6 Incredibly Simple Ways To Compare Between A New Launch And Resale Condo

[@StackedHomes]

Comment below if you have a tip or experience you'd like to share when it comes to comparing floor plans! Store - stackedhomes.com/store/?.com&KmQYsyMYOg Website - www.stackedhomes.com/?.com&KmQYsyMYOg Instagram- instagram.com/stackedhomes Facebook - facebook.com/stackedhomes TikTok - www.tiktok.com/@stacked.homes

[@lzh4950]

3:15 Generally I observe that private housing only count bedrooms (& occasionally study areas/rooms separately also) when classifying houses by size e.g. 1/2/3-bedroom, 2-bedroom+study, but HDB counts living & dining rooms also. So an older HDB 5-room flat usually comprises of 3 bedrooms+living & dining room while newer ones replace the dining room with a suggested study area (which doesn't come with any walls unless you install them yourself/hire a contractor to do so, or could be left alone & merged w the living room to expand it). Meanwhile a HDB 4-room flat is the same but minus the study area/dining room (so you eat in the kitchen instead), & is approximately equivalent in size to a 3-bedroom condo (typically 3 bedrooms + living room) built in the same era. (newer 5-room/4-bedroom units are often around 120m^2 large, about the same as an older 4-room/3-bedroom units) Then a HDB 3-room flat is 2 bedrooms + living room, same as a 2-bedroom condo (but some have only 1 bathroom while others have 2). Anything larger than 5-room for HDB units are what're called executive (1-floor) units or maisonettes (2-floor)(e.g. my old house has 4 bedrooms (1 on the lower floor & the rest upstairs) + living & dining rooms + balcony) e.g. my uncle lives in an executive unit, which has 3 bedrooms + living room + dining room + balcony + study room (where unlike the bedrooms, the door is sliding & transparent, like with balconies). In more recent times also, 'penthouses' just means any unit with >1 floor, without necessarily being bigger e.g. I've seen a 120m^2 penthouse that uses the same floor plate as a single-floor 4-room unit, only difference is that 1 room on the lower floor is replaced with the staircase, with the master bedroom & bath moved upstairs, where a balcony/yard is added to. Also HDB units usually include a bomb shelter within each unit's floor area (except 1 room rental flats, where all units on the same floor of a block share 1 ore more storey shelters), but condos might not (& instead reinforce the escape staircases' walls instead to turn that into the bomb shelter instead)

[@wsquah]

You guys do amazing non biased content! Keep it up

[@StackedHomes]

We appreciate it! We hope you find our videos informative 😁

[@hairulnizam85]

This is absolutely great knowledge. Glad I watched it. I am young but I prefer the older layout as compared to newer layout though. It’s more about practicality for me. I’m staying in an open concept kitchen now and it makes the house feel big. But it is very bad especially when you’re cooking. I wish I would hv an older layout for my kitchen now….

[@StackedHomes]

Glad it was helpful! You've raised a very good point. Open kitchen concepts have been the in thing as of late, a natural progression given the smaller sizes of homes. But it does have the downside of smells going around the house - especially true for new launches where there's not much natural ventilation beyond just 1 side of the home which doesn't facilitate much cross ventilation. The lack of a naturally-ventilated yard which is what you get in all HDBs is also a weakness. Thank you for watching!

[@terenceterence2305]

having foyer or corridor, hallway give a sense of ceremonial feeling. today space is such expensive that developers sell open kitchen, open bedrooms etc as plus selling point.

[@StackedHomes]

Yes it used to have a purpose, but i today's real estate market, people prioritise efficiency over these things. Of course, not everyone agrees! They still do have their purpose :)

[@lzh4950]

Remember it's newer instead of older houses that tend to have longer hallways though instead, since in older houses the bedrooms' doors open straight into the living room, but in newer ones the bedrooms open into the hallway instead @ 1 end, with the living room @ the other end. More privacy for the bedrooms, but also more space taken up (by the hallway)

[@royconago4655]

I have one question, assuming there is a new launch 99yrs condo across the street. Any rule of thumb how much lower should a 15yrs FH condo sell below the new launch? Thanks

[@u.u5930]

one thing Ah Beng and Ah Lian real estate agents like to say : "Owner Spent 100K on Reno" but i always reply : Hello, owners live there X number of years, the 100K worth of reno used up / consumed / write down already so no more worth 100K !! they should not use the " 100K " as a selling point.

[@StackedHomes]

Yes you're right. Actually renovation costs is irrelevant, what matters is whether the renovations would fit you. We've seen cases where renovations are actually detrimental to the sale, such spending a lot of carpentry to build a circular entertainment area combining a living and dining, which is impractical for most families. Sometimes a lot of money is also spent on renovations of designs that look very dated, and the owner has to spend the money to hack it away 😂

[@lzh4950]

@@StackedHomes Reminds me of a HDB mansionette just opposite Tampines MRT with an asking price of $900k, while another unit of the same design & size but ~10min further away (where I used to stay) was S$150-200k cheaper. PropertyLim Brothers explained that a reason is that the owner spent S$100k+ on renovation, but I didn't think it was worth it IMO (for that price I would've expected & preferred more wood paneling & other trim, but the owner had spent more on kitchen appliances instead I recall). If the owner relocated the bathroom(s) also, I imagine that can also raise renovation costs, but future owners may not necessarily appreciate the relocation

[@huangyaotang]

wow good content, psf comparison could be very misleading (resale vs new launch, 1 bedder vs 4 bedder), more property agents should compare apple to apple. This channel is honest and informative, unlike certain property brothers... *cough *cough

[@StackedHomes]

Thank you for your kind words!

[@lzh4950]

Generally the house's cost/'^2 seems to be inversely proportional with it's floor area, but super penthouses (6000+'^2) seem to be an exception (i.e. they're large but their cost per unit floor area are higher too), perhaps because they're bought as status symbols too e.g. S$30+m @ Canninghill Piers, S$36m @ The Sail, ~S$80m @ Wallich (formerly Clearmont) Residence

[@musico3415]

Are dbss considered older design, since they have bay windows in all rooms and 1 or 2 balconies?

[@jayashrishobna]

Another layout trend I really don't like is allocating the dining space in the balcony rather than internally. Even if I like al-fresco dining, I'd rather it not be assumed, especially since I wouldn't dine outside in a thunderstorm.

[@StackedHomes]

Thanks for raising this Jayashri, and well said! al-fresco dining is certainly not for everyone. And we're not even talking about just Singapore. Countries with 4 seasons are also affected since it's impractical during winter. But in Singapore, it's humid almost all-year round, with some exceptions on certain days. It's also not good when there're mosquitoes around! Sadly, balconies continue to be built - it's not really a trend as it subtly implies consumer's preferences. Rather, it is an unfortunate outcome of regulations. Developers are rewarded with bonus GFA under the Bonus GFA scheme - www.ura.gov.sg/Corporate/Guidelines/Development-Control/Residential/Flats-Condominiums/Bonus-GFA.

[@jayashrishobna]

@@StackedHomes Great info, thanks! Don't get me wrong, I love balconies, but I don't like them to be the designated space for dining. I prefer to use them as extra space to chill, especially since I love sitting on the floor so much and current internal layouts don't really leave much open floor space after furniture is put in.

[@KAng-nm5fs]

Great content, really enjoy following your channel. Just some feedback from one - perhaps cut down on the edits, it gets more distracting than anything else after a few minutes.

[@StackedHomes]

Thanks for the feedback! Noted on the edits 👌

[@brendanlim3630]

New developments' psf tends to be higher and very small. Whereas for resale units, the psf tends to be lower (because they are older) and more spacious. Personally, I do not like open kitchen unless you don't do any serious cooking. If you do cook, enclosed kitchen is better as the smoke and oil will not affect your dining and living areas so much.

[@StackedHomes]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this!

[@lzh4950]

Many HDBs don't have a dedicated dining room so you'll be eating in the kitchen instead - that'll be where open-concept kitchens become useful. Think glass doors are often installed there so the kitchen can convert between being enclosed (e.g. when you're cooking & don't want the fumes to spread to the rest of the house) & being more open (e.g. when dining, so the area feels less cramped), but I think the doors often have to be custom-made, which raises costs

[@din0soir]

hi! really enjoying your videos! could u discuss circulation in your next videos?

[@StackedHomes]

Thanks for your feedback! Will let the team know about this one!

[@Lars_Riberfelt]

For new Condos; I feel that it is a bit "pointless" to compare layouts as they all look the same. Then it's about price and location as the determining factors.

[@StackedHomes]

Yes that's true to a large extent, there's only so much you can do with say 700 sqft of space. So when comparing between new launches, it really boils down to pricing, location, potential of the area and so on. But there are little things like having natural ventilation or an enclosed kitchen that does make a difference too so it's good to take note 😀

[@Lars_Riberfelt]

@@StackedHomes Yes but even for bigger units, say a 4 or 5 bedder, the layouts looks very much the same. In the older condos there was more "originality" (wrong word but didnt know otherwise to describe it).

[@lzh4950]

Nearby facilities are another factor too e.g. some condos have shops immediately below them, & some of them put the shops within their own compound (so they're accessible only to residents e.g. Mandarin Gardens, d'Leedon), but others classify the shops as public areas e.g. The Poiz. Some may appreciate the convenience but others (like my parents) might be more concerned instead of increased noise due to the foot traffic

[@pwkhang]

just a small suggestion. try to talk to the mic all the time and not away from it. the inconsistent volume could be giving some ppl headache.

[@StackedHomes]

Thanks! Will take note of this!

[@annieteo7169]

Older resale flats require major renovation. And renovation is not cheap.

[@StackedHomes]

Yes it's true, especially if you're looking to do a makeover. It's in the 6 figures!