Pros and Cons of Staying at the Viz

It's been more than a year since we moved in.. got us thinking what's great, and not so great, about staying at Viz.. These are our own opinions, so caveat emptor as always...!

Pros:

1. Fairly convenient location to Holland Village, Queenstown, Bukit Timah, Holland Road, Dempsey Village, and or course Orchard Road.
2. Easy access to NTUC at Margaret Drive, National Library Queenstown, McDonalds Ridout Gardens, hawker centre and wet market just behind the estate.
3. New condo with (fairly) new facilities, although we're starting to see some signs of ageing, yes, even now! (Talk about poor quality construction!)
4. Each 'block' of flat is secure and accessible only to residents in that block.
5. Nice view of the South East (looking towards Queenstown/Margaret Drive) because of the greenery (mini-jungle!). Let's hope that view remains unobstructed courtesy of that supposed-Malaysian land in front of the condo!
6. About 3 neighbours (I think this is standard in all blocks?) share a common lift access area, so if you're lucky you get nice folks.
7. Decent common facilities - Good swimming pool for adults (with jacuzzi on the side), sizeable swimming pool for children (with built in jacuzzi), children's playground, gym, reading room, and about 4-5 BBQ pits. The pits get used quite often over the weekends too.

Cons:

1. No easy access to MRT (although public buses are quite frequent). The nearby MRT is still under construction for the next 2 years or so, and the construction area is causing jams during peak hours right outside Viz.
2. Noisy traffic and pollution from the Queensway road. This is worse over at Blks A and B (which are nearer to the road) than C and D. It's going to get worse, once the MRT construction is completed, and the PIE-ECP thoroughfare becomes accessible for drivers.
3. Neighbours are a mixed lot, from HDB upgraders to expats. Some can be downright rude or tend towards anti-social behaviour. Spotted - litter thrown down from upper floors, dogs brought on walks that pee in the carpark area (and the dog's walked by the owner), noisy pets, cooking that gets really smelly, noisy BBQ nights, and unfriendly glares in the lifts! We've been lucky that we have some really nice neighbours though :)
   
4. Whoever thought of using the carpark area as the main access for guests and residents is a loonybin. Talk about aesthetically unpleasing entry to the condo :P
   
5. Anticipating construction noises coming from Holland Crest when it gets (finally) torn down and construction on "Lush on Holland Hill.. yeah right" starts. Because it's a new condo, people moving in still do some renovation works, so for those who stay at home during the daytime, it might get.. irritable! God help us if Holland Peak goes en-bloc'ed!
   
6. Sun shines on one side of the condo, making that side particularly hot in the afternoons. Advisable to use solar film for those windows.
7. What's with new buildings and their somewhat paper-thin walls? We can hear when the folks upstairs take showers in the morning. Gets worse when the jacuzzi comes on, especially late at night.
8. Bathroom windows, while they are fogged out (so people can't see in), are still constructed like normal windows. That means leaving them slightly open will allow our neighbours to peek in. We've installed blinds to shut out unwanted attention. Still, some thought might have been put in to install more privacy-oriented windows.
9. No awnings so that when it rains, most windows that are open will let in the rain immediately, flooding the window ledge area.
10. Beware the mynah birds!!
    

Tags: viz @ holland, viz holland, viz@holland, holland, property, queensway, singapore