1 The location of the house

If you are buying a house to live by yourself, you may not necessarily want to buy a house near the central business district (CBD) or a busy business area.

The main features that make an area more suitable for living on your own may be proximity to your parents' home, proximity to certain schools, or walking distance to places you go back to on a regular basis, such as amenities/shopping centers where you can buy daily necessities and enjoy low-cost food.

If the house is near a subway station, it will be easier to commute to work.

If you are buying a house to invest in and rent out, perhaps you should consider who to rent to.

Who are you looking for in a tenant? Is it an expatriate family with children in school? Or a working couple or single person working in the city?

This idea will help you narrow down your search and select the right home.

For example, an expat family with children may prefer a house close to an international school, while a working professional may want a place close to the central business district and downtown, where entertainment options are relatively more diverse.

In addition, having an MRT station near the house is definitely an added advantage, and units near MRT stations also tend to enjoy higher rental yields.

2 Size of the unit

If you are buying a house for your own living, you have to take the number of people in your family into consideration and pick an apartment with more space accordingly.

The size of your family will depend on these questions: whether you plan to live with your parents, whether you plan to have more children in the future, and whether you need an extra room for a full-time maid to live in.

With the growing popularity of telecommuting, do you need a dedicated study area/workspace to make your home office time more comfortable?

If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, then you probably need a medium to large house.

If you cook a lot for friends and family and like a spacious kitchen, then it could be a consideration in your home search.

Again, when looking for an investment home, many people tend to choose smaller units because it is generally believed that smaller homes are easier to rent out and sell.

Again, the essential element of the choice is who you are looking for as a tenant: a family or couple, or a single person.

Many investors choose smaller units, such as studios and one-bedroom units, because they are also more affordable, often costing less than S$1 million (actual price depends on the location).

3 Condo Amenities

Private condominiums in Singapore tend to have all the amenities and living in such a house sounds really nice.

In your spare time, you can go to the gym, swim, and play tennis with your friends on the tennis court.

If you have kids, you'll have to consider whether the condo project has kid-friendly amenities, such as a large playground or a spacious space where they can safely run and jump around.

In contrast, for those who can't swim or don't have a particular interest in tennis, a relatively small boutique condo project may be more suited to your needs.

This is likely to lower your monthly maintenance fees and make the financial burden easier.