that's the whole point. it's not barking up the wrong tree. it's spot on. the food is common and has numerous alternatives all over sg. any hawker stall selling any meal at less than $6.9 is not just competing with a neighboring stall selling the same stuff but all the stalls in sg selling similar meals in hawker centers, cafeterias, food courts and kopitiams. if rents go up, any stall selling hawker and food court fare increases meal prices to catch up with rent will find customers balking and running to thousands of other alternatives, as it's very convenient in sg to hop around, sometimes just 69 yards away within the same complex. if the rent is too high and contract terms too restrictive and expensive, don't try to be a hero and open a stall. but sinkies kay kiang kar kar pak si buay chao die die must open stall. and then kpkb to high heavens when they cannot keep up with rent and terms/conditions. the market should sort itself out. if rent is too high, the hawker center and or food court should die as no stall can make money and survive for long as they compete with thousands of "common food" alternatives. when all "common food" stalls increase their prices at the same time (only possible thru collusion, cartel manipulation, or sudden spikes in cost of common ingredients such as rice, wheat, eggs), only then sinkies bo pian are forced to pay up 69 cents more as "cheap" alternatives dry up. but knowing sinkies wherever there's cheap makan they can tolerate these "common" meals with small increases in price. any "common" meal that sells for 69 cents more will find them scurrying to the next hawker center or food court for bargain hunting. 69% of sinkies are penny wise pound foolish. if you understand sinkies you can win their hearts over and rule sg. the problem is oppies are clueless and refuse to understand this simple and basic concept of how sinkies behave.