By Selene Cheng
6.5 million people. That is the projected number of people our government believes Singapore can accommodate. Already, 80% of the population lives in subsidised housing, and with the development of estates in Sengkang and Punggol, no one will have to be a vagrant. No one will have to sleep under the void deck with aluminium cans for a pillow, or at the beach with the sky as their blanket.
Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. Being homeless in Singapore is a real possibility, as theonlinecitizen (TOC) has found out, and you don’t even need to be old and dirt poor in order to have no roof over your head.
In this special feature on home ownership in Singapore, theonlinecitizen tells the story of Andrew, a 34-year old young man who will soon be out of a home in 3 months because of the Housing and Development Board’s (HDB) lack of compassion and flexibility.
In the beginning
Andrew has a family of four: his father, his mother, (both in their sixties), himself and his sister. His father is a real estate agent. In 1992, the family bought an executive maisonette, taking out a mortgage loan of $464,100.
The family woes started in 1991, when Andrew’s father, the sole breadwinner then, started chalking up less sales. Despite the financial difficulties, his father managed to pay the instalments.
It was not to last for long. In 1996, the property slump severely affected his father’s income. Andrew’s father went into debt, and could not afford the monthly mortgage loan repayments, the utilities and the service and conservancy charges (S & CC).
14 instalment plans and family conflict
Because the family could not afford to pay for the utilities, they worked out instalment plans with Singapore Power (SP). TOC understands that the family has drawn up 14 instalment plans to date since 1999, and the family have kept to the plans with varying degrees of success.
“My father was always a dollar short and a day late,” said Andrew. “He tried driving a taxi, being an agent at a maid agency, but the money was never enough (to cover the bills). So he was always struggling to find a job (that paid enough).”
“For a good 10 years (1996 – 2006), he was out of a (stable) job.”
Because of the family’s inability to make repayments, the family’s electricity and water supply was often cut off. Andrew estimates it has been about 20 times now. The stress of being unable to repay the mortgage loan and the frequent utilities disconnections took a toll on the family. “Our quarrels just seemed to escalate,” said Andrew. “We always argued about why (we have) no money to pay, whose responsibility it is to pay, why my father can’t get a job, etc…”
“There was so much finger pointing”, he said wistfully..
Utilities cut so many times, he knows the routine
Andrew’s electricity and water has been cut off so many times he knows the drill already. According to Andrew, a Singapore Power (SP) representative comes, rings the doorbell, the family opens the door and pleads with the representative not to cut off their utilities. The discussion ends with his father signing a document undertaking to pay the arrears plus late payment penalties etc.
One family member then goes down to the SP office with the signed document to “settle” the matter, and a technician would be sent to reconnect the utilities the same day. Andrew said that the SP office usually asked them to pay in full, but because the family could not, they would “pay something, like anything” and their utilities would be reconnected.
“There were times my entire family survived on my mother’s $600-$800 salary as a part-time worker in Yoshinoya to pay the bills,” said Andrew.
Lack of compassion from SingPower
The most recent incident in January 2008, however, showed SP’s lack of compassion.
The family owed SP $2000+ in utilities, and they had kept to their latest repayment plan of $250 monthly. However, once they missed just 1 month’s payment last year, an SP representative was sent to disconnect the supply in January.
Andrew recounts that that day, the technician had rang the doorbell, but because his father was in the toilet, no one came to the door. The SP rep thus proceeded to disconnect the supply.
Halfway while Andrew’s father was doing his business, the light in the toilet went off. Realising that the electricity had been cut off, Andrew’s father rushed out of the toilet in a panic and pleaded with him, saying that he’d sign whatever was needed, as long as the electricity was reconnected. But Andrew said that this time there was no discussion and no immediate reconnection.
“The man didn’t even want my father to sign anything, he just repeated again and again, ‘I’m sorry sir, I’m just doing my job’, and asked us to go down to the SP office to settle with them,” said Andrew.
“What kind of system has created an employee that fears the system so much that he doesn’t even dare to go beyond what he was told he was supposed to do?”, said Andrew. Upset, he called the SP Customer Service Centre.
“Where’s all the compassion in all this? I’ve been through all this before, I know the procedure,” said Andrew. He explained to the customer service officer that the previous reps had always discussed the issue with them, and had always reconnected their supply. In response, said Andrew, the SP Customer Service Officer “proceeded to give (him) an education on what is supposed to happen” and repeated the procedure that Andrew already knew, reiterating that if nobody answered the door, they have a right to disconnect the power immediately.
“I told them, ‘I know the procedure. But why the previous people who came to disconnect can be compassionate, just sign the paper and they’ll reconnect immediately? Why not this time?”, he asks.
It was evident that the talk with SP was fruitless, for Andrew said that his father was soon served a letter demanding payment by 5 Feb with no exceptions.
Andrew added that the amount was originally in arrears for $2000+, but as of Jan it had been paid down to $700+.
“That shows our effort since we made our first arrangement with SP that we pay, every month,” said Andrew. He said that they always paid the current charges plus a bit more to offset the original debt. The $700+ would have just taken a few more months to pay off.
“But the hammer just comes down on us, and I don’t understand why. I don’t understand that.”
No mercy from HDB either
Andrew’s woes are not confined to SP charges alone. Andrew will soon be homeless as well, because the family cannot afford the S & CC and the mortgage loan repayments, the latter of which have to be paid in cash (no CPF because his father is self-employed).
Andrew explains that since April 1999, they have received financial assistance in the form of deferred payments for their S & CC, or smaller payments of the interest only. Andrew makes it clear that they have only received these concessions due to their constant pleading.
“I estimate my father has gone down to HDB to plead about 10 times already,” said Andrew. “We’ve also pleaded with them through our MP, Mr Wong Kan Seng, at least for 5 years already.” Andrew said that each time HDB sends them a letter demanding payment, his father goes down to the HDB office to pay a little to keep the family from being continually hounded.
Andrew’s father had had a repayment plan of $120 per month for the S & CC charges, but had not been able to pay still. The HDB’s “compassion” finally ran out. In November last year, the family was served a lawyer’s letter demanding they pay their 20 months’ worth of S & CC charges of around $2000. The actual arrears amount to $1600+, while the remaining is a penalty for late payment.
HDB also turned down their appeal to make partial payments of their monthly house loan instalments as they had been given extensions. The original instalments were $2000+ per month, but are now $3000+ (including penalties for late payments). A letter issuing an ultimatum was sent to them, telling them to register their flat for sale by 28 Jan, and sell the house within three months.
When asked why they did not sell the house earlier, Andrew replies that the property market was not good, and if they sold the house, they would have made a massive financial loss and still be in debt to HDB. “My dad’s intention all the while is for the house value to appreciate, so he can cover all debts, be free of this burden of being in debt to HDB,” said Andrew.
He also adds that his father recently had been sent a letter, informing him (father) that he had been barred from applying for a HDB season parking ticket because of the S & CC arrears. The move has made the family worse off financially, said Andrew, as his father needs the car (and therefore season parking ticket to park the car) for his work as a real estate agent.
“Finding a house is tough as hell in Singapore”
The family has no choice but to sell the house. The sale means that Andrew’s father will lose his entire lifetime of CPF savings. But Andrew sees a glimmer of sunshine in the gloom. The property market is good now, and their house has had a good valuation; the money they get from the sale will cover all SP, S & CC, and mortgage loan money they owe.
Andrew’s parents’ eligibility to apply for a new HDB loan is in doubt because of his father’s debt history. Andrew himself, though, is going to get married, and he and his fiancée have the ability to buy a new house. The plan is to have their parents stay with them.
The problem, however, lies in finding a house within the tight deadline of three months. “Finding a house is tough as hell in Singapore,” said Andrew. He said that if they bought a resale flat, they would have to pay a cash top-up of at least $30,000 – $40,000, and on top of that the 10% downpayment for the HDB loan. Andrew said that he and his fiancée have the means to service the HDB loan, but not enough to cough up a $30,000 cash top-up.
Andrew said he has been looking for flats with a cash top-up of $5000-$10,000. Andrew and his fiancée have viewed about 30 units so far since August 2007, but have not managed to find one within their budget.
Immediately he corrects himself – he did find one within their budget. “We saw one house in Sengkang, ground floor unit, 4-room, asking for $5000 cash (top-up) only,” said Andrew. “And we said, ok, we want, but when we called up 2 hours later, after we had viewed the house, the agent said [it had been] sold already. Because after I left, another 4 people (had come), and one person offered $7000, the other offered $10,000, and the last offered $20,000,” said Andrew. “It was like bidding, you know,” said Andrew.
“So the loser is the one who doesn’t have the cash lah.”
Andrew said that he also tried balloting for a flat, but was unsuccessful. He had applied for a flat in both mature and new estates, even unpopular estates, and each time his queue number has been unfavourable. In the recent Sengkang balloting exercise, he said that the 400+ units attracted 5,000 applicants, and his queue number was 2600. A recent balloting exercise for 200 units in mature estates attracted 10,000 applicants, of which he was number 5938.
Andrew said he read on the HDB website that those who had submitted more applications and failed to get a flat would be moved up further the queue. “But nobody knows how many people are in the queue,” said Andrew. “Nobody knows how many have played this game, and (applied repeatedly) just to get ahead in the queue, and each application is $10 you know,” said Andrew.
“I wonder, how many houses are out there in HDB ready to be sold, and how many are actually being released in every batch?”
“Is this a money churning exercise?”
No priority given by HDB for family to buy flat
Andrew is desperate to find a house, “any house”, he says, for if he cannot get a flat within the next 3 months, he and his family will be homeless. Andrew said that he even went down to the Bishan HDB office to find out what he could do. The staff who served him told him that “even as staff (they didn’t) have priority to know what are the units that are not being released”.
“Is there such a system that says that for those who truly need it on a case-by-case basis we give you priority?”, he asked.
“Because I’m going to be homeless!”
Homeless in Singapore?
It is highly likely that Andrew’s case is not an isolated one. For more than 15 years, Andrew has slept through hot nights and used candles for lighting. He is helpless to improve his situation much. He does not have a degree – he is self-employed – his income varies from month to month, and he explains that he would earn even less than what he earns now if he took a regular job.
Andrew’s plight also brings up more disturbing questions. Why do repeated appeals from an esteemed MP to the HDB and SP have seemingly little effect? Why must the HDB – a quasi-government body, no less – and SP, a major utilities provider, be so hard on one down-and-out old man? What is the breakdown of the number of people who have balloted more than once in order to get a higher priority in the queue for flats? Is balloting a money-making exercise after all, despite HDB’s claim that balloting is to give everyone “a fair chance”?
In summary, these are the problems that Andrew and his family face:
1. They must put their flat on the resale market by Jan 28, 2008.
2. Repay $464,100 of mortgage loans
3. Pay the $700 in utilities
4. Pay their Town Council $3000 in S&C charges
And even if they manage to pay off the debts, Andrew and his family may still end up on the street – because he can’t afford a resale flat and the queue for a new flat will take some time.
Yet, despite all that he is going through, he only asks that the HDB considers his circumstances and maybe move him up in the queue for a new flat.
Andrew says that this is an opportunity for his family to finally get out of the cycle of being in debt for so long – if only the HDB would be compassionate about his situation.
There are questions that only the relevant authorities can answer. The clock is ticking, and for those like Andrew who are stuck between a rock and a hard place, their next home may be the void deck. Let us hope that it will not be for lack of compassion from our government that people will sleep outside at night.
Otherwise, thanks to the HDB, a family will be homeless.
NOTE:
Andrew’s friend, Leong Sze Hian, who alerted TOC to the story, says:
How many Singaporeans are there like my friend, Andrew and his family, who may lose their home, and their life CPF savings, because they cannot pay for their HDB flat?
With the apparent “disappearance” of the flats given financial assistance statistics in this year’s HDB Annual Report (this statistic was in past Annual Reports – the previous year’s figure was 28,386), how many can’t pay?
When the HDB makes a demand for a flat owner to sell his or her flat in the open market by a certain deadline, will it disappear from the “financial assistance” statistics?
Will it also disappear from the “flats repossessed by HDB” statistics? (360 flat-owners voluntarily surrendered their flats from 2003 to 2006 – reply to question in Parliament, March 2007).
Read Sze Hian’s earlier article on the disappearing statistics for the number of flat-owners whose applications for financial assistance were approved: Uniquely Singapore, F1 or F9?: Inflation up, HDB property tax up, statistics disappear, Ministers’ pay up again soon.
Read also: “HDB’s mistake but she’s made to pay – 4 years later”.
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Its a long list of great comments and I hope i didnt left out any fine details…. Is Andrew or Selene looking for directions??
Anyway…here is mine..
1st of all.. renting out a room will have extra income of ~$500.. not to mention if they can rent out 2 rooms.
SP bills will come up to be ard $180 max?! Rental Not enough to cover??!!
Or maybe Andrew can takeover the house loan and lower the outstanding loan amount by extending the loan term.
Else PLEASE sell the house. YOU cant afford it.
Andrew n Dad should get a new 3/4Rm flat instead and let his parents retire soon. repay as much loan as possible.
No more silver spoons for Andrew. You r a grownup now.
Andrew’s parents are in their late 60s… great that they r still working.. and i sure hope that they had planned for a retirement NOW.
the car still ard after all these years??!! by Trading in and out all these times??!!
Didnt consider taking cab instead to meet customers??
Can just sell away the car and get a bicycle instead to keep fit. Work in fast food outlets will have steady income.
Be a taxi driver…. the dad sure knows his ways ard.
Sis still studying?? Good…Come back when completed and help the family to settle the loan…. Your family did a great job cos they can still send you oversea for study.
Final Comment: Giving Up is actually a great GAIN elsewhere…
Humm…. something like tat….
and finally…
Cheers to HDB…. 80% of the population has a place to stay!!
If you do not have a big head.. dun wear a big Hat.
Why can’t Andrew find a job? He has hands and legs. In another words, he is lazy.
Looking compassion.. Andrew does not even deserve any respect and he only deserve to be slap by everyone.
Everyday i see many old folks are collecting metal tins, cupboard and etc.
They are old. They should be retiring and enjoy life. But for living, they continue to work hard. They are the one that deserve my respect.
My father only earn $500 per month and my mother is a housewife.
But we dun face any problem living without any problem.
Now it is my duty as a son to repay them.
DUN PRETEND TO ACT THAT YOU ARE SUFFERING AND LET PEOPLE PITY YOU.
THERE ARE MORE PEOPLE AROUND WHO ARE WORSE THAN YOU.
This is a fair society. You plant apple, you get apple. Andrew’s father should be responsible for his wrong investment decision – or perhaps he was speculating the property that time. But he/his family didn’t bear the full responsibilities. Instead, he/they were smart in taking advantages, such as delaying the payments to SP, to buy time to wait for their property to increase value. They continue sending children to overseas, Andrew/his parents themselves doesn’t work hard to clear their debt, signalling that they are speculators – I don’t sympathize at all! Again, Andrew’s new issue of buying new flat is totally ridiculous. If you do not have enough HEAD, don’t wear bigger cap! Just go out and rent a room with your wife; then think about saving money to better life.
I have known people who work extremely hard (more than one job) to clear their debts due to the past property crisis. I have also known people who save every single cents and living honestly in order to send their children for better education. These people earn my respect.
If thinking about HDB allowance / HDB house ownership assistance, there are many more other needy people, such as disability people; very ill people whom do not have relatives, etc. No matter how, we should take responsibilities of our action and our lives – Don’t depend on others or taking advantages of the system/people.
Andrew,
Sorry to say that I strongly think that you should solve your current situation yourself instead of making a case here. I think this is your/your family’s personal issue!
KH, Haha.. we think alike!
Frankly speaking, after reading this article and analysing the situation, I do not have any sympathy with Andrew’s family AT ALL.
Firstly, Andrew and his sister should be old enough to support themselves and also contributed to the family to ease the woes.
Secondly, me also being a property agent knows that there’s a lot of hard work to survive in this line. But whether good times or bad times, we still can earn. Just dun give ourselves too much excuse and sit at home and think…WHY NO SALES?..it’s because we need to put a lot of hard work and sweat in order to make a deal!
Thirdly, like some have said. They could have rent out some of their rooms to have lessen the burden.
Lastly,this is not the worst things to happen. The article mearly highlight the worst case scenario but did not mention about much attempt to improve on their living condition.More could be done.
Andrew’s case an insignificant case, why make the hoohaa. If Andrew is suffering, then probably more than 1/2 of the world populations are suffering badly.
Living in Ex. Man., driving a car, sending child oversea, etc. etc. Isn’t that a luxury life? Two young ppls, with both legs and arms, and probably educated as well in other to make such a big case, cannot afford to live in Singapore? Goto KFC and McDonalds to work part time is more than enuf to cover your utilities bills!!! I personally despise this.
There is a problem, the only problem is, they have been living too luxurily, and hard to go back to the normal life. Just to give a simple case -> cannot even tahan the life of no electricity, do you know how many ppls in the world have been living without utilities? Like the chinese saying, you jian lu she yi, you she lu jian nan. Sorry, I do not pity you at all.
When I was young, my brother and I(ages 5 and 6 then) had to get up in the mornings to sell Nasi Lemak. If we were in the morning session school, we would have to sell Curry Puffs. We did this for several years to help out in making money for home. My sister(youngest) also had to join us when she got older. She sold them nearer to home as she was a girl but she worked too.
As my brother and I got into adolosence we became caddy’s at the golf course but our father made sure that we contributed to the home to help with the bills.
What has any of the family memebers, wife, son and daughter, done to help in their situation. If I were sitting on a home that worth almost half a million and I was the father, the house would have been sold a long time ago becuase ungrateful people should learn that it’s not easy to be paying for 4 mouths to feed, clothe and shelter. He says,”My father was always a dollar short and a day late”. Basically I believe the father was trying to make sure eveyone had a good home. Not expecting things to turn out as bad when it came to work But to have no help from anyone is just madness.
In the end if he says at least they can sell the flat at a good price because the market is good. Then what? Let his father buy a new home and move in. Get off your ass all non contributors. Your fofrfathers did so. Why should anyone have sympathy for you?
how can most of you not have a heart. We as children sometimes feel so helpless seeing our parents pay off their mortgage loan who bought their houses during the 1996 and 1997 crisis. Selling a house is not as easy as you all would think. Even the accrued interest need to be added up. for an amount of 380k the accrued interest can reach as high as 170k for a period of 10 years only.Now you tell me how are we supposed to pay off our house.ridiculous.
HDB is not suppose to force you to sell your flat.
SP should not be collecting the debt you owe them and provide you with FOC water and electricity.
How about every month, Singapore goverment give you one million to spend every month?
WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? PRESIDENT OR BOSS OF Republic of Singapore?
To Andrew’s friend, Leong Sze Hian:
Your friend is just a low class worm who does not deserve anything more than a backlash.
And for you who bring this up to here. Why dun you give your money to your so-called friend and start making a big fuss with HDB and SP.
My advice to you : kiang jiu hou…mai kay kiang!
To Mr Andrew:
You belong to the lowest class creature that i ever seen. Failed as a son. Can you just find a hole and buried yourself. Stop wasting the money of our goverment. The money can be used for those who really need it.
My advice to you : I will save my advice to those who really need it, but not you.
To Mr Andrew’s Father:
You drive a car and have no money to pay HDB loan and SP bills. Sell your damn car and get on with your life. Are you a xiao bai lian? Live with your wife hard earn money?
You got 10 bloody good years of life and yet you dun save it. Serve you right.
My advice to you : Bo lui .. mai TUA KANG.
life is a “gamble”, there are risks involved in making a huge property purchase and many are tempted to enjoy the good life and most are motivated by greed to make more money by property flipping.
the case as mentioned, the housing market is now so bouyant that the family can sell off their EM and “cash out” of their predicament and should downgrade to a smaller 4 room unit. On one hand the family complained about how much COV there is to buy the 4 room flat but I am sure their EM is expected to sell high too. To expect to “sell high” their EM and then “buy low” the new flat is unrealistic and subject to market forces, and failing to do so and then to blame the HDB for making them homeless is really baseless!
in the first place the high demand for property is what can be an opportunity to solve their financial problems, but if they want to keep this EM to stay, the young couple should consider to move in with the family. either way, the young couple would end up living with the family since they are selling the EM and downgrading to a 4 room flat.
my advice is don’t be greedy, you have to take responsibility for your “gamble”. If you want to gamble, you have to be prepared to pay the price for the gamble.
it is good that the property market is bouyant now for the property owners, including myself although I live modestly in a 4 room flat. If the property market crashed and the houses are dirt cheap, that will present another set of lamenting and complaining. When in this good property market, be prudent and not get carried away. For those facing financial hardship because of asset rich and cash poor, be realistic and “downgrade” if necessary so as to free up some “asset”.
I think the issue is not so much they were greedy or not, who isn’t clamoring for more money, please raise your hands if you don’t. It is the whole system that the government has created whether deliberately or otherwise and knowing that the populace will fall, hook,line and rod for it.
In the days of the call for “upgrading”, well was also to add to the GDP figures, if you had no spare cash on the side or you were very sure of your job, like civil servants, best not to fall into this economic trap. At the end of the day, it is the people who suffer and have to bear with their rules and regulations, that is the prospect of returning the flat.
I’ve heard too of people being send to jail for one, two weeks for not paying up their utilities or town council arrears. This was at the subordinate courts when a friend went there for some matters, don’t know if it still happens. At the end of the day, you be the judge of your own financial matters, and best be prudent.
I sympathise with Andrew and his family and it must be a trying time. Life is tough here if you are on the boarder line situation and nothing is forever here. My call to all of you. If there is an opposition in your area for the next elections, vote the PAP out.
If you think that Singapore will go down the “slippery road”, I don’t think so, it is those who have voted them in year in and out who are now walking on that slippery road!
Costs for using and maintaining the car can or use to settle payment for the utility biils.?????Can always go for the car sharing scheme if his father needs to move around.
Andrew, Shame on you as a grown up adult!
If anyone showed sympathy to you, they are truly generous.
All those who support Andrew, do something for him than wasting your time here mulling over this.
As for Andrew’s dad, I just cant understand him as a real estate agent who doesnt know when to sell his flat and find a reasonably priced rental unit.I have never come across any agent as such.
While reading the article, I seriously thought our govt agencies could be that bad to the xtent of sending a family of 4 to streets. Well…they did the right job in cutting the power and all the things they have done to get the money from them.
Andrew and his supporters, there are many ways to skin a cat. Please Dont use this forum for people like andrew’s family. They dont deserve anything. They will have to sort out the things they got into bcos of their mismanagement.
my 2 cents worth…
executive maisonette??!!! the bills and installment so ex still can live in it for so long? long ago shld had sell off liao!!! No money still wan to live so big house!! Stupid PPL wif stupid brain!! NOw open market so ex they sell liao sure earn alot money lor… HOmeless go and rent la!! Pls LA!! ur executive maisonette bill and installment is more ex then rentin…..
Hello people please listen to yourselves, this is not about andrew! understand what you read la! you keep on focusing andrew, your becoming his fans already mah! Read between the lines!
Its about people having a hard time finding an hdb house today, even we singaporeans cannot afford the rental or the price lah, HDB price keeps on going up, but the income of the people is not considered. Like Mr. Wong kan said, if this keeps going on, singaporeans will be attracted by other countries including foreign talents and then they will become competitors against singapore. It is happening now already, many singaporeans are in dubai, australia, China, Malaysia, Taiwan.
I don’t think there is any compassion needed above, what i see is a case of financial miscalculation to buy a big house without sufficient funds and when you don’t have the guarantee to afford it in the long run. Also i see that HDB and SP Power have given them sufficient chances and opportunities , they can’t provide the electricity they are using and the house they are staying in for *FREE*, it will also be unfair with other individuals who slog day in day out to meet their ends and pay their dues/bills on time.
Its time people understand what it takes to survive in an economy like today and i guess they should have sold their house long back and moved to a smaller house instead. Singapore govt. and other involved parties are doing a lot to give Singaporeans and others who stay here a comfortable stay.
I really feel Singaporeans should go outside Singapore to other countries and see “how difficult life is”; i frankly feel their expectations from govt. are v v high and sometimes ridiculous.
In other countries, u die outside a hospital if you don’t have money to get the fellow in for treatment, Singapore is a much much better country when it comes to issues like these, so people should become more responsible and stop whining and complaining. Also the taxpayers and others who slog hard, have to then take care of people like these who spend more than they can afford which doesn’t make sense.
So what if they lose money by selling the house, it was a bad decision they took in life and life has to move on…
Kamlesh
Wow! Thanks for all the comments. This shows that the article has struck a chord. I can see that we’ve got you talking.
Thanks for the kind words of encouragement and advices from those who sent them. I’m especially grateful that you’ve not judged but rather chose to look at the issue in a positive light, giving objective solutions, given that the article left many details opened to interpretation / misinterpretation.
For those who cast the “judgmental finger”, thanks too for you are entitled to your opinion and that is ok. It probably made you feel a little better about yourself, your beliefs and your values. Your comments reflect your personal evolution and I wish you all the best in your personal development.
Originally, I wanted to ignore the comments but I feel that the real message of the article has not been put across. I’m also observing that there have been various assumptions made and I also see that it has gotten out of hand, with many destructive statements being posted to various people, even the kind souls at TOC that have put themselves on the line to be of service to you but yet get scrutinized. As such, I feel it is appropriate to set the record straight and put across the message originally intended. The objective is one of awareness, to allow you to objectively view what’s happening authentically by actual Singaporeans, in the hope that an even better system can be implemented, to make Singapore a better place.
I didn’t get to see the draft before the article got posted. The original title was suppose to be “Homeless Soon??? Thanks to HDB…” and somehow the article has come to focus on “compassion”. However, the original interview was not so much about “compassion” but rather to ask these simple questions:
• “What kind of system do ALL of us live under and what is its effects on ALL of us?”
• “Is this system setup to proportionately aid the people more, or aid the authorities more? Creating Profiteering from necessities or Provision of affordable basic necessities?”
• “If a family who was once doing ok, as a result of a ‘slip up that could happen even to the best of us’, can get affected by changes in housing policy that causes a major downward spiral financially, what more can happen to those who are less well-off?”
• “Are there more of such stories around? Especially those living in 3 room or smaller flats that face similar predicaments because of a poorly developed system?”
• “If you are also living in such a system, could you be next to face a similar predicament when you “mess up”? If so, what are the ‘red flags’? What are the possible rectifications before the systems affect more of us? How do we address them? Who should be responsible in correcting the system? What should be done?”
I only ask that the truth be told. Of course, my family and I became the subject of scrutiny. Many harsh /hurtful words of judgment came as a result but I guess that’s the price one pays for allowing their story to be aired to the public. All this however, is worth it if it creates a shift in awareness and creates a better system that serves the people better, including those that wrote those hurtful words.
As for the assumptions made about my family and me, here’s some clarity.
• Yes my dad did put us in this situation in the first place. Despite going through difficult years, cash flow for day-to-day living is fine now for my family. Not the best but we’re surviving. The worst of the years has passed. Having came from those many years of pain to this stage, I’d consider ourselves as having dug out of “really serious s#^t” and can at least see a ray of light at the end of the tunnel. This I consider an achievement on my family’s part.
• Through the years, my mum, sis and I have all been working and supporting the family and its expense (Who do you think supported the house while my dad was jobless for 10 years). What you saw in the HDB appeal letter about me being jobless was a period of 3 months that I myself loss my job and the cash flow that was usually used to aid my family, was reduced and can’t meet the usual monthly payment requirements. I still work and support my family.
• My sister’s education is not funded by my family. She got married to a foreigner and is studying overseas, with her tuition fees fully funded by her husband, who believes that an education is still very important in order to earn a better livelihood. She’s got her own family to take care of and they are just making ends meet. In fact, while I was younger and was still schooling and only worked part-time to support my own pocket money, she was the one who paid for most of the expenses.
• No. We couldn’t sell the house earlier because the property market wasn’t favourable. Our valuation could not even cover what was left owing to HDB. We would have been in further debt if we had sold the house earlier. Much worse, not even have a roof to live under. It is only now that property prices allow our sales transaction to fully cover what is owing to HDB. Hmm… I wonder why we still get hurtful words for taking responsibility to repay our debt to HDB?
• Yes. We did rent a room out that helped us out financially but despite the rent income, we had to collectively contribute more to the installment plans that we agreed to pay to SP, Town Council and other creditors.
• About the car, what you probably don’t know is that my dad drives an old “beat up” car that IS fully paid. It aids in his job and ultimately causes him to spend lesser than if he were to use ‘car share’ or use the taxi service for his job. Is it then a “wrong” thing to have a car when its expense is lower than the next best alternative?
• No. We didn’t ask for free electricity. We are willing to pay for our usage and have been paying for our usage and the arrears. The point of pointing SP out was to allow you to look into their system and you decide if this is a fair system set up to aid the people or the company:
- For those who are in arrears, a letter of demand is sent for you to pay by a certain date.
- Since you are already in arrears, your power supply will be cut off if you miss that date.
- Even if you pay up, as a result of your power supply being cut off, you’ll STILL have to pay for interest, reconnection fees and the reminder fee, every single time this happens.
- If you set up an installment plan and miss payments for matter of days, a letter will be sent to you to demand that you pay up in full or you’ll be faced with a disconnection.
- Should there be any legal letters that come your way (who knows? Maybe the computer system automatically knows when to do this), you’ll STILL have to pay for the legal fees, on top of regular usage, reconnection fees, interest and reminder fees. (Of course, you may be black-listed too)
- As mentioned in the article, the Town Council has the same system too.
The truth about being possibly homeless is… We can’t get a house now because:
o We don’t have the cash to pay for the cash top up for a resale flat.
o The proceeds from the current sale will be used to pay up all the outstanding loan with HDB.
o I don’t have a good queue number through the balloting exercise. Those who really need a house urgently needs to go through that “dance” routine called the balloting system and compete with many other Singaporeans to get a house. By the time you get to be on the top of the list, you’d already have paid several application fees and waited for an uncertain period of time. The question here is “By when will you climb up the queue ladder and get priority?”
BTW, my parents will be staying with me in the house that I purchase and I know that we’ll be thankful to have a flat.
I must say too that there are helpful humans within the system, who try to help but ultimately, they are also slaves to the system and its policies and have to abide by the rules set up by their employer (Reality of being employed). However, I’m still grateful for the help they rendered.
Hey, the truth is, my dad messed up and I know that along the way, we (the family) contributed to the mess too! And the consequence of messing up is a life of financial struggles and facing the music, both externally (with the authorities) and internally (family, relatives and of course, self pity, depression etc). We are taking responsibility and I’m glad to say that we are mostly out of our predicament. For those who still choose to criticize, may you who have never made a bad decision cast the first criticism.
Yup. I know that when this comes out, there’s going to be some of you who will still criticize but there would also be those who will be encouraging. This is life and it is normal human behaviour. Sometimes people forget that when they point a finger outwards, 3 more point back at themselves. However, I appreciate you voicing out anyway.
Our pledge says:
“We. The citizens of Singapore,
Pledge ourselves as One United People,
Regardless of Race, Language or Religion,
To Build a Democratic Society,
Based on Justice and Equality,
So as to achieve Happiness, Prosperity and Progress for out nation.”
Looks like we are a far cry away from our founding ideals huh but I hope I’ve set you thinking.
Best Regards,
Andrew
Sometimes people just refuse to accept the reality and be responsible for their own life.
No cash to buy resale flats? Perhaps try your luck at big sweep, toto. ha.
Perhaps can write in to ST forums to ask for waive off the loans ? ha.
Can’t wait in the queue? Go see your MP and bang table, demanding for your flats.
It’s always easy to blame the government, the god, the neighbours, HDB, SingPower, town council, weather, society.
the morale of the story? don’t bite more than you can chew… Exec mansionate…??? did he plan his finances before taking up such huge liability?
Dear Andrew,
First, I must commend you for your eloquence. I am sure that you will have no trouble finding a job in Singapore.
Next, perhaps I can clarify my position on this matter. I never sought to criticize you. While I’ve made it clear that I’m not exactly sympathetic, I don’t seek to criticize or condemn. It’s clear to me that you and your family are having a hard enough time already.
That said, I had sought to highlight above why the writer’s logic is flawed — and if you want to understand why you are getting the backlash, it’s because this piece is poorly written. Instead of simply highlighting your situation, this piece has sought to insinuate that it is a failure of the system. Notwithstanding the new facts you have presented, it should be quite clear to the majority of readers here that your case does not provide support for this claim (which seems to be the central theme for this article).
The objective is one of awareness, to allow you to objectively view what’s happening authentically by actual Singaporeans, in the hope that an even better system can be implemented, to make Singapore a better place.
Hate to break this to you, but there are many who are in worse straits, and many of them are likely not quite as eloquent as you and therefore probably less able to get out of a similar (or worse) mess. Given the facts of the story, your situation is only to be expected. How can anyone expect otherwise?
The original title was suppose to be “Homeless Soon??? Thanks to HDB…” and somehow the article has come to focus on “compassion”.
That is a lousy title. Reason: if your family did become homeless, it’s not HDB’s fault. Your dad messed up as you admitted above, so please take responsibility for your family’s mess. Why anyone would what to put up such a title is beyond me, if not asking for compassion.
“What kind of system do ALL of us live under and what is its effects on ALL of us?”
Tell us: what is wrong with the system as you mentioned? If you family messes up, you expect the State to come to your rescue? Is the article incorrect in highlighting that SP has been dealing with your family’s payments in arrears since 1999?
“Is this system setup to proportionately aid the people more, or aid the authorities more? Creating Profiteering from necessities or Provision of affordable basic necessities?”
You seem to be thinking that your family deserves more aid than the rest? Turns out the majority of readers do not seem to agree with you.
“If a family who was once doing ok, as a result of a ‘slip up that could happen even to the best of us’, can get affected by changes in housing policy that causes a major downward spiral financially, what more can happen to those who are less well-off?”
Well, shit happens. You expect the State to provide guarantees to families who were once doing ok that they should ALWAYS do okay even if they mess up? That’s not how the real world works.
“Are there more of such stories around? Especially those living in 3 room or smaller flats that face similar predicaments because of a poorly developed system?”
Plenty more and more serious, which is why your story is less than interesting and comes across more whiny than anything.
“If you are also living in such a system, could you be next to face a similar predicament when you “mess up”? If so, what are the ‘red flags’? What are the possible rectifications before the systems affect more of us? How do we address them? Who should be responsible in correcting the system? What should be done?”
If the goal of this article is to “warn” people, it needs a complete rewrite and a title mor akin to “Look before you leap. Don’t commit financially before doing your sums….”. You want to warn people then please don’t try to push blame. Given the facts, it actually puts you in a bad light, hence my suggestion to the author for a change of title earlier for the said article.
Of course, my family and I became the subject of scrutiny. Many harsh /hurtful words of judgment came as a result but I guess that’s the price one pays for allowing their story to be aired to the public. All this however, is worth it if it creates a shift in awareness and creates a better system that serves the people better, including those that wrote those hurtful words.
A lot has to do with HOW it has been aired.
I’d consider ourselves as having dug out of “really serious s#^t” and can at least see a ray of light at the end of the tunnel. This I consider an achievement on my family’s part.
Congrats. Glad to hear that.
It is only now that property prices allow our sales transaction to fully cover what is owing to HDB.
Precisely. So what’s the big deal?
Hmm… I wonder why we still get hurtful words for taking responsibility to repay our debt to HDB?
Nobody assumed the you’re not paying up. It is unlikely you have such an option anyway. In case you’re still not getting it, you’re getting a earful for other things, not for not repaying your debt.
About the car, what you probably don’t know is that my dad drives an old “beat up” car that IS fully paid. It aids in his job and ultimately causes him to spend lesser than if he were to use ‘car share’ or use the taxi service for his job. Is it then a “wrong” thing to have a car when its expense is lower than the next best alternative?
It turns out that your family is not the only one around that own cars and many people understand perfectly well how much petrol is costing these days. How do you hope to convince people that it is cheaper to maintain a “beat up” car than take public transport? You know why you’re getting flak? It’s because your family doesn’t seem to understand how to be “poor”.
No. We didn’t ask for free electricity. We are willing to pay for our usage and have been paying for our usage and the arrears. The point of pointing SP out was to allow you to look into their system and you decide if this is a fair system set up to aid the people or the company
Please be reminded that SP has been dealing with your payments in arrears since 1999. I would have thought that they are already infinitely patient.
Ever try putting yourself in SP’s shoes? Perhaps suggest to us a reasonable way to handle people who don’t pay up other than the current “send a letter of demand first and then cut power if you dun pay up” policy? You want them to send a pretty debt collector to your doorstep?
If your claim is that SP didn’t give you sufficient warning/grace before cutting your power, then please provide the facts and make that claim … and if you’re right, people might agree with you…. and if you don’t pay up on time, you should of course expect to get slapped with late charges. If people don’t get slapped with late charges, WHY would anyone bother to pay up on time? Everyone will just pay up as and when they feel like it.
The truth about being possibly homeless is… We can’t get a house now because … yada yada:
Perhaps you can address the question of why you cannot rent first and save up enough until you can pay for cash top up for a resale flat?
And the consequence of messing up is a life of financial struggles and facing the music, both externally (with the authorities) and internally (family, relatives and of course, self pity, depression etc).
This unfortunately is how life is. I find it hard to believe that Singaporeans don’t know/understand this. I think you are not giving them enough credit.
Our pledge says:
“We. The citizens of Singapore,
Pledge ourselves as One United People,
Regardless of Race, Language or Religion,
To Build a Democratic Society,
Based on Justice and Equality,
So as to achieve Happiness, Prosperity and Progress for our nation.”
Looks like we are a far cry away from our founding ideals huh but I hope I’ve set you thinking.
Perhaps I can highlight that this pledge in no way says that if you get into trouble because of your own fault, it is the responsibility of the State to bail you out so that you (and your family) do not suffer a drop in your standard of living.
Frankly, you do get some sympathies from me, not for your family’s plight (though you might have gotten some if the tone of the article was different….), but from some of the unduly harsh criticisms above. However, it also seems to me that you haven’t quite learnt the lesson you should have learnt and you’re still clinging steadfast to the belief that the Govt/HDB/SP are at fault? I hope that I’ve set you thinking.
Andrew Loh,
While I accept your disagreements on the issues raised in the article, I do not accept your last sentence about Selene.
It is totally uncalled for and regrettable that you would make such a statement.
At no point did the KTM make a statement about Selene. Merely highlighted above that Andrew (not you, one in the story) has Selene to thank for all the flak that he has been getting. It might be helpful to read comments more carefully before responding. :-)
Well, like my case, i’ve outstanding mortgage loan because our monthly CPF is not enough to cover the loan (but still paying every month), HDB staff contact us saying that ‘HDB intends to compulsorily acquire your flat and allocate you a rental flat for your accomodation’, we appealed for 2nd HDB loan to downgrade to a smaller flat but they reject us, really don’t understand what actually HBD want us to do!
I was not allowed to retain my 3rm flat as this is a matrimony property as i divorced 5yrs ago and also as I dun have kids .
I was to sell it in the open market as i have reached the MOP period last year %$^%$&^%%#$$%@#$@%R&^ As i am entitled to another HDB loan , of course i’ll go for it instead of getting a loan frm the bank!! I can only UPGRADE to a 4rm or bigger .Im buying under a single scheme next .My cpf is arnd 70k and loan granted $170K ONLY!!….CAN ANYONE TELL ME WITH THE CURRENT PROPERTY PRICE HIKE WILL ANYONE BE ABLE TO PURCHASE A 4RM AT THAT RATE????????????? I APPEALED FEW TIMES AND WAS REJECTED! IM CARING FOR MY DAD WHO IS VERY ILL ..WHERE SHOULD I GO AFTER I COMPLETED MY 1ST & 2ND APPT..SHLD B BY JULY..IM SOOOOO STRESSED UP LOOKING FOR A FLAT!!!!
i can understand how andrew felt..When ur financially tied due to some unavoidable circumstances even 10cts seems so ‘big’!
Packed ur stuff n stay at Kallang river or by the beach..wen interviewed juz say lor this is the only place u can ‘afford’ and dun worry andrew smday u’ll make it again….
We’re gonna be homeless too.. we’re selling our flat to pay-off the arrears to HDB cos they informed us that they wanted to ‘compulsorily acquire’ our flat but they refused to loan us HDB loan if we’re downgrading to a smaller flat or same model flat.. Even with the help from MP they still reject us, not once but 3 times! Was told unless we upgrade to a bigger flat we can get a HDB loan but if we can afford buying a bigger flat why are we being forced to sell our flat now -_-
Our 4th child will be due next month & we still have no idea what we should do next.. sleep at void deck of our block?? Can someone advise us?
Hi
Can you email me at leonggsh@pacific.net.sg to give me your telephone contact, as I would like to speak to you
Cheers
Leong Sze Hian
Hi Leong,
I really understand how you feel, i oso undergo abit same as you. As i believe and its true, most singaporean (in fact i shld say close to 95% singaporean) are all kia si and heartless type. Now i oso trying to seek MP help to try getting approval from HDB to sell my house. Currently oso own S&C, HDB and banks $$$….Just bought my flat 2yrs + ago. Can’t sell it, cos getting the HDB Grant. Have to wait 5 yrs den can sell off. Hope we can all pull through…..Just ignore those ppls who think SERVE THEM RIGHT FOR BUYING A BIG FLAT…Screw them!!!! Fyi, my previous pay was around 5k, but due to retrenchment, now were unable to service all my loans.
Hello people (Esp to the Non-supporters!°)
Before you jump in & make comments about Andrew & HIS situation, think about something very carefully.
We all don’t know know the true circumstance which led to his situation… esp the situation of the father. Do we as readers know about the other side of the story? If not, WHO ARE WE to condemn Andrew for taking a ‘luxurious’ flat to start with? Did anyone asked WHEN was the flat bought??? If it is bought before the property market downturn, then it is understandable that the family also wanted, at that time, a piece of property which they could count as their own. I think the family is normal & just like any other (Singaporean) family, they would like to make their mark also in societies like Singapore.
Do we know for sure that it is true that he & his father have not tried to pay for all the debts???? WHO among you all WANTS to be, in the first place, in debts? To give the benefit of the doubt, i am sure that they have tried to settle it as best as they can… Who ‘enjoys’ having the utility to be always cut off?? Who enjoys even more the humility of going down to officials in SP & HDB ‘begging’ them with ‘pennies’ to restore the electicity with (perhaps) your neighbours also laughing behind your backs? Not me :-(
In my opinion, i think the family is trying to make it as best as they can. By renting out rooms alone (see Comment from Leong Sze Hian above) shows a sign that the family is at least trying to survive. in my understanding by just reading this article, the father has tried to take all kinds of 2nd job on top of his main job as a real estate agent to make ends meet.
So before we begin to judge someone else, i think we should also try to understand what is going on behind. Maybe we would then all be more sympathetic to people like Andrew…. like also perhaps many more Singaporeans who are presently in his shoes too.
it is not necesery to bought a very big house in the first place i dont understand why he dont sell his flat and a bought the house with his cash money i dont understand the moral of this story ??? alot of people out there who more unlucky some event sleep on the beach be thankful that u have a house and event have the money to pay for cash ….
Hi,
I think many of us had that kind of painful memories (not able to repay loans), in different length and breath. Sometimes one’s decision could change the life of many, especially for the children.
Help can be in many forms, not always in terms of money. “Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you feed him for a lifetime.” A lesson learnt from Andrew’s story is that, the root of the problem was not resolved, causing them a long and painful period to repay the “bad debt”.
I think the focus is to have stable household income. A social worker visiting the family could help to understand the situation, and counseling the need. This will help to ease the pain for the family, at the same time, encouraging the father to get on his feet and back to work (as full-time). Our society is weak in this area. Counseling were deem by many as useless, because not many of our counselors are trained to handle such situations. Life is full of ups and downs. Let’s face it that we need that little encouragement to pull us back on track.
sunflower
//nhyone
not exploiting Sing Power because its charges are among the highest in the world.
tell “My views” to read this.