Today, two years later, his dream has become a little jaded as a result of the economic slowdown and demographic changes.

Instead of living in a vibrant estate, he finds himself surrounded by large empty blocks with few facilities available in the older estates.

Among the completed blocks, many stand eerily empty because buyers are reluctant to move in.

Property has always been a source of love and wealth for Singaporeans, with nine out of 10 owning one. Needless to say, values have dropped.

But it is part of a weakened market. Since prices collapsed in 1996, property values have dropped by 35%. It has, of course, spread to the public sector Housing Development Board (HDB) flats.

Throughout Singapore, there are more than 10,000 unsold or unoccupied HDB flats.

The long 20 to 30 years’ repayment scheme has made people reluctant to take up purchase loans, many out of fear of losing their jobs.

However, Ho wasn’t wrong about the quality of Punggol. It is beautiful and comparable to many private condos, although only a pale shadow of its original plan.

The Punggol Vision 21 is no ordinary estate. Designed for the new lifestyle of young Singaporeans, especially those who love water-sports, it was to comprise 96,000 HDB units.

So far only 25,000 are up, with the rest probably waiting for better days. This is not good news for those who have bought a home there.

Ho wrote: “All the Punggolians have is a small Punggol Plaza to cater to their daily necessities.”

There were no McDonalds, petrol kiosks or public facilities, he said.

“You won’t understand the frustrations unless you live there yourself,” he complained. “I have seen neighbours who simply refused to move in because of the great inconvenience.”

There are three or four other new townships with the same problem, block after block of eerily empty flats.

Singaporeans overwhelmingly prefer to own their flats, but a growing number of newlyweds, worried about the economic uncertainty, are renting instead of buying them.

In addition, the dropping birthrate all these past years has also reduced demand. To fill them up, the government has just relaxed rules on first-time purchases of older, unsold flats by singles and permanent residents. Until then, they could only buy from the costlier resale market.

The property bug has always been exceptionally strong in land-squeezed Singapore compared to larger countries.

The optimists, however, view the current weakness as cyclical. They say that over the long term, property in Singapore is a finite commodity.

“As long as there is stability and economic growth, demand will always rise, but not the supply,” said a long-time developer.

But critics fault the government for allowing values to rise too much too quickly before 1996. It is the biggest landlord, owning 70% of all land here.

Their view is that property is still too expensive relative to the state of economy, but the government doesn’t want any sharp decline that will erase so many people’s assets.

Recently, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced that the poorest 20% of Singaporeans have home assets of S$138,000, in addition to S$49,000 in their CPF and S$16,000 in Medisave accounts.

The government strategy of “service-only-if-there-is-mass-demand” is also under fire from affected citizens, as in the case of Punggol.

Another is the completed Buangkok MRT station, which remains shut because of insufficient commuters.

It is a vicious circle. Not enough residents, so no facilities, and these are lacking because there are not enough residents.

Property remains a good long-term investment for those who believe in Singapore’s future.

While the republic is facing increasing competition from neighbouring countries, especially China and India, it is moving towards higher-tech services.

The leaders are determined to work towards a vibrant city of six to seven million people by 2030 that will also reflect higher skills and wealth, too. The demand for property will rise after the current consolidation, according to economists.

Because of its smallness, any surge of foreigners’ arrivals will have a big impact on prices. Singapore remains a haven for the region’s wealthy during a crisis.

Recent changes are already having an impact on the market. For one thing, Singaporeans’ general love affair with it has taken a hard knock.

In the “hot” days, people would queue up overnight to take up new offerings, some selling them for quick profits shortly afterwards. At almost every conversation, the subject was property, with people moving from one flat to another.

In the HDB sector, demand for the larger units is continuing to decline, but purchases of smaller, cheaper three- to four-room apartments are rising. It reflects a cautious attitude towards servicing the loans.

But in the private sector, the opposite is happening.

Take-up rates for cheaper suburban condos remain slow, while the luxury market, especially large bungalows, at posh districts 9, 10, and 11, are in demand among mostly foreigners.

With the completion of the casino resorts by 2009, this trend should at least be maintained.

o Seah Chiang Nee is a veteran journalist and editor of the information website littlespeck.com

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