Traveling is not limited to just overseas or having the need to always fly out but also exploring in your own country, from where you are.
I’m not sure how many Singaporeans you know or met or is just a follower of their blogs. But as a Singaporean, we can share a little insights about living in Singapore with you. For instance, the cost of living, cost of having a vehicle, some great places to explore, etc. This should help a little for those who wonders how living in Singapore is like. And we do hope that if you like this idea, you’ll be inspired to share about yours and we would be grateful if you could link back to us or tag us as we too would love to know a little about life in your country.
I never had any form of vehicle except a bicycle. Well, that’s because I have no licence. When I was younger in my twenties, I wanted and nearly took a bike licence but my mum didn’t approve of it. So I put off that idea. I wanted to get my car licence but I couldn’t afford it at that time as I have alot of commitment to make. My salary is not just limited to myself. It’s divided for my parents and my late grandma and cousin and my studies which I’m paying for on my own.
Even when I have excess, I always thought of travel first. So I didn’t see a point of rushing or the need in getting a car license. But if you are thinking whether or not to take now, I would suggest, if you can still split your excess savings for traveling and committing to a car license, go for it. Why? Think about driving in a foreign place amongst the gorgeous mountains overlooking the shimmering oceans. Those are 1 of the greatest moments you can have and be thankful to yourself later in life.
My husband on the other hand, has both bike and car license and owe 1 motorbike. We did consider of getting a car but we find that the cost and everything that you have to pay for a car in Singapore just ain’t worth it. In fact, it’s useless for now as we don’t see ourselves in need of it as much as his bike.
Besides, there are alot of companies renting out cars at affordable prices everywhere and we have been using those services as and when we needed a car. There are days when we rent a car for 3 days over the weekend and pay about $190 for a Kia Caren Mpv car or about $180 for Honda Stream Mpv or roughly $150 for Avante. And there are times when we only need it for a day which will cost us $65 for Toyota Allion or $90 for Toyota Wish. The lowest we got was $6/hr during off peak for an economical car and the price can rise up to $15/hr.
Just recently my partner changed his motorbike as his C.O.E is ending soon in April 2018. Also, since he was looking for something more economical, so it was a practical decision for him to make the change now before the end of his COE.
Since he wanted to retain his motorbike plate number, he has to pay $100 if he get a new motorbike or otherwise he would have to pay $1300 if he gets a secondhand motorbike.
We surveyed around for the bike prices and enquire for the highest buy back price from the bike shops and the highest offer was only $1200. So we tried to sell it online and someone offered $6000. Our opening price was $6500. We tried not to rush and continue to survey the shops again.
Alas, we got a place who offered almost as high as the seller plus they have the motorbike which hubby wants so we trade our R1 motorbike to Burgman 400 2017 model which cost about $22,800 and since we took up installment, there is a 4% interest charged.
The transfer fee is $50 total for a double transfer. And the insurance for a fire and theft 3rd party by NTUC cost him about $322. And the COE price on that day was $7,204. You can view the COE price which is updated daily here.
Since he just renewed his NTUC insurance last April, he was able to get a refund of about 75% which he got it within 2 weeks of his submission.
What’s COE, you’ll wonder. COE stands for ‘Certificate of Entitlement’. It is the quota licence received from a successful winning bid in an open bid uniform price auction which grants the legal right of the holder to register, own and use a vehicle in Singapore for a period of 10 years. When demand is high, the cost of a COE can exceed the value of the car itself. Quoted from wikipedia.
COE is renewable for either 5 years or 10 years. But one has to bear in mind that renewing a 5 year COE will not allow you to use the vehicle once it expired and you will not be able to renew your COE thereafter. In other words, your vehicle has to be scrapped. If you choose the latter, you are entitled to renew your COE again once the 10 years is up which allows you to use your vehicle for another 10 years.
So that’s why we decide not to purchase any car for now because getting a car may easily cost us about $60k – 100k inclusive of COE, depending on the model. Not forgetting your fuel consumption and maintenance of the car. With efficient public transport in Singapore, COE is meant to curb the demand of owning a car in this small Island. This move is to encourage the citizens to fully utilise the public transport which has been built for its people. Well, that is definitely a successful strategy.
What do you think about this? I would really love to hear from you!
Goodbye R1. Till then…
Xoxo;
Lia Schmolphin
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