It is a very emotional task to sell my in law's flat. Both have passed away within seven months of each other and been a roller coaster time for us. The flat had been vacant a few years cause dad in law was bed ridden and had to be in a nursing home (very expensive) and mom in law went to stay with her unmarried daughter.
It is strange that friends thought we are going to inherit a big sum of money. It is just a small flat not a bungalow and also dont forget to include the nursing home charges, lawyer fees (in laws never make a will), hospital fees, funeral expenses, etc. Dont forget..... the cost of living in Singapore is quite high and all these fees are a hefty sum. So after deducting all these expenses, there are not much left from the proceeds of the flat and hubby need to share the proceeds with his other siblings. I will write more about cost of living in Singapore in another post whenever I get the chance.
While hubby is clearing the stuff in my in law's flat, I was having a great time looking at the view of the scenery from the flat. The scenery is so beautiful and as it is on the high floor, it is so windy and the flat is on top of a hill too.
The above photo shows some apartment blocks(more than 30 years old) in Telok Blangh. The apartment blocks are of different designs. Some are five rooms apartment , some are four rooms , some are three rooms and the smallest are like my in law's flat two rooms flats. The flats here are very popular as they are facing the sea and with great views. The rich greenery in the background is Mount Faber. Despite the name "Mount" it is not a mountain but a hill. You can view my previous posting of Mount Faber in here.
Look at how Singaporeans hang their laundries. Majority dont use dryers but hang them on bamboo poles and out of the windows. We are two degrees north of the equator so drying clothes in the hot sun make sense. It is also a green way too. :) I do that too but at times, I hang them in my balcony when I am not at home.
Closer look at the laundries hanging out to dry on bamboo poles. How to you dry your clothes?
I am looking forward to the Universal Studio instead of the Casino because I dont have gambling luck and not addicted to gambling. :) We can ban family members from going to the casino if they are addicted and locals need to pay a fee to enter Casino while tourists enter the Casino free of charge.
Please visit "That's my World" for other parts of the world.
Please visit tomorrow for more photos of the surrounding housing estate.
24 comments:
Thanks for sharing your story. That must be very difficult. Growing old and dying are both difficult and expensive experiences. I wish you peace and smooth sailing through the process.
what an interesting post alice. and yes trying to sort out things after the passing of parents is some times a very difficult task. my thoughts are with you and your husband as you tend to these matters.
have a good week.
Very interesting about life in Singapore. I love the bamboo poles for drying the clothes. I know several people in the US who would like to ban people from casinos.
It is tough selling a place of someone close to you, what a great view however. Thanks for sharing.
Have a great week
Guy
Regina In Pictures
I have been to Sentosa a very long time ago for a meeting, not for holiday unfortunately...and I have relatives and good friends who lives in Singapore. I do know housing there are enormously expensive. Hanging clothes in Singapore is very much the same here...I hang mine under our house porch and honestly, I dont think many people has dryer as you know with our weather, it dries very fast. Have a good week Alice...M
Alice: What a special post as you remeber the passing of the folks. You had a neat set of photos.
It must be a very emotional moment for both of you.
I agree the views from the flat are beautiful.
That's very interesting information & wonderful shot.Well,property getting more value from years to years that's every where I guess even small city like Kuching:)
Have a nice day.
It must be difficult dealing with the memories of the flat while trying to clean it out to sell.
I found it very interesting how clothes can be hung out to dry. I've become so dependent on my dryer yet I love the smell of sheets hung on a clothesline.
Thanks for sharing!
Thank you all for the good response to this article. I thought I am too long winded...lol
Thanks for the nice thoughts too.
Uncle Awang, yes if you have excess cash it is good to invest in property but to borrow huge amount of bank loans to purchase property is not a wise choice cause the loan interest could eat into the profit unless you are able to dispose the property in the fastest shortest time and if like the recent recession, property prices can dipped sharply too.
I knew not a close friend of mine - some's relative who was greedy to invest in 20 properties and later committed sucide because of the recession many many years back.
So to invest in property, stocks or anything, do homework first.
I would get a dryer too if I am staying in a country with winter. But not in our country, our hot sun do the drying for us...lol
So sorry to hear about your in-laws. It must be a sad task indeed to sell everything.
The view from the apartment building looks stunning.
very beautiful post...
Its a very sad story Alice,
thank you for sharing
it with us,
it must be very difficult for you!
Your shots are lovely as always;)
Yes, the sun does dry the clothes fast. I only use the dryer when it's rainy season.
Good advice about the investment in property. Never hurts to do the homework first.
Alice, it's sad, but there is always a brighter side of it to look at.
The view is really great and beautiful. Your video really made me think of home. :)
Watching it, I could feel as if I was back. haha... great capture of the surroundings.
Alexander
Alex's World! - http://www.kakinan.com/alex
Liquidatingthe estate of parents is no picnic, there is a deal of emotion involved in handling their things as well as all the other arrangements. They certainly had a lovely view.
I grew up living in Apartments, in this way, Singapore and NYC are alike! Even the laundry ~ if one is lucky enough to have a balcony or terrace.
We have outdoor drying racks and clothes lines strung up, but in winter it's much easier to use the electric dryer for blue jeans & linens. We put the drying rack near the wood stove in winter with small hand wash items on it and they dry quickly.
Some Nyackers send their laundry out to be done for them--there are several laundries in the village that will pick up and deliver. My friend who uses the laundry says she likes to receive her clothes all fresh and neatly folded, she feels "taken care of" which I can understand ... even though it's just one chore she doesn't have to do. Me, I like doing laundry a lot and folding it myself. I love putting it outside to dry.
Squirrel, so nice to learn how you all hang your laundry.
I love ironing but I hate the washing part. :)
I air dry my laundry too not only does it is economical, it's also good for the environment.
Well, did you sell the flat yet?
I was intrigued by the bamboo poles when I saw then when I visited; a novel and practical way to dry clothes.
Alex, nothing like home sweet home.
PC, yes it had been sold after lots of legal paper work.
the view is great from there. thanks for indicating some of the structures. the cable car seems to be long.
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