How should we judge a government?

In Malaysia, if you don't watch television or read newspapers, you are uninformed; but if you do, you are misinformed!

"If you're not careful, the newspapers will have you hating the people who are being oppressed, and loving the people who are doing the oppressing." - Malcolm X

Never argue with stupid people, they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience - Mark Twain

Why we should be against censorship in a court of law: Publicity is the very soul of justice … it keeps the judge himself, while trying, under trial. - Jeremy Bentham

"Our government is like a baby's alimentary canal, with a happy appetite at one end and no
responsibility at the other. " - Ronald Reagan

Government fed by the people

Government fed by the people

Career options

Career options
I suggest government... because nobody has ever been caught.

Corruption so prevalent it affects English language?

Corruption so prevalent it affects English language?
Corruption is so prevalent it affects English language?

When there's too much dirt...

When there's too much dirt...
We need better tools... to cover up mega corruptions.

Prevent bullying now!

Prevent bullying now!
If you're not going to speak up, how is the world supposed to know you exist? “Orang boleh pandai setinggi langit, tapi selama ia tidak menulis, ia akan hilang di dalam masyarakat dan dari sejarah.” - Ananta Prameodya Toer (Your intellect may soar to the sky but if you do not write, you will be lost from society and to history.)

Saturday, November 17, 2012

Apartments in KL: Going small... out of necessity

A recent launch of a condominium project at Parklane OUG, Jalan Puchong, KL should be successful, based on its price of around Rm350,000 for a 950 sq.ft., 3-bedroom furnished service apartment, with swimming pool and security.

The ever increasing prices of lands and properties in KL and its vicinity, have the effect of encouraging more people (including those from other states and countries) to invest and contribute to the escalating prices. The above-mentioned project is now seen as value for money, when compared with smaller units at higher prices.


"THE current darlings of the housing market seem to be small-size residential units in commercial developments.

Sometimes known as serviced apartments, other times as Single operator Home of fices (or SoHos), Small of fice Versatile of ces (So-Vos) or Small of fice Flexible of fices (SoFos) due to their commercial nature, what attracted buyers to them were their substantial lifestyle offerings, urban locations and affordable prices of under RM450,000, the latter the consequence of their small built-up sizes that generally range between 400sq ft and 650sq ft..."

More:

http://www.mmail.com.my/story/honey-i-shrunk-house-37662

The term 'affordable' is relative to one's financial situation. For majority of first-timers in work and purchase of property, it is like adding salt to injury because they are unlikely to be in that position. The banks are encouraged to extend their housing loans to 40-year tenure, with some people suggesting further extension to the next generation!

For those who were lucky to have parents, or better still, grandparents, who had invested in landed properties, they are worth millions. A friend joked that with the current prices, almost every house-owner in KL or PJ is a millionaire... depending on whether he is free of debt. For someone who bought houses in the 60s, he could cash out and retire in a cheaper place like Ipoh, living in a more luxurious house like a millionaire. But the reality is that he is likely to have children working in KL, so the thought of moving away from them is not really encouraging. In fact, if the children are living in the old house, selling it is out of the question.

Personally, I find living in a smaller town like Batu Gajah is ideal for growing children and for their education up to Form 5. Many of my friends have children who are very successful in KL, Singapore or overseas. But even for those in KL, it is impractical to have their children living in BG and having their early education here.

We were discussing the high costs of living in KL. A branch in KL of a well known white coffee shop in Ipoh is charging almost twice the price, mainly because of higher rental and cost of labour. And we were not talking about Old Town White Coffee or Papparich outlets.

Sending a pre-school child to Jack & Jill for example, costs more than Rm1,000 a month, and for those elite ones, school fee for Standard 1 in an exclusive private school could cost Rm5,000 pm! A grandparent looking after his grandchild in a pre-school said even children know how to compare their cars. One child actually complained to her mother that she would prefer her dad's BMW and not mom's Kancil! Most of us agreed that no matter what quality education such a place offers, good values are unlikely to be learned.

Anyway, this is a picture (unrelated to the above MM article) which I find particularly cozy...


Link

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

We must study what happened in Singapore. They stated building apartments in the 70s and they were so small thta we Malaysians used to make fun of them by calling them Birth Control Barracks. But now they are building big apartments and their people can afford them. For those who are short of funds the CPF allows them to use their monthly contribution and that of the employer to off-set instalment payments.

Moral of the story: If you start small you are in all likelihood to become big. But if if you start big there is a good chance that you will end up small.