Life in Singapore

Cost of life

https://blog.moneysmart.sg/budgeting/cost-living-singapore/

Opening a bank account

Required documents: Usually the following are required: Identification Document Proof of Employment Proof of Residential Address Check with the bank for more specific information. Site with useful info: https://www.moneysmart.sg/savings-account

Accommodation

Types of accommodation available: Apartments (usually with no facilities but larger space for less rent) Flats at condominiums with common facilities like pool, gym, playground, tennis court, function room etc Landed properties i.e. a house. HDB (Housing Development Board) which is public housing in affordable pricing. For this minimum duration of lease is six months. There is a quota according to ethnicity in HDB housing, so please check if you are eligible at: https://services2.hdb.gov.sg/webapp/BB29ETHN/BB29STREET

A room in a shared flat (minimum duration of lease is 3 months).

Listings:

https://www.propertyguru.com.sg https://www.99.co/ https://www.hmlet.com/en There are also some beautiful colonial houses and apartments, the Black and Whites as they are called that you can bid on and rent.

https://app1.sla.gov.sg/spio

To check prices of actual recent (last 60 months) property rental and sales transactions use: https://ura.gov.sg

Rental checklist: Engage an agent to help you. For rents above $3500 the landlord’s agent shares his commission and you don't have to pay him/her. Agent’s fees are half of the monthly rental for one year lease and one month’s rent for a two year lease. The law protects and supports the landlord so please read carefully the tenancy agreement. Take photos and videos of all defects and notes at the inventory list. You have 30 days to submit any defects. Usually there is a minor repair cost which means you pay up to a certain amount for repairs and the landlord will top up the difference but you need to inform about the issue beforehand and get approval. All this information will be in your tenancy agreement. All communication is done through the agents. Keep proof of all messages and emails. At the day of the handover most landlords expect to receive the apartment/house in the same condition as before moving in.

Transportation

General: Buying a car in Singapore is expensive but you can get around easily without one by public transport (bus and/or MRT) or taxi or Grab/Gojek/Ryde Public transport is cheap and reliable and there are apps to help you plan your trip by calculating time, cost and even seating availability! Payment for public transport is contactless via Mastercard, Visa, NETS Tap, ez-link and NETS Flashpay Taxis and other transport service offering companies are very convenient and not too expensive If you decide to get a car, you can buy or lease. When you buy, you pay a premium, (COE) Certificate of Entitlement, that is valid for 10 years. After that you can either scrap the car or renew the COE. A small part of the value of COE (PARF) will be refunded. You can check https://www.sgcarmart.com/main/index.php for new and used cars. Useful transport apps: *Private: Grab Comfort del Gro Gojek Ryde *Public: MyTransport SG BusLeh *Getting around: Citymapper (includes cycling routes, public transport etc.) Google maps Gothere.sg

HEALTHCARE

Public hospitals Polyclinics Pharmacies https://doctoranywhere.com Only Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents are entitled to subsidised rates so even if you go to a public hospital you will be charged as a private patient. Public hospitals are generally cheaper than private hospitals. A good alternative for non emergencies with better pricing are Polyclinics. Useful apps; TraceTogether SingPass HealthHub

schooLs

Education is not free. Even if your kids attend local, government run schools you will have to pay annual fees but they are considerably cheaper. Priority is given to Singapore Citizens first, Permanent Residents, followed by the rest of the applicants. Kids that apply for Primary 2 onwards have to pass entry exams.

INSURANCE

See article below for different types of insurance available to expats:

https://blog.moneysmart.sg/health-insurance/insurance-expats-dependents-singapore

FOOD

The Hawker culture:

Hawker culture in Singapore originated back in the 1800s from the early migrant population selling quick, affordable meals wherever they could set up their makeshift stalls, on street pavements, in parks and town squares.

Today, hawker centres are an integral part of Singaporeans’ way of life. Evolved from street food culture, they have now become a safe, clean, open kitchen and serve as a social space where people from diverse backgrounds gather and share the experience of dining over breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Hawker centres are representative of Singapore’s multicultural society, with stalls selling Chinese, Malay, Indian and other diverse types of dishes.

Hawker culture in Singapore is so important that it was officially added to the Unesco Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on December 16th 2020.

Here’s a link to a guide with 25 popular hawker dishes and where to try them:

https://migrationology.com/singapore-food/

Peranakan food:

Singapore’s Peranakan cuisine or Nyonya cuisine goes back to the 15th century and originates from the Peranakans, descendants of early Chinese migrants who settled in Penang, Malacca, Singapore and Indonesia, inter-marrying with local Malays.

A Straits Chinese community slowly emerged from the children of these mixed marriages, who created a rich cuisine that is the perfect blend of Chinese, Malay and Indonesian flavours.

Favourite Peranakan restaurants:

-Candlenut (Michelin starred)

-Godmama

-National Kitchen by Violet Oon

-The Blue Ginger

Supermarkets/grocery stores (most) with online ordering &delivery:

Cold Storage

Giant

NTUC Fairprice - Fair price Finest

Redmart

Fresh fruit&veg, bread, cheese, etc.:

-Open Taste

-Little farms

Fish (they have other stuff too):

-Sasha’s Fine Foods

-The Fishwives

Meat:

-Huber’s butchery

-Foodie Market Place

-Little Farms

-Ryan’s grocery

Also, remember to check out your local wet market for fruit, fish, veg, flowers, etc.

Where to find greek food products/restaurants (listed alphabetically):

Achinos (wines)
Agora (greek products)
Alati (restaurant)
Bakalaki (restaurant and greek products)
Blu Kouzina (restaurant)
Blumart (greek products)
Fotia (restaurant and greek products)

Food delivery apps:

Deliveroo
Food Panda
Grab
Oddle

Restaurant reservation apps and sites:

Chope (Fun fact: this app is named after the singlish verb “to chope”, which is local slang for reserving a table or seat at a hawker centre or eatery with free seating, usually by placing a tissue paper pack on the table/spot)
Quandoo
Book.hungrygowhere.com

FURNITURE

There are stores like IKEA, Castlery etc. but also a large second hand market, as expats come and go and when they leave they sell their stuff.

Check out Carousell and facebook market platforms etc. for relevant listings.

LIFESTYLE & CULTURE

Museums/galleries:

-National Gallery Singapore, https://apps.apple.com/sg/app/gallery-explorer/id988688431

https://www.nationalgallery.sg/

-Asian Civilisations Museum

https://www.nhb.gov.sg/acm/

-National Museum of Singapore at Fort Canning

https://www.nhb.gov.sg/nationalmuseum/

-Peranakan museum (currently closed for renovation)

https://www.nhb.gov.sg/peranakanmuseum/

-ArtScience Museum

https://www.marinabaysands.com/museum.html

-Gillman Barracks: a contemporary arts cluster that is home to international art galleries, restaurants and the NTU Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore, which are all housed in conserved colonial barracks.

https://www.gillmanbarracks.com/

Reading:

NLB Mobile (National Library app, can borrow books online and read in Overdrive),

https://apps.apple.com/sg/app/nlb-mobile/id1147053983

Theatre:

-SRT, Singapore Repertory Theatre, https://www.srt.com.sg

-Esplanade theatres

https://www.esplanade.com/

-MBS theatres

https://www.marinabaysands.com/entertainment/shows.html

Music:

-Victoria theatre and concert hall

https://www.vtvch.com/

-SSO, Singapore Symphony Orchestra: https://www.sso.org.sg

-Esplanade theatres:

https://www.esplanade.com/

Cinema:

There are plenty of mainstream cinemas in Singapore, such as Golden Village and Cathay Cineplexes in multiple locations and an all time favourite with great movies: The Projector.

Also, the Alliance Française Singapore hosts film festivals.

https://www.gv.com.sg/

https://www.cathaycineplexes.com.sg/movies/

https://theprojector.sg/

https://alliancefrancaise.org.sg

Nature:

There are plenty of parks, hiking trails, nature reserves and small islands to explore in Singapore and an extensive park connector network that conveniently links parks and which you can walk or cycle.

For more information on trails, walks, park facilities, opening times, check: https://www.nparks.gov.sg/

Also, for trails this is a useful app: https://apps.apple.com/sg/app/alltrails-hike-run-cycle/id405075943

Sports:

Staying fit and active in Singapore and keeping up with your favourite sport is facilitated by the great weather which favours outdoor activities (just avoid running at midday) and the abundance of courts, swimming pools, gyms and stadiums.

Have a look at the sites below for activities, events, runs, etc.:

https://www.myactivesg.com

https://www.justrunlah.com/

Useful lifestyle links:

https://www.timeout.com/singapore

https://thesmartlocal.com

https://thehoneycombers.com/singapore/

https://www.sassymamasg.com/

https://www.sistic.com.sg/