i tot getting in firsthand is the goal here

Since you're renting don't make your life difficult 5 out of 7 days of the week..
Rent someplace within 30 mins end to end to the office. Can even choose between wanna take bus or combo with MRT (which at peak hour, buses have more space generally, MRT gotta squeeze in)

Superb convenience and you never gonna be late.. plenty of time to eat breakkie.
My office starts early at 830am so I have to shave off every minute of transport possible (not a morning person)

One hour ride takes two hours per day..
Generally for a room its more or less around the ballpark of $800-900/common room except in notoriously expensive neighbourhoods like CBD
For me I value convenience more than saving the 100 bucks but staying at wrong end and have to worry about squeezing into train (as bus won't cut it for work at that distance)

The rental price also affected by location and gender and room availability.
Easier to rent anywhere as a female (note the female environment tags) and IF you don't mind staying with owner.

It will take awhile to hunt for right place right location and looser house rules that fits the right budget and not being insanely far from work.
Don't because of 50-100 bucks you make your life difficult by renting at the far sides (long commute is another thing you will hate); plus check bus availability and interval (NOT ALL PLACES in SG have excellent bus connectivity that I don't even bother looking at timetable coz 3 routes all can go to work)

Superb locations in Serangoon also listing for 1.1k nowadays..
In general no need to fully limit oneself to rail network.

My office is NE, I also rent in Serangoon ($900 all inclusive) coz excellent connectivity by bus -
but locals tell me because of that and the proximity to NEX I pay more than usual


Apply more. 300.
What job are you looking for?

LI is the way.
Else, also check out MCF portal for those jobs they have trouble filling up.

You are the traffic, cannot complain sia

Lesson #1, smartphone + data plan + google will be able to obtain most answers; like what's NEX

why its nice.. having food court nearby, 24/7 mart
quiet environment yet very near to office
nearby parks/stadium, good for exercise*

*in SG its very good for quitting smoking, cuz its really a self-ostracizing thing, plus the import versions are less addictive.

The thing about landed zones, usually u need to walk a bit to the nearest bus stop (but that's relative)/

Carousell, or FB (homies SG/SG rent room) kinda groups also can find rooms
But I think carousell easier to find.

Within 30mins travel time (including walking) is awesome feeling ever, esp that I'm used to 1hr30 commutes

Also consider whether need to change line or not. All direct one line to office or one direct bus is the best.

work monitors are dirt cheap if you willing to collect (used ones on carousell) - i picked up a 2020 mfg 24" for $80 only.
only if you venture into those 27 QHD and above then they get more expensive.

Room rental actually quite flat.. proximity to MRT is one thing that jacks up the price
However if you plan it right living on a frequent bus route has never impeded me going out~

HDB 6 mos minimum to rent.
Usual lease 1year.
gome - At the minimum since ur wife coming over - rent a master bedroom circa 1200
Even if it didn't pan out for your wife its still like 300 over a common room circa 900 and you get a big bed.
Renting separately solo aka 2 single rooms will be more costly.

3.4k a month is overkill.. unless you really earning 20k sing then its a diff story altogether.
No need to waste money, if you're earning good money chances are you won't be staying at home much.. treat the house like hotel only.

Sembawang area not too bad.. cross the mall and cross the street is home. Suitable for red line peeps.

I work NE area not CBD - so I rent couple MRT stops away from office OR I can take the bus to work which isn't any different in terms of time in the morning, and the buses connect me to whatever line..red purple orange green blue all can one (I went around quite a bit to jalan jalan and picking up cheap loot on carousell)

Certain rooms cost more because of the convenience factor and size..and the toys (appliances) for you to use

mine is pretty awesome location + PUB included + wifi included for $900
has food within the same 'hood (which is important.. this is easy at mature estates like Jurong East, Bishan, TPY) but.. if u kena newer places a bit outskirt u have no "downstairs food court" to fall back on if you WFH
c/w Front Loader WM (gentle on dresses).. top loader destroys dresses
c/w some fancy expensive mattress (good rest is important especially for 8-830am office hrs)

Ideally it goes like
1. End to end journey <30 mins is perfect on gmaps, with <8 mins TOTAL walking if you wear formal shoes to work.
If you are in smart casual places where you can wear sneakers then its not a problem to walk 10mins+

2. Do not rent >1hr gmaps away. It will be a pain in the morning. usually here start 8am or 830am..
Unless you are in really on-time ciao job OR you just dont mind watching netflix for whole hour..

3. If the price is like 50-100 bucks extra on the room but reduces 30mins /one way journey just pay lah.
Its fun to not waste time commuting.

This post has been edited by ceo684: May 30 2022, 11:33 PM

2 yrs back whole unit HDB only 2250
But nowadays looking at 2800 or so for a HDB and three pax to a whole unit is very cosy already
Bedok or Serangoon kinda mature estate easy to find food
Bishan/Sembawang also not too bad for red line office

Punggol ones u need to check if 136 pass by. The ones along LRT loop are new but far relatively.
Low 2k thereabouts can be rented more cheaply if u dont mind the travel time 🤗


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1. For sure either tiring and cheap or expensive and fuss free. Bus services are available fixed fare.. but the thing about it you really need to travel back so often?
Airplane u need to book super early coz Fri nite/Sun evening return slots are in high demand.

If you have hybrid WFH days then can play around.. still able to get $100 return SIN-KUL in short notice (few weeks) if you play the days right

2. Up to your contract.. technically you still need to be contactable.. if a day or two i think should be fine. My teammate also went back to home country but still working.
I would be more concerned about your minimum stay of 183 days in SG in 2022 to be counted as a tax resident here (generally lower tax% here than MY tax bracket).

3. Singtel/Starhub prepaid are quite easy to get at the airport or any 7E. This would last u at least 90 days or so (depending if u take cheapest $8 or 2nd cheapest $15 SIM).
If you're not in a hurry you can get a hotlink from MY and roam here 1GB/day at RM10/day only first.
can go and hunt for a prepaid number at malls/dealer shop/7E/Esso Cheers/mini mart

As long as you have some form of data (u need to be able to operate google maps at the very least)
On foreign passport you can only sign up prepaid until you get your paperwork sorted.. you can try giga as well ($10/mo for 10GB and minutes, and can rollover unused data) https://giga.com.sg/#why-giga

For phone plan once you have a bank acc/EP card issued then you'd be able to slowly pick one from the main telcos (starhub singtel m1)

4. One peculiarity - AA batteries are made of gold here (freaking expensive) if you buy in any major supermarket.
I found GP AA 6pack for $1.30 for at heartland malls' little stores.. pay by shopeepay scan and pay -50c discount

Also don't buy shampoo and conditioner at major supermarket (unless really no choice)..for some reason they're kinda expensive for small bottles
the neighbourhood CK mart should be much cheaper for huge bottles

You will probably need to bring enough cash to cover at least 2 mos' rental (eg 1600-2k for a 1+1) and food for two months because it can take awhile for your paperwork to be set up BEFORE you can open a bank account.
Beware of rental scams! Size up the unit, shoe rack, and the landlord before handing over your deposit.

HDB rental make sure the landlord registers you inside the HDB portal ya.
Best to get a local friend to help you out at least (if pay cash no paper trail) - if Paynow got paper trail.

Can start looking on carousell or FB for shortlisting some units.
No need to stay exactly at the MRT station if the buses are frequent. How to tell? see bus stop got plenty of bus numbers (6-7 or even more) then easy coz established route area. If just 1-3 bus numbers it may take awhile to wait for buses.

If you rent an old flat, ensure the electrical board has been refreshed (i.e. looks new and not from the 70's). You don't want the Bedok fire case to happen to you.
Also get the landlord to prove that the test button on the RCD @ DB box does cut the water heater power. This is important.

Bring along a couple pair of good sneakers.. you will definitely walk a lot here!

This post has been edited by ceo684: Jun 13 2022, 11:14 PM

Point #2 means if you wanna "work in MY for a day or two" because Fri/Sun flights too expensive so you arrange WFH on Fri,Mon so as to enable you to take a Thurs night/Mon night flight cheaply (i.e. play it cool to avoid the crowd)

If you don't think you'll be using your MY number often - now is the time to port to yoodo on the MY side with minimum commitment RM3/month just to keep the number for cheap

This post has been edited by ceo684: Jun 14 2022, 12:57 AM

No minimum if apply DBS online. But it will take a bit of time to complete because they post one by one. First the card. then the pin. then the activation for online banking. (In total expect 4 snail mail IIRC).

Most important is settle the EP thumbprint at EPSC (if you're here on EP).
Coz the card also take time to process.

After EP card in your hands life is good.

Yeah if walk in the account will have min deposit and fall below fee.
First DBS acc open online will not have said issues.
Later on can consider UOB also

Yes DBS will post one by one one.

Actually since you have a residential address, don't waste time with a Singtel prepaid..not cheap to call. For short term data RM10/day hotlink prepaid is not bad one.. only $3 then u can throw it after a few days
Get a giga line $10-18 a month lots n lots of data. Fast delivery (next day)

Don't forget singpass application after getting EP card.
Rmb to change the ADDRESS first to your home address otherwise it will send to company one by default

This post has been edited by ceo684: Aug 25 2022, 12:54 AM

NR tax rate 15%..

Classpass MY account for RM319=50 credits.
Its 10 credits more than the $99 40 credits plan

Depends on whether u just want pure gym or classes more. I prefer classes.

Congrats,
you on EP or SP/WP?

EP card after u landed and thumbprinted takes about a month to arrive at your co.
Singpass also a few weeks

Moment the IPA confirmed then you can hunt lor. Carousell, FB. Beware rental scam. Better have someone local do the paynow (so there is paper trail) as cash can be denied; then u pay your friend la.

Need to be within 3 days to the date of arrival.
Everything you need is here https://va.ecitizen.gov.sg/cfp/customerpage...?Category=48674

Of coz, there will be champion like me who "forgot" to submit but in the 10mins walk to the arrival gate I submitted ok je try to submit it before flying so no need to worry.

Can you quantify your "stuffs"
If just moving internally within SG gogox or lalamove starts from about $30 to book a trip.
Vacuum just buy one off carousell ~60 bucks BNIB for wired Hitachi.
If its just you coming over I don't think you need to import everything in.

I suggest coming earlier to get a feel for the place. Sometimes it’s better to rent walking distance than needing to take the MRT at peak going to work hour

At Changi Airport you can buy a sim from those UOB counter or StarHub booth T1. Postpaid need EP. But if you have a local contact u can get giga! Pretty cheap and runs on StarHub network. 7E sell SingTel. Don’t recommend orange telco

Once ur here first day of work your company can issue letter to prove your residence address.

After got EP can register Singpass. Pls remember set the address correct to your place else it will likely send to the company

This post has been edited by ceo684: Jul 15 2023, 12:12 AM

Lower tier ones still use JobStreet. Most better jobs on LinkedIn or own company website. The co website one stand better chance from my experience

5pm Sun from 1U First coach arrived 1.15am at Novena.
To save money try an earlier bus else u gotta grab or cab since >12am

Yes LHDN need to declare rental income in MY.
Don’t worry: Your income one is zero if taxed by IRAS. Effectively 7200/year at worst case tax is only 1% 😂