Hedges Park (D17, 99 Years Leasehold, Tripartite Developers Pte Ltd)

[coolpica]

Am from Blk 89 too. Lawyer informed that the last 25% of payment should be disbursed by 3 Mar. Coupled with the payment of maintenance fees and survey fees by then, we can contact developer for key collection.

[Mei_Mei]

Hi All, me too received the notification.

[bk]

Wanna Blk ?

[bk]

Hi All, me too received the notification.

Which block?

[nchung]

Has anyone collected their keys yet?!? OMG getting sooooo excited.

[jolly]

Called developer today. Keys collection is on the basis of which unit complete handing over first. 1st priority given to those who requested for early release of keys, I m shocked this is allowed. For pple like me who did nothing, was told to wait till April for keys collection!

Hi Shihtzus, may I know which is your block? Yes, I know how u feel for collecting the keys late, but think positively as once our friends from the 1st batch collected the keys, they will update us through the forum on the workmanship and also any common defects found in the unit. All the info contribute by our friends will help to make our taking over more easy. Cheerio....

[leftrightcentre]

I went to HPC about 6 and got into the development despite not collecting my keys yet. I also managed to go into an unlocked unit. Very quickly took some measurements to make mental comparison from my floorpan. More or less similar except that the actual is probably larger by perhaps 1-2cm? Not exactly life changing but at least I can nail down on the easiest piece of furniture - bomb shelter shelf.

My oh my! It's so teeny weeny... Paper play planning gave me the false illusion that I had more room to play with, and able to have larger pieces of furniture. Now it seems like I need to downsize on everything! Renovation ideas restart from zero... ((

Let me start with the good. There is electricity in the unit. How do I know? Well, the really good news is we get free lighting already done in the bathrooms. Exactly like the showroom. Indirect warm T5 lighting above and below the mirror. Not sure if they are LED though. But they are using 2x3 feet tubes on each length.


The shower area is using sloped tiles which is great. The showroom used “stepped” tiles which is a toe banging hazard. Looks like they listen to feedback! Or maybe just the newer construction method as the newer show flats are all using this style.


The balcony is using laminated glass. It may not be as strong as tempered glass or shatter into millions of harmless blunt pieces but will stay as a single piece should the untowards happen.


We get a small complementary shelf in the DB. Don’t be too happy though. It’s MDF aka particle board. The external width is 60cm.


The OpenNet (NGNBN/fiber) point is in the DB and not in the bomb shelter. The 2 power points would be for the modem and router then. Good thinking on their part. Wonder if these 2 points are additional to what is in the specifications since the OpenNet point is additional?


And before I move to the “bad”, just to show a couple of neutral photos.

The shower door open inwards instead of outwards as in the floorplan.


The kitchen door has a glass window.


The dining pavilion uses real flame for lighting. This is what I see in some western countries al fresco dining areas during the winter. Think most recently I saw in Sydney. Nice during cold nights.

For those who care, the switches are “T&J” make.


The wardrobe is not full height, but they give cabinets at the top. I opened one and confirmed that. The showroom is just a covered up area with no cabinet. I commented that they is a waste of space and maybe they really listen. Actually, I saw that the void space above the fridge now has cabinet as well compared to the showroom that is only void air space. I made a brief comment then. Now I suspect that they really did listen.


And now the half good. The BCA regulations says that bomb shelter needs to have 2 ventilation holes with one open at all times. Well, one hole is just above the bomb shelter door in the kitchen. The default is open. The other instead of exposed towards the living/dining area (that is ugly and many people covered it up during reno) opens to the bathroom instead… The ugliness shifts to the bathroom, and may not be that easy to hide. And the wall tiles are already cut to shape. Now if you want to open up this hole so that you can close the one in the kitchen think about the event of the smell going into the bomb shelter…


The not so good. The DB door fitting leaves much room for improvement. The gap along the top is quite wide, and the gap is not uniform i.e. horizontal and vertical at different gap size. Unless you are layering a material (usual trend now is mirror?) over, the gap would be quite obvious. And even so, the layered material cannot flush with the door if you want a more seamless door.


And the slightly bad. Very obvious that the wardrobe is made of MDF as you can see in this defect. Sort of knew it when I tried the wardrobe in the showroom. Light and hollow sounding. Good thing is the doors and drawers come with soft close. Not in the showroom though the agent mentioned it would be. Really having a good mind to remove the lousy wardrobe to enlarge the room, but means higher cost for reno since that flooring and skirting and walls needs to be reworked.


I did not pay much attention to the worksmanship as my focus was on taking some measurements. The general feeling though is I did not spot major defects such as broken parts or obvious deep scratches but the finishing touches are not great. You can see from the switches with some paint on the edge, uneven grout between the tiles, the damaged wardrobe, etc. from my photos.

Took a rapid walk around half the development. I must say I think I could have been better choosing another unit… The view of the main pool from the unit balcony is quite nice. Block 87 should be getting very nice breeze. In fact, I was just at water area by the basketball court and I could feel the nice gust of wind despite it being below ground level! Closer to the children pool, the feeling is quite nice just being there with the tall hedge wall towering over you. I felt like I was in a different place altogether. Quiet. I think those on Blk 89 #02 facing Changi should have quite a nice exclusive environment if you can forget for a moment that outsiders can look down in quite easily.

I will pop over tomorrow PM again to do some visualisation and more detailed measurement and indication of switch and SSO locations. Hopefully loan disbursed and I can collect key on the spot!

Add: There is a wifi network around HPC. At least I got the signal when I was down at the boating pool.


I got mostly 3G network around the different blocks, and no signal in the basement carpark. Wonder if this will improve. Disadvantage of the hedge?

[leftrightcentre]

Oh, most of the internal walls are not solid concrete. Think is plaster drywall gypsum partition board.

[gull]

Hi LRC,

Thanks for wonderful insights. Good to know about the lightning in the bathrooms. Does the kitchen has lightening provided as well.

I had also walked in without key collection and just walked around. My disappointed came when I saw the gymn which very small for such size project. Just two treadmills n few machines with no free weights. Believe can't squeeze in more than 6 pple working out at the same time.

The function hall rooms were also very small.

The side walls were still not painted and looked ugly

Any similar observation by others ?

[moonlight]

Thanks leftrightcentre
I'm collecting my keys tomorrow morning

[leftrightcentre]

Well, I counted. Max 7 persons on the gym machines. 1 cycle, 1 stepper, 2 treadmill, 1 benchpress, 1 pulldown, 1 sit up. Maybe can handle another person standing around or pushups.

I do think that it is not only lacking (7 equipment for 501 households/1500 pax) but also small with little room to move about. A larger size guy probably will be put off by the triple-combo machine with so little room around him. There's not even room for yoga mat or gym ball unless no one can walk around!

Didn't look into the function room except when the lift door opens. The one on the 3rd floor seems larger. Sort of mini cafeteria setup. The one the 4th is probably smaller though it has the outdoor BBQ area which essentially makes it larger.

Not as well equipped or self contained as would like it to be. Perhaps giving up the half basketball court would give a better sized gym and function rooms but different people would have different preferences.

For the children wading pool, there was previously some concerns about the green algae like water. Actually not to be overly concerned. It's just because that water is so shallow (very gentle slope from 0cm deep to think 50cm at the deepest?) that the colour is not looking pretty.

I didn't manage to go into the kitchen really as the fridge was blocking the entrance as you can see from the photos. I stuck my head in and though it is smaller than I remembered the showroom to be even for the 2 bedder. The bomb shelter door will make it worse... Really waste of space the thick walls and heavy door and other restrictions. BCA should not make us pay for it!

[myfan]

How do we check whether the bank has released the 25% of purchase price to developer? Should we check direct with our lawyer or the developer?

[gav108]

sigh...the gym looks small indeed according to the fb photos...but it looks like there's still some space between the machines? can fit free weights and a bench or not? and 1 step machine is probably insufficient as it's usually quite popular.

the thick bomb shelter walls are ok as they also serve as core structural walls to support the building, allowing other walls to be thin.

[Shihtzus]

Hi Shihtzus, may I know which is your block? Yes, I know how u feel for collecting the keys late, but think positively as once our friends from the 1st batch collected the keys, they will update us through the forum on the workmanship and also any common defects found in the unit. All the info contribute by our friends will help to make our taking over more easy. Cheerio....

Hi jolly

Yes, I m getting all excited now just by seeing updates from future neighbours. We have all waited this long, I m ok to wait ano mth or so.

[Roarrrr]

I do appreciate for the updates given here so far.
But I personally don't think it's cool that we shld go into someone else's unit to take pics.
Unless it's your own unit.

It's not cool at all.

Just in my honest personal opinion.

[Roarrrr]

You guys do know it's wrong to enter other units that doesn't belong to you . ( regardless if it's locked or unlocked )

Don't let the excitement / good intentions cloud your head .

[nchung]

Thanks leftrightcentre
I'm collecting my keys tomorrow morning

So exciting. Can't wait till it's my turn :-)

Does anyone know who the kitchen subcontractor is? I've been trying to find out so I can check colour codes / materials but all I've been getting is the runaround from the developer and main contractor. Don't know why they are so cagey about giving out such simple info like the subcontractor's company name!

[akhran]

Is there a network point in every room?

Thanks.

[jolly]

Today drove pass HP in the morning and saw one of the unit at blk 89 facing Changi North Road occupied with boxes and furnitures. First occupant moving in, that was fast.

[gull]

Did somebody manage to get into the kitchen to discover if it's been provided with lighting as well similar to bathrooms

[jolly]

Thank you LRC for sharing the pictures. Minor defects highlighted but overall workmanship and finishing are good and acceptable. By the way, have you taken your unit keys LRC? If key taken, perhaps you want to share with us the photos of your unit and any comment.

[leftrightcentre]

1. All the basic infrastructure points (except fibre) are found in every room (including HS). RJ11 telephony, RJ45 data, 13A SSO. Usually a cluster in the centre of a wall with additional SSOs on the ends of the opposite wall.

2. The only lighting other lighting that is provided is that built into the hood. 2 E14 incandescent bulbs, probably 40W? But not good for much. Hardly illuminate the hobs.

3. There are about 100 units released in the first phase. As of today, about 10 collected keys. 2 already moved in since Fri I was told. Blk 85 #02 could be 1 of them. I saw lightings already mounted.

4. Each phase is likely 2-3 weeks apart. So a little patience. Otherwise the defects rectification would backlog and you can't start renovations anyway but already starting to pay interest, maintenance, etc.

4. All WM and fridge are left in original packaging and not installed. Have to make arrangements to have them installed. Reason said to keep them intact, probably considering renovations.

5. The unit would be cleaned up before handing over. Certainly in a considerably better condition than the unit I intruded yesterday. I guess the unlocked units are those still needing some work. But my unit wasn't locked though I was told to "break the seal". Probably customary and not literal.

6. Generally no dissatisfaction with the unit. Not looking for defects yet but no major defects identified although I noted a couple pretty bad scratches with the first one on my main door at eye position when opening...

7. Not sure if I got it wrong, but I heard slight popping/clicking/ticking sound in one of the room. Sometimes when I walked around, sometimes when I'm just stationary. Seems to come from the parquet. Hope it's not a case of popping parquet. As far as flooring goes, not in a clean enough state to be fair but I think lacks polishing.

8. There is a nice condiments shelf built into the kitchen cabinet.


9. There's this metal encased hole in the kitchen wall. Not sure what is that about?


10. Apparently this is a power socket based on the label but no idea what this is. Located in the shelf above the hood

[leftrightcentre]

OK, I think the hole in the wall is meant for the handle for the HS when the door fully opens. Good thinking. Certainly avoid us cracking the tiles when operating the heavy door and allows the door to open more flatly creating more space for the kitchen.

[jolly]

Congratulations LRC for getting your unit. Nice pictures taken and thank you so much on the informations given. Really glad to hear many positive feedbacks from you and the rest of the HP owners. Enjoy the facilities and stay at Hedges Park.

[LotusGenius]

Thanks LRC for the valuable information.

[favfuchsia]

Thanks LRC for the detailed information.

Collected my keys today. Did you opt for the warm colored scheme too? I'm disappointed with the bathroom, it looks kinda cheap, I wonder if it is the Colour scheme ( brown). The "grains" of the tiles looks dirty with deep lines that cuts across the tile. Looks like a defect when it's actually not.

Let me know your opinion. Thanks!

[nchung]

Thanks LRC for the detailed information.

Collected my keys today. Did you opt for the warm colored scheme too? I'm disappointed with the bathroom, it looks kinda cheap, I wonder if it is the Colour scheme ( brown). The "grains" of the tiles looks dirty with deep lines that cuts across the tile. Looks like a defect when it's actually not.

Let me know your opinion. Thanks!

Don't understand what you mean by the "grains" of the tiles having deep lines. Any photo to clarify what you are referring to? May be helpful to those of us yet to collect our keys to know what to look out for.

Thanks!

[Yuki]

Time for using the defect checklist!

http://allthingscozyandhomely.blogsp...revisited.html

[nchung]

Time for using the defect checklist!

http://allthingscozyandhomely.blogsp...revisited.html

Thanks. Check these out too. I found them online. Might be more relevant for condos :-)

http://www.propertylogy.com/knowledg...watch-out-for/

http://thirteen-thirty-livia.blogspo...ects-list.html

Happy reading!

[favfuchsia]

Don't understand what you mean by the "grains" of the tiles having deep lines. Any photo to clarify what you are referring to? May be helpful to those of us yet to collect our keys to know what to look out for.

Thanks!

sorry... i guess i didn't give the best description
IMG_3166.JPG