Sunway’s theme park expanding with Nickelodeon themed attractions

I remembered the first time I went to Sunway Lagoon theme park, I was so amazed by its water park then. Had so much fun that after that trip I have gone there no less than 6-8 other times, normally with friends. There was even once when my friend persuaded me to abandon my policy of no roller coaster and I went up the roller coaster only for me to have a pale looking face throughout the rest of the time. I have only been up roller coaster two times in my life. Once in Sunway and another in Disneyland, France. over the years, I can see that Sunway’s theme park has continue to expand and renew itself and most recently, it is tying up with content provider Viacom International Media Networks Asia to develop a RM100mil Nickelodeon-themed attraction – the first in Asia – on its 88-acre Sunway Lagoon theme park.

This new attraction called ‘Nickelodeon Explorer’s Oasis – will occupy 10 acres of the theme park and is expected to be completed in March 2015.’. This is very soon, it means within less than one year, kids would love to run around Nickelodeon characters. Maybe not so much for the adults but hey lots of us would still be uploading pictures of us into Facebook when it opens right? Nickelodeon is a top global entertainment brand focused on kids and families.

After this, the theme park would have between 30 to 40 acres left. What’s next? If I may be more adventurous, how about an X-Men based theme park? Haha. That would be something I would love. Imagine being up on a ‘Wolverine’ ride? I have no idea how it would be though. Ok, ok, just my own imagination of what may happen with the remaining 30-40 acres of land. Sunway is also expected to build another theme park in Iskandar in Malaysia in the near future.

written on 19 April 2014

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Super busy January 2019; 10 talks. :)

The first time I spoke about property to the public was over 7 years ago, in Johor Bahru.  There was a property show and the organiser invited me to share my thoughts and I agreed. It was a little terrifying then. Haha. Fortunately, I am a Toastmaster, so I have gotten enough practise facing my fellow Toastmasters too. These days, I enjoy sharing my thoughts about the property market and property investment. 5 years ago, kopiandproperty.com started and the number of invitation to speak also increased. Then this happened in January 2019. I am happy to announced that in January 2019, I was up on the stage for 10 times. 🙂 From KL to Penang and Ipoh followed by Melaka and back to KL. (JB and East MY soon?)

This will serve as a milestone for me.  They are as follows:

#1 – Kelab Pelabur Hartanah KL & Selangor

#2 – Midlands City

#3 – MIEA’s REPS

#4 – iProperty MidValley

#5 – Agents’ Training – Penang

#6 – Agents’ Training – Ipoh

#7 – Agents’ Training – Melaka

#8 – Sharing in TRR (Gardens Theatre)

#9 – Swhengtee Property Forecast Talk

#10 – SMR Seminar (Melaka)

Thank you to all
kopiandproperty.com
readers. Your encouragement keeps me going. Thank you to all the organisers who invited me to share my property thoughts. I feel honoured to be part of your event. Now, it’s time to rest for the coming Chinese New Year. Cheers.

written on 1st Feb 2019

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What super luxury means for a home; a penthouse

A good friend showed us a picture of her new house keys. She has just received them from a top 10 developer here in Malaysia. The current price of her home? 7 figure,starting with 1. Of course she was very happy and house warming may be a few months away, depending on her renovation. She is one of my richer friends. She has already budgeted a 6 figure amount for renovation and yet that six figure is not starting with the number 1. Both her husband and herself are just working professionals, both senior managers in multinationals. For the money she earned, her favourite form of investment would be property. Her husband who is a banker prefers stocks instead. Their investments are definitely working well and I think her next home should be a bungalow. She is not favouring a high-rise unit, regardless of the size or exclusivity. I have to agree with her view because she has stayed in landed properties all her life and she earns enough to continue to have the landed option. However, assuming one is super rich, perhaps those Ultra High Net Worth (UHNW) individuals, would they consider a high-rise?

What about a high-rise that once you buy, the world would know you immediately? There’s one opportunity to be unveiled soon. In Singapore, a new three-storey penthouse, complete with a private pool on the 64th floor will be put on market for S$100 million (RM313 million). The full article in channelnewsasiais here:
Singapore penthouse on sale for S$100 million, a test for luxury market’s recovery.
The name of the place is Wallich Residence and it is the tallest building in Singapore.The penthouse is in Tanjung Pagar (my office is there too. ) It does seem that the market is still facing lots of turbulence but this is what JLL is saying. It is forecasting a 3 to 5 percent increase in luxury prices within 2017. Maoin reason is because potential buyers , both local and foreigners believe the prices are bottoming. (Actually, even for Malaysia, something similar is happening. Refer here:
Propertyguru: Property prices bottoming out already, maybe. )
 That full article is here:
Most expensive penthouse for sale in Singapore.

I personally think this most expensive home has little connection to the super luxury property market. I mean it would not affect the average or even the median property price because this is just one unit. As for the buyer, the reason to buy is simply because the one buying should be buying it because he could afford it. It need not be because he wanted it as a place to stay. It can certainly be a vacation home. Since the home is RM313 million and assuming the person needs to fork out 20 percent of the downpayment, that’s RM62 million. If this is just 5 percent of the person’s wealth, then he would have a net worth of RM1.2 billion. If he is a Singaporean, that’s just SGD383 million of surplus in the bank (does not seem too hard). If the person is from Britain, then the penthouse would become even more cheaper, in currency terms. So, yes I disagree that this would test the luxury property market. The test needs to be on a much larger scale, not because of one unit. Happy following and I am curious too about the potential buyer.

written on 14 July 2017

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Are you quite rich or ‘super rich’, yet?

I will not ask what’s your net worth. How about if I use another measure instead to know if you are in the ranks of the ‘super-rich’? Do you own a property in one of the following cities? Dubai, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Paris, San Francisco, Sydney, or Toronto. According to the 2015 Luxury Defined report from Christie’s International Real Estate, these are the most desirable cities for the affluent home buyers. Yes, that’s you if you already own one or more properties in one of the cities above. Oh yeah, the average starting price for a luxury home around the globe is just US$2-million. I am sure some readers of kopiandproperty.com can already qualify to buy one. 🙂

Actually, these super-rich individuals or even the slightly lesser rich ones are always looking to invest their wealth so that it keeps growing. I have yet to read any report which showed billionaires becoming even richer by putting all his money only under the bed or into Fixed deposits. What about Asians? Where do they buy the most? Actually, it’s not hard to predict. For those with kids, they are attracted to places where there are good education institutions for their children. One country which stands out is Australia. The property market is transparent and I would rate their market as very professional as well. As for overvalued or undervalued currently, that’s up to one’s own judgement.

According to 2015 Wealth Report by Knight Frank, Asia’s super-rich population grew 3.5 percent in 2014, higher than the global average of 3.1 percent. In fact, growth over this part of the world will likely surpass anything and everything in North America in future. How comprehensive and real these numbers are, no need to question, the more important question is to understand how these super-rich continue to think of real-estate as a mainstream investment class. 38 percent of an investment portfolio on average belongs to real-estate among the ultra-wealthy here in Asia.

One day, if I do become super-wealthy I will consider buying in some secondary cities in Britain, other than London. I mean, if my kids can get into a university there it does not necessary need to be in London, right? Haha. As for a nice place to stay for a few months every year I would think Australia seems like a better place. Ad for London, it’s not going to be easy because the whole world is buying London today. Prices are still increasing even if the salaries of the typical income earner in London is not increasing as fast. In a news report in The Telegraph, the average house price in London has reached£463,000. This is 2.6 times the national average which sounds awesomely high for me. Happy reading and understanding as all of us continue to build wealth to live better in the future.

written on 1 June 2015

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Super-wealthy? Buy a RM15.7 million car and leave it somewhere nice.

Many years ago, a close friend asked me which two condos in Penang would I choose to buy if I am super-wealthy. I told her, if I am super-wealthy, I actually do not need to buy a condo because truth is, I would rent and stay anywhere I like. At the moment, I am still earning enough to pay bills, so I continue to buy properties so that I could enjoy some capital appreciation when I grow older. Probably before I stop working at 60? Haha. Okay, maybe earlier so that I have more time to do some travelling.

What happens to someone who’s super wealthy and happened to stay in Singapore? Maybe, just maybe they want to do this. Really a wow thing even if question remains as to why.

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Record sales everyday due to panic buying.

I am very sure you have tens of hundreds of images being sent to you vis Whatsapp. Before the announcement of Movement Restriction Order, many were questioning the need to panic buy and it’s panic buying of toilet papers some more.  After the Movement Restriction Order announcement, panic buying continues. Some are condemning the foolish behaviours of these shoppers because supermarkets remain open throughout the periods of 18th to 31st March. Guys, it’s open!

Plus, do we believe that COVID-19 will not spread just because we are shopping? Or that all shoppers are definitely free from COVID-19? The way everyone is willing to queue up along side everyone else to pay, that’s certainly the case yeah. I think by 20th, these panic buying people would have realised that they have spent a lot of money and they will stop buying already. As for the outcomes from their purchases… Read on.

Article in edgeprop.my

  There were record sales with selected stores in the Klang Valley during the weekend. On Sunday, many were sending in photos of empty shelves in Village Grocer and Tesco Stores. Authenticity of the photos were confirmed by The Food Purveyor, which operates Village Grocer, Ben’s Independent Grocer (B.I.G) and Pasaraya OTK.

The Food Purveyor group executive director Ivan Tan said, “Yes, it is happening in every store of ours. We’re registering record sales every day since Thursday. Suppliers were also caught by surprise. We are unable to cope with the sudden surge in demand.”  Popular items include TOILET PAPER, canned food, instant noodles, frozen food like dumplings, pasta and mushrooms. Rice, flour and eggs are also selling fast.   Please do read the full
Article in edgeprop.my

By the way, do not visit the supermarket for window shopping, not now during the periods of 18 – 31st March 2020. As for their business volume, we need to understand that when people panic buy, it may just be groceries which could last many weeks instead of just days. It does not mean that all these purchases will be fully used up before they decided to buy more in the future. When everyone around you are simply grabbing anything, you may just do the same.

What other companies may be having record sales currently?  Rubber gloves… Sanitizers… Masks… Delivery Services too. HappyFresh (yeah, that delivery service app) slots have been fully booked. Tesco Delivery Service too, unless you want them to deliver to you on on the second last day of the current Movement Restriction Order. (As at 330pm yeah. Maybe when you try, the delivery will be after the 31st March…)   This is also why the GDP growth will be affected but it would not be prudent to just assume everything based on the tourism industry yeah. We shall talk about GDP predictions in the next article. For now, stay safe, stay home.

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Supply concerns will lead to price correction?

I read a study which was done sometime back (let’s not mention the actual report here). It says that with the oversupply situation, it will lead to price correction. On a big picture basis, perhaps that is true. However, if you stay in some VERY
SOUGHT AFTER neighbourhood today
, did your neighbour just sold off his unit at 15 percent off? Well, it is unlikely but assuming your neighbour really did sell his unit at 15 percent off market rate, that’s one unit out of the hundreds or thousands of units within the same neighbourhood. The question is, how many units would now be selling at 15 percent below the market value? Hope every one gets the answer by now. Law of averages do not usually apply to those “above the average.” Seriously. Else, there would be none which is above the average. 😛  Well, one report seems to point out that there are some truths in the falling property prices. A major media nonetheless.

Image Source: EdgeProp.my

Have you read the NEW TheEdgeProperty digital / print paper? It is now known just as EdgeProp. Cool name I think. After my subscription ended two years ago, I did not renew. So I only read it occasionally and this morning I happened to read it. There is one article which looks interesting.
“Prices fell in these five Selangor housing estates.”
 Just click on the link and go to Page 6. Of course you can also read the whole newspaper too. From the image, we can see these five housing estates in Selangor which seems to have lost some of its value. The most prominent one is of course the two storey semi-detached homes in SS3, PJ which showed a 10.7 percent drop in 2016 versus 2015. Note that this is ásking price.’Well, reading through closely however, it seems that the price has recovered because as at July 2017, the asking price has gone back to the same price as in 2015. Seksyen 22’s two storey detached houses are however showing a continuous drop as per the chart. From RM3.01 million in 2015, it dropped to RM2.725 million in 2016 and as at July 2017, it has now dropped to RM2.35 million. In total, the drop is 22% when we compare 2015 to current. Want to read more?
Here’s that full article.

Before we make any conclusion, I took a look at
brickz.my
 and found out that based on their available transaction stats, the price range for a semi-dee over 5,000 sq ft was transacted in 2015 at RM2.8 million. As for those above 3,000 sq ft, the price ranges from RM1.4 million to RM1.88 million. Perhaps the size which was covered by EdgeProp’s report is somewhere in between 3,000 sq ft to 5,000 sq ft which is why its numbers are in between. From these two differences, we could already see that we may not be able to just rely on
average numbers in order to make a decision
about the value of the property we want to buy. It’s always good to understand a bit more from different sources. Please be reminded that if a good property is cheaper this year than last year, it is probably a good buy already. Unless something unforeseen happens further, good neighbourhoods do not usually have a lot of homes for sale. (Percentage wise lah). Happy scouting.

written on 29 Sept 2017

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Supply continue dropping, prices should start increasing

One high profile event happened recently, CPA Australia’s CPA Congress. One of the forum included this: “Property Watch — Buy, Sell or Hold?.” Very briefly, the industry experts invited are all predicting that future increases in property prices will be happening. This is despite the current
property slump in Malaysia
 where transactions are concerned. In fact, according to these experts, the incoming supply is falling. In other words, with reduction in supply and equal or higher demand, prices would just have to increase. According to Zerin properties group chief executive officer and founder Previndran Singhe, many developers are holding back launches and thus supply is dropping this year (2015) and even next year (2016). This meant property prices would start to increase.

According to Real Estate and Housing Developers’ Association Datuk Seri Michael Yam, he is confident about the outlook of the property market even if the current market performance has been lacklustre. He said that location should no longer be the only consideration but also timing. This is because the property landscape continue to change. He commented the two things that every developer is saying today, that the poor market sentiment is caused by implementation of the goods and services tax (GST) and a weakening ringgit which has contributed to higher construction costs. (I can only agree somewhat.)

I think it’s also important to note that in terms of so called better locations, this is being expanded with new MRTs and LRTs. In other words, even if the current secondary location is a little faraway or having bad jams, these may be a thing of the past if one were to take the public transport instead. As for timing, well, my personal advice remains the same. Buy to stay and buy when you can already afford an objective buy. There’s no need to stretch till the point of breaking. Even those who said I prefer a certain area because it has a certain mall, do note that there are lots of new malls coming up as well. Soon, we may be spoilt for choice. Do not take forever but there’s little need to rush either.

Bina Puri Holdings Bhd group executive director Matthew Tee Kai Woon said that besides GST, manpower cost is moving up now. He also reminded everyone that property prices in prime locations almost never went down even during economic slowdowns. Previndran named a few property hotspots for investment opportunities including the Klang Valley, Greater Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Johor and Kota Kinabalu. Yam urged buyers to look for more attractive buys from the secondary market as well. There are gems to be found. Happy learning.

Agree with the views from these property industry heavyweights? Do comment if any.

written on 23 Sept 2015

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Surely you like your company to be listed in Nasdaq?

If one day I could have a company listed in Nasdaq, I would just walk into some Starbucks store and tell everyone one more round of coffee on me. Haha. By the way, this is how Wiki describes Nasdaq. “The Nasdaq Stock Market, also known as Nasdaq, is an American stock exchange located at One Liberty Plaza in New York City. It is ranked second on the list of stock exchanges by market capitalization of shares traded, behind only
the New York Stock Exchange.[2]  click here to read in full.

Briefly, if your company is a technology related company, getting it listed on Nasdaq gives a lot of confidence to all potential investors. Whether your product is the best or not is not the same as whether the potential investors could see you or could not see you.  If they could see you, they could know about you and they could invest into your company. That’s one major reason why companies try to get listed in Nasdaq.  One company is however thinking of leaving so that it could get a higher valuation?

Article in focusmalaysia.my

Chinese search engine giant Baidu Inc is considering delisting from the US Nasdaq and moving to an exchange closer to home to boost its valuation amid rising tension between the United States and China over investments, three sources said. Baidu declined to comment.

This was the comment from its co-founder and Chief Executive Robin Li. “For a good company, there are many choices of destinations for listing, not limited to the US.”   Baidu’s shares have fallen more than 60% since their peak in May 2018 while the Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index, which tracks Chinese firms listed on the US exchange, has
 lost less than 10% over the same period.  Do refer to the article for more details.

Okay now for some fun facts. In case your company is already big enough and you just want to get listed in overseas and that overseas should be in the U.S. (even if you do not like the current President), here are the minimum requirements to get listed in Nasdaq.
Article in investmentbank.com
  Looks like quite straight foward too. Amount is in US$ and the current exchange rate (21st May) is US$1 to RM4.35

Shareholders Equity of at least $2,000,000
At least 100,000 shares of public float
A minimum of 300+ shareholders
Total assets of $4,000,000
At least two market makers
$3 minimum bid price of the company stock
Public float market value of $1,000,000

Happy thinking about it.  In the meantime, keep growing your business. Surely one of these days it may just happen.  Just remember to comment that you got the idea to list in Nasdaq because of an article in kopiandproperty.com

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Suria Square: The Next Jewel In Puncak Alam

Press Release: Suria Square –  The Next Jewel In Puncak Alam

Commercial hub set to become the heart of activity in Bandar Alam Suria by I
JM Land

Where business is concerned, the footfall and population of customers are vital to generate the required demand for goods and services. The area where transactions occur is also of paramount importance, as people require easy access and a hassle-free lifestyle.

And this is what Suria Square by IJM Land is all about, being a major commercial intersection and an established neighbourhood development in Bandar Alam Suria, Puncak Alam.

Puncak Alam’s storied past requires mention, IJM Land being the pioneer town maker responsible for shaping and developing the area for over two decades. The booming population, increased footfall and burgeoning neighbourhood are all testimony to IJM Land’s expertise and experience as an award-winning developer.

As the latest commercial product by IJM Land, Suria Square’s presence will serve as a potent catalyst for growth to take place, being a beacon for job opportunities besides offering a wide variety of services and amenities for the convenience of nearby residents.

These benefits are bound to attract migration into the area, which in turn, elevates the capital appreciation of neighbouring properties and enriches the lives of the people.

Suria Square is set to follow in the footsteps of the previous phase, Dataran Suria which is appreciated by a whopping 100% in value. The commercial shop offices rose from RM400,000 to RM800,000, as of now.

Primed within the matured township, the development possesses all the qualities of an exemplary commercial component.

Feasibility studies showed a current population catchment of 28,000 people in the vicinity, which will further increase to 60,000 in the foreseeable future. Connectivity is another winning point, with the development having easy access to Shah Alam, Petaling Jaya and Kuala Lumpur.

Dine, shop and work within a lush environment

Suria Square revolves around a wholesome living environment raised on three pillars of virtue—community, connectivity and conveniences. There is but one way to cultivate an atmosphere of wellbeing and it is by weaving sustainability within every fabric of the development.

Being north-south oriented, the shoplots take in less heat from the sun and this cooling measure is enhanced by the incorporation of ventilation. Large windows on the first floor promote natural lighting while allowing for a better display.

Other green features include rainwater harvesting tanks and LED street lights that line the roads. The culmination of all these elements seeks to minimise the consumption of electricity, thus dropping the carbon footprint output.

To carry the message of sustainability, Suria Square is artfully crafted within a green landscape dotted with lush trees, which speaks highly of IJM Land’s commitment to go beyond building commercials, to building communities.

Making spaces in the best places

The essence of a great development entails various aspects, take for example, the thoughtful creation of the spaces within and the movement of the people. To this end, IJM Land has created wider roads for a smoother driving experience, not forgetting the multiple access points from neighbouring residential areas.

Towards the shoplots, ample parking spaces have been provided, making it an effortless and seamless process to search for a place to park one’s vehicle. One should also note the handicap-friendly features which bring about a more inclusive environment. Further on, 1.4 metres concrete imprint pedestrian walkways and eight feet wide corridors have been constructed to facilitate the flow of human traffic.

With regards to the units, they are composed of 115 units of double-storey shop offices sprawling across 18.51 acres of land. These come with a built-up area of 3,047 to 4,922 sq ft, a generous space considering the reasonable price which is starting from RM806,000.

Bandar Alam Suria, a harmony of nature and lifestyle

An evolving neighbourhood, the self-contained township of Bandar Alam Suria is poised within the thriving Bandar Puncak Alam, offering a wealth of amenities and contemporary conveniences.

Spanning 1,163 acres, the integrated sustainable development comprises an ideal composition of residential and commercial elements, is being designed to provide holistic living requirements for the residents.

It is accentuated with a complete range of facilities, including schools, shops, banks and a commercial hub with a landscaped town square.

Bandar Alam Suria draws immense benefits from the ready amenities a stone’s throw away, for example, Masjid Puncak Alam, Hospital UiTM, Lotus’s, Econsave, KIP mall and Jaya Grocer.

Educational facilities include the notable UiTM Puncak Alam Campus, Malaysia’s premier institution of higher learning. Here, IJM Land brings about the opportunity to own a residential property neighbouring major cities in Klang Valley, and at an affordable price that is second to none.

Speaking of owning an address in this unique township, Suria Square shall be launched in March 2022. It is targeted to be completed in 36 months, with a total gross development value (GDV) of RM 105 mil.

To arrange for a private viewing or for further inquiries, call 03-3393 3103.

For more information on Suria Square, please visit
here
.

-End-

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Surplus cash? Buying land today should be easier.

Many property guru are saying that 2016 is the best time to buy. Some are predicting 2018 to be a good time and 2020 to be the best time. Well, if a buyer has huge cash surplus in his bank account today, it represents an opportunity. This applies to developers as well. During good times, buying lands for developments is so tough. Sellers often quote crazy prices which are often, ‘take tor leave it.’ There has been many failed transactions last year. Reported in TheStar, the third largest property developer by sales, Mah Sing said that it is ready to buy more land as it predicts a rebound in Malaysia’s property sales in the second half of the year.

Its group managing director Tan Sri Leong Hoy Kum said that Mah Sing has a record RM1.4bil (US$338mil) cash pile. He said his weekends were spent shopping for land and the size ranges from 500 acres to 1,000 acres. He said, “We have reached the bottom of a downturn, and it will recover in the medium term.” Main reason is because 1MDB or even Ringgit has already been taken into account and he does not see any new bad news. It’s time that everyone start focusing on economic growth again. Mah Sing’s target for 2016 is RM2.3 billion and it is on track to achieve it through selling more of the  “medium range to high-end properties.” Biggest potential would be Kuala Lumpur.

If we follow the developer news, we would also note that some developers have resorted to selling their lands instead. There are also good rationale behind this decision. It’s not the best time to launch new high end developments and banks are also extremely careful in lending to home buyers. Holding on to the landbank may not be the best option for many developers. Of course the buyers of these landbanks may be able to command a premium and thus may be better placed to launch the project instead. I think we know some of them too. Aggressive land buying may show confidence of the developers or even the potential recovery as per what Mah Sing has predicted. Either way, decide what we intend to do, fast.

written on 17 Mar 2016

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Surprised? Malls start to show vibrancy again.

Malls for me will be a great sign of whether we are recovering or are we in another crisis. Do note that when a crisis happens, unemployment becomes so acute that even when people have money to spend, they dare not spend for fear of what’s happening next. Here’s a latest one from my latest visit to 1 Utama.

We love to buy things

We love to buy things. During the start of MCO, we started to love to buy things online even more. As soon as we were allowed to go to malls, some say that it is so troublesome to write and scan, write and scan and thus many may not want to go. I disagree because these people who were saying it definitely are not mall-goers like me. It’s true though. The first time I was in 1 Utama, car parks were empty and it’s easy to just park ANYWHERE I like. Haha.

For the past few weeks, this was no longer the case. Today, I was lucky that a car was on the way out from a spot, else, I am not sure how many rounds I would need to turn on a weekend or a holiday weekend. So, I was in 1 Utama on 31st August 2020. Selamat Hari Merdeka my dearest home.

Foldable Mattress – Good quality!

I was buying a new foldable mattress. By the way, this foldable mattress is HEAVY! For the few thin layers. Of course, the brand is a good one, Sea Horse. Top in Hong Kong it says. Do get one if you need a foldable mattress. Just do not park at old wing. It’s really heavy. Haha. Oh what’s this for? Aiya… in case my wife asks me to sleep in balcony, at least I have a mattress okay… 😛

JD – So many people?

As I was passing through JD, I saw one line of people queuing. I counted probably around 15-20 people. Then, I was wondering why was there another line and then I realised that the line was so long that it has become one U shaped queue! Okay, so here’s 30-40 people queuing to enter a store in 1 Utama. I looked around but could not really see any huge sign saying ‘clearance’ or ‘closing down’ sale. There’s however a 30% off sign…

This brings me to this question. Supposed there was a sale in JD, if the people are all struggling to even have breakfast, lunch and dinner, they would not be here queuing, right? This is why I do think our GDP numbers for Q3 2020 will definitely be on an uptrend if compared to Q2. Let’s see if my positive thoughts are correct yeah. Probably need to wait till November before they release the number.

Spend wisely (if it can wait, it can wait)

This is not the time to overspend yeah. Situation remains fluid even if there are more and more vaccines for COVID-19 being announced as ready or in the final stages of testing. There’s that prediction that winter would mean COVID-19 become more powerful again in terms of infections. Just need to keep being aware and keep wearing masks NOT just for your safety for everyone else’s safety. Happy shopping in the mean time.

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Sustainability is about money and responsibility

The topic of Penang’s middle bank is up for discussion. There are no fire without smoke and even though there has been no official plans from the state government on whether to allow reclamation on the middle bank, I think would it would be one of the options for the funding of the Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP). Read here about PTMP:
Penang: Got reclaim or no reclaim?

According to many environmentalists, the middle bank consists of a large patch of rare seagrass and thus must be preserved at all costs. While I agree that this large patch of seagrass should be preserved, I am not so sure about where the money would come from. Does it mean that as long as nothing happens to that large patch of seagrass, then everything is settled? What about an advanced research on this rare seagrass and how we can preserve or re-create it in more places within Penang or even Malaysia? If an advanced research is needed, then who would bear the costs? The non-governmental organisations which are shouting for the preservation?

Coming back to UNESCO Heritage City status. What’s the reason that Malaysia applied for the status? Is it not because we wanted to have fundings from UNESCO for the continuous preservation? At the same time of course, with this UNESCO Heritage city status, the state government can then continue to enhance this through sustainable development. All these boils down to money and responsibility. Without money, how to take appropriate actions? How to be responsible? Spiderman’s famous line goes like this, ‘With great powers, comes great responsibility.’ Truth is, without great powers, how could he be responsible to save the city from evil masterminds?

In this case, should the NGOs and the state government not work together to ensure not just the preservation of the large patch of seagrass but also the continuous development of Penang which will likely benefit more Penangites compared to doing nothing at all? Truth is, with enough funds, more can be done beyond just the preservation of that patch of seagrass. What about using the funds to improve the livelihood of those affected? What about other sensitive ecosystems elsewhere in Penang and not just the middle bank?

I prefer sustainable DEVELOPMENT. Without any useful developments, nothing happens. How can no development be the best development? Without development, there would be no funds. Without funds, it is impossible to ensure sustainable development. Let us keep this in our mind. Sustainability is all about money and responsibility.

witten on 14 Oct 2015

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Sustio’s RM508 million new investments into Penang. Congratulations.

We are familiar with this line, “With great power, comes great responsibility.”

What about this line? “With more investment, comes more talents.” Okay, this is a line by me. What this meant is that the more new multinationals setting up their plants in Penang, the more talents which Penang will be able to attract to settle down in Penang. When MNCs need to hire highly skilled Malaysians, these talents would flock to Penang.

My family members are mostly working in Penang

My brother, my sister, my brother-in-laws, my sister-in-laws are all working with multinationals based in Penang. All are doing well and I think they will continue to contribute to Penang’s economy too. Most of their salaries are definitely spent in Penang too. Between them, they have contributed to the Penang property market transactions too.

Multiplier Effects are huge

Imagine them spending just RM2,000 per month in Penang, that’s already 6 x RM2,000 x 12 = RM144,000 per year and with a multiplier effect of 4, they have helped boost the economy of Penang by more than half a million every year! Now do you see why it’s important for more MNCs to move to Penang?

Article in themalaysianreserve.com
  South Korean semiconductor company Simmtech Co Ltd via its Malaysian subsidiary, Sustio Sdn Bhd (Sustio) will be investing RM507.78 million (US$120 million) to set up its first factory in Southeast Asia at Penang’s Batu Kawan Industrial Park.

SimmTech Southeast Asia MD Jeffery Chun said the decision to set up the company’s first large-scale manufacturing plant in Penang came naturally as the state has a robust electrical and electronics (E&E) ecosystem, a great talent pool and an existing customer base.

He said, “It is fitting for us to choose this region that has a strong E&E background as well as access to local businesses and resources.” Malaysia is the first plant in Southeast Asia region and the other plants are only in South Korea, China and Japan. Please do refer to the full article here:
Article in themalaysianreserve.com

Keep it up yeah Penang

Penang is that one state with everything at its door step. You have MNCs operating within the island and the mainland. Lots of needs for highly skilled talents. You have access to Penang International Airport within 30 minutes from most places in Penang. You can visit the beach… the national park… the Penang Hill and a UNESCO Heritage City too.

That’s not all, food wise, Penang has so much to offer. Keep doing the best and make Penang that state with the most MNCs from the E&E industry yeah. Of course, once all these happens, then the property market in Penang would also continue to grow. The higher the pay, the higher the affordability for a bigger and better home sweet home too. Cheers.

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Sweet 18th in the world today, Ease of Doing Business

Would the long processes of approval for new developments be a thing of the past? It may be, if Malaysia is to continue improving on its current ranking in the world for ‘Ease of Doing Business’. In the latest result, Malaysia has improved its ranking. It’s now 18th instead of last year’s 20th. The report is compiled by World Bank. In Asia, Malaysia is 4th, after Singapore, Hong Kong and South Korea. For 2016, World Bank’s focus will be on registering property, dealing with construction permits, getting electricity, paying taxes and enforcing contracts. The first one is very important. Remember my article about it taking forever when it comes to leasehold properties? Here:
Buying a property. Why the long…………… wait for the whole process?

In the report, it said that Malaysia improved in the following five indicators. Dealing with construction permits, starting a business, registering property, resolving insolvency and getting electricity. The report said that this improvement mirrors the government’s transformation and economic transformation programmes. In a recent property talk by a prominent property guru, organised by a top developer in Malaysia, the government economic transformation plans were stated as a key reason why property investment is a must. When the whole economy moves, the prices tend to go up in tandem and those without a property would suddenly find it hard to catch up.

These rankings are important because majority of all the decisions on which country to invest in would have to depend on these reports. After all, it is impossible and very costly for every company intending to invest overseas to do its own research and information gathering. As an example, if the decision is where in Asia should they be investing in, Singapore, Hong Kong and South Korea would be first three considerations. If Malaysia can show that it is nearly on par with these countries and yet provides cost advantages, where do you think these businesses would choose to invest? With more investment, there would be more jobs, thus higher economic activities. This meant demand for properties can continue to be supported by the working population in cities.

Sweet 18 is great but I think a Top 16 may be possible if the five areas stated is really improved tremendously. As for majority of us who are just property investors, ‘registering property’ may be something to look forward to. After all, no one wants to move in only after 9 months of buying a property, right?

written on 31 Oct 2014

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Switching for better investment, always.

A friend asked me if she should sell her holding of a stock which seem to have lost its main business and is currently pretty stagnant in the stock market. My question is, what would she do with the money? Buy another stock? Invest in other assets like property? Transfer the money into the unit trust? Or just keep under her pillow so that she can dream about what the money can bring? The correct answer should always be, do you have
something better to invest in
? I know, your next question is, how would I know whether the new investment is better than the current investment? No one knows but from you would have to make your own decision based on whatever information you have. For example, assuming you intend to invest in another counter in Bursa Malaysia, why not read more about that counter. How has the revenue vs profits been for the past few years. Is the company in a good shape or are the prices now going up because ‘someone’ said this company got ‘potential’ due to some unforeseen circumstances? If you believe this ‘someone’, then sure, sell your current stock and quickly enter into this new counter. It’s what you believe more, really.

If you say I intend to use the money to buy property, well, have you identified one? If the answer is yes, I have identified one and it meets my expectations in terms of
potential capital appreciation

and rental yield, then of course you should sell your current stock and move your funds into this new property that you are about to buy. If your answer is not yet, then I think it may be best to hold on to your stock until you identify a suitable one. Buying a property takes a much longer time compared to selling a stock counter in Bursa Malaysia. Thus, you should do the one which takes a much longer time first. Please do not ask how would I know if that property would give me higher returns? Well, it all depends on what you believe in, more. That new property asset or your current ‘not really moving’ stock counter.

Unit trust is even more straight forward. You can choose aggressive funds which is everything equity or the usually stagnant bond type of funds. Both have its
awesome benefits and risks.
 Bond fund have no risks? Haha. Do note that if your bond fund continue to give you just 4% every year from now till your retirement, I think that’s the highest risk of all. As long as after you have evaluated and you found one fund suitable for you and it’s going to outperform your current stagnant stock, do sell and move your money into the unit trust. I am sure your agent friend would be happy to tell you more why you should buy unit trust instead of stocks.

If however you have no plans at all beyond selling your stocks, then I think it may be more prudent to leave it there because if that stagnant stock is giving you huge losses you would have sold it earlier anyway. If you have waited, it meant you believed in it. To me, this belief is much better than holding the money and doing nothing. At least a thief cannot steal the stocks you are currently holding. Plus, with the current negativity in the share market, waiting a little may be required too. Switching should always be for something better, in your personal opinion after evaluation. Oh yeah, this is what I would personally do. It does not have to be what you would do. Happy deciding.

written on 16 Dec 2014.

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Sydney properties? Opportunities soon, maybe.

While majority of the mortgages in Malaysia are for one property, it is a little different in many more developed markets. The latest one is a focus on Sydney. HSBC Australia’s chief economist said that when interest rates rise again, the property prices in Sydney will fall. In fact it could drop as much as 2016 after the third consecutive strong year forecast for 2015. A warning was also given that for properties, Sydney is at ‘risk of a bubble.’ Current price level of growth in Sydney’s prices are unsustainable and truth will reveal itself once the interest rates begin to rise. The main reason is due to high level of investor demand. In other words, instead of one property, these are bought for investment purpose instead.

Of course, these investors are typically lower risk borrowers because they already have equity in another owner-occupied property and thus would have a lower loan-to-valuation compared to first home buyers.

In Malaysia’s context think along the lines of 10% downpayment for first time buyers and 30% downpayment for owners of more than 2 properties. Which do you think is richer and perhaps lower risk to the bank? I think the answer is clear. However, this is not necessary good because imagine a market where everyone is ‘investing’? Well, prices tend to go up faster because these are the people who would sell higher and later buy even higher. First time home buyers? Well, these tend to stay for a while and investing may not be in their mind in the beginning.

Final conclusion by HSBC is that even though the situation in Sydney is unhealthy but it does not see a national bubble building up. In fact it said that the strong fundamental in Australia continue to be supported by factors such as low housing supply, well allocated housing debt, low urban density and high demand for property. I have no property in Australia and has no intention to buy one in the near future as foreigners are not allowed to buy from their secondary market. Who knows, if the market slows the government may change this requirement? Yes, I am still wishing and hoping. Happy Chinese New Year!

written on 18 Feb 2015

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Sydney: Cost of living, property, taxi, trains and shopping

From 1st June to 17th June, the total articles per day on average will drop to 1. I am really busy vacationing in Australia. Haha. Anyway, I am in Sydney now. I took a taxi from 13 CABs instead of UBER in Sydney. The trip from Sydney Airport to my hotel in Redfern costs me AUD61. If I took UberXL, it would only be around AUD45. Why did I not use UBER? Well, the app did not work… Too bad for them and me then. Anyway, as usual, I always chat with taxi drivers. Remember my chat with a
HongKong taxi driver much earlier? Read here.

I also spoke to
GRAB drivers before. Read here
. They know a lot by the way because they speak to people everyday, perhaps even every half an hour! The driver told me that life’s not easy these days because the taxi drivers are facing lots of competition from UBER, Ola Taxi and Taxify. The drivers for all these apps are however earning much lower than even the minimum wage! The
minimum wage for Sydney is AUD17.70 (RM53) per hour
. Note, I have no idea what the other drivers are earning, I am just sharing what he shared.

He then shared that actually, the cost of living in Sydney is pretty okay. He could get by quite well except if one were to think about buying properties. That’s very expensive he said. Oh yeah, when he said it’s expensive, he meant this. The median price for
Sydney homes as at AUD980,000 as at latest report here.
 At AUD980,000, someone has to be earning anything like AUD15,000 per month in order to afford it comfortably. When we really think about it, it’s pretty true. Even for Singapore or Hong Kong, if we look at just the food versus the income, it’s very cheap. However, putting in property prices into the equation and suddenly it does not appear to be affordable anymore. If we look at all these as advanced property markets, perhaps it’s time to also know that that’s the typical direction of the property prices. Oh yeah, many of these Australians are staying the equivalent of our Semenyih (Greater KL) or even Batu Kawan (Penang) and even these homes are still not that affordable. Probably bigger since land is an advantage that Australia has.

I took trains this time instead of driving because the car rental is not expensive but the parking is pretty expensive. Here’s one of
those articles telling you about car parking spaces which is a premium and that’s why it’s going to be expensive.
 As for trains, as my hotel was really near the CBD and practically to all the places I intend to visit, it’s quite convenient. My hotel is one straight line (6mins) walking away from the Redfern Station. Yes, I am walking by far more than when I drove in my previous two trips to Perth. For people travelling here in the near future, booking a hotel near any major station will be a huge advantage. This is one major reason why public transport will be successful in the future. It’s only a matter of time that parking becomes so expensive that even renting a car no longer make sense. That’s the reason why taxi companies can still survive today despite all the ride-hailing competition.

It’s winter now and there’s quite a lot of shops having clearance sales etc. My wife bought some branded t-shirts and pants and I even managed to net a new leather shoe. From AUD159.90, it’s the last pair and the price is only AUD39 (RM120). Please note, LEATHER shoe yeah. Okay, it should be my 15th pair after my last cleanup two months ago but I do not have this colour before! Look at the image yeah. I even managed to buy a hoodie. You know, those with the Australian word emblazoned in front? AUD16 (RM48) which to me is pretty good price! My kids and my wife bought theirs in our Perth trip and it cost me (yes, I paid) AUD23 (RM69) on average. Yes, shopping must continue to happen because good deals do not happen all the time and when it happens, grab it. As for shopping, as a shopaholic, I can safely tell you that places like Hong Kong or Singapore would have to sell everything fast because of space limitation. For Sydney, perhaps this applies too. They must clear the space for new stocks arrival… Happy following. Yes, a few more articles to come from the land Down Under.

written on 5 June 2018

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‘Syndicates’ in auctions

Within a day of publishing the auction articles, the views hit close to 200. A few asked about this question. ‘Syndicates in auctions’. I posed this to Mr Stephen soon,  the Chairman of Penang Auctioneers Association and he smiled as he replied me. A write up of his reply and some additional notes from me.

Syndicate has a broad definition. For example, they can be property agents who eagerly wanting to win a bid. They can also be genuine buyer teams. In fact they can even be opportunistic genuine buyer who may push away the genuine bidders to give themselves favourable advantages during auction bidding. However, be reminded that if you stay firm, no one can take advantage of you be it in your life or during bidding. We have even met ‘exclusive’ renovation contractors who ‘forced’ us to use their services upon new units obtaining occupancy certificates. Aren’t these also syndicates? Will that stop you from buying new project units?

The truth is, even when we buy new properties,  there are group purchasers which got special discounts because they buy in bulk and these people sell earlier making it seem like there are a lot of units on sale. When we buy secondary properties,  some owners keep changing his mind when there are more than one interested party.  However this has not stopped us from buying new and secondary properties.  If so,  why are we suddenly too concerned about auction? Again,  it is due to people having less experience when it comes to auction.

What buyer can do is simple. Just like buying a house, you would need advice on loan financing, legal documents, professional advice from real estate agency and valuers. The same goes for auction, although not many are able to advise you correctly. In the case of auction, you don’t book a unit by earnest deposit but will be required to pay 5% or 10% upon winning a bid. For auctions, it is important for buyers to look for a licensed auction professional to guide them from A to Z. Get unbiased opinions on pros and cons to bid for the subject property. Furthermore, they should attend a live auction fair to experience its process flow and observe the surrounding. As you know, even when you buy new or sub-sale properties, you also need to put in some effort. The only difference is the approach.

Last but not least, it will not be difficult if you really want to widen your property investment scope. However, to stay away totally from auxctions would be most unwise.

written on 11th jan 2014

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Taiwanese outbound investment growing. Malaysia included.

In an online news article, one Taiwanese consulting firm, Asia Pacific International Property forecasted that the total overseas investment from Taiwan will increase 50 percent to RM8.6 billion from the NT$50 billion (RM5.75 billion) recorded in 2014.  Two reasons stated are due to the slowdown in the domestic market as well as the growing interest in overseas market. In fact some of the real estate agencies in Taiwan have been setting up offices to help in facilitating these overseas investments. According to an analyst, many Taiwanese investors are already familiar with markets such as Japan, Malaysia, Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The advisory firm also Asia Pacific International Property also said that between Malaysia and Singapore, it would recommend Malaysia instead due to the relatively low property valuation in Kuala Lumpur though the property market has already increased over 10 percent in 2014. With the country’s economy continuing to grow, the property market in Malaysia has a great potential.

Happy news? In terms of overall total of the forecasted RM8.6 billion and divided into so many countries outside Taiwan, the total to be invested in Malaysia is not likely to be larger than countries such as Japan, Australia, UK or even the United States. Nevertheless, if we calculate based on just a potential of RM 1 billion and with an average property price of RM2 million, that would still be a total of 500 units of properties in Kuala Lumpur within 2015. As for where these Taiwanese would be buying, happy searching. Or even happy selling if indeed they were looking for your property.

written on 22 Feb 2015

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Equity: Accepting a takeover offer, why yes and no.

Since mid 2014, I have been much more active in the stock market. Today, one piece of news caught my attention. Berjaya Corp Bhd (BCorp) was offering to REDtone shareholders a way out; 80 sen offer for every share they own. Most of the time, the offer would be at as price with a premium to the stock price. Thus, the shareholders would normally be obliged to accept if the majority has accepted. In REDtone’s case, two out of four independent directors have rejected the takeover offer. Both felt that the offer price of 80 sen a share is too low.

I do not own stocks of REDtone or Berjaya Corp. I do have 1,000 units of Berjaya Food because I like it that they send me Starbucks vouchers every now and then. Okay, I bought it just for fun. No comments on whether the shareholders should accept or reject the offer but I offer the following thoughts if I am the one being offered.

Price I bought. If the price I bought was much lower than the offered price, I would accept the offer. I term much lower as anything more than 20 percent. Be real, FD gives you just 4 percent. However, if one had just bought the shares at very high price in anticipation of the corporate exercise, best of luck to you.

Business itself based on Price Earning Ratio (PER). Look back at the business. Is the growth very solid and huge? I term huge when growth is over 30 percent per year in terms of profitability. Or is the business is just chugging along smoothly. For technology based companies of today, I would think it must grow at double digits per year at least. Thus, minimum PER I would expect would be 16x or higher based on latest available data.

The business outlook. Most of the time, I think everyone should realize that in any business at all, competition is intensifying and therefore if a company would like to be strong it has to be a bigger entity to face the world. Thus, I always think a bigger company is more advantageous than a smaller one. Of course, many would argue that sometimes the bigger company is not as well run as the smaller company. Most of the time this is true. Not just for these takeovers in Malaysia but also in the world. I think many of the companies that Yahoo or Google bought were better companies in terms of potential growth than their new owner. However, honestly, why were they bought in the first place? Reason: They offered new growth potential. Why did their original owners sell? Reason: They (new owners) offered growth potential too. See the same reason?

Always note that most of the time, once the takeover fails, the stock price would drop. If the stock price did not drop, then it is true, the price offered was too low. However, if the stock price dropped to a level which was much lower than the price offered, then you know that by not accepting the offer, you have just made a blunder. How to know for sure? Reject the offer and the share price would go back to the usual demand versus supply.

Happy identifying some of these smaller companies which offers great potential. If they are not bought over, their share price would reflect the business value after some time. If they are taken over, then you get your investment gains faster, that’s all. Just stop buying companies because some friend told you to buy since a corporate takeover may happen soon. That’s called gambling or in the corporate world; speculating. Cheers.

written on 28 Apr 2015

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Caring for ourselves is important too, could we?

I remember many years ago, there was an advertisement on tv about Chinese New Year. The scene was the old folks home. It goes something like this. First person said, ‘My daughter is a doctor. She earns a lot of money just by doing a surgery.’ Second person said, ‘My son is a lawyer. He is a top lawyer and earns a lot of money.’ Then, both of them look at the third aunty and asked, ‘what about your son. Is he very successful?’ The third person was about to say something when she saw her son’s car, a Proton Iswara being driven into the old folks home’s compound. She said, ‘there’s my son. He is here to take me out for dinner.’ She beamed happily. Both the first and the second aunties looked at one another and everyone can see how they envy this third aunty who will be going out for a dinner with her son. How do we define success? Earning the most money or time with family? No right or wrong answer, just note our own priority that’s all.

In NST today, there are a sad articles about old folks. Forgotten old folks. I am lucky. Both my brother and sister have their families and are doing well. My parents were both educators and today both are retired and staying in my hometown. I told my wife that it is very important to have enough because no one knows what would happen to us when we are old. There’s no guarantee that our children is able to take care of us. Sometimes, when times are rough and tough, it may be best for them (children) to take care of their families first. As usual, parents would always sacrifice themselves even though they have sacrificed so much to raise their children. Let’s not talk about those children who are able and yet chose not to take care of their parents. So, are we doing enough so that if really necessary, we would have enough funds to last us till the day we say bye-bye to this world? For some of us who has yet to plan, it’s time to start. These articles in NST are real and the situations would get worse and not better. Cost of living is getting higher. Medical expenses are becoming prohibitive. In future, if we are also staying in old folks home, it is hard to pin the blame on anyone. Unforeseen circumstances do happen.

I have asked my 4 year old daughter this question a few times. ‘When you grow up and papa grow old, will you take care of me?’ She would always answer ‘Yes.’ I would smile and tell my wife that whatever happens in the future, it’s important for us to plan for our retirements. My wife agrees and in fact is the one limiting me sometimes when I intend to buy another pair of leather shoes when I already have half a dozen of them at home. I have worked for the past 18 years plus. Half a dozen leather shoes simply meant one shoe every 3 years. Seems normal… right? Take care everyone.

written on 22Jan 2017

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Taking MRT more often? Push and Pull are both needed.

Many friends told me that the reason people take the MRT in Singapore is because it’s convenient. Sorry yeah, if this is the ONLY reason then you are not being realistic. In Singapore, the push factor is very strong too. Just to be entitled to drive a car, a driver would need to pay S$70,000 for a Certificate of Entitlement. (COE). Here’s that
latest news about COE in channelnewsasia.com
  If it’s true that everyone loves the MRT, why are people still bidding so high just to be entitled to buy a car. Car price is a separate matter and it’s in S$ yeah.

Want to buy my wife’s car, Proton Exora in Singapore? Second-hand? After buying, can drive another 7 years? Price as below: S$56,800 (RM179,000).

Convenient alone is not enough. Both Push and Pull is needed

Pull is easy. Make it as convenient as possible. Make the walking distance within 5 minutes from property developments or bus stops. Ensure easy access to the MRT stations. Connecting buses for example. Ensure the ticket is definitely cheap. For example, RM50 for unlimited rides per month? Make the station safe, make it a place where we could meet our friends and perhaps even having the MRT stations nearby as many offices as possible.

However pull is not enough. We need to push people towards it too. Reduce petrol subsidies and even take it away slowly. Make it much more expensive to drive.  Do like Singapore, make anyone driving into city centre to pay and pay and pay everytime they pass through some roads. Increase the parking charges. Once it becomes too expensive to drive, then it will make more sense and cents for people to start deciding to take the public transport instead.

Article in freemalaysiatoday.com
  A transport consultant Goh Bok Yen said, “No matter how good the public transport system is, without a good strategy in place to discourage the use of private vehicles, there is no way to encourage greater use of transit networks in Kuala Lumpur and the Klang Valley.”

Former deputy transport minister Aziz Kaprawi said it was crucial for transportation service providers to show that the transit systems were convenient, cheap and people-friendly. He also said that the government should also follow big cities like London and Singapore in introducing congestion charges and increasing parking rates throughout Kuala Lumpur. Do read the full article here:
Article in freemalaysiatoday.com

I look forward to more news about the progress of MRT 3 Circle Line too.

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Strive to be a talent, not just an employee

Talent versus Employee

Briefly, talent is something which we could do which most people could not. For example, the ability to communicate ideas in a cohesive manner to peers, managers and customers. Most people could speak but presenting ideas require very different skills altogether.  Another example, the ability to lead a team and harness the powers of teamwork. Most people could work very well if they do not need to work with people. However, people with leadership capabilities are not as common. So are we a talent or are we just an employee like the majority?

Evolution of the employee

My good friend posted the below image. A very interesting one about the evolution of the employee. It says that we used to work 9 to 5 and today, the employees can work anytime. (I do wonder if there are no deadlines these days?)  It says that employee in the past must work in a corporate office and today the employee can work anywhere. Frankly, majority of all the employees with a proper company is still working in an office, whether it’s home office or corporate office. It’s still not in a cafe somewhere… just not private enough and just too expensive…

There’s also the part about climbing the corporate ladder and creating our own ladder. I think these are two very different thing lah. If they work in a corporate world, they will still have to climb the corporate ladder. There are not that many people whom I know which they could suggest something to the company and then got promoted to lead that suggestion. Just stay focused on doing the job well and yes, now it’s easier for people to see that effort. Possibly that’s why they say it’s possible to build our own ladder.

I will not go on lah but the below is really just an ideal situation but definitely not reflective of everyone in the job market today.

Just Do It, Better and Quickly

When we look at the image above and we think we are the future, then please remember again whether past or the future, a talent would always be valued higher versus just an employee in the company.

In the job market, companies continue to say they could not hire the right talents while we have never ending complaints from many that they could not find their dream job. Take a step back, think objectively. What could I do which is value-adding which most other peers could not do? Not even peers from the same company but peers in all other companies. The answer determines our action. Just Do It, quickly.

Do not worry too much about whether we are employee of the past or the future or whether we are using company’s equipment to do our work or using our own device. Think about how we could make us more valuable as an employee. If we are a sales person, do we understand digital marketing? If I am a finance person, do I understand why e-wallets become popular or die? If I am an engineer, do I understand how to persuade convincingly for people to believe in my ideas? All these are far more important.

All the best.

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Talented, Skilled and Affordability? Think Penang

Malaysians who are talented and skilled, would you want to consider working in Penang instead? Well, the Penang government is welcoming these talented and skilled to work in Penang and they would allow them to apply for the affordable housing scheme for the talented and skilled. Of course, you would have to change your voting address to Penang first. One does not even necessarily have 5 years of working experience in Penang.

The current requirement for applicants to the affordable housing scheme is that the person should be a Penangite, employed in Penang and be a registered voter in Penang. If they are not Penangite, they must show proof that they have been residing and working in Penang for the last 5 years and have registered as a voter in Penang. In other words, the latest category would enlarge the pool of applicants but also help Penang to retain these talented and skilled workers.

This is a proposal by Invest Penang and it caters to anyone categorised as knowledge workers with a diploma with a minimum of 2 years work experience or a minimum of bachelor degree recognised by the government. If you are moving in from other states, the 5 years of working experience within Penang can be waived too and these applicants can choose the affordable housing units close to their working place! This helps to ensure Penang hits its aspiration to be an international and intelligent city. One final requirement, once one has obtained the said affordable unit, one must PROMISE to continue working in Penang for the next 5 years from the date that the key is handed over. I seriously do not think this is easy to keep track and implement but we shall see.

Penang is a good place to work, especially for engineers because there are lots of options. Thus opportunities are endless and I have friends who are already top management in many of the multinationals there. Of course, having said that, if you can rise up fast in your career, then your need for affordable housing may not be there anymore. You may prefer a landed property in a more prime area instead. 5 years from today, perhaps a condo may be a better bet. Why? Read here:
Landed in Penang? Be prepared with lots of money

Happy growing in your career and perhaps making Penang your new home.

written on 13 June 2015

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Landed properties within Penang island? Hard to go wrong.

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Buying further can be a good option too (at least for some of us)

A few months ago, I went to my good friend’s home in Semenyih for her house-warming party. That’s 50km away from her working place in KL city centre. When I was there, I got to know that a close friend also bought a home within the same development. When we were chit-chatting, they shared with me that the main reason they bought there was because with the price they were willing to pay versus the type of home meant that there were no similar choices in PJ. I have to agree. That close friend’s double-storey terraced home? 20 x 75 sq ft, gated and guarded and it’s just RM600k plus. Are these two friends making wrong decisions? They should have bought somewhere closer to their working places instead? 🙂

Frankly, buying non-hotspots need not be a bad decision. It depends on whether we have evaluated what we want to buy objectively or not. A bad decision is buying the wrong property based on what we wanted. Sometimes, we even hate the property we bought but we bought it because our friends bought one too. Perhaps we should be reminded that if we bought into a hotspot at an overpriced price, it will be a long, long time of holding on to that property.  It used to be just Klang Valley and now it’s Greater Kuala Lumpur and from buying inside the KL city centre and nearby areas, people are now buying ever further away. Kepong was known as ‘pretty far,’ but Desa Parkcity is now a regarded as a hotspot. (They are BOTH in the same area…)  Let me share some reasons for and against buying further away. It may be or may not be for everyone yeah. See you on 30th September 2018 (Sunday) at 430pm. More details as per image yeah. Happy investing.

written on 21 Sep 2018

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Understanding the 3 property bubble signs and more

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Speaking in Ipoh. Come join me and say Hi.

The poster says it all. This time, it’s in my hometown Ipoh. See you there!  Please do register yeah. There’s some lucky draws going on too. Who knows, the winner might just be you.
REGISTER HERE.
  It is not my first time speaking in Ipoh but it will be the first time that I will be speaking about the 4Ps in property investment. (People, Price, Policy and Preference).

REGISTER HERE.

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Are you waiting to buy a property? Me too

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10 important questions and answers for first-time home buyers.

When is the best time to buy a property? No, it’s not 20 years ago. It’s also not in 2012 when everyone was crazily queuing up for new launches. If someone had bought then, depending on how gung-ho they were then, they may be in trouble servicing the overpriced properties today. Actually, a better time to buy is when we are ready financially with sufficient downpayment. It’s also to be ready with knowledge of why and what to buy. (Reading kopiandproperty.com for a minimum of 6 months is also good enough.) Last but not least, that property we buy better be something worth buying.

I have answered one typical question from first-time home buyers. How about another 10 Q&As about the property market? Is there a bubble coming soon? What if there’s really a bubble coming soon?  Is it true that I better buy now because the prices will be too expensive in the future? Allow me to share these and more in my talk in iProperty Home and Property Investment Fair 2019. See you this coming Sunday (13th January 2019) Time: 5-6pm. Venue: Mid Valley Exhibition Centre.

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Talk: “Wait to buy or Buy to Wait?”

I believe this is a never ending debate. Those with good returns from property investment will tell us that it’s worth buying a property and wait for it to appreciate. Those who did not get a good return or bought at the wrong time will tell us that timing is everything. That’s why we must wait to buy. As for the majority of everyone; first-time home buyers, it’s a tale of ‘how do I know which one should I be aiming at?’ Let me share some numbers and facts from my personal experience as well as from the many readings I do on a daily basis. Details of the talk are as follows:

It’s Starproperty.my Fair 2019 @ Starling Mall. Date is 3 March 2019 and time is 3pm – 4pm. Some of the topics within the talk which I will share will include, ‘power of leverage,’ ‘property prices in mature neighbourhoods vs newer townships,’ and ‘why buy when rental yield is so low nowadays, if any.’

There are a lot more interesting talks before and after me as well. Take a look at below for your information. Both speakers are experts in their respective fields and I have personally learnt many things from both of them. They are Ms. Agnes Wong the Managing Partner of Syarikat Ong with the title of “How Budget 2019 can Impact Your Investment Decision.” Her session is right before mine, at 2-3pm.

From 5-6pm, Ms. Jessica Jong will share with everyone on, “How to Pay Off your Mortgage Fast.” If you need lots of tips how to pay faster, please stay back and enjoy her session.

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Tallest Sea view condo in Penang? Probably.

We love ever taller homes so that we have the bragging rights that I live higher than you. I can see further if I stay higher. I can see more! Haha. Anyway, the tallest I have ever bought is just 10th floor. I currently stay in one on the 1st floor. So, obviously height does not attract me. However, one project caught my attention. I was browsing through
penangpropertytalk.com
 when I saw a 61-storey luxury condominium project. It’s part of a 5-acre development called Runnymede Bay. No further details were available but 61-storey should be the highest that I have seen in Penang. Another one which is going to be majestically tall is SP Setia’s V Residences at 48 floors in Gurney Drive.

Is this heralding the start of the race to build ever higher? For those who have negative thoughts about these tall buildings in an island, there’s no truth to whatever worry that islands cannot sustain tall buildings. I googled but found nothing significant. More importantly would be whether the developer has such expertise as the taller the building, the stronger the foundation has to be. Why build taller? Land space limitation. I have seen many condominium projects with 10-storey car park. Actually, it’s okay because these would normally have two entrances, each going up only half of the car park. Imagine if just one entrance and your car park is on the level 10! Haha.

I think for the wealthier ones who are reading this, it’s time you register. It’s considered a low density project with just 373 units. In KL, the number of units can now be easily over 1,200 units per development or even higher in some popular areas. The highest floors of this new 61-storey project in Penang would allow you to take a photo and post in your Facebook that you are “above all the rest” in Penang. For those who prefer to just get a nice condo to stay, the choices remain aplenty and this luxury condominium is definitely not your usual affordable choice. Happy waiting to buy.

written on 1 July 2015

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In KL, a mature neighbourhood below RM500,000.

I like mature neighbourhoods especially for own stay. Just a few weeks ago, an old friend called and asked if I would like to have a cup of latte. I immediately agreed and went to fetch him. His place was in Taman Desa. It was my first time driving into Taman Desa. I felt good. Trees lined up the roads, it looks clean and has many of the usual amenities like schools, rows of shops, banks, petrol stations. There were NO new developments being developed and the feeling in one word was comfortable. There was little need to speed, somehow.

So, I researched a bit and found out from iproperty that should you want to stay in this mature neighbourhood, there are still choices below RM500,000. In terms of actual developments close to 1,000sf for below RM500,000, there were not many choices though, I found just two. Please refer to the image. There are also other project with smaller units, you may search for it yourself. For a family, I think something closer to 1,000sf or higher would be preferable. If you have baby, you would need that extra room for your helper, whoever the person may be.

If you stretch the budget up till RM600,000, then the choices increase. You would have Tiara Faber, Abadi Villa and Faber Ria. What about some additional information about Taman Desa? A check with
propsocial.my
 revealed the following additional information which I think really validates this as a mature neighbourhood. There are NO new developments being planned. There are a total of 27 property developments within this area BUT there are no malls. This may explain why prices have remained at the levels of slightly below RM500psf till today. You may refer here:

Personally, if you are looking for a place to invest with a higher chance of price appreciation, this may not be your better bet. Prices can normally move because of a few reasons, most of the time, new developments which tend to be slightly more expensive and this brings up the level of that area higher. Alternatively, a catalyst project like how Twin Towers brought up the whole KLCC area higher. Otherwise, the price appreciation is gradual which is not good when you look at it on a longer term basis. Happy selecting your own home sweet home.

written on 30 June 2015

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Ready, steady, grab the opportunity. (KLCC area)

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Press Release by Tan & Tan: Stonor 3 topping up ceremony

Press Release For Immediate Release

Stonor 3 Topping Up Ceremony Marks Another Milestone for Tan & Tan

Kuala Lumpur, 19 September 2018 – Tan & Tan, one of the pioneer property developers in Malaysia celebrated the topping up ceremony for Stonor 3 KLCC at its showroom located in Mid Valley today. The ceremony was attended by Mr. Tan Yee Seng – Director of Tan & Tan Developments Berhad, Mr. Ivan Chia – General Manager of IGB Corporation Berhad, Mr. Colin Ng – Chief Marketing Officer of Tan & Tan Developments Berhad along with Mr. Masaya Ohta – General Manager of Mitsubishi Estate Asia Pte. Ltd.

Stonor 3 KLCC sits on 1.5 acres of prime freehold land right in the heart of the city. Centrally located, Stonor 3 offers great connectivity to key public transportation access points, amenities like international schools, retail and leisure options while boasting a leisurely 10-minute stroll to KLCC Park and the iconic Petronas Twin Towers.

A joint venture between Tan & Tan and Japanese counterpart, Mitsubishi Jisho Residence, the interior layout of each unit fuses a Japanese eye for detail combined with efficient use of space; resulting in a spacious yet warm feel. Units at Stoner 3 also come equipped with the very best in luxury finishing and appliances that were hand-selected to create a sleek and modern city residence.

This elegant yet modern 41-storey luxury condominium which is due for completion in 2019 offers a total of 400 units with sizes ranging from comfy studios (649 sq.ft) to 3-bedders (1232 sq.ft) perfect for a nuclear family. Stoner’s combination of varied unit sizes and prime location has been well received by both local and foreign buyers alike.

As part of Tan & Tan’s 5 Decades of Distinction celebration and topping up ceremony, Tan & Tan is offering three specially customized ownership plans for buyers looking to either stay or invest into a prime piece of KLCC real estate.

For savvy investors, Tan & Tan is offering a Guaranteed Rental Return (GRR) of 6% per annum for 2 years with units coming fully fitted out. For those looking to stay, Tan & Tan offers two ownership plans consisting of a high rebate without fully fitted package or an alternative of fully fitted out units with high rebates.

With these attractive ownership plans, there truly is not better time than now to be part of the elite group of Tan & Tan property owners. Interested parties should contact the Stonor 3 Sales Gallery at +603 2283 3993 or email ask@TanTan.com to find out more about these attractive ownership plans. Alternatively, check out the Stoner 3 showroom located at Tan & Tan Sales Gallery, Level 8, Annexe Block, Menara IGB, The Boulevard, Mid Valley City, Lingkaran Syed Putra, 59200 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

— end of press release —

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Tanah Runtuh. Yeah, this makes me wary of where I park my car now.

This is the news article about it with a photo in
nst.com.my (click here to view)
 “Five vehicles damaged as road shoulder slips into drain in Seri Kembangan”

As for the actual video, this was a video captured when the event happened yesterday and has gone viral. If you did not see it yet, here’s that youtube video.

Report when there are some potential issues which we have spotted

Let us always be aware of what’s happening around us and report if we do see something not right. For example, water seeping out from a retaining wall of a property development. Even if we are not staying there, help to call the local council and tell them about it. Just taking videos and put on our FB may gain clicks but will not help much.

From the video, it does seem that people are aware of something which is about to happen. There are some cracks on the road too. Thank you everyone and let’s all do our part.

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Header Image by
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Real estate is about an eye for potential opportunities and making that decision.

There are many property investors in Malaysia who has made a lot of money from the property market. Some were due to their objective assessments, some may have been lucky and some just bought, stayed a while and when they decided to upgrade to a better place, the property they bought earlier has risen quite significantly. Of course, there are also those who over-stretched and faced lots of pressure when the property was completed and they have to start paying for it.

There were also sad cases too especially one which went viral; the  person actually committed suicide when his property buy went horribly wrong. In Hong Kong, property is one asset class which everyone must have. Else, just paying the rental for a room may bankrupt you when you have retired and have no income source. Let’s now understand how a Hong Konger became one of HongKong’s richest via spotting some great properties in bad shape…

Article in forbes.com
   Tang Shing-bor spotted a gem in an eyesore, run-down and abandoned plastic factory in the Tuen Mun district called Tins Plaza. He bought it for $36 million (RM151 million today’s money) in 2005. Two years later, he sold it for triple what he paid. This was not the only case.

Tang continued to snap up derelict industrial properties like Tins Plaza, flipping them or redeveloping them and he became a billionaire in 2016. He is 86 years old now and he is no. 14 in the list of richest Hong Kongers with a net worth of $5.7 billion (RM23.85 billion)   Tang is now embarking on a shopping spree of Hong Kong’s industrial buildings and he spent $700 million (RM2.93 billion) in 2019.

This is what he said of the months of protest in Hong Kong. “This is the best opportunity I’ve ever seen.”   He is confident that Hong Kong’s political turmoil will normalise in the future. He said, “We will move on from this.”  Please refer to the very comprehensive article
Article in forbes.com

Please do not think of doing what he is doing yeah. Remember, just because two people are buying the same kind of property does not mean both will have the same result. Many times, it depends on the holding power too. If one could not hold and have to sell early when prices were low, it would have been a loss. Another who could hold until prices went up higher would gain good money from the same investment.
Same car, same property may mean different results.

However, if one were to aim at property for own stay and is willing to buy something cheaper first, then the chances to gain some profits will be much higher a few years down the road. Inflation will be the friend we need because when the construction materials and land prices go up, newer launches will be with higher prices. The older properties will just follow in-tandem. Happy thinking of property as an investment.

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Tanjung Tokong vs Sungai Ara by a non-Penangite

I started working in Penang after my graduation from USM 5 years ago. I have also stayed in mainland in my first job and have since moved to the island after landing a position with an online property company. When we talk about prime areas in Penang, Tanjung Tokong, Tanjung Bungah or Pulau Tikus is always the top choices for richer Penangites. To them, these location are best and most strategic because it is near to Gurney, close to town and seems great in every way, including seaview.

However, if you were to ask me, or most of the non- Penangite, I prefer areas like Sungai Ara, Sungai Dua, Bayan Baru, which are considered newer areas on the southern part of Penang. My reasons include but not limited to the following:

1)    Traffic

This is always my main concern. In terms of distance, of course, Tanjung Tokong is much nearer to town as compared to Sungai Ara (or any other area) to town. However, if you were to compare it in terms of duration or the time needed for you to drive from town back to your home in Sungai Ara, it would be almost the same. My colleague stays in Tanjung Bungah, and I stay in Sungai Dua, the time used for us to reach home is almost the same. You can choose not to believe, but that is a fact.

2)    Comfort

Areas like Tanjung Tokong is always too packed for me. Lots of cars, lots of buildings and many of the roads are just not wide enough. In Sungai Ara however, the roads are definitely wider in many areas and in terms of tall buildings, still lesser. Thus, I feel comfortable a lot of building, certain area the access road is not really big. Whereas, Sungai Ara, road is wider, building are lesser. The ‘packed’ feeling is not there, and that’s why I feel it’s more homey.

3)    Accessibility

Shopping? Queensbay is just 10-15 minute away. Airport? 10-15 minute away. Expo at SPICE? 10 minute away. Private Hospital? First Bridge? Second Bridge? Yes. Police Station? Fire Station which is bigger than the one in Tg Tokong? Yes. Schools? Yes. Chinese Schools? Yes. Market? Yes. So, what else do you need? Friendly people? Yes! I stay there!

Of course, there is no such thing as always right or wrong. Everyone is free to choose the place that they like and feel comfortable with. To those who love Tg. Tokong, like my colleague from Johor, go stay there. As for me, it’s Sungai Ara first and Tg. Tokong perhaps just within top 10. Haha.

written by Hayley Huan, edited by Chia Lih.

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Targeted MCO starts on 6th May. Here are all you need to know.

Time to be good and just stay home unless really needed. Below are all you need to know. First up is that if you are in these districts, you must only stay within your district. They are as follows:

Hulu Langat, Petaling, Gombak, Klang, Kuala Langat and Sepang.

As for details of all these districts, refer to the info right after the image.

Source: FMT

The below would be the detailed areas under the different Districts.

Gombak (Gombak, Rawang, Ampang, Setapak, Ulu Klang, Selayang, Kundang, Kuang, Batu Caves, Sungai Buloh, Kampung Sungai Pusu)?
Hulu Langat (Kajang, Ampang, Cheras, Bangi, Semenyih, Beranang, Bandar Baru Bangi, Bandar Tun Hussein Onn, Balakong, Taman Sri Nanding)?
Hulu Selangor (Kuala Kubu Bharu, Batang Kali, Kerling, Rasa, Serendah, Hulu Bernam, Bukit Beruntung)
Klang (Kapar, Shah Alam, Meru, Bandar Baru Klang, Bukit Kemuning, Pandamaran, Pelabuhan Klang, Telok Menegun, Glenmarie Cove, Batu 4)?
Kuala Langat (Bandar Saujana Putra, Banting, Batu, Jugra, Teluk Datok, Morib, Tanjung Sepat, Teluk Panglima Garang)?
Kuala Selangor (Tanjung Karang, Bestari Jaya, Ijok, Jeram, Puncak Alam, Api-Api, Pasangan, Sungai Buloh)
Petaling (Petaling Jaya, Puchong, Subang, Damansara, Shah Alam, Bukit Raja, Kota Raja, Bandar Sri Damansara, Country Heights, Puchong, Puchong Jaya, Puchong Perdana, Serdang)?
Sabak Bernam (Sekinchan, Sabak, Sungai Besar, Sungai Air Tawar, Sungai Panjang)
Sepang (Pekan Sepang, Dengkil, Sungai Pelek, Cyberjaya, Salak Tinggi, Kuala Lumpur International Airport)?

Hotspots also identified.

1,660 hotspots for Covid-19 also identified by HIDE too. Read more here.

Please take care. Surely it’s possible to keep it under control while waiting for vaccinations. Make no mistake too. Covid-19 will be with us for a long time. It’s like the Flu which kills hundreds of thousands every year. However, with vaccinations, the situation will under control and the infections cannot suddenly reach hundreds of thousands of cases. This is a fact which we would not be able to run away from. Thanks for your effort in staying home and staying strong. Cheers.

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Having a targeted property is important, before decision

Whether we decide to buy a new unit or sell an existing unit. It’s important to set targets in advance. A colleague told me that she wanted to sell her commercial unit and use the funds to buy other residential properties. She asked if it’s a good idea. I told her that if it’s me, I would identify what would be my targets first. I do not wish to sell and then park the money in the bank, even if by selling now, I am guaranteed good return. She has yet to identify any. Well, the dilemma currently is that even if she wanted to sell, the total profits she had expected is far lower. In fact one buyer was cheeky enough to offer her a price below what she bought!

The hardest question is thus, do I already have a target to buy? The hardest action would be to start viewing and thus spend some time, effort and petrol money. To be honest, most of the time, those with more than a few properties tend to be lazier. Perhaps there’s just no rush or maybe it’s just not attractive enough, right? Another colleague looking for his second property, an investment for his children said, ‘I am so tired, I might as well just stick to one area instead.’ Haha. I recently started viewing more often, from Sungai Buloh all the way to Ipoh and would most probably view a few more units when I am  in Sandakan in 2 weeks time. There’s NOTHING wrong with viewing more. The decision tend to be better than just simply following.

A few weeks ago, I decided to buy one condo in Sandakan. Read here:
Is it good value? Good question, how to answer?

I did not suddenly buy a condo in Sandakan. I wanted a condo which is around RM350,000 with potential to grow and one which I can rent out fully furnished. It met all my expectations and more, that’s why I decided within the same day after viewing it. A target is thus extremely important before we make any decisions at all. It’s not the best time to sell currently BUT it’s a great time to buy. As long as there’s a good target, do sell to free up funds to invest more. Investment is always about maximising potential returns, not letting ‘usable funds’ sit idle. Happy selling or buying.

written on 27 Jan 2016

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