It all about perspective and how you live your live la. I do not agree 200K pa cannot survive unless you have a big family to take care of or some heavy debt or liabilities like medical bills.
Just some hypothetical
Rent - 1.5K per month = $18K
Transport - 10 dollars per day = $3650
Meal - 20 dollars per day = $7300
Utilities and phone bills - 300 per month = $3600
Medical insurance = $2K per year
That works out to be 34K a year; assume you load it up with 30% extra spending - $45K a year. ...
of course, instead of 20 dollars per day on meal, one can easily spend 2K per day on meal - this is Singapore - you can eat cheap or eat expensive.
public transport is still very affordable.
Cannot afford to buy a house? nothing wrong with renting.
so ... its all in perspective.