Buying Best House Facing Direction: Here is how you should choose which is the best condo stack
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Druce
- April 26, 2019
- 4 min read
4 min read
If you are looking at a new condo launch in Singapore, it could get quite overwhelming in your buying journey. After all, not only are there all the cooling measures to contend with, numbers to think about, you still have a headache over which is the best unit to choose from! Plus as some of the new condo launches are getting mega big (think Treasure at Tampines at 2200 units), it only further compounds your selection problem.
Most people are concerned about the views from their condo, whether it be a swimming pool, garden or sea view. And rightly so, as with the high price tag that comes with some of these condominiums, it is only natural that you would want to pick the best unit possible. But in our experience, it is with liveability conditions that is the most important. Singapore is heating up twice as fast as the rest of the world, at 0.25 degrees Celsius per decade. And in the future, Singapore’s maximum daily temperatures could rise up to 37 degrees Celsius by year 2100. In other words, because Singapore is hot all year round, the facing of your home will play a part in how liveable your home is.
After doing numerous condominium reviews in Singapore, we cannot stress enough how paramount it is that you make the right choice in the best house facing direction. Coming home at the end of a tough day at work to a warm and uncomfortable home is the last thing you want, so read on more to let us help you make the best choice in your unit selection.
Best House Facing Direction: Where does the sun rise and set?
Most people in Singapore would know to avoid the west sun probably because they know that the sun rises in the East and sets in the West. However, the truth is that the sun does not always set in exactly the West direction. To be specific, from March to September, the sun rises and sets slightly in the North West direction. And from September to March, it is from the South West direction.
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If you really want to get all geeky about it, you can view the actual sun path diagram for the day here.
As you can see from the diagram, the orange curved line on the diagram is the sun path and the green line refers to the June solstice, while the blue at the bottom refers to the December solstice. So if you are wondering about the best house facing direction for you, this diagram will come in very handy when we go through each facing later on.
North South Facing Unit
North South facing units are our pick of the bunch because they do not get the direct sun during the day. However, the sides of your unit will be facing the direct sun depending on the time of the day, so this means that the rooms will get quite heated up. Also, the direction of the wind is an important factor as a well-ventilated house will be kept cooler as well. In this case, the North South facing units are usually more breezy because of the wind direction in Singapore.
East West Facing Unit
East West facing units are, to put it bluntly, not one of the best house facing direction that you want to look for. You will have to bear the full blunt of the afternoon sun, and this means during the afternoon it will get super hot. If you have no choice in your selection of unit, just be prepared to invest in some sort of screening film for your windows or heavy duty curtains. On the plus side, Singapore does have some picturesque sunsets at times, so you will get a good view of it.
North West Facing Unit
North West facing units are a Jekyll and Hyde combination, in that from March to September you will get partial afternoon sun. But from months September till March, the South West will get the afternoon sun so choose wisely depending on where the windows in your unit are facing. This could also be a good choice for you if you do enjoy a bit of sun in the afternoons, but not all the time!
South East Facing Unit
South East facing units get the benefit of the morning sun from the months of September till March. For people who wake up really early, this is also ideal as you get to see the sun rise in the morning as well. Also, you do not get the harsh afternoon sun unless you have windows facing the West!
That’s the end of our article on the best house facing direction to choose from! Before you even choose the facing, the developer for the condo is very important as well, here is our post on the top 10 developers in Singapore!
great info! south east direction is really the best. a home always need some sunlight so it won’t have that musky smell.
Free one is better than the best.
I want to buy an apartment that is only north facing with all windows facing north. Will it be stuffy since there is no south ‘exit’ for wind flow. Will it have good ventilation all year?
Hey Trish! It’s important that a wind channel is created. This is cross-ventilation at play. If all your windows only faces one side, when the wind comes in, the air pressure in the home would increase and this prevents further air from coming in due to the resistance. The air pressure needs to be relieved, so this built-up air has to go somewhere. Even if the wind is strong, but there’s no channel for it to flow through, the air circulation is severely limited. But if you had another opening on the other side, then the wind can pass through and you will feel the breeze. That is why when viewing, sometimes home owners or agents would leave the main door open and the windows open to demonstrate how strong the airflow is. It’s also why many leave their entrance door open despite the lack of privacy – you allow the wind to pass through.
[…] are the coolest for most units; you can read more about the west sun and related issues in this earlier article. And while you can blast the air-conditioner, a unit exposed to full sun glare will drive up the […]
From the article, seems like east-west units are not the best pick. However, in the illustration we see that the bedroom/living room windows are facing the east while the kitchen is facing the west. Would the unit still get the afternoon sun in this case or will it only affect the kitchen and service yard?
It still does affect even if the afternoon sun comes in through the service yard/kitchen, however, it’s not as bad as if it’s goes into the bedroom or living room where you spend most of the time. Generally when we say north-south facing is the best, we mean the main living quarters that face these directions
Great info and illustration. For the South-West facing and North East facing units (living room and BR all facing same), would the later one be better as the morning sun would always be milder and shorter than the afternoon sun?
Definitely NE facing is better. But sometimes other factors like personal fengshui come into play. SW certainly isn’t the worst either – during the “winter” months of Oct to Jan, you get slanted afternoon sun, which mitigates against the cold monsoon season rains. I believe it’s also windier during the “summer ” months April to July.