Our Own Micasa....

I collected the keys to my new house on 10th November 2010. I was the second buyer to collect the keys as I didn't have major issues of the charges, compared to other buyers.

Our initial plan was to move in after 2 weeks, as we would like to move in in December.We thought it will be hard for us if not to move as we have to pay the installment and the rent for our rented home in Sepakat Indah. Yes, the first installment will be starting in December.

We went straight to the house after we got the keys. Just to check for visual defects and have a brief walk-through of the house. We did have some defects, which has been written onto the list of defect documents. Some of it were:

• Rusty doorknobs
• Windows that cannot be closed
• No water supply

It just weird of not having the CF for new properties. We found out that after 2007, the developer use CCC in delivering the vacant possession. It do have its own pro and cons.

The cons in our case was not having the water supply. This however do not deter us from moving into the new home, a week before December. We had Hafiz doing the kitchen cabinet, Abo and Shamsir for the lighting, wiring, curtain railing, etc and the rest was just the two of us, me and hubby.

Hafiz managed to finished the kitchen cabinet in just within 2 weeks. We chose red for our KC, which a lot of the neighbors are also using. (Hafiz used our house for his show room). Abo and Shamsir installed all the lightings, wiring, railing and also did the painting. Nothing fancy about the color. It is blue for my room, pink for Eya and purple for the living room.

A lot of money was spent for the move in. The grille, we managed to find a cheaper prices. We found it by accident, on our trip to Jusco Cheras Selatan. It was RM 1K less than the first quotation. Then, we went to Kamdar KL for the curtains, for the whole house.

All in all, we had spent almost RM 20K in moving to the new houses, and there was no renovation works involved. Our main objective was just to move in and have all the basic necessities. All renovation can be done in the future, as long we have the budgets.

And, to think that only the three of us will live there, the existing layout is big enough for us.Our future plan is just to install wood flooring and to have electronic gate.

As for the water supply, until now, we still don't get our own meter. Luckily, the developer provides us with free water. However, I'm still not happy until I get my own water meter from Syabas.

See...Eya was so happy to get her own water meter...

 Updates on 20/1/11: The meter has been installed. We waited for almost 2 1/2 months for it. I'm so thrilled to have it. Yeay....

The awaited water meter....

The moment will arrive...

After waiting for 2 years, micasa is almost ready to be lived in, not without any issues.

We have to pay the late payment charges before collecting the keys. After a few push from  the residents, the developer, Esatek Sdn Bhd willing to give 2 waiver, which resulted in us only  paying RM300. Plus with the water and electricity deposit, we ended up paying almost RM1400. Luckily, that amount was deducted from the late delivery charges. So, one problem solved as we no need to fork out any money when collecting the keys.

That was not happening to some of the other buyers. Some of them have to pay up till RM10K before collecting the keys. Most of these cases were buyers who took government loan. They are still fighting the cases.

For us, we decided just to pay the extra RM300. The hassle of going to developer, PKNS and lawyers are not worth it. And the best thing was all of our lawyers, just disappeared mysteriously. Our lawyer moved to Shah Alam from Wisma Central without informing us. Maybe just to escape the buyers' wrath.

There are a lot of cost in moving to new home. They includes:

• grilles
• kitchen cabinet
• curtains for the whole house
• furniture 
• fans, lamps, etc. plus installation charges 

Luckily, I'm a simple person. So, everything is simple for me, no expensive item or any lavish spending. As long, I have the basic items needed for a house, it is enough for me.

So, our planning is to move in somewhere during the hari raya haji holiday. Hopefully, everything goes smoothly for us.

Updating my micasa status

My new house is supposed to be ready in these few next months. In the signed S&P, it should be ready by end of this month. My house is already ready, just waiting for the completion of 2 other models.

As for now, hubby has taken measurement for all the windows and doors for the quotation for grill and curtains.We had done some window shopping for the furnitures. In fact, we had done a little bit of shopping at Ikea during the sale. Mostly for Eya's room. All the lights also had been bought, along with the curtain railing.

Not that many things to buy, just:

• Bed for Eya's room
• Our wardrobe
• Sofa and dining table

So, here are some pictures of our new home:

View from the front

Kitchen area

Dining and living area

 

 

View from Master bedroom

Balcony area

Still in progress

As for now, the road has been done, together with the landscaping. We estimate that the house will be ready by November or December. Really couldn't wait.....

Something about the house is settled...

There are a lot of things need to be settled when you buy a house. As for me, I was not that lucky as I was not a government servant. They only have to pay 1K for the deposit, but for me, it was 5K. That thing has been settled much earlier.

I also didn't get 100% loan for the house. I need to pay 10% of the price, again something that I was not lucky. I do not have that much money, so I need to withdraw my EPF Acct II for that purpose.

Before I can apply for the EPF, I need to get a bank loan and also the SNP signed. Research was done on which bank offered the lowest interest rate, and the bank must be the developer panel banks. If not, the lawyer fees will be so expensive. I managed to get one in 2 weeks time.

Then, I have to wait for the SNP to be ready. It takes about 2 months for it to be ready. The lawyer expenses amounting to RM650 need to be paid. For the land title, I need to pay another RM4K.

After the loan and SNP was ready, we applied to withdraw our EPF Acct II. It was not that much, but it help to pay off the 10% deposit and the payment for the land title. The rest of the money is saved to pay for the kitchen cabinet.

We heard from others and read from Internet forum, that it takes up to a month before the application is approved. I read all the procedures, download all the necessary forms, make copies of all the documents before I applied. The officer told us that it takes 2 weeks for any application to be approved and it depends on the officer itself. After 3 weeks if no money is being deposited into our account, we need to check with the EPF office that we made our application.

So, we decided that only after 2 weeks we would check our bank account. Then, one day, which is exactly a week after we applied, I was so shocked to learn that the money had been deposited. It was very fast. Having everything in order, the forms, document everything maybe had helped to speed up the approval process. I was the first to get the money and when hubby checked his account, no money was in the account.

Again, I was worried. I afraid that hubby application was rejected. The next day, I sent an enquiry through the EPF website and it takes only a few hours for the EPF officer to reply my email. EPF has proved that they are a very good service provider. Hopefully, their service can remain this good forever.

Once hubby got the money, we made bank draft and paid the 10% deposit. We was so relieved that a part of the house has been settled. After this will be the phase where we need to pay the interest payment.

It will be another 2 years before the house is ready but we need to save money for the house. The grills, lighting, cabinet, new furnitures, etc.