Greatest real estate movies of all time

According to growabrain, the list stands as:
Billy Wilder's 'The Apartment'
'American Beauty',
Tom Hanks' 'The Money Pit' and
Mamet's 'Glengarry Glenn Ross'
Photo from imdb.com

Yuppie ghettoes

Yuppie ghetto shit(h)oles.
Too funny. Urban Cartography(from which the picture above is from) correctly points out the spelling mistake.
I had a similar(ok, not too similar but definitely on the same thread) for the Singapore Biennale next year. Shhh...

The Straits Times' Life Section had a coverage of the Mitre Hotel today- given the nostalgia surrounding it, I wouldn't be surprised if one of the local design mags has a fashion shoot on its grounds these few months. The controversial Wu Xiao Kang's 'A Dose of Light' is being exhibited at the Mitre Hotel from next Saturday to Sept 1st.

Snippets of the report below:

From hotel to lodging house

FIRST built in the 1870s, Mitre (pronounced My-ter) was bought by five members of the Chiam family in 1948 for $61,000. They turned it into a hotel and it was patronised by oil rig divers, divers and backpackers in the 1970s and 1980s.

All the original owners have died except Chiam Heng Luan, 93, who also founded the Sloane Court Hotel in Balmoral Road. The descendants of the original five owners have been slugging it out in the High Court for the past 30 years.

Mitre ceased operating in 2002 and is now being run as a lodging house.

Its shadowy and crumbly compound is a place out of time. The main gate is a creaky, retro, tesselated grill gate which is locked at midnight.

Venture into the main lobby and you will pass rows of dusty sofas and chairs that line the graffiti-ed walls. The odd rat scurries away as you gingerly make your way through. There are three ceiling fans, but only one stirs the air, languidly.

The hotel's quirky dwellers add to the surreal experience. The most famous - or infamous - denizen is Mr Chiam Heng Hsien, 62, a well-spoken man with a shock of white hair and arthritic legs. He spends his nights on a small bed in a large hall behind the bar.

You may catch him making his way up the driveway at night and pushing a market trolley to support his bent legs. Topless.

His wife and two daughters live in a terrace house off Grange Road.

He, like the old building, is a kind of lone ranger.

Mr Chiam, who has a 10 per cent share of the property, is the one who has been holding out against the family's decision to sell the site. He is the son of the late Mr Chiam Toh Moo, one of the original owners.

But he has lost the long-drawn tussle. While he has spent most of his life as manager and caretaker at Mitre, he has to leave the site at least four weeks before the sale is completed.

Life! caught him last Saturday sitting pensively on the porch. He was wary on the subject of Mitre, but spoke freely on stocks, investments and politics.

He graduated in 1968 with a physics degree from the then University of Singapore, and worked briefly as a civil servant. He took over the running of the hotel in 1975.

It was reported that he refused to allow the sale in 1996 unless he received $21 million. So why did he hold out selling, since he'd be rich after the sale?

He doesn't reply.

Was it for sentimental reasons? He says: 'I never think about what I'll miss. A memory is only a memory - if it's gone, it's gone.'

He adds: 'What else is there to do? Except to try to take some pictures of the place.'

Or, like many other thirsty travellers, you can hit the bar on the ground floor, which is lit by the stark glow of a single fluorescent tube.

Manning the bar is a woman in her 30s who goes by the name of Jesse, Sophia or Vivian, depending on who you are and when you ask her.

The chatty eccentric, who mans the hotel from early afternoon to about 10pm when Mr Chiam takes over, is something of a mystery.

She says she started working here six to seven years ago, but does not say if she is paid and why she works here. On what she would do after this place closes, she says: 'Find another job, lor.'

And her bartending is erratic: She serves beer at $7 a can only to regulars - others get 7-Up.

Cheap drinks, smelly toilet

AFTER some rounds, those needing a leak need to pick their way past a large hall which looks and smells like an abandoned storeroom.

Broken chairs, a pool table heaped with debris and empty beer boxes litter the place. When you get to the loo, the toilet bowl will convince your bladder to hang on a little longer.

The murky contents of the bowl is a scary black-brown. Maggots crawl inside.

A walk upstairs, up the creaky staircase, leads you to a large hall, empty compared to the clutter downstairs. Bits of the night sky are visible through gaps in the roof.

You flick on the light switch; surprisingly, it works.

One room is locked, and kept for an Australian - a Mr Matthews - who deals in antiques, says Mr Chiam.

Through a chink in the door, you can see a bed covered with clean, white sheets and a suitcase on the floor.

But this is the only vaguely liveable room. The others are empty and in various states of dilapidation.

Most have thin, dirt-grey mattresses and stained sinks.

Singapore Condo Complex Rips off Nicole Kidman Chanel No.5 Ad

Adrants singles out CDL's One Shenton as a rip-off of Chanel No.5's Kidman campaign.

What they wrote:

Since Chanel No.5 didn't get much ROI off the $15 million they paid Nicole Kidman to appear in one of their ads, someone else might as well get some mileage out if it. Singapore luxury condominium developer CDL replicated the Nicole Kidman imagery right down to the backward necklace to promote its One Shenton condo project. What's that saying? Imitation is the purest form of flattery? More like "We're a sleazy developer who has mo problem freeloading." For comparision, here's the original Nicole ad.

I'm leaning towards Marc Garnaut in that the client probably approved the visual instead of having specifically requested for a Nicole Kidman-in-Chanel No.5 campaign.

On a side(tangential) note, Nicole Kidman's hair looked so much better(there's something about obviously-too-short-hair in a ponytail that's disturbing).

As does the dress, the backdrop, even the jewellery. Am disdainful of badly executed, derivative, "inspired" work

Bachelor padding: Luxury and the single guy(Or what your viewing patterns say about you)

Had a bachelor client who rented a showflat because it had ready, (untouched) cutlery, bedding- bascially the prototypical agent’s idea of ‘move in condition- just bring luggage’ type of apartment.

I tend to categorise bachelor residences into two categories- the pristine, magazine-worthy type with nothing in the kitchen, (apparently the case study of this article in the International Herald Tribune), and the bachelor who cooks, with clothes and dishes left over for the maid’s weekly visit.

This storyline must have been in a telenovella or other forms of pulp fiction I consume on a regular basis but am sure there was a fictional character(somewhere) who had to decide between one guy, his dogs and his country ranch house and another guy(an architect, methinks), and his pet-free, fashionably restored, pristine mid-century modern house.

Charlotte in Sex and the City concluded that a guy buying a townhouse must be planning for a family(voiceover: Carrie-Some people read palms. Charlotte read real estate). Real estate indicators and looking at how someone lives must be amongst the best ways of assessing a person’s marriage-ability. Following that (il?)logical trajectory, real estate agents must make for the best matchmakers around, which is why, apparently, some real estate agents are moonlighting(ok- value added service) as matchmakers for their single clients.

An excerpt from the article-

Brokers are also used to distinguishing between perennial shoppers and relationship-ready clients. Those who view dozens of spaces but find fault with every one, or are always about to make an offer only to back out at the last minute, may not be ready to commit to a property or a partner. That’s why Kleier Forbes says she waited to introduce attorney Amy Schulder, for whom she’d found a rental, to a sports-marketing executive client until he signed a contract for a two-bedroom. “I wanted to see if he was a window shopper or a buyer,” she says. (For the record, the couple clicked and has been dating for a few weeks.)

Dickensian Vestigial Nub...

There are great blogs that both make my day the way they’re so beautifully written and conceived, makes me feel the slightest tinge of jealousy(how can anyone be that good and that prolific) but also cautions me that it’s NOT ok to write (shit) on the blog just so…
Below is an excerpt from the blog- on urban fabric, badass developers and the possible extinction of savile row…
That ‘meaningful sense of place’ is what the developers are playing with when they talk of “reinforcing the Savile Row brand”, but are they best placed to handle this kind of nuanced brand experience? Rhetorical. London and Britain has long suffered the iron grip of property developers on urban fabric. How is a 40% rent increase going to reinforce anything except the simple displacement of the current tenants? From this distance, this would appear to be another example of how British landlords often reject of the opportunity to combine history, context and innovation, and the long-term economic base that could engender, in favour of a short-term profit which (inadvertently?) changes a place’s identity forever.

Notice how trivia like coveted real estate in Monopoly and the Japanese word for suits are so neatly tied in?

Original post can be found here

Tan Chin Tuan Mansions

Is up and ready to be let out.
Units are either 3 or 4 bedrooms- both are roughly of the same square footage and the conclusion I've made is that you either choose to have less(and larger) rooms or more(and smaller rooms). Asking rental is $25k. Completely owned by one family, none of the units will be for sale.

Part of the debate amongst the conservationists and other concerned citizens, the extension to Tan Chin Tuan Mansion recently received the approval(?) of Harp's founder, Mr Terrence Hong:
The head of Harp, Mr Terrence Hong, 26, said: ‘In 10 years, if you want to dismantle the building above the house, it can still be done and the house will be intact.'(Sunday Times, 24 June 2007)
Photo above is from duckweed, posted on skyscrapercity's forums.

Lost Sole(s)

Did not get an opportunity to watch this. From the synopsis, however, it seems very 'Bicycle Thief'-ish(Don't retch with reference to the latter).
I loved the trailer on youtube however and through the flimsiest excuse, will tag this as a 'socio-spatial' entry.
You can view the teaser on youtube:
It's set around the Sultan Mosque- an atmospheric area renowned for the best nasi padang around(it's Warong Pariaman, guys), the Arab-style cafes(and at times-service), made hip when Comme des Garcons decided it was(drop by Haji Lane to check out the aftermath of Comme des Garcons'cameo in the neighbourhood). Also the place where brides-to-be shop for beautiful lace cloths, occasional weddings are witnessed in Kota and where a not unsignificant portion of my childhood was spent trawling through the stores.

Web 2.0

Can everyone stop claiming to unrolling the next web 2.0 site?

User participation and a more democratic platforms are great ideals but personally I believe more in Wikipedia’s model than Youtube’s. And while the philosophy of wikipedia is in delivering a democratic platform and accessibility to knowledge, it’s also (very) much moderated, which detracts from the ideals of democracy, doesn’t it?

I subscribe to that whole Foucauldian power/knowledge dialectic and Lutheran ideals of transferring knowledge(and power, according to Foucault) to the hands of many as opposed to a few but complete democracy as embodied by sites where just about (everybody) can post a video seems too indulgent, too wasteful, too pointless for it to be definitive of a whole generation of websites.

House Hunt- Video

Video 2
Illustrating the frustration of finding an piece of property to buy/rent through the papers. Without an accompanyin g visual element, names of developments rarely give an indication of the design and suitability of the property.
Watch the video here:

The Youtube Videos

Video 1-
Using Ken Knabb's(from the Bureau of Public Secrets) translation of the Situationist Work 'The Passage of a Few Persons through a Rather Brief Unity of Time', we've incorporated the words into a rather senseless (anti) corporate video.
Watch it here:

Penthouses with pools

Penthouses with private pools are almost a fixation with me. This, an updated version within a very Matrix-like development (in the coolest way, possible) asking $15m for around 4800sqft, a penthouse unit in the above development for less than $4m in the above development, one at another WoHa -designed development that has yet to T.O.P and another in the Novena area represents the new generation of 'penthouses with pools'.
It's nothing new- The soon-to-be en bloc'ed(if the latter is a verb) Futura has a penthouse over three floors with a pool(yes, I still lament the loss of the building- someone should immortalise these units in some cool coffee table book...)as does Landmark Tower and a host of older developments that made a splash(pun intended) in their time for the rooftop swimming pool innovation.
Yet, it's still exciting- for its sheer connotations of an 'uber penthouse'- as the 10,000odd square feet penthouses at the Marina Bay Residences are called(side note: an uber penthouse can only be uber if there's a private pool;-)). And yes, the penthouses typically sell first, generate the best publicity for its unique features and as per Keppel Corp's press release, will receive media-worthy unsolicited offers.

Photo above from Heeton Holdings.

The Showflat as Art Gallery

Scotts Square, with its enviable location (that lump of construction between Grand Hyatt and Marriott Hotel), is in fact, according to the Straits Times August 12, 2007, a “$3-million, 6,000sqft art gallery and showflat (…) to be demolished in 2009″. To be completed by end 2010, the gallery will feature local artists like Zul Othman, Ketna Patel and Lim Shing Ee.

I like the ending quote:’ I suppose developers are bringing showrooms to te people rather than the old model of people going to showrooms.’ - Raymond Lim 28, corporate communication, Les Amis Group. - Which would bring me to a later post, on ‘Lost Showflats’…

Specs: 338 units comprising of one, two and three-bedroom apartments of 600 sq ft, 900 sq ft and 1,200 sq ft respectively.-



Sculptures:- ‘Victoria & Albert Museum Chandelier’ by Dale Chihuly

‘ Working Model for Sheep Piece’ by Henry Moore

‘Three Indeterminate Lines’ by Bernar Venet

‘ Alice in Wonderland’ by Salvador Dali



Which seems to reverse the trend of larger units within the luxury development sector… And I’m not sure I understand the ‘no penthouses’ policy of the developer. Reckoned as a high-end developer(Ardmore Park is still reckoned as iconic of the high-end condominium phenomenon from the pre-’96 boom), their newer developments do not seem to offer penthouse units.



And smaller units tend to signal that investors (and those looking for a pied-a-terre in Singapore) are the target demographic here.

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Spa facilities

Have always been a spa junkie even though I feel body massages to be injurious, questioned the wisdom of sharing my bathwater when getting into a common jacuzzi(according to the Faena Hotel and Universe, it might be the Muslim in me, for Until the hammam caught Muhammad's fancy, the Arabs(...) never bathed in tubs which was considered as bathing in one's own filth) and hate those ridiculous pieces of disposable underwear. It's the whole routine of having ginger tea before a treatment, chamomile tea after, the smells of the spa and occasionally, when it's an exceptionally good spa(like the Baan Thai- all old world flavour with original teak houses from Ayutthaya)- the pleasure of the treatment.

Which is why a development with spa facilities completely captures my imagination.
This development was first with its very serene walk to the hot and cold baths and the rainforest showers. Soleil@Sinaran promises spa alcoves. But this development actually comes with private salas- if you look beyond those orange seats, you'd notice massage chairs with curtains that can be drawn for more privacy. There's a water feature directly behind the massage chairs within every sala and a dock for your ipod(might be exaggerating on the latter but am sure it can be arranged). It also comes with a very masculine cigar room and wine cellar, a tropical pavilion with a 10-seater dining table where your own dinner party can be catered for and two indoor dining tables(one with an Oriental kitchen, the other a Western kitchen).

Are facilities for everybody, however? The grand scale of the development certainly allowed for the variety of facilities but at the back of my head I would have been concerned about the number of unfamiliar faces lounging around the pool and other facilities everytime (insert client’s name here) uses/tries to use it. It’s the anonymity that comes with living in a larger condominium setting.

Asked the client his opinion. Apparently he wasn’t too impressed by the facilities- opined it felt too hotel-like, wondered why anyone would call in for a masseur/se and then have the treatment in a common area and yes, was concerned about the number of anonymous faces he’d meet in the lobby, expressing a preference, instead, for a similarly fashionably outfitted development(with lesser facilities) that’s lowrise, tranquil and within ‘reasonable walking distance to Orchard’.

Does Home Staging Work?

Curbed had a post on Bob and Bonnie's 'awkward floral staging'. The response was rather cruel I thought- but that's for (possibly) another post.

Some agents do attempt to stage, especially with older resale properties. And everytime you find an article about an exemplary agent in the Straits Times there's always the inadvertent mention of how s/he paid for a fresh new coat of paint for the re-sale home, new curtains and/or light fittings.

I've been blessed with clients whose apartments and houses are magazine spread-worthy (in the best possible way) every time I'm there. I've met homeowners too(typically investors) who do 'stage' their properties- Diptyque candles, Flos lighting, delightful trinkets like that doorstopper in that shape of a lilliputian man pushing against the door, the beautifully packaged Thai herbs in the kitchen and the various pieces of iconic mid-century modern furniture pieces. Great properties in and of themselves made better with excellent home staging.

I personally rely on candles and rotate between the vanilla(an all time favourite) and chocolate candles from Ikea, Comme des Garcons' Ouarzazate(which most home owners prefer not to have) and the latest being Jimmyjane's line of ember&saffron, coriander&quince, ginger&date and lychee&lapsang. Am not sure if it makes much of a difference but it does (I believe) enhance the whole viewing process. I find smells to be very definitive of an experience- which is why the Westin promotes its white tea scented hotel lobbies , the Met uses one scent that permeates the lobbies, the spa and every floor of the hotel and Famous Amos promises free smells(;p)

Photo above is from the CustomersRock blog which also makes a mention of how 'realtors burn vanilla scented candles in the homes they are hosting'.

HDB

Photo from moviexclusive.com
Since it's the week of National Day, a post on HDB is quite in order.

Singapore Architect had a great feature on HDBs(probably because there was so much theory thrown around and according to this, I am a theory slut)-the manifestation of Corbusier's utopic ideals of town-planning. Am not sure where this came from:- definitely inspired by that article in Singapore Architect. The first paragraph doesn't seem characteristic of me- I hope I didn't lift chunks off the article- although that wouldn't be characteristic of me either.

Le Corbusier was a great believer and proponent of town planning-the idea revolved around housing people in sanitary, regimented high-rise towers, set far apart in a parklike landscape. While the clinical, utopian idea of La Ville Radieuse(there was nothing radiant or faintly poetic about the inflexible, almost draconian concept about the place) in Chandigarh failed miserably, it seems to have found root in Singapore in the form of the government subsidised housing, HDB.



It could have been that the architecture and town planning of the city was simply an extension of the political philosophy of the country but HDB, and the idea of town planning on the whole, has succeeded extremely well in Singapore. So, while the megaprojects in the US, inspired by Corbusier are being dismantled, the Americans having found the sense of anomie and disorientation inspired by regimented public housing and vast urban renewal schemes to be too great, Singaporeans have taken to the idea a whole lot better. Everything is planned-from the excellent public transportation system, to the number of trees around every block. Young urbanites today, short on cash but big on inspiration, are turning their HDB dwellings into swanky apartments to rival the predictable and 'mass produced' interiors of condominium living.

From providing a sense of home ownership, social control through the imposed system of racial quotas to inspiring generations of local filmmakers(ref: Royston Tan's 4:30 to Eric Khoo's 12 storeys).