Living Cost in Singapore (2007 Edition)

I just posted it again.

The data is updated according my personal experience for past 6 years in Singapore. The data is pretty like the city in my eyes. Please be aware, different people may have different impression of the same good (depending on when to buy it and where to buy it). It is intended to give overall guideline to living cost here.
Please note: 1 USD = 1.44 S$ as this article is written.
Transportation
This is easiest one.
Bus:
Price for most buses start from 65 cent. Some special express bus from 1.5 S$ and some non-air-conditioned bus maybe a bit cheaper (seldom see such bus, maybe only happen in industrial areas in the west of Singapore)
MRT – Metro train:
Cheap, fast and convenient!
Lowest price (one stop) is 68 cents, and the longest stations are 1.8 S$.
Taxi:
S$2.5 - 3 for the first 3 km, and 10 cents for each additional 210 meter, 10 cents for every 25 seconds of waiting. Booking charge: S$2.5 - 16; peak period surcharge (7am - 9.30am from monday to friday and 5pm - 8pm from monday to saturday): S$1; the day before public holiday after 6pm: S$1; midnight surcharge: 10 - 50% more between 11.30 to 6am; ERP(electronic road pricing) also paid by passenger Sound like a little cheaper than that in shanghai. S$30 almost you can go anywhere in Singapore.but if you really want to save your money, i have to know how all these.
Drinks
Coke:
A can of Coco-Cola is 50 cents in super market, but it is at least S$1 if you order the same thing with ice from coffee shop or in a restaurant.
Purified Water:
A bottle of purified water (500 ml) is at least 50 cents; it depends on the brand and quality.
Beer - expensive:
A bottle of beer (600ml) is typically 2.6 S$ (for example, Tiger Beer). Seldom see beers from China, even famous Tsingdao beers.
Food
A lot of local people don’t cook at home, and eat at food court or food center. There are plenty of them in between public houses and inside shopping mall. Typically it cost you S$3 – 8 (3 for chicken rice, 8 for western food), really depends on which you choose. Also there are a lot nice & unlimited buffets that could cost you around 24+ per adult.
Of course, buying from market and cooking at home is much cheaper than going to restaurant (it is the same everywhere in the world), here is some example in supermarket:
a complete chicken: S$3-6
5 apples – S$2.20 +
Watermelon – S$ 2-5
Pork: S$10+ per kg
I don't want to give detailed price of every fruit, or meat. Just give some idea. Actually S$10 dollar raw material for a meal for two persons is good enough (at least for persons like me).
Meal at restaurants varies greatly.
House Rental
For HDB house, easily get S$300/common room for rental fee 1 or 2 years ago, but follow the booming properties market, the price also increase almost 50% at least for most of area. For condo house, maybe it will be double.
Water and Electricity
Water is very cheap, compared to the items listed above.
Water is like 1.17 per cube meter, and electricity 0.21 per kwh. Normally I paid S$150 to 200 monthly, with 5 person and air-con on.
Telephone and Internet
There are 3 major telecom players in Singapore: SingTel (2nd largest telecom company in Asia, just after china mobile), Starhub and Mobile One. Also there are a lot different packages and charge rate for you to choose and save your money.
For most of person like me, monthly bill like that: S10+ for fixed line, S$45 for unlimited broadband with unlimited access to internet, S$40 for mobile phone usage (100+ min outgoing call and free incoming call), maybe plus S$24 for wired TV channel.
Others
Here are some items I can think of:
A typical McDonald or KFC meal: S$ 5 – 6 (depend on which package, but McDonald looks more popular here)
Salary: S$ 1500 per month is the city's average. S$ 2500 is treated fairly for university entry graduates (NUS, NTU & SMU, not for private school).