S2 selection starts on this coming Monday, 2 March, for queue numbers 140-154

It is not a zero sum game as long as the govt don't kill the resale market with over supply and over invested properties.Young family who needs bigger flat now must not feel that their investment will worth nothing or that they will suffer a great loss when it is time for them to downgrade because their kids have grown up and left to build their own nests elsewhere.And for many singles who own properties, they too can liquidate by downgrading to finance their old age.For most singaporeans, their home is their only asset. They have put so much money into this pigeon holes , do you want their homes to worth nothing or cause them great financial loss?90% of them are homeowners. Don't play play. The government knows that.You just hope the government don't screw up the value of your family or your homes which is highly possible because of oversupply and the reliance on foreigners.High value is not an issue if we keep to an affordable formula for most singaporeans. But a rock and roll property market will only benefit the savvy rich investors - not stupid investors.The people who are preaching doom to the market are probably waiting at the sideline to reap from unfortunate homeowners who have fallen into bad times and force a fire sale.I opt for a stable property market.Once up, stay and hold and preferably,don't rise beyond the means of the general market nor fall to the point of hurting our fellowmen.For those who truly can't afford even the most modest homes, we can always press the government for more subsidies to breach the gap for these folks.Overall, a healthy return for our homes can only benefit everyone in the long term.No true singaporean will want to see those who have fallen into bad times to lose their homes or suffer great financial loss because of it so that some dogs can come along and pick it up and make a huge profit when the prices rise again

Penthouses: The Facts
1. Usually, though not always, the top floor. Great views, terraces, balconies and outside space.
2. Private lift or lift that allows penthouse owner privacy while s/he is using it.
3. High-tech features such as comfort cooling, plasma screens in bathrooms and bedrooms, touch pad electronic controls, integrated sound system, high-tech lighting and security systems, etc.
4. Top of the range fixtures and fittings: brochures will invariably name-check, Lutron, Bang & Olufsen, Creston, etc.
5. Exceptional bespoke design and use of highest quality materials - architectural glass, rare timbers, solid oak floors, marble, hand-painted silk wallpaper etc.
6. Saunas, steam rooms, wet rooms, swimming pools, cinemas and media rooms.
7. In developments: top notch concierge services. More recent penthouses crown developments with restaurants and hotel type services.
8. Buyers: rich, and super-rich (celebs, corporate kings etc). 'Boy done good' types - one of the penthouses in New Providence was sold to a scrap metal merchant. International types in search of a bolt-hole with the wow factor.
9. Buyers: in the loft market, arty and design types who want to create their own bespoke space.
More about penthouses: Check out Jonathan Bell's excellent new book Penthouse Living, Wiley 2005.

Number of Places in the Program for 2009- Total number of international full-fee paying places - 10Annual Tuition Fee for International Students Commencing in 2009- The 2009 tuition fee is to be announced. The 2008 tuition fee was $32,970 AUD for the first year of the program with a total program tuition fee for all years of study: $251,360 AUD.- Please note that the above tuition may increase by 5% for each year of the program.

Recently, my colleague, Dennis Chan, wrote that in October, he had called up his remisier to make purchases of Sembcorp Marine at $1.10 if it should fall to that level, while he was in Japan.
His rationale: That was the price per share which SembCorp Industries had tried unsuccessfully to privatise the rig-builder in 2002.
Presumably, many other investors had the same idea. SembMarine briefly touched $1.15 that month before making a successful rebound. It now hovers around $1.50.
Yesterday, CapitaLand announced that it was raising $1.84 billion by selling a new share at $1.30 to investors for every two shares they currently own in the firm.
By sheer coincidence, this is close to the $1.10 listing price of CapitaLand’s predecessor firm, DBS Land, in 1987.
At the same time, its offspring, CapitaMall Trust, is raising $1.23 billion via a nine-for-10 rights issue at 82 cents a unit. The IPO for the real estate investment trust IPO in 2002 had been priced at 96 cents a unit – just fractionally above the rights price which investors are now required to pay.
Similarly, DBS is hovering around $8.25. This was incidentally the price which the stock had fallen to, during the Sars crisis in 2003, even though this is strictly speaking not a meaningful comparison because of the bank’s recent rights issue.