Ledang Heights bungalow land here:
http://www.iproperty.com.my/property/searchresult.aspx?t=S&gpt=R&st=JO&ct=Gelang+Patah&k=&pt=&mp=0&xp=999,999,999&mbr=&xbr=&mbt=&xbt=&mbu=0&xbu=999,999&lo=&wp=&ns=1

[LeMans2011]

Saw reports of someone being chased by multiple cars and motorcycles in JB today. While my sympathies are with him, i fear we may not have the full side of the story. This is the very first time i have heard of such extreme measures, being done to someone even when he already drove into the customs.

I have driven SG plate cars alot here but i normally give way in SG, so i do the same here. I noticed though, there are many rough and rude drivers driving SG plates who do not hesitate to horn and do not give way to others. Hogging the right lane on the highways as they do in SG.

I noticed this several times, i must say one good thing i noticed about the drivers here (locals) is that 9 out of 10, they will give way to you if you are driving fast on the right lane of the highway, Malaysian car or not. You won't get this in Singapore, 9 out of 10, as soon as you signal to move right, 9 will try to cut you off, its fine however if you don't signal though.

Some also still do not carry their driving license, i once asked a learned bro, you have been in US, Europe and Australia, do you carry driving license when you are over there, in your rental car and driving? He said yes, then i asked, why not here?

I implore and urge bros here to please respect others when you are in their homeland. Purposely teasing them when driving or tailgating/beeping them/high beam unnecessarily here will just give more trouble than its worth. I have friends here who told me that some SG drivers drive like madmen once they are in JB, they asked me this, would you like it if you see a Malaysian plate car driving wildly or endangering you while in SG?

Hi Wuqi

I was chatting with my colleagues today - there has been crime news on yahoo almost every other day recently. I wondered has crime rate really increased recently, or has the publicising of crime news increased in the run up to election? My colleague said what news appeared on the headlines of yahoo.sg is managed by the yahoo news editorial team... which also publicises a lot of anti-PAP news... in that sense he thinks it is not deliberate. Nevertheless i have this nagging feeling there must be some correlation between the election and the increased publicity of negative news across the causeway to put the ruling party in a better light.

Having said that, in a way i am glad this might stem the flow of the flood of investment pouring in from Singapore a little bit... it is building up so quickly i am worried about a bubble forming. That said, we have to constantly drive the message of how important safety is to us... whenever i speak to the developer sales i mention about my safety concern :)

[rhino]

Many thanks to 3 bros here, you have been very helpful!!!
The land at Ledang Heights seems more expensive than Leisure Farm, with the former asking for at least RM1 mil whereas the latter is RM566K at Bayou Bay. Anyone here has the experience of buidling a house at Bayou Bay? While I am still not comfortable with the dark road leading to Leisure Farm, I am sure enticed by the cheaper land price there! Arrghhh! Headache!!!

[Bigfatfish]

Hi everyone here

I've been struggling to read the whole thread and i suppose i've done maybe only 10% of it. It's really long but really nice read. Thanks to Wuqi for starting such a great thread here. Really appreciate that you spent the time and effort to contribute so much over here.

I've stayed overseas for many years before heading back to Sinkeland for the last 4 years plus and I think it has sucked a lot of my energy out also my blood as well! I'm a bit sick and tired of their nonsense. I long missed the space I have enjoyed overseas.

I only need half that size to build a dream home. I do not like the designs at HH, I like the idea at LF but not allowed to alter a lot of stuff. I would really love to design and build a nice home. It's hard work but it's memory of a life time.

Anyway I have a question that has pondering in my mind, Ledang heights land 20,000 sq ft. Has anyone or would it be possible to buy and only utilize half the land and sell off this other half or split it with someone?

Looking forward to hear from all the bros and experts here. I'm open to all positive and negative critics on how possible it would be to acheive this.

Warmest regards

BFF

[fairies]

Many thanks to 3 bros here, you have been very helpful!!!
The land at Ledang Heights seems more expensive than Leisure Farm, with the former asking for at least RM1 mil whereas the latter is RM566K at Bayou Bay. Anyone here has the experience of buidling a house at Bayou Bay? While I am still not comfortable with the dark road leading to Leisure Farm, I am sure enticed by the cheaper land price there! Arrghhh! Headache!!!

Hi Rhino,
Are you sure LH land minimum 1 mil? I just bought a land in LH complete with a 5+1 room bungalow for only 1.3 mil, and a friend of mine bought his for 1.2 mil. Don't just compare land price as it is, but check its size also (psf).

I surveyed LF myself few times before LH, almost bought a house there. Although LF general maintenance of its environment and overall estate is much better compared to LH, I decided to not go for LF due to its strata land status compared to LH clear freehold status. This is in addition to the access road, coz for people like me who go to work in Singapore every day the short time taken to reach CIQ from home is important.

Another factor is the facilities development around Lh and EL area, esp with the Anjung shopping complex up & ready, plus a huge supermarket opening before end of the year. A convenience indeed.

Just my 2 cent worth. Others and I can give our views, but the end of the day, listen to your heart. Best luck on whichever choice you'll make.

[euphony]

Many thanks to 3 bros here, you have been very helpful!!!
The land at Ledang Heights seems more expensive than Leisure Farm, with the former asking for at least RM1 mil whereas the latter is RM566K at Bayou Bay. Anyone here has the experience of buidling a house at Bayou Bay? While I am still not comfortable with the dark road leading to Leisure Farm, I am sure enticed by the cheaper land price there! Arrghhh! Headache!!!

have u considered HH? I have heard of people doing modifications/renovations externally etc. HH'ers can confirm? Over there don't think they sell land either though. Perhaps look around a bit more? There might be a development that'll fit the bill for you and your bf. Also fun to see what ID will do to the houses.