I AM engaged to be married this year but ironically, instead of bouncing off the walls with happiness, I'm feeling particularly unlucky.
The reason: fighting to buy the ideal first flat in the wake of a red-hot housing market.
To sum up my fiance and my losing battle so far, we have passed over eight flats in the resale market because sellers asked for a cash-over-valuation (COV) amount way beyond our budget; over $40,000 for each of the houses we viewed in Serangoon and Bishan.
Our latest battle is competing with more than 3,000 couples for one of 714 coveted queue numbers for a chance to
buy a flat at City View @ Boon Keng, the second public housing project to be built by private developers under the Housing Board's Design, Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS).
Applications for these apartments that will close on Jan 16.
There are more than 3,102 applicants, which gives us a one-in-five chance of securing a queue number.
If we do get a queue number, we will then be faced with the reality of buying one of the more undesirable units on the first few floors, which is also not cheap. A five-room unit on the first floor of these flats costs
about $536,000.
We'll also have to find alternative living arrangements for two years until the project is completed in September 2011.
HDB flats have been going at very high prices in the past year.
The booming market has seen some sellers demand as much as $100,000 in COV of a flat, putting many young couples like myself out of the running.
The most expensive four-room HDB flat in history was sold two weeks ago for $590,000. This works out to be $609 per sq foot for the flat, located near Tiong Bahru.
Here's more depressing data for fellow house hunters: more than 17,000 new citizens plus more than 50,000 new permanent residents as of December 2007 have potentially joined the pool of people looking for a HDB flat currently
The reality is clear - we young couples are the biggest losers in the current burgeoning housing market.
Perhaps it is time to manage our expectations. We are advised to either sacrifice our comforts and wait for at least two years for HDB's new flats to be built, or bite the bullet and buy a cheaper and smaller flat in outlying areas.
Parents and even politicians keep telling us to stop expecting to score the perfect first home in a good location at an affordable price in the current market.
Speaking about the issue in November last year, National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan said: "If you cannot afford a big flat, then buy a smaller flat.
"If you can't get a new flat, then get a resale flat. In life, we make trade-offs all the time."
But, while our choices seem limited, many things can change for us young couples looking for a house this year.
While HDB flat prices enjoyed a spectacular rise with a 17.4 per cent gain last year - the strongest growth in a decade - market watchers say a repeat this year is unlikely.
The prices for HDB homes in the fourth quarter of 2007 dipped 5.6 per cent, from the strong 6.6 per cent rise in th third quarter, following a slower overall economic growth in the fourth quarter.
This, some investors say, is partly due to the global fallout from the United States sub-prime mortgage crisis and concerns over a possible US recession, which could have hurt investor confidence.
So fellow young couples, that ideal home might still be a possibility, if you can be patient.
I, for one, will not be compromising any time soon. I'm waiting to see if the tables will turn in our favour in the next few months.
