By Desmond Ng

WHO is to blame for our perceived housing problem?

The market or picky buyers?

Some Singaporeans say they?re being priced out of the HDB resale market.

But the question is, are they looking hard enough or are they just fussy?

Buying a home is the single largest investment one makes. So, if you have not saved enough, perhaps you shouldn't be buying yet.

Yes, HDB prices may have risen more than the average monthly income in the long run. But, conversely, would you rather see the value of your flat, which for most of us is our main asset, depreciate?

Property agents estimate that the average cash-over-valuation (COV) today is from $15,000 to $20,000.

About a fifth of transactions are at or below valuation. Some of these flats are on lower floors and not renovated.

If you're a genuine, cost-conscious buyer, why not settle for those?

But, no, the picky Singaporean wants a well-renovated unit on a high floor with sweeping views of the city and then complains about paying a premium for it.

There's no such thing as a free lunch.

One home-buyer wrote to The Sunday Times forum earlier this week claiming that he had applied unsuccessfully 18 times for a new flat since 2001.

The property market was in the dumps then, with the heady recovery coming only about two years ago.

Did he consider a resale flat? He could have taken his pick. With about 850,000 HDB flats all over the island, there are bound to be many for sale at any time.

And if prices are too high now, why not rent and wait for the market to dip?

It is a risk, but you can potentially gain in the long run, even after deducting rental expenses.

It is also a good opportunity to shop around and widen your search.

There are pockets of private properties with shorter leases, and they're usually cheaper than some HDB flats.

It always amazes me how, when property prices drop, those who had bought high and are threatened with negative equity will be baying for blood.

But when prices shoot up, there's silence.

Not for long though, because unhappy home buyers will start whining about how they can't afford to buy a place.

When it comes to property prices, it looks like there's no pleasing everyone.

The irony is that while we complain of living in a nanny state, we also want to be mollycoddled by the Government.

This article was first published in The New Paper.