For most Singaporeans, a huge part of moving costs includes renovations and furnishing. It’s not just about the money, it’s the time involved: there are families who have had to wait additional months due to the common delays, changes of subcontractors, etc. But there’s no choice, right? Or is there? This week, we spoke to some homeowners who made little to no renovations, practically moving into their new home as-is:

1. Buying a home you’ve already lived-in before 

Shubreet and her husband spent a grand total of around $5,000 moving into their 5-room flat last year; a rather drastic reduction from their planned budget of $50,000! The reason came down to a sudden opportunity: “We had our finances planned out and we were looking for a condo almost every day. This included costs of renovation, stamp duties, everything, because we read Stacked so we’ve seen the breakdowns.  But unexpectedly, my grandfather made a decision to sell his flat and move...