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September 6, 2018 Tokyo (CNN)Yet another natural disaster has struck part of Japan, continuing a summer of chaos that has seen the country weather deadly floods, typhoons, earthquakes, landslides and heatwaves. At least two people were killed when a magnitude-6.7 quake struck the northern island of Hokkaido early Thursday, causing landslides which buried a "large" number of homes at the foot of a ridge. Dozens of people were injured by the quake, mostly in Sapporo, said Kazuya Isaki, an official with the Crisis Management Office of Hokkaido Prefecture Government. Around 20 people are missing in Atsuma, near the epicenter of the quake. Public broadcaster NHK reported that flights and public transport across the region had been brought to a standstill. Nearly 3 million households lost power, according to the Hokkaido Electric Power Company. Officials said a main power station lost operations, affecting other sites. Independently owned power generators were assisting. "The electric supply was stopped to Tomari nuclear plant, but it can operate without external electric supply for one week," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said. Risk of aftershocks The powerful quake lasted almost a minute, jolting residents from their beds and collapsing roads. Near the epicenter, landslides wiped out houses in the tiny town of Atsuma, home to 40 residents. Officials told NHK at least five people were buried in the rubble. Photos from Sapporo, Hokkaido's main city on the western part of the island, showed huge cracks in the street and subsided houses. More than 4,000 defense force soldiers have been deployed to help with rescue operations, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said, and that number could rise to 25,000 if needed. Helicopter rescue crews were also dispatched and have airlifted around a dozen people to safety. Evacuation shelters have been set up in many towns and cities around the region. Aftershocks were continuing Thursday morning, and could pose a risk for the next week, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency, which warned residents of the increased risk that buildings could collapse near the epicenter of the original quake. Copy from https://edition.cnn.com/2018/09/05/world/japan-earthquake/index.html

i am starting a new thread .... coz i dun think its related to the one about nursing home in JB. anyone got experience of putting their elders in local nursing homes ? can tell ? I need to understand more about this as this is on my consideration list.

Hi all ppl, My friend and I is organizing a rice donation drive on our National day, 9th of August 2014. We are doing this purely for charity purpose. Please don't come and disturb arh. Last year i donated and went to help ferrying the rice to 2 old folks home and little that we know that these ah gong and ah ma need our help and company. When we were there they welcome us like their children, some are already senile but lively. The condition of the old folks home i went is not in very good condition and they always base on kind people like us to do donation. Last year i got take some photos. We are looking for participant to volunteer in "ferrying" the rice and donating "moolah" to buy rice. Our target is to have 6 tons of rice. If we got excess cash we will turn them into biscuits. 1 bag of 25kg rice is $30. You can also donate nominal amount. But more is always the merrier. For donation matters, you all can look for Ken (8113 8901) or PM me. On behalf of all ah gong and ah ma, i wanna thank you all first! (: If can, make yourself free on the morning on 9th of Aug, we will go volunteer and help out the needy one! UPDATES as of June 2014: 1 bag of rice is $25. For donations: Look for Towkay Ken @ 50 Serangoon North Ave 4, #01-08, First Centre. Or contact him @ 8113 8901.

$5 meals, $500 holidays and $50k homes for SG50 Our columnist continues his monthly series of Big Ideas for the nation: Be happy for a year, when Singapore turns 50 next August. Celebrate Singapore's success - because there's practically zero chance of repeating that success in future. Published on Jul 12, 2014 6:59 AM 21 438 0 0PRINTEMAIL -- ST ILLUSTRATION: MANNY FRANCISCO By Kishore Mahbubani, For The Straits Times Big Idea No. 6 will seem corny at first glance. This is why it is important to read to the end of this column, especially the last paragraph, to understand its full import. Here is the idea for my fellow Singaporeans: Let's decide to be happy for one year - from Aug 10 to next Aug 9, when it will be the 50th year of Singapore's existence. And why be happy for this one year? The reason is simple. We have had, by any standards, an extraordinarily successful first 50 years. The chances of us being equally successful over the next 50 years are practically zero. I will explain why later. Since we have had a good run and are about to embark on a more difficult run, let us rest and celebrate before the hard slog. A mountaineering metaphor comes to mind. We have reached a good base camp. Before we climb to higher and more difficult altitudes, let us drink teh tarik and celebrate how far we have come. Since so much has been written about Singapore's extraordinary success story, I will not dwell much on it. Our per capita income has gone from US$500 in 1965 to almost US$64,584 (S$80,253) last year, based on purchasing power parity terms. No other nation state can match this record. More importantly, we have had no conflict, at home or with our neighbours. Ninety per cent of our citizens live in homes they own. And we have wonderful education, health, civil service and military systems, and so on. To understand how well-off we are, just read the following aspirations of Indians after they elected Mr Narendra Modi as their Prime Minister. Mr M. J. Akbar, a well-known journalist, asks his fellow Indians: "Why cannot we have a simple home with a toilet for every Indian family by 2022? Broadband in every village? Electricity around the clock? A clean country, rid of garbage and filth that poisons life and nature, by 2019, as a tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on his 150th birth anniversary? These are not luxuries in the 21st century: they are bare necessities." We have achieved everything on his list and achieved it long ago. Yet, it is also clear that our citizens are tired of this success narrative. They remember only the difficulties of recent years: the surge of foreigners, the crowded Mass Rapid Transit trains; the long wait for Housing Board flats; the traffic jams on our highways; the soaring COE (Certificate of Entitlement) premiums and so on. Hence, instead of approaching our 50th anniversary in a jubilant mood, there are hints of a sour mood in the air. The goal of this article is to dispel the sour mood. Hard times ahead PARADOXICALLY, the best way to do this is to tell Singaporeans that harder times are coming. First, since our track record in the first 50 years was so exceptional (even freakish by most historical standards), it will be impossible to match the same success. My generation has had it exceedingly good. And I experienced it personally. I went from a three-figure monthly salary in 1971 to a five- figure salary now. My children will not experience this dizzy climb upwards. Second, as I have said in earlier columns, we do not have enough land for each and every Singaporean to achieve the dream of the five Cs (car, condo, country club, cash and credit card). The last two we can all have. The first three we cannot all have. There isn't enough land to have millions of cars. Singapore already has one of the highest car ownership populations for a city; as of April, about 560,000 households owned at least one car each for a total of 605,184 cars. Nor can we build condos for each Singaporean family. And the land for country clubs is shrinking. Singaporeans therefore belong to a unique tribe: They have to deal with the existential angst of not having the land to fulfil their dreams. Third, we are losing, if we have not already lost, our first-mover advantage. We were the first to open up to global MNCs. Today every country does so. We were the first to set new global standards in services and logistics. Dubai Airport used to describe itself as a disciple of Changi Airport. But now our disciple has a much busier airport. In the past year, 67.3 million international passengers passed through Dubai, compared with 53.1 million through Changi. Indeed, Dubai is now No. 1 in the world for international passengers, surpassing even London's Heathrow Airport. Similarly, Emirates used to look up to Singapore Airlines for inspiration. Now it has become twice as big. In each area that we have excelled, we will have to deal with tougher competition. That's why the next 50 years will be a harder slog. So, let's celebrate this very special moment. And how should we celebrate? There will, of course, be many national parties in 2015. And we should participate in them heartily. But let us also celebrate at the individual level. Let us appreciate some unique and simple joys that all Singaporeans, rich and poor, can enjoy together. Let me cite some simple pleasures we can indulge in (and since we are celebrating our 50th birthday, I am using the number five in each category). A toast to $5 meals FIRST, Singapore is one of the few developed countries where one can get good meals at less than $5 per head. It took a colleague of mine, who recently arrived in Singapore, to remind me of this exceptional gift we have. Mr Steve LaNasa used to be the president of Donnelly College in Kansas. Since coming to Singapore with his wife and two children, aged 10 and 13, in early January, he has been taking his children out to hawker centre after hawker centre. And he is absolutely amazed at the good-quality food you can enjoy in Singapore at such astonishingly low prices. He says: "Despite the fact that 'fast food' is ubiquitous throughout the United States, it's nearly impossible to find good, healthy prepared food at convenient locations, and what is available certainly isn't worth what you pay for it." Sometimes it takes a foreigner to remind us that we live in a food paradise. Why not indulge in this food paradise for less than $5 a head and toast Singapore each time we do so? $500 holidays SECOND, Singapore is fortunate to be situated in the most diverse cultural environment of our entire planet, South-east Asia. No other region can claim to have all the world's leading civilisations and religions living in relative harmony in such close proximity to one another. Many middle-class people from all over the world spend thousands of dollars to appreciate the special beautiful attractions of South-east Asia. So for one year, let us stop dreaming of going to London or Paris, New York or Orlando. Instead, for less than $500 a head, we can experience magnificent historical sites and some of the most hospitable cultures on our planet. I hope that my next book will be on South-east Asia. Its tentative title is The Most Blessed Corner Of The World. We Singaporeans are truly blessed to be situated in the heart of this blessed corner. Let us enjoy it for one year very cheaply with $500 holidays. $50,000 homes MY THIRD suggestion will be both controversial and difficult. It is very difficult to buy a decent- sized condo unit for less than $1 million in Singapore. Yet, we can buy a small home somewhere in South-east Asia for less than $50,000. Ultimately, this may be the best solution to the existential angst of living in Singapore. We can experience the freedom of space in our neighbouring countries if we cannot experience it in Singapore. In looking for cheap properties in rural areas, we will simply be emulating the normal behaviour of citizens who live in crowded cities and look for homes in rural areas in South-east Asia within easy reach via budget airlines. Let me add another truly outrageous suggestion. Why don't we encourage our rich developers, who have profited from 50 years of economic growth in Singapore to develop projects selling $50,000 homes in South-east Asia to fellow Singaporeans? The Government can also step in to help as it will make many Singaporeans happier. And why is happiness important? I believe that the most important goal for Singapore in the next 50 years will not be economic growth or political stability. Instead, it will be social resilience. Only strong social resilience will carry us through the inevitable stresses and strains Singapore will encounter in the next five decades. Happiness does not just help at the individual level. Happy societies are also more resilient societies. We have had a happiness deficit for some time. Let us party for one year and build up our happiness quotient. After that, we will be ready for the more challenging five decades coming our way. Postscript IN MY column on April 12, I wrote: "Hence, for 2015, when we celebrate our 50th anniversary, I hope that one of Singapore's philanthropists will award a $500,000 prize for the best history book written on Singapore." I am pleased to inform Straits Times readers that an anonymous donor has contacted me to support a project to promote a deeper understanding of Singapore's history in future generations of Singaporeans and the world. He has agreed to donate $500,000 for this Singapore history project prize. The money will go towards an endowment fund whose interest will be used to support a book prize every three years. He told me he became a Singapore citizen this year, even though he has lived here for many years. He would like to do something for Singapore. [email protected] - See more at: http://www.straitstimes.com/news/opinion/invitation/story/5-meals-500-holidays-and-50k-homes-sg50-20140712#sthash.kJMAcknU.dpuf

My kids exams will finish early, so I was thinking of popping over to Port Dickson for a 2D1N trip. http://www.legendiwh.com.my/location.htm I was recommended the pool villa at the above resort, and as usual, there's a fair mix of "fabulous" and "won't go back again" reviews. Anyway, I'm not about to be detracted. 3 hours in and 3 hours back, but if I go early, I'll have the better part of 2 days for loafing at the private pool and enjoying the facilities. Any f/r on this resort?

Straits Times Forum Homes shouldn't undermine levy A HIGHER foreign worker levy was one key factor cited in the rise of charges in some nursing homes ("Some nursing home operators raising fees"; Monday). Yet, the reason that spurred the Ministry of Manpower to hike the levy was to encourage lesser dependence on foreign labour and to encourage employers to redesign jobs that will attract Singaporeans. It defeats the Government's dual aim if nursing homes pass the buck in the levy increase to their clients via stiffer fees. Instead of merely awarding subsidies to families based on income level, the Government could consider providing nursing homes some form of subsidy per resident to help them stay sustainable. These subsidies could come with caveats such as an increased number of Singaporeans taking up patient-care jobs at the homes over a specified period of time. The ministry and the National Trades Union Congress could also help nursing homes redesign patient-care jobs so as to attract more citizens, especially retired nurses, to consider working part time there. The ministry needs to ensure there are more teeth for its policies to work. Using a blunt and simplistic instrument like raising the levy lets employers off the hook by simply passing the buck to consumers. With an ageing population, more could be done to help the nursing-home sector as its role will only increase in importance in the years ahead. Edwin Lim

which wise guy said that poorer families are not as badly impacted by inflation as the rich? [sINGAPORE] Inflation is still not coming down and appears to have hit poorest households hardest in the first half of this year. Policymakers expect inflation to moderate in the second half of the year after June's rebound to 5.3 per cent, but high inflation makes any loosening of monetary policy dicey, even as slowing growth raises the need to. The government now expects inflation in 2012 to come in at the upper half of its 3.5 to 4.5 per cent forecast range. June's consumer price index (CPI) was unchanged from a month ago, but the latest year-on-year jump brings inflation for the first half of 2012 to 5.1 per cent. Inflation's impact on households varies across different income groups, a separate report released by the Department of Statistics (DoS) yesterday shows. Worst hit were the bottom 20 per cent of households, for whom inflation rose from 5.4 per cent in the July to December period last year, to 6.3 per cent in the first half of this year. Inflation for the middle 60 per cent income group slipped from 5.4 per cent to 5.2 per cent, while for the richest fifth of households, inflation eased from 5.7 per cent to 4.6 per cent. DoS emphasised that overall inflation numbers are due to higher imputed rentals on houses occupied by their owners. This does not have an impact on cash expenditures of those who own their homes. Excluding these imputed rentals, inflation was comparable across income groups. But the poorest 20 per cent of households still saw inflation rising most, from 2.6 per cent in H2 2011 to 4.1 per cent for H1 2012. The middle income group's inflation slipped from 4 per cent to 3.9 per cent, while inflation slowed for the top 20 per cent, from 5 per cent to 4 per cent. UniSIM senior lecturer Tan Khay Boon noted that lower oil and commodity prices may help lower income households, which tend to spend a larger portion of income on food. However, the lowest income group also faced higher healthcare cost inflation of 4.3 per cent, compared with the middle and high income households' 4 and 3.9 per cent. "Healthcare cost may increasingly be a burden to the low income group and more assistance in this area may be needed," he said. Housing and transport costs were the main culprits driving up the CPI by a faster-than-expected 5.3 per cent in June from a year ago. This came after inflation had slowed to 5 per cent in May from April's 5.4 per cent. This choppy trend is partly because rebates for service and conservancy charges (S&CC) were disbursed to HDB households in April and June last year but not this year, exacerbating cost hikes this April and June. Still, accommodation cost inflation has been stronger than the authorities expected. "Leasing contracts continue to be renewed at significantly higher rental rates, especially in the HDB segments," the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) said in joint comments yesterday. Accommodation costs sped up to rise 10.8 per cent year-on-year in June contributing 2.2 percentage points of June's inflation, up from 1.8 percentage points in May. Car prices surged from a year ago but lower petrol prices and ERP charges helped slow the rise in private transport cost, from May's 10.3 per cent to 9.7 per cent in June. Excluding accommodation and private road transport (which formed two thirds of June's inflation), MAS's core inflation measure held steady at 2.7 per cent for a third straight month. Sharper spikes in clothing and footwear prices were offset by slower price gains in other segments of the CPI basket. Services inflation slid from 2.9 per cent in May to 2.8 per cent in June, while food inflation slowed from 2.5 per cent in May to 2.3 per cent in June. "The pass-through of wages and other business costs to consumer prices will continue, but at a more moderate pace," MAS and MTI said. They also expect earlier weakness in global commodity prices to dampen pressures on oil and food items in the near term. But UOB economist Alvin Liew thinks the recent surge in soft commodity prices, due to parched weather conditions in key farming regions, may lead to higher food prices in the second half of this year. Barclays economist Leong Wai Ho thinks so too, noting that corn, wheat and soybeans prices are at least 30 per cent higher than what they were at the start of the year. Food weighs 22 per cent in the CPI basket of goods, compared with accommodation's 20 per cent and private road transport's 11.6 per cent. Stubborn inflation implies a "tougher balancing act" for the MAS, Mr Leong says. Already, Singapore's growth has slowed, sparking talk of a technical recession and raising the odds that MAS may ease monetary policy in October. While most economists still expect the MAS to keep policy tight to stem inflation pressures, Mr Leong thinks growth concerns are likely to overshadow inflation, unless coordinated easing by global central banks turns the global economic outlook rosy. Citi economists Kit Wei Zheng and Brian Tan said in a note yesterday that expected near-term inflation of 4 per cent sets the hurdle high but is "not an insurmountable obstacle for monetary easing", given that weaker growth could set the stage for disinflation next year.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-06-26/s...-mortgages.html

By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Oxley Holdings Chief Ching Chiat Kwong has defended shoebox apartments, following a comment by CapitaLand

what is the penalty for returning? can nego with developer to "offset" (ie: $10K-$20K?) which is the penalty bear by previous buyer if buy a returned home is considered 2nd sales (old shoes) ? >>> sources from ST Buyers return 150 private homes in May Figure a five-year high but spike 'due mostly to April's robust sales, so rate largely stable' By ESTHER TEO PROPERTY REPORTER Private home buyers returned 150 units to developers last month at projects such as Sky Habitat, The Tampines Trilliant and Hillsta - the highest number in at least five years. These units, bought in April, made up 5.7 per cent of the more than 2,600 non-landed homes, including executive condominiums (ECs), sold that month, analysis by property research firm Square Foot Research shows. Despite the high absolute figure for returns, experts say that in percentage terms, the rate is in line with last year's. They add that the spike in absolute numbers is largely due to April's robust sales which had buyers snapping up the most number of units in almost three years.

Published on May 12, 2012 By Amanda Tan Member of Parliament Lee Bee Wah has invested in a small apartment in the east. The Nee Soon GRC MP bought a unit at upcoming condominium 91 Marshall for a sale price of $826,000. This was revealed in a Singapore Exchange filing by Tee International, in which she is an independent and non-executive director, on Wednesday. The filing said she was given a 2.4 per cent discount. Tee Homes, a wholly owned unit of Tee International, is developing the 30-unit freehold project in Katong. Based on the floor plans, Ms Lee's fourth-floor unit is a 570 sq ft two-bedder. This works out to a price of $1,449 per sq ft. Smaller apartments have become more popular in recent years, given the lower absolute price and a higher rent giving a better yield. The condo is near Dakota MRT station and has only one block offering units ranging from one-bedders to penthouses, which are on the fifth floor. The project is within walking distance of Tanjong Katong Primary School and is near places such as Parkway Parade and East Coast Park. Property agents said 91 Marshall, which is expected to be completed by 2016, is likely to be launched in the middle of this month. The show-flat is not ready yet. Ms Lee, being the interested person in this transaction, abstained from the audit committee's and board's review and approval process in respect of the proposed sale. The audit committee found that the number and terms of the proposed sale are 'fair and reasonable and are not prejudicial to the interests of the company and its minority shareholders'. The board was similarly satisfied. When contacted, Ms Lee declined to comment on the purchase

Batam? From CNA: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/sin...1199597/1/.html More S'poreans buying holiday homes in neighbouring islands By Qiuyi Tan | Posted: 06 May 2012 2259 hrs

http://blog.propertyguru.com.sg/1847/govt-...ing-issues.html If not for the forward planning, Singapore would have remained a squatter colony, like it was in the pre-1960's. Yet another third-world country ... Now, more than 90% of citizens are owning their own homes, and enjoying Y-O-Y capital appreciation, as property prices continue to rise from peak to peak! With this and the brilliant CPF savings scheme, Singporeans won't ever go broke and can always downgrade in order to guarantee a comfortable retirement, into their twilight years. Majulah PAP!!! Another broad-based, long-term and well-thought-out strategy that had turned out very RIGHT! A brilliant plan indeed.

http://www.propertyguru.com.sg/property-ma...topc&src=fp Housing and Development Board (HDB) resale homes in Singapore are more unaffordable than private homes, PropertyGuru can exclusively reveal. They are also classed as being

What do you think will be the official response from HDB? ----------------------------- Mar 22, 2012 - PropertyGuru.com.sg By Romesh Navaratnarajah Share40 | | Comment | E-mail to friend | Bookmark & Share Housing and Development Board (HDB) resale homes in Singapore are more unaffordable than private homes, PropertyGuru can exclusively reveal. They are also classed as being

Last weekend I tagged along with a friend to see a few houses for sale. None priced below $10M. What do you think rich people have in their homes? Other than one or more nice cars....

just wondering, anyone here into volunteering ? especially at childrens' homes of with childrens' charities ? what do you do ? how do you go about it ? can we choose specifically on weekends only ?

Anyone selling? So that i can vote for the party i like... Voting is secret... i cannot say who i am voting for.

Anybody can give advice on putting up grandparent in an old age home in Singapore? What to look for? NO JB. Want to visit grandparent every week. Advice appreciated. Thank you.

Thinking of driving up to Port Dickson during the Jun hols. Anyone can share their experiences with Avillion Admiral Cove or The Legend Int'l Water Homes?

I have a new neighbour. He refuses to park within his compound and parks his car just outside my place. Now i have no place to park my car cos my dad's car is parked within the compound and i have to park far away all the time(sometimes inadvertently parking in someone else's lot and i get notes on my car etc). So everytime i go to work and come back the car is parked there cos apparently that guy doesnt use his car for work. He has 2 vehicles and refuses to park within his own compound. Sometimes even if his space is unused (in front of his gate) he still parks at my dustbin/letterbox area wtfish right? dun want park in compound, dun park in front of gate, park in front of my place..... buay tahan! no etiquette at all..... How would you guys settle this "dispute"? any other landed owners here have experience dealing with such new neighbours who do not show any parking etiquette? I dun want this to end up like the saga everit road landed saga where the neighbours hamtum each other in newspaper. Pls advise thank you.

Hi bros, planning a trip up to P.D. IWH this end of October 28th to 30th for 2 nights. Relac relac trip. First time driving up north so wondering if any experienced bros can guide a newbie or interested in going around those dates too? Understand it's around 300km so would take 3-5 hours depending on breaks and jams. Would be travelling at speed limit to avoid unplesant encounters. Also concerned about food as research mostly states that availibility of restaurants and eateries around there are a drive away and limited room service hours. So should I stock up snacks and tidbits along the way? For the IWH, any advice for preference? Understand that some of the 'private' pools are facing each other so are there certain rooms where the pool is enclosed or open but private? Thanks in advance for any advice given. Cheers!

SINGAPOREANS could consider living in nursing homes in neighbouring Johor Baru, Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan suggested yesterday. It would be cheaper, yet be near enough to Singapore for family members to visit and for residents to return for medical care if necessary, he said. He told Parliament yesterday that he recently visited a site in Johor Baru where a Singaporean investor was planning to build a 200-bed nursing home. He asked the investor about the costs involved, and was stunned at how low they were. He said: 'It is mind-boggling. The cost of land and construction cost is so low that my cost of putting up just a polyclinic (in Singapore) is probably more than his cost of putting up a 200-bed nursing home (in Johor Baru). 'The monthly cost of keeping a resident in a private nursing home in Singapore, you can stretch it easily to pay at least 2-1/2 months of nursing home care in Johor Baru.' If any medical problems cropped up, the elderly could be taken back to Singapore by ambulance, he said. For most Singaporeans, visiting a relative in a Johor Baru nursing home would not pose significant difficulties, he said. The investor, who is a nursing home chief executive, told him that many people visited their relatives weekly, even in nursing homes in Singapore. Mr Khaw added: 'Of course many visit daily, but quite a significant number visit only during the weekends, so what is the difference in putting them in Johor Baru?' Lol... We Singaporeans are screwed...