Our new flat, and financial planning...

Assalammu'alaikum family, friends, readers and followers of this blog. As most would have known, Husband and I have received our keys and are now officially proud owners of the BTO flat we opted for back on 9th December 2012.

We thank Allah SWT for all his blessings, in which He had made some things easier for us and insyaAllah our future as joint owners of this new flat, in which new life shall begin, a new challenge as husband and wife.

All our consistency in working full time, enduring and hanging on to our jobs, searching for better opportunities, and the rewards our stay in the company has been paid off when we see the figures on the screen.

We initially wanted to just go for 15yr loan, but the figures are a bit tight for my husband, so we opted for a 20yr loan instead of the full 30yr loan as I definitely don't want to work beyond 50, if possible I don't want to be working beyond 45. And I definitely don't want to see my husband struggle and continue working too hard after he is 55. He deserve a good break too, you know.

Alhamdulillah, even with the shorter loan period, we are still at the comfortable repayment amount, in fact it was at least $200 under. Alhamdulillah. This only means that I can afford to cut some slack after a good 5-8 years of continuously working as how I already am at the moment.

So friends, this is why a good job with a good CPF contribution is helpful. The 20% goes a long long way if you do intend to have your own flat and it does help if you are hospitalized.

So now that all the signing is over, we took the trip to physically see the flat, and get down to the real planning works. Jump on the wagon and start scouting for a good contractor to get working. If you havent know, we are intending to be loan free as much as possible.

We had told each other to save $10K each for renovation work, since 2-3 years ago, I kept to my word, in fact had some extra to get my Babylock Enlighten at least! However, due to some unseen circumstances, my husband falls short, But is okay, it is at 70% of the targetted amount and is good enough for us who are both minimalist and practical in terms of our new home.

So we set ourselves to keep everything within $15K. Alhamdulillah, we know of a contractor who can do the job for us at that amount or less. Allah SWT had made it easy for us, Alhamdulillah.

And the plan we had earlier, wasn't to what our actual flat is, so there you go! This is why I waited till I get my keys. :)

From this:

Initially we drew this from the "typical floor plan" in the BTO booklet thingy, and modified to suit our flat layout as per the BTO booklet. 

After looking at the actual flat, the actual size of it, the irritating corners or the columns that eat up space, that Gas Maintence shaft that eats into our kitchen, we had no choice but to make significant changes to our plans, and this is what we come up with.

I even decided to do a built-in shelf for the hobby room instead of getting an off the shelf, as I figured I need durability. Further changes to wardrobe locations with the contractors' advice. And the kitchen! I had to put my fridge in the service yard. Oh wells, what to do? We also shifted the dining area since there is a partition there beside our main door. And had our game console on the other corner. For sure, we LOVE our living/dining area, Alhamdulillah, it is spacious to accommodate, living day space, dining space and game space!

Baby M was very sure the hobby room was hers, she kept going in that room and telling me it is hers, and that we will sleep in it. Haha. Okay Baby, we will keep a space for you in there okay? While Abah saves for his bicycles, I will squeeze a day bed and toy space for you in there! :)

Also, this is a corridor unit, not the corner, so on a down side, I don't have a view, the sunlight, or the wind. But I get a good living space, and a personal corridor to my main gate. Possibly to grow some herbs and get some Aquaponic going on or something? Or maybe a bench to just sit guests when the house gets too full. That personal space also means our shoes wont get kicked by neighbours walking pass to get to the lift or the bin chute. I love that outdoor space the most, to be honest. :)

That's about it for my new flat, another entry for our contractor soon..

The happy new owner of a new flat,
Jun

Wassalam