Monthly Archives: October 2009

Top-line oven to warm home buyers’ hearts

More property developers are throwing in branded ovens and other luxury fittings to draw homemakers

A MIELE oven can do more than bake a cake these days – it might just help whip up a home sale. More developers are including branded appliances in apartments to impress home seekers, and some have certainly stopped to gawk at the gadgetry.

PRICE MATTERS
Despite the inclusion of branded appliances in units, some buyers would still care more about the prices of the homes

But will all house hunters bite? Anecdotal evidence suggests that some would still care more about the prices of the homes, especially if they were never fans of the brands to begin with.

‘The inclusion of branded appliances has both its good and bad points,’ said Chesterton Suntec International research and consultancy director Colin Tan.

‘If the developer knows his target market well, it is a plus… It is a negative if the buyer does not recognise the brand or appreciate it.’

Developers of mid to high-end units have used premium furnishings to boost their projects’ image for some time, but the trend gathered more steam some two years ago when markets boomed.

Rich consumers searched for new ways to spend, and steel fridges and dishwashers quickly became the new status symbols. Continue reading

Top 10 ghost towns around the world

TRAVELLERS seeking a quiet place need look no further than the numerous abandoned towns around the world.  Travel review website IgoUgo.com (http:www.igougo.com) has compiled a list of the top 10 ghost towns around the world based on recommendations from its readers.

1. Kolmanskop, Namibia. You’ll need to stop in nearby Luderitz for a permit to enter this former mining town in the Namib desert – a holdover from the days when Kolmanskop was a free-for-all for diamond hunters. The town had its heyday in the 1920s but was abandoned in 1956. It has since been partly restored.

2. Fatehpur Sikri, India. Built by Emperor Akbar to be the most beautiful city in the world, it was widely thought this goal was achieved – until people realised the city lacked access to water. It was abandoned as the capital of the Mughal Empire after just 10 years and is today a perfectly preserved 16th-century town.

3. Oatman, US. Of all the Arizona ghost towns, quirky Oatman has to be among IgoUgo members’ favourite. Here, wild burros roam the streets and US$60,000 bills decorate the walls of the local hotel, where, incidentally, Clark Gable and Carol Lombard spent their wedding night. Continue reading