Singapore more ‘convenient’ than Penang

I have to write this because the term convenience is really simply misused just because one is working in Singapore. A younger friend said, Singapore is much more convenient than Penang. I look at her and ask why. She said, ‘MRT’ can reach anywhere you want to go! Let me share with you one typical working day and one typical weekend and then you decide about the term convenience. On a weekday, as usual, you would wake up at 730-8am if your work starts at 9am. You shower and after everything done, you go to get your car in the car park and drive out and along the way, you saw your favourite nasi lemak stall, you stopped your car by the road side and you asked the aunty, ‘lima bungkus kak’. She gave you your nasi lemak and you arrived at your office, gave each of your co-worker a pack and they smiled and said thank you. Lunch time came, you walked down to the car park, with all your co-workers to try a new lunch place. After lunch, it rained, fortunately the car was parked at the underground car park. You arrived back in office and at 6pm, you left your office. Your colleague said, ‘can you drop me today? my husband is out of town’. Your answer is ‘of course’. You dropped your colleague, then on the way home, saw your favourite nasi kandar restaurant, stopped your car, eat and got home around 745pm. That’s a typical day.

If I am working in Singapore, I need to wake up at 7-730am, prepare as fast as I can, take the lift from the HDB flat that I am staying in. If I am late, the lift would take a long time because it’s a flat and there’s 40 storeys high. I got down to the ground floor, walked to the nearest MRT station around 500 metres away, got into the station, walk another 300 metres to reach the platform and wait. The train came, you got up, it was already quite full, you had to stand like a sardine for the next 45 minutes to reach the station. Got down, walked another 800 metres to reach your office. Worked till lunch, go down to eat at the community food court nearby. Why walk so far away? It’s so hot. Finished work at 6pm, you can either rush as fast as you can to the station or stay for dinner first because it was peak hour.You choose to rush. Like a sardine for the next 45 minutes, reach your home, hungry and ‘ta pao’ in the community food court nearby and that’s your day. Wow, you got back nearly the same time as the one in Penang. However….. look closely what you have really missed.

Weekends are for loved ones. You got up at 830am, showered and went to pick up your girlfriend for a good breakfast. After the breakfast, your girlfriend said she needed to buy something for her mum and duplicate keys for her dad. Both of you went to the market, followed by the key duplicating stall. Reached home, her parents said, ‘wow, thank you, fortunately you can drive her here and there, she is scared to drive’. After some chit chats, you went for lunch and then shopping for Chritsmas gifts. Your girlfriend bought 7 gifts and you just 5 gifts, both of you carrying the heavy shopping bags to the car, you drove her home to pick up her sister and then three of you went for a nice seafood dinner at Tambun, which is around 40km away. After the seafood dinner, both of them said they wanted to sleep early but said you need to pick the whole family up for family breakfast on Sunday. You said, ‘of course’.

Can you, as a working adult in Singapore have these ‘convenience?’ Convenience of timing. Convenience of driving? Convenience of not carrying heavy shopping bags, sandwiched like a sardine, picking up anyone you want to pick up, seafood dinner at a far away places which takes nothing more than just a drive away? Please note, I have not yet started on, if you have a family; stroller, shopping bags, baby, diapers, hot water, baby food and more. I also did not include that it rains every now and then and during rainy seasons, it would be even more tougher as you have to add umbrella into the equation. I have also yet to add that for S$700, you rent just a small room and disallowed from bringing home anyone at all. In Penang, for RM700, you rent one whole apartment and you can bring as many friends as you like for party or even BBQ at the facilities provided.

Don’t get me wrong. There are a lot of reasons that you can argue Singapore is better. Stronger currency. Bigger and better shopping centres. Safer. Top universities. Cleaner FLATS. More professional local council. Healthier lifestyle. Singaporean ladies know that they have to pay for themselves after you have paid for the first two times. So many other reasons. An efficient MRT system. However, think closely, without MRT, do you have any other choice? Answer is clear, none. That’s because buying just a Proton Saga would cost you RM500,000 in Singapore (COE + car price). In Malaysia, Proton Saga with 2 airbags, ABS, EBD is just starting at RM34K onwards. ‘CONVENIENCE’ is not one of them and never will until the day you got promoted to be a senior manager and is able to buy a car like the minority of very rich Singaporeans.

written on 14th dec 2013 in response to the so many times that awesome Malaysians coming back to Penang and argue that Singapore is more convenient.

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Singapore private home prices in 2030, population, prices and size.

How much could property prices in Penang grow to? What about Greater KL? Perhaps to the government, how much should it rise to? Perhaps some form of control instead of just leaving it fully to the market forces of demand and supply? The reason is because sometimes the numbers from overseas look scary. One such estimate comes from Singapore, an island bigger than Penang. Singapore’s largest bank, DBS has forecasted that new private homes will cost an average of between S$2,300 (RM6,803) and S$2,900 (RM8,578) per sq ft (psf) by 2030. The main reason is due to the population which is expected to grow to between 6.3- 6.5 million from the current 5.8 million. In Singapore, the citizens could apply for HDB flats which are by far cheaper than the private ones. Currently, the prices are at S$1,500 psf. (RM4,436). The full
Article in todayonline.com here.

My earlier thoughts about the population factor here.

In numbers, this meant a compound annual growth rate of 1.5 per cent to 3.2 per cent over the next 12 years as growth in homeowners’ incomes “keep pace” with the rise in private-property prices. (Yes, only 1.5 percent per year, compounded… Now do we wee the reason why property investment will help a lot in hedging against loss from inflation?)  The report also projected that the average size of new private units to shrink to 840 sq ft by 2030. This will be 20 percent smaller than the 1,083 sq ft average last year.
(WOW… 20 percent smaller. I know, someone wants to tell me that this is because families are smaller. FYI, it’s because of PRICE. Smaller families are still going to buy a bigger home if the price is the same as a smaller one… ok?)
 The DBS report assumes also the annual volume of transactions for private homes to stay above the historical average for the next 12 years – reaching between 13,000 and 16,000 units until 2023, before tapering to an average of 12,000 to 13,500 units.
An earlier article about how property prices change due to transactions.

The main reason could be due to HDB upgraders as well as a “wildcard” coming from property-buying foreigners. Based on the report estimated, there is a significant supply of land available to build a further 1.3 million homes. It says, “The Ministry of National Development (MND) has put in place a land-use plan which will cater for the longer-term growth in Singapore’s population. According to the Master Plan 2030, an additional 3,000ha of land is available and is planned for residential use by 2030.” Beyond just units, these new homes have a capacity to support another 3.8 million people. As for the other side, risks such as slower population growth, immigration policies, and macro-economic uncertainties could potentially throw a spanner in the works, the DBS analysts noted.
Please do read the article in TodayOnline for reference yeah.

Before everyone starts calculating how much their property would be worth here in Malaysia, I think it’s important to note that these are predictions. It is also based on many other inputs including even the economic growth for example and even the political stability which I think Singapore is famous for. Besides that, the SIngapore government supplies the affordable homes in much larger quantities than the private homes. As for Malaysia, the government is attempting to build 1 million homes within 10 years and this can be considered to be higher than what the private developers could build. Perhaps this will help to stabilise the property prices even after the positive sentiment in the property market has returned?
This is my personal view earlier.
 It’s best for prices to stay stagnant for as long as possible, so that incomes can catch up. Happy investing.

written on 21 May 2018

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Singapore properties? Aiming at soft landing

Can any government in the world control its property market? If it’s way too heated up, to cool it down slowly instead of having the bubble bursting and affecting everyone and tha banks? The answer seems to be a yes. According to an online article, Singapore’s National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan said that the government is using the cooling measures to ensure the property market has a ‘soft landing’. In fact, it was quoted that HDB resale prices have fallen 37 percent. Is this enough?

Some of the Members of Parliament however cautioned that whatever is good, when overdone may not be healthy. Many of the seniors in Singapore needs their property to be of certain value to support their old age retirement plan. Mr. Khaw replied that the government will be cautious not to cause these negative effects. The prices of Built to Order flats remain to be affordable. 89 percent of five-room flats were sold under S$450,000, 81 percent of four-room flats were sold below S$350,000 and 90 percent of three-room flats were sold below S$250,000. The affordability index states that the prices should be lower than a buyer’s 4 years annual salary. In this case, these BTO flats are considered affordable, depending on what the applicants actually apply for based on their existing income.

Personally for Malaysia, I do not want too much government intervention for property unless they are able to really know what the demands would be. The reason is because most of the time, only the private developers would know where the demand and what the demand would be. The government has not been a specialist in the building of homes and should not attempt to be one. Facilitate, encourage and perhaps motivate through some additional incentives but do not meddle with the property market. Singapore is a very different market because it is much smaller and was controlled right from the beginning. For Singapore, it’s better because the government can sort of ‘control’ the market’s direction through it’s HDB planning. Anyway, ‘soft landing’ cannot last forever. Think further and buy value.

written on 13 Mar 2015

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US$30mil Singapore property? It’s okay, the property is a nice one.

Some people say property is an investment. Some people say first property is NOT an investment. Some people say better rent and not buy because renting is cheaper. Well,
over 40% of richest Malaysians are property related. Read here for the latest update.
Secondly, when wealthy people travel or when they have decided to stay longer in some places, they will choose to BUY a property.

Don’t we wonder why even after some people are so wealthy, they still buy a property? Why do they still need to buy a property and think of it as an investment? Don’t we wonder why they did not rent instead since it’s cheaper? If they rented, they could keep moving to nice places every other year. If they bought, they would have to stay at the same place every day, every week and every year… Yet, they bought. Here’s that one latest story about a SGD30 million (RM93 million) property.

Article in nst.com.my
   The wife of Grab Holdings chief executive officer Anthony Tan paid S$40 million (US$29.6 million) for a mansion in Singapore. It was a bungalow and Singapore was seen as a safe haven investment amid the pandemic. This property is one of about 2,500 lavish homes found in Singapore where 80 per cent of the population live in public housing.

The Business Times said the property had a land area equivalent to about 2,010 square meters (21,635 square feet). This is well above the 1,400 square meters standard for these houses. Her husband’s Grab will be going public in the U.S. through a SPAC deal later this year. After this deal, Tan’s fortune will go to US$829 million. (RM3.47 billion). Please do read the full article with lots more details here:
Article in nst.com.my

Stop debating about whether property is the best investment

What we should do instead is to earn so much more than enough to buy a property. We should be wealthy enough so that property investment need not be a heavy decision. It could be just another decision, an easy one too. Let’s see when can I visit Singapore again and enjoy the BOTANICAL GARDEN. It’s a nice place by the way, just that weather in Singapore is like Malaysia too; hot and humid. Haha.  Let’s keep hoping everything will become normal again sooner than later.

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Singapore property prices: Coming back up but in 2017

Population is always a strong determinant for the property market of any country. Strong population growth will ensure demand increases and when there are some years where there were insufficient supply of units, the prices went up and seldom comes back down. Seriously, who would want prices to fall after it has gone up? Read here:
Hard for property prices to go down lah…

I read an article in propertyguru.com.sg about Singapore’s annual population growth which was only 1.2 percent in 2015. Between the periods of 2006 to 2012, it was 3.2 percent. As per property consultancy JLL, due to this, the annual housing demand dropped to 16,000 from 38,000 units previously. Demand is thus down. Housing supply is however up as the Singapore government continue to supply 50,000 units per year from 2014 to 2018.

JLL predicts that the prices in prime and mass market will fall between five to 10 percent more before recovery starts in 2017. The mood in the market has been affected by the government’s cooling measures. It was not just the locals because when Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD) was implemented, the foreigners share of purchases in the central region fell to just 10 percent from 20-25 percent previously. High end homes prices feel by 20 percent after ABSD. With the Total Debt Service Ratio being cut, this resulted in the home prices for the mass market dropping by 12 percent. Moreover, prices of high-end homes fell by 20 percent following the introduction of the ABSD in 2011, while the implementation of the Total Debt Servicing Ration (TDSR) in 2013 has resulted in mass market home prices dropping by 12 percent.

I tried to search for some recent news report about potential property bubble in Singapore. There were none. I think the cooling measures are working well and prices are retreating in an orderly manner. We should however watch closely when would the Singapore government tweaks its current cooling measures. I think the same may happen in Malaysia too because the cooling measures has been in place for Malaysia for as long as that of Singapore. The only issue perhaps would be liquidity. Bank Negara Malaysia has maintained the Overnight Policy Rate at 3.25 percent to keep its accommodative stance for the economy. It is also trying to help the market by cutting the Statutory Reserve Requirements (SRR) from 4 percent to 3.5 percent effective February 1. This should help the property market a little; banks would have more funds to lend. Wishing everyone success in their loan applications, as long as everyone is buying within own affordability.

written on 23 Jan 2016

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Singapore property, prices continuously declining into 2015

Recently an old friend said that if Singapore prices continue to fall, she may think of selling her Penang property and buy one Singapore property. She said this is a good diversification since her base is everything Penang currently. However, when I asked at what stage would she enter, she said she does not know and may want to wait a bit more. I think she may be in luck because according to a report online, prices in Singapore would continue to decline into 2015. Yes, this was what was predicted by Propnex.

Actually I am not sure if it is considered a bad news or a good news when it comes to falling property prices. Perhaps to the sellers, it is a bad news. To the buyers, if they are really buying, then it is a good news. While it is true that property prices declining is looked at negatively but what if this was what the government wanted in the first place? Surely the government was not aiming at total transactions right? Well, as long as the bubble did not burst and the market prices readjusts downwards, I think it’s considered a positive development.

In Singapore, private homes continue to fall for the fourth straight quarter, according to the data from URA (Urban Redevelopment Agency). Reasons given was due to the cooling measures, according to PropNex. Besides that, with the softening of HDB prices, it is also affecting the private homes prices. There were lesser buyers who could afford to upgrade or even motivated to upgrade. If we consider property prices readjustment downwards to be positive, should we be looking at even lower prices next year? With lower prices, would Iskandar property market face even more pressure? I think Singapore property prices can afford a breather at this moment. After all, the title as the most expensive city is not something to be proud of. It’s best to lose this title next year.

A check online showed that prices does seem to be more affordable for the units which are slightly above 1,000sf. This was not the case previously.

written on 30 Oct 2014

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Singapore will prosper when Iskandar succeeds

Can Iskandar succeed without being right next to Singapore? Will it be successful faster by being right next to Singapore? Definitely. If it does not do well, would Singapore continue to do well, moving forward? When we look at how Singapore needs to continue growing its GDP (which is already slowing as it is considered a developed nation), it would be foolish to say that Singapore can continue reclaiming all the land it needs to propel its way to succeed. Read here for latest about reclamation.
Reclamation done with less sand and lower upfront construction costs

Population growth is a critical factor and with population growth comes the need for more homes. Singapore government in a white paper has forecasted a population of 6.9 million by 2030 in its
“Population White Paper (PWP)”
.  Without population growth, creation of new jobs are not possible and without new jobs there is little growth.

Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said this, “Singapore will also prosper if Iskandar Malaysia region succeeds.” Read here for full article in a
Singaporean mass media Asia One.
 In brief, the article said since its launch, Iskandar Malaysia has attracted a committed investments of more than RM200 million of which a sizeable amunt is from Singaporean companies. Singapore is currently the second largest foreign investor in Iskandar Malaysia and Johor. Singapore has always been one of the most expensive cities in the world when it comes to the cost of living. It would be good to have another cheaper option right next door. Mr. Lee said that the joint-venture projects between Singapore’s Temasek Holdings and Malaysia’s Khazanah Nasional are making good progress. They include Afiniti Medini and Avira Medini. Temasek and Khazanah also have a joint-venture company in Singapore called M+S Pte Ltd, which are developing two major mixed-use developments – Marina One in Marina South and Duo in the Ophir-Rochor area.

Actually, both countries do not have that many options. All other neighbouring nations are by far larger in terms of population even if they are less advanced in terms of economy. It’s best to work together and strive for a win-win situation as per advocated by Mr. Lee in another earlier article too. So, is this the time to buy? Well, the question remains the same. Why are you buying? To wait for capital appreciation in a few years’ time? Well, there are really many people having the same thoughts as you. Haha. The catalyst is still connections. The more connections, the more Iskandar can gain. High Speed Rail is still a long-term thingy as at now. Happy following yeah.

written on 17 Dec 2016

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Singapore as a shopping paradise has a gloomy current outlook

I will be going to Singapore in July and would definitely want to drop by Orchard Road. Shopping is not my main priority but I would like to feel for myself about a recent news I read. The article is here:
Singapore’s reputation as a shopper’s paradise takes a pummelling

It does seem that Singapore’s reputation as a shoppers paradise is under threat? The article quoted a few cases where the owners of retail lots were pessimistic with their businesses. A few reasons were stated as the cause. They include weakness in the economy. Singapore’s GDP grew 1.8 percent in Q1 2016. The Singaporean government forecasted its 2016 to be between 1 – 3 percent.

Another reason stated was a drop in spending by tourists. No reason was stated but I think these days, spending by everyone is dropping and not just these tourists who may be bringing with them weaker currencies too. These visitors include middle class tourists from China, India and Southeast Asia. Total spending from overseas shoppers dropped 7 percent in 2015 versus the same period in 2014. Commercial space has also increased by 10 percent. Some were taken up because vacancy rates only rose to 7.3 percent from 5 percent previously. In other words, things are not totally gloomy yet. With the global economy slowing down, the workers in the export sectors are spending even lesser.

Competition is also rising from its neighbours. Things which shoppers would buy in Singapore can now be bought for cheaper in Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia. According to Stephen Goh, executive director at Orchard Road Business Association, there is a tendency for more Singaporeans to shop in cheaper malls overseas. I think this is also because Singaporeans are travelling more, especially with the stronger currency. I hope my friends who are reading this understand that just simply having a stronger currency is not useful if those countries with weaker currencies are able to match what you have as well. Especially with lots of
new outlet stores in many cities in Malaysia too.
 Happy shopping.

written on 10 June 2016

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Singapore: Greater means contribute a larger share

In my second year of working life, I told my mother that I was being taxed more than the year before. My mother casually commented, ‘The higher your pay, the higher your taxes will be.’ How profoundly true. I yearn to pay higher taxes after that. Of course, we do note that the super wealthiest do appoint tax consultants to ensure they are not overpaying their taxes. Anyway, I seriously do not mind to pay ever higher taxes if my income keeps growing too.

One country is validating what my mother said to me way back in the year 2000. 🙂

Article in themalaysianreserve.com
   Singapore raised taxes on its wealthiest by 1% and increased other levies as it aims to bolster its finances to chart a post-pandemic future.

Finance Minister Lawrence Wong said the new changes are needed to foster a “fairer revenue structure.” He said, “That means everyone chips in and contributes to a vibrant economy and strengthened social compact, but those with greater means contribute a larger share.”

Wong said, “Our budget remains expansionary to support the economy.”  Please do read the article with a lot more details here:
Article in themalaysianreserve.com

Expansionary Budget is always needed when the economy needs support

Sometimes, the private sector may not be able to shoulder all the necessary investments into growing the economy. They may be hesitant due to some confidence level, they may not have the capacity to do so especially if their revenues were affected by unforeseen circumstances and there may be other reasons and this is where the government will step in.

Singapore will also be raising the Goods and Services Tax (GST) by 1% in 2023 and another 1% in 2024. This will increase the GST from current 7% all the way to 9% by 2024.
News as per Straits Times Singapore here.
 This should help it to go back to the usual budget surplus on all the years before Covid-19 arrived. GST is certainly a much better tax structure than what Malaysia has currently which is the Sales and Service Tax.

Well, I am not the government and could not change it back to the right track currently. All the best then as we continue to see how countries with GST continue to gain tax revenue corresponding to the country’s GDP growth. Cheers.

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Singapore Transport Ministry: Not yet ‘true’, still discussing

I read some news online about the High Speed Rail (HSR) having two services. One is direct while another is with transit stops. In fact many were sharing and I think the general consensus is that this is a good plan. I personally also agree that there should be options too. In fact, if there are no options, I would prefer one with stops. If there are no stops, I think the benefit of the HSR to different Malaysian cities would be much lower. In that case, I am personally not keen on such a service. Before we continue debating however, today the Singapore Transport Ministry issued a statement as follows: “The plan to have two services plying the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high-speed rail (HSR) route, one direct service and another with transit stops, remains in discussion, as both sides consider the project’s “commercial and operating models, including the possibility of two different services.”

The earlier report from The Edge said that the Chief executive Mohd Nur Ismal Mohamed Kamal of MyHSR Corp Sdn Bhd had talked about stakeholders “envisioning to start with two services — one that will go directly to Singapore, and another that will stop with transit services in Bandar Malaysia, Seremban, Malacca, Muar, Batu Pahat and Nusajaya, and then (across the Causeway to) Singapore”. Total time to be taken for the journey with stops from one end to the other would be 2 hours while the direct one would be just 90 minutes. All these would also depend on customs and immigration clearance.

Just a few months ago, Malaysia’s Land Public Transport Commission and Singapore’s Land Transport Authority jointly launched a request for information (RFI) exercise to test public perception, industry opinion and gauge market interest in the rail ?project. According to Singapore, the study has been completed and both countries are studying the feedback thoroughly. The result would be used “to improve the project’s commercial and operating models and procurement approach”. As for the talk about the cost being near to RM70 billion, this has already been refuted by the MyHSR CEO as merely “speculation.”

For those waiting to buy in Iskandar when this HSR is confirmed, I seriously believe that the game changer, especially for Iskandar will not be coming from this HSR. It will have to come from better links between Iskandar and Singapore. The reduction of travelling period to just 40 minutes would increase the demand for Iskandar properties tremendously. Today, many Malaysians working in Singapore is paying through their nose for the room rentals in Singapore and if they have a choice would definitely be more than happy to exchange the S$800 room rental into monthly mortgage for a bigger and better place, including even a condominium with full facilities or a landed property. Today, there is no such choice because the travelling time during peak hours is nothing lesser than 1.5 hours. Not many are this “crazy.” Well, I still do not own anything in Iskandar yet.

written on 5 Jan 2016

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Singapore, United States, Spain, Japan, Netherlands and Iskandar

Just few days ago, another friend pointed out again that Iskandar would face oversupply of condos due to the huge China developers who are building thousands and thousands of units there. I reiterate my personal views that oversupply in the short term may happen but as long as every of the planned investments happen and the HSR really starts next year, then a lot of these may change. Always be reminded that if the journey is really less than half an hour even during jams etc, the demand would increase a few folds because a condo with full facilities in Iskandar is still at least 2 times cheaper than a HDB flat in Singapore. Please also note that there are many Malaysians working in Singapore staying in the small rooms in HDB flats and paying a minimum of S$700 for them today. The reason why they are willing to stay there is because it takes hours to travel during jams.

Then, I read a piece of news from TMI. It gave me a pleasant surprise. I think it has given many people a surprise too after the many reports about China developers buying lands in Iskandar as if they were the only ones investing there. The title of this article says it all. The top 5 largest investors in Iskandar are Singapore, United States, Spain, Japan, Netherlands. The 6th would be China followed by United Arab Emirates, Australia, lebanon and France. Second question. Spain? What is it doing there? It is starting a steel plant; Acerinox. For Q2 2014, Iskandar Malaysia secured RM9.72 billion in new investments and this brought the total new investments to RM14.56 billion. The sectors contributing to these new investments include creative, healthcare, financial services and logistics sectors.

Personally, I would still prefer to buy my next property in KL because I still feel KL has better rental yield (even if low or none) and continuous potential capital appreciation due to urbanisation. Greater KL would have a few million additional populations by 2020. Thus, to me, Greater KL carries more value for me versus Iskandar. In terms of potential capital appreciation, it is harder to say. In a few years time, if everything which is supposed to happen falls into place, then I think Iskandar has the edge by the virtue of it being right next to the most expensive city in the world for 2013. Most importantly, buy only after you have considered and read enough. There are still lots of potential traps whether KL or Iskandar if you simply buy.

written on 1 August 2014

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Down 15%, worst performing luxury property market in the world

Reported in propertyguru.com.sg, the luxury residential property market in Singapore is not doing fine. In fact, it is doing pretty badly. After dropping 15.2 percent within the past 12 months (June 2014 to June 2015), it is now ranked last among the luxury residential market in the world. The main reason is because of the Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD). This is a whopping 15 percent for foreign buyers. In other words, all foreigners who bought today would automatically lose 15 percent from whatever price they may sell in future. Does not seem like a great deal, really.

What can be done? Well, the government should ease the ABSD for this segment because this is not a segment that many Singaporeans buy into. The call came from Real Estate Developers’ Association of Singapore (REDAS) President Augustine Tan. Besides, all statistics have shown that the prices have been coming down, even if not all are giving the same numbers. With more property investments, it should also help to activate the economy, grow investment and even create more jobs for Singaporeans. The one good news is that unemployment rate in Singapore is already below 2 percent today.

Which are the three high performing markets? According to Knight Frank’s report, Vancouver in Canada, Miami in the US and Sydney of Australia occupy the top three. Their prices have grown 15 percent, 13.9 percent and 12.5 percent respectively for the past 12 months. According to Knight Frank, their report covers just the prime property market and this is the top 5 percent of all the markets that they track. This is why the reduction in terms of percentage is different from what the Singaporean government is saying. Read here:
Lifting cooling measures? Too soon: MAS

It said that prices have only moved down 7% and thus, all the cooling measures should continue.

I think I do agree with REDAS President. If he has statistics to show that Singaporeans are not buying into this segment, then the government should be more pro-investment because the buyers who can afford these units are definitely the super wealthy ones. Perhaps this has to also do with being seen to be sensitive to the public but I think the Singaporean government is already doing a good job when it comes to HDB flats. Thus, these two issues may need to be looked at separately. We will just have to see what happens at the end of the year, after the election. Happy reading.

written on 8 Aug 2015

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Singaporean buying Ipoh properties?

Is Ipoh an attractive place for vacation? Yes. Lots of nature, lots of temples, lots of hills and lots of greenery. For shopping? Not really. The food? Surely.  Would Singaporeans be interested in Ipoh? Potentially, yes. One of Singapore’s low cost carrier, Tigerair would be commencing service from may 29. It would operate four weekly flights between Ipoh and Singapore on every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Bookings for these flights start on April 20. Tigerair CEO Lee Lik Hsin said, “We are excited to add Ipoh to our growing Asia network and be the first to operate jet flights in Ipoh.” Ipoh would be Tigerair’s 4th Malaysian destination besides Kuala Lumpur, Langkawi and Penang.

Tigerair is the 4th airline to be operating from the Sultan Azlan Shah airport. Currently, Malindo, Firefly and Sriwijaya Air operates flights between Medan, Singapore and Johor Bahru. Thus far I have never heard of any significant happenings in Ipoh. Many Ipohans who have completed their Form 5 or Form 6 would most of the time proceed to universities outside Ipoh and out of these, most are likely to be working elsewhere instead of Ipoh. However, do note that Ipoh is still Malaysia’s 5th biggest city and in terms of actual facilities and attractions would be second to none. In fact the cost of living is also much lower and she has been ranked one of the top retirement cities in the world! Read here:
Best place always; Retire in Ipoh.

If we think a little bit, do you believe Tigerair is starting the 4 flights per week between Ipoh and Singapore because there are a lot of Ipohans who would want to visit Singapore for vacation? Or do you believe there are also almost equal number of Singaporeans who may just want to visit Ipoh, know more about Ipoh and really interested with Ipoh as another city for their retirement consideration? Perhaps it may be time to really think seriously about those high-rise developments in Ipoh? Oh yeah, the minimum property purchase price in Ipoh for foreigners is set at RM350,000 only. Actually, today in Ipoh there are really not many options for RM350,000 and below but for Singaporeans, even a higher number seems totally palatable. Their HDB flat  in a good location can be as high as S$1,000,000 (RM2.7 Million). Yes, HDB flat has no car park space allocated and no swimming pool and other usual creature comforts.

Perhaps now, we can see some reasons why Tigerair is starting that route between Ipoh-Singapore. They may be wrong, of course and stop the route in future. For now, let’s believe they are right in their assessment. Of course, for me, I would retire in Ipoh. Just hope I can afford something by then.

written on 2 Apr 2015

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Singaporean economy, property prices down and Iskandar

What’s the possibility of Singapore property market affecting property market Malaysia? Given the fact that Singaporeans are the largest group of investors in Iskandar and also buys into other cities such as KL, Penang and even smaller ones like Melaka? Singaporean property prices are coming down. In fact there’s a possibility that this price slump may affect it’s economy as a whole. With lower prices, construction activities are also slowing down. According to Bloomberg, the construction outputs have also fallen compared to the same time a year ago. Home prices continued declining in September and it’s the fourth consecutive quarter of decline! This is considered the worst ever within the past five years. knight Frank said that property prices have dropped 7.3% within the first six months of 2014.

Who’s causing this? Well, it’s the cooling measures which has been put in place since 2009. The crazy property price increases from 2009 – 2013 are finally declining but it’s unlikely to be any percentage which is remotely near to the 60% growth during the same period. The construction sector meanwhile will have a bearing on Singapore’s economy, just as the decline in property prices. With these twin effects from the property prices and construction activities, the economy of SIngapore has expanded only an annualised 1.2% in the third quarter which was way below analysts’ expectations. I like the statement from Vishnu Varathan, market economist at Mizuho Bank to CNBC. He said, “Property could be one of the big cogs in the whole risk mechanism impacting Singapore, but it would likely take an external trigger from the global economy to trigger a sharp price correction.”

As the main motivation for all the cooling measures is not to push prices down sharply but to stop it from growing too fast, I think the Singaporean government may be happy that its working according to their plans. Fortunately for Singapore, construction accounts for just 5% of its economy but as usual, a 50% fall would cause economy growth to be lower than expectations. Services account for 70% and manufacturing 20%. Looking at this scenario, I think this would also be a reason why investments into Iskandar property market has slowed. If prices in Singapore continues to decline, it may be more attractive and safer to buy within rather than external. After all, every new level would always be punctuated by a small decline before prices resume its march upwards in the future. The only question is when.

written on 23 Oct 2014

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Why I like Singaporean investors’ attitude

Some years back, I was in Singapore for an exclusive property show as the organiser. I noticed that many visitors to the show were vying for a seat in all the talks. In fact, there were so many of them we had to open the door and so many of them were standing outside just to listen. Some of us would cynically say that they are just having the ‘kiasu’ attitude. I do not disagree with this attitude which is famous in the world but truth is, for property investment, the attitude should be one of learn first, action later. Yes, we should be ‘kiasu’ (scared to lose) and even ‘kiasi’ (scared to die) because property would most probably be the largest purchase we would ever have in our lives. I was terrified when I had to buy a RM123,000 apartment over 12 years ago. It took me weeks to decide.

The right purchase may help us in our retirement planning and the wrong one just sap away all our savings for many years. This attitude has remained the same even in a slowing market of today, in Singapore. In the recent SPH Digital’s Property Seminar and Showcase 2016, over 500 people bought tickets for the talks and due to it being a sold-out, members of the public who failed to get a ticket could only visit the many developer booths there. This has shown that even during a slowdown, the interest for property remained strong. Perhaps those who eventually take action may be far fewer for now. Looking back at Malaysia, how many potential property investors would be willing to pay money to listen to seminars?

Many would even argue that these speakers are just representing the developers and thus are biased. There are some truths in this but we can definitely learn a lot more just by listening versus having cup of coffee in Starbucks and playing with the smartphone. I have never failed to learn something new. In terms of biased or not, when we know a little more than the majority, we can start to filter those out and just get the important points. We can learn more about a certain area, about the potential upcoming developments and even some investment tips. Happy visiting, grabbing a seat and listening.

written on 27 Jan 2016

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Singaporeans in Johor, buying landed and business parks

If I own a manufacturing business in Singapore today, I would be thinking way ahead and start investing in Johor Bahru / Iskandar. Alternatively, in Indonesia but it is impossible to keep trying to survive against the world just by operating within Singapore. In a recent article in The Star, the Johor Real Estate and Housing Developers Association (Rehda) branch chairman Hoe Mee Ling said that Singaporeans are looking for business parks that are near the highways and townships as the cost of setting up shops here is only about one-third the cost of operating in Singapore.

Besides that, they are also interested in landed homes too. Other factors why Singaporeans love landed and well designed business parks also include the geographical location, improvement of infrastructure, growing workforce and continuing investments. She also said something which I think makes real business sense. She said that the current economic and political climate may impact the progress of Iskandar Malaysia in the short term but this would be mitigated by Iskandar’s many other inherent advantages.

To be very direct, the inherent advantage is really because it’s next to Singapore and Singapore has always been voted one of the most expensive cities of the world today. One needs more investment, another needs a place to expand further as there’s really no other choice. If Singapore is not situated next to Iskandar, then this is definitely a white elephant. If Singaporeans should be investing in Iskandar, I think the opportunity is definitely there to buy first before they do? Selectively, please. Simply buying in whatever economic situation will still ‘hurt’ us. Happy believing.

written on 14 Nov 2015

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Singaporean PM, SME, Iskandar

Imagine you are a SME business in.Singapore. You are doing pretty well and you would like grow your business to the next level. Many years ago, your best choice would be Batam. Today, if you still think Batam is a good bet, then a better bet would be Iskandar. Yes, in terms of exchange rate, Batam is still more value for money but that’s about the only real reason. Considering that you want to be at your factory every day, perhaps at 1030am? You can still have a breakfast with your family at 830 and only drive across using the second link at 945am and still arrive well before 1030am, depending on which part of Singapore you stay. Besides that, despite all those news about crime rates etc, the truth is all these are becoming better and not worse no matter which way you are looking at it.

Recently, Singaporean Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong said that all the SMEs who are seriously thinking of growing should seriously consider Iskandar. It has the advantages of lower costs and more land. They can do all these and at the same time stay close to Singapore. Come on, if the Prime Minister of South East Asian’s most advanced economy say so, who are we to argue or debate right?

Personally, I think he is right. In fact the integration of a closer economic relationship between Iskandar and Singapore meant that both sides grow much faster. On one side, too many businesses are fighting the ever rising costs and the fact that the competition is versus the world and not between the two middle sized economies. On the other side, Iskandar has just started to appear really attractive, so much that for some Chinese developers, Iskandar represents their largest foreign investment at this point in time! And Iskandar has lands…. lots of lands….. and imagine if both Senai International airport and Changi Airport, both being so near to Iskandar. If KLIA2 was built for 45 million passengers per year, Changi is already serving around 50 million per year today. Senai will handle 2 million this year.

Potentially, there’s so much to say. Realistically, a lot needs to happen. We shall see.

written on 10 May 2014.

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Singaporeans have lost interest with Johor property?

I saw this article in
TheStar: Waning Singaporean interest in Johor property market
  The article quoted a few Singaporeans who bought properties in Johor a few years ago. One said he was getting a lot more space and value for his money. However, he has regretted the decision because of the daily crawl into Singapore every working day. (Now, hopefully everyone realises that my support for Rail Transit System (RTS) instead of HSR KL – SG for the benefit of JB property market is a correct one. Here’s that earlier article:
Outlook in Iskandar? RTS helps a lot

 Do we now see the opportunity if the connection becomes a reality?)

Another person mentioned in the article said this, “Investing in an overseas market is riddled with challenges – asset management, forex, taxation, familiarity of environment.” (Good reasons indeed. That’s why it’s much more advantageous to buy in JB versus some other countries. Even when there’s a crawl, that property is just 1-2 hours away and not many hours of flight away.)   Another source who declined to be named said that the interest in Johor peaked in 2013. The reason was because of interest-bearing schemes, or deferred payment schemes which were later banned in 2014. (Seriously, I am happy that the interest waned if this was the reason. Sorry yeah, speculators, you can continue speculating elsewhere lah. As for the Malaysian property market, I prefer for it to go up very slowly.) It was also mentioned in the article that a Singapore Cabinet minister cautioned Singaporeans against investing too aggressively in Johor in 2015. (Very good advise that Singapore Cabinet Minister.)

Then, the same reason was mentioned. “The worsening traffic congestion at the two land crossings in Woodlands and Tuas has also put off many Singaporeans from buying and living in Johor.” This was what Cushman & Wakefield Singapore’s senior director and head of research Christine Li: “A better Singapore housing market has put the investment spotlight back to the home market. Johor Baru properties are also competing with those in Bangkok and Cambodia.” (Haha… competing with Bangkok and Cambodia… I hope Singaporeans could have the opportunity to compare as many property markets as possible before they invest. No harm and perhaps better too.)  Please do read the article. There’s even a bullish comment at the end. This was what he said, “A strong and stable Malaysia is good for Singapore, as we ride on and benefit from each other’s strength. Its the same argument for a strong and stable China. Big countries are like the tides. When the tide goes up Singapore moves up and when the tide comes down, we come down. This is the reality of today’s social and economic dynamics. Countries big or small are interconnected.” Here’s that article:
Waning Singaporean interest in Johor properties

By the way, here’s that request from the Johor state government to the federal government.
‘Please start the JB – Singapore RTS by mid 2019.
  Maybe we really do not have to say too much. Maybe it’s just whether the RTS starts earlier or later. By the way, I seriously think the interest from Singaporeans on JB properties are not that high when compared to these two other groups. The ‘higher interest’ would definitely be coming from Malaysians working and staying in the SMALLEST room in a HDB flat currently and paying S$700 (RM2,100) for it every month. The reason for them staying there is definitely not because they love the small room but the convenience of going to work on time. It will also come from Malaysians in JB because when the RTS starts, the rental market for non-Johorean Malaysians working in Singapore would also start increasing too. Hopefully, the Johoreans are the ones buying first instead of the KLites who are already seasoned property investors. Happy believing.

written on 12 Aug 2018

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No way that Singaporeans / Malaysians in Singapore staying in Iskandar.

A friend told me the other day that I am wrong about my expectations that Singaporeans or even Malaysians working in Singapore buying homes in Iskandar just because a few more bridges are built. Even if it’s 30 minutes, it’s too much effort. Huh? I just came back from Singapore and from my office there to the airport, it would have taken me easily 52 minutes! That’s just within ONE country. I did not see everyone crowding into the central districts. Do you know why? Please go and check the prices of even the HDB flats for these areas which are next to or nearby the Central Business Districts. Then, you would get my idea WHY if the new bridges allow these people to travel comfortably within half and hour and a total of 45 minutes, end to end, it will be a catalyst for the move to happen.

Besides that, a colleague told me the other day that while MRT is very convenient but if given a choice, majority of everyone would have preferred to drive. Come on, let’s be realistic, with a car it fear no rain nor shine. With a car, it does not need to follow any specific schedule and even direction. There is no need to change stations or even take the bus for some areas. With a car, a family with babies would not struggle to do their shopping, with trolley, baby bags and shopping bags. I love taking the MRT when I am in Singapore but if I am there with my family, I can already imagine how troublesome it would be for a family of four like me.

Yes, it is true. I can own a car in Malaysia and it would be too expensive to drive into Singapore but a Preve in Singapore costs a bomb while a Preve in Malaysia starts from RM55,000. How much is Preve in Singapore? Read here:
Proton Preve RM509,605, SGD appreciation and transportation costs
.
If I work in Singapore and earns only a combined S$10,000 household income, I can easily pay for a gated and guarded landed home in Iskandar or one of the better and bigger condos too. I would park my car in Iskandar and drive them during the weekends. It’s expensive to pay every month and drive just 8-10 days per month? Haha. FYI, renting a car for 8-10 days a month is definitely more expensive than paying for a car on a monthly basis. Go figure.

If you are a Singaporean or a Malaysian working in Singapore and you disagree, sure, I will accept your argument, no matter what it is. Everyone should have their preference, whether it’s staying in a flat nearby a good public school within Singapore or a condo nearby an international school within a good area inside Iskandar. Happy choosing whatever. As for my friend, I hope he enjoys his MRT rides like me when I travel to Singapore, alone.

written on 5 June 2015

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Singapore’s future growth potential depends on local SMEs

I read something very real and very useful not just for Singapore but for any nation wishing to continue growing. Its always great to grow with Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) but if the local companies and local talents are not built up, the growth would only continue as long as the MNCs still think the country is the most competitive. Note, it must be the most competitive because when it is no longer the most competitive, the Headquarter of the MNC which is a few thousand miles away would just decide to consolidate or close down the business. One real example? Read here:
Consolidation, Old plants, Fairchild in Penang ends

However, when they are the local companies, their base would forever be in the home country and as long as they keep improving and is quite competitive, they would still be around. Note though that this is not a fault of the MNC because more often than not, they are also a profit going concern and cannot afford to be complacent. Returns to investment must be maximised, right?

Below is a summary of was reported in a local English daily on what has happened in Singapore and should happen in future for future prosperity. According to Centennial Asia Advisors chief executive officer Manu Bhaskaran it is time that Singapore embarks on a new economic model to narrow the income disparities.
(Note: I do not know of any country in the world where income disparity is becoming better or the richer are staying the same while the poorer are getting richer)

For the past half century, Singapore has grown from a backwater nation to today’s regional financial and export hub known for its safety, cleanliness and efficiency. However, even with one of the highest-per-capita income in the world, Singaporeans in the lower income brackets face competition from foreign migrant workers and thus depressing wages. On the other hand, highly-skipped expatriates are making housing expensive for many Singaporeans.
 (Note: Everyone can continue to say HDB flats are clean but I can safely tell you that any Singaporean in Singapore would prefer to live in executive condos instead. Yet these have increased in prices way too much compared to the usual wage growth over the years for the middle income Singaporeans)

There are not going to be huge changes and PAP would still be the majority government but adjustments are needed in the economy. After years of growth being powered by foreign MNCs, policymakers must build up local companies and focus on local force instead of continuously bringing in foreign talent. Foreign MNCs remain important but local companies and talents must start to become prominent. Manu says one example of how the incomes of Singaporeans can be lifted would be to grow the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) sector as this helps to employ skilled labour and help play an important socio-economic role in the country. The government must start opening up opportunities abroad for local companies.
 (Note: We can see this being done very well by the US or China where they use their influence to help their companies to expand into the emerging markets)

Manu also believes that Iskandar Malaysia will be critical for Singapore’s growth and mutually beneficial. Both should leverage on each other as Malaysia has land and resources while Singapore has the capital and technology. In fact global cities always have a secondary airport and Iskandar can fulfil this role. A depreciating ringgit has also made Malaysia more attractive for cost-conscious Singaporean companies. When this engine of growth starts in Iskandar, the rest would follow. (Note: My opinion remains the same. The game changer is not the High Speed Rail
(HSR) that so many people are talking about. The game changer is more connections so that it becomes efficient to travel to and fro. Singapore or Iskandar has to continue growing. On one hand, one side cannot keep growing if population does not grow. Yet, if population grows faster than the available infrastructure can absorb, prices go up and that’s where property prices would be higher than today! On the other side, Iskandar cannot grow without more investments and if Iskandar stops growing, the infrastructure would also stop growing and very soon Singapore would have to leverage on somewhere else. I hope that somewhere else exists, somehow.)

MNCs based in Singapore today do not need necessary need to be in Iskandar.  However, they can definitely house some of their expats there when there are better connections. However, local Singaporean SMEs with global ambitions cannot compete by just increasing their capacity in Singapore. They would close shop before they even start. Just look at the biggest investment that every company would have to make for expansion. Space and people. In Singapore, space is premium and it’s priced in SGD. In Malaysia, space is many times more and it’s priced in RM. People? Haha. Do we know how many Malaysians are working in Singapore? Truth is, with tweaks in policies by the Singaporean government, this number would still grow but more of them can be based in Iskandar instead and working in tandem to grow economies of both. All the best yeah. Prosper thy neighbour.

Happy understanding.

written on 16 September 2015

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Singapore’s new ‘ground breaking’ city.

If someone were to ask me what I love about Singapore, I think it’s the stability and pro-activeness of the government. Whatever they do, whatever they build, it’s always for the future. Plus, within the 4Ps (People, Price, Policy and Preference), the government of Singapore is in full control of the Policy part and that includes really enforcing everything strictly and without fear and favour. Many years ago, I wrote about this:
Singapore’s Underground Plan
  Today, here’s the follow up
Article in FreeMalaysiaToday.com here.

Singapore will soon be unveiling its Underground Master Plan in 2019. Singapore has been reclaiming land for decades but this is unsustainable because of rising sea levels and climate change impact. It’s population is expected to grow to 6.9 million by 2030. Currently, some infrastructure and utilities such as train lines, retail, pedestrian walkways and even a five-lane highway and air conditioning cooling pipes are already underground. This is in addition to the storing of fuel and ammunition underground too.

This is its next intention. Ler Seng Ann, a group director at the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) said, “Currently, our focus is on using underground space for utility, transport, storage and industrial facilities to free up surface land for housing, offices, community uses and greenery, to enhance liveability.” The Underground Master Plan will feature pilot areas, with ideas including data centres, utility plants, bus depots, a deep-tunnel sewerage system, warehousing and water reservoirs. There are no plans to move homes or offices below ground.  The only issue is that building underground is usually more expensive and complex.

Ler added, “In many cases, it does make sense to build underground, considering benefits such as land saving, improving the quality of the environment and better connectivity.” The Singapore government also made legislative changes that enable it to buy land beneath private blocks, and limit private owners to 30 metres of space below their properties. The Underground Master Plan uses 3D technology, allowing the visualisation of space that otherwise cannot be seen.
Article in FreeMalaysiaToday.com here.

This is why we do not need to predict what may happen to the way city planners do their work. We only need to look at the countries which are already doing it and we could already see all the potential happenings. Greater KL is certainly bigger than Singapore but if we were to ask people if they prefer to live closer to where the action is or further away, the answer remains the same; as near as possible. The only issue is the size of their homes because not T20 (senior managers) love to stay in a smaller than 1,000 sq ft condominium within the city centre versus a landed gated and guarded home further away. So, if we imagine all the land currently occupied by utility plants, sewerage ponds, bus depots and even old buildings in need of redevelopment, we are looking at a whole new world where land space is freed up for ever more homes too. The future is pretty certain. Happy following.

written on 24 Dec 2018

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Singapore’s property market has many challenges.

If the property market in our closest neighbour is not well, how well would our property market be? I know of one good friend who will tell me this: “If the Singapore property market is doing well, then most investors will focus their attention there for better returns. The Malaysian property market will only be attractive when the Singapore property market has risen to a level deemed too high, then people will be wary and they may invest in the property market of Malaysia instead.” What happens then if the Singaporean property market has issues? Singapore’s Real Estate Developers’ Association of Singapore (Redas) president Augustine Tan said that the recent cooling measures have “indeed weakened market sentiments and demand” by raising the barriers for entry for “all categories of buyers” Here’s that article in
StraitsTimes.com.sg

The reason he said so is because there will be nearly 46,000 private residential units which could be available for sale between 2019 and 2020 and this number will take around five years to be fully absorbed. he shared that analysts are also expecting developer sales for 2018 to drop to between 8,500 to 9,500 units and this is 15 to 20 percent down from last year. There are also other “dark clouds” such as heightened trade tensions and rising interest rates. There are however exceptions. Demand for developments in good locations and close to MRT stations remained “resilient” and continued to attract interest from first-time homebuyers and owners of en bloc developments. (I have always thought that every neighbourhood within Singapore is somehow connected to the MRT stations even if it may not be direct but by transit buses for example. Well, perhaps what he meant is that those which are really nearby)

Minister for Social and Family Development (MSF) and Second Minister for National Development Desmond Lee said that the cooling measures were taken in order to “keep prices in line with economic fundamentals.” This is in view of the large supply of properties coming on-stream as well as rising interest rates. He added that the government has “acted earlier.” He also hope for developers’ assistance in helping the needy. “As social needs grow in complexity, we need to look ahead and galvanise a whole-of-society approach to support and uplift individuals and families who may need more help.” One of the ways isthrough the Community and Sports Facilities Scheme (CSFS), introduced in 2003, which gives participating developers a bonus gross floor area (GFA) for community and sports uses over and above the maximum GFA permissible under the master plan for the commercial
developments. Full article in StraitsTimes.com.sg here.

I personally do not think the cooling measures which are in place currently in Malaysia to be loosened anytime soon. We should remember that the cooling measures were implemented so that property prices either stay put or rise much slower than household income increases. Please do look at the image from
housingwatch.my
  We can see that Q1 2018 has showed for the very first time that property price increase has slowed down to just 4.1 percent versus a 26-year average of 6.5 percent previously. Perhaps this is a sign that the cooling measures have started to have effects on the market?  Yeah I know, some are saying that the Ministry of Housing and Local Government will announce something substantial for the first-time purchasers soon. Happy following and anticipating.

written on 19 Sept 2018

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Singapore’s property portals just got a new competitor.

The largest companies in the world today are most probably online based businesses. Think Facebook, Google and even the latest one, Alibaba.com which just got itself listed and its owner one of the richest men in China. In the online real estate world, there are many prominent names. In Singapore, Propertyguru.com.sg is the leading property portal. Famous enough that its name was even mentioned during the recent Singapore national day speech by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. In terms of its property market, Singapore is considered a developed market even if it has a population of just 5.4 million today. It is not just the property market which is gaining huge attention amongst the international buyers. The number of property portals which are trying to serve the market has just increase by one recently. 99.co is the latest addition, on top of propertyguru.com.sg, iproperty.com.sg, stproperty.com.sg and many more smaller ones. I do not know why it uses the number 99 instead of a ‘property’ or related word. Perhaps this 99 would allow many to remember it easily though personally I do not think so.

What’s the special thing about 99.co is that it said it is trying to be fair to all agents, especially the beginners. This is because it said that the more famous sites are favouring more established agents who are paying more to get ‘sponsored listings’. In other words, when you pay more, you get shown at a more prominent space in the said property portal. It also said that when users search, its results are much more relevant with its ListRank algorithm. According to its founder, Cheung, the reason 99.co came about was because he had to search for a new apartment and he found the existing portals way too tough. He said that in these sites, ‘the quality of the search results are not important’. It is more of ‘premium listings’ instead. 99.co differentiates itself with its ListRank by making results much more relevant by focusing on 30 data points from listings including listing quality which looks at how complete and specific information is provided and is even able to tell if agents have copied-and-pasted the same text for different ads! 99.co is also able to understand the user behavior and able to return a similar listing result. Besides that, even the agent ratings would be taken into account too.

For a property portal to be successful, I feel the most important thing would be how popular the portal is. It can have the most number of listings in the world but after 1 month if not many people saw the listings, the agents would lose faith and neglect to repost their listings. As for the potential buyers, for those who come after one month and saw that many of the listings are old ones, they would lose trust and venture to other more popular and updated sites. This is why many newer portals which tries to challenge the existing players would need lots of financial muscle to continue pushing. After all, during the beginning, no agent would be willing to pay you and yet your service must be greater and not just the same level as the existing players. If I am a buyer, I expect to see the most number of listings, whether relevant or sponsored. Not many potential buyers would venture to more than two sites because just going through and calling the agents in the first two portals would have taken most of their time and effort. This is not unique to just property portals but any other businesses as well. Even when you want to do window shopping, you would go to the largest malls near you and would not be going to the largest mall, followed by the second and then followed by the third and so on. This is not the usual behavior of any typical user.

As for whether 99.co would be successful or not, it takes more than just a few months to find out. At the very least, it should be in the market for up to 24 months to know if its business model works better compared to the current players. I think it should be around for a longer time. Its owner Cheung said that when the time to charge comes, it will adopt a similar revenue model as its competitors. It will charge real estate agents for listings but the difference is that it will not allow the agents to pay more and thus influence the results. In other words, a flat fee only. Let’s wait and see then.

written on 12 Nov 2014

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Single storey semi-detached in Ipoh at RM500k?

How could it be? There are no huge industries. It is not an education hub. Even tourists are few and fellow Malaysians said Ipoh is a city for the old folks. The airport is so small that no one knows Ipoh has an airport! Private hospitals? Yea, as if the patients would want to fly into KLIA, then take a 4 hour journey to Ipoh just to reach the private hospitals? My mum was very excited because it was a neighbour’s house which was to be sold at RM500K. My parents bought the original house at just RM85,000.

Actually this RM500,000 price is an artificial price because there are no other transactions at that price. Thus the price is more of a buyer and seller willing basis. Should an old house of over 20 years be priced so high? Actually I think the main reason would be due to its location. While it is true that for RM500,000 you can buy much bigger sized landed properties on newer areas or the not so popular ones, the truth is, nice locations no longer have any expansion probability and thus it will continue to increase until a level which is deemed too high. RM500,000 is definitely not deemed too high when buyers have information on the prices in other states. What if the buyer is a Ipohan who is working in Penang or KL?

This is not just in Ipoh which is a secondary property market. Look at Melaka, Seremban, Batu Pahat etc. All these markets would continue to rise because when primary markets rises, it will also bring up the prices in these secondary markets. For example, can prices in Ipoh continue to be RM85,000 when markets in Penang and KL rises to RM1.5 million for a similar property? The answer is a clear no. Nevertheless, without a catalyst, Ipoh properties would always be a secondary market and definitely have very little speculation if any. This is good for Ipoh market as it is more of a need and not greed basis. 🙂

written on 6th jan 2014

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Sinkhole in Jalan Sri Hartamas 1. Road is closed.

Public announcement yeah. Hope everything will be just fine except for some traffic jams due to road closure.

Article in thestar.com.my
  MOTORISTS in Kuala Lumpur’s Taman Sri Hartamas are advised to be cautious as a sinkhole has been reported at Jalan Sri Hartamas 1 near the National Registration Department (NRD) office.

Kuala Lumpur City Hall’s (DBKL) operations centre confirmed the matter on Wednesday (Oct 20), adding that both sides of the road near the intersection of Jalan Sri Hartamas 1 and Jalan Dutamas 1 were currently closed to traffic.

A statement on DBKL’s ITIS Facebook page said closure of both sides of the road was necessary as the sinkhole was expanding. Please read the article here:
Article in thestar.com.my

Cause for sinkhole is needed quickly

It has been raining. If this is the main cause, then need to know all the reasons and all other potential at risk roads as well. The reason I say so is because it will continue to rain for many more days to come. Latest weather forecast from google as follows:

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Six Malaysian property projects won in FIABCI World Prix d’Excellence Awards 2020

FIABCI World Prix d’Excellence Awards have always been known as the Oscars in the real estate world. In their 2020 edition, six Malaysian projects won this world class award. Of the six developers, five were for Gold Award.

They are Plaza Arkadia in the Mixed-Use Development Category developed by Perdana ParkCity, KL Eco City (Office) by SP Setia, Mangala Resort & Spa (Resort) by Franky Land, Melawati Mall (Retail) by Sime Darby Property / CapitaLand, and Gamuda City in Vietnam (Master Plan Category) by Gamuda Land.

The sixth development which received the silver award is Pangsapuri Kasturi (Affordable Housing Category) by Johor Land.

This year, a record 33 of the world’s best property developments were recognised as the industry’s finest. There were 16 World Gold winners and 17 World Silver winners. These winning developments were from Hungary, the Republic of Panama, Netherlands, Taiwan, Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam, and Malaysia.

Newly-appointed FIABCI World Prix d’Excellence Awards Committee President Dr Yu Kee Su said because of competition, there were a few joint winners in several categories contested for both the gold and silver awards.  He said, “The projects submitted for judging are getting better every succeeding year, raising the benchmark of excellence.”

FIABCI World President (2020-202)1 Florentino Dulalia said the beauty of an excellent project lies within the detailed and meticulous planning incorporating design and architecture, nature conservation and sustainability. He said, “The final creation shall benefit society in making the world a better place to live in the largest scale possible.”

FIABCI Malaysia Chapter President Michael Geh said property developments in the country had received international recognition because of the high product quality and attractive architecture with more than a touch of green. He said, “Malaysian developers have raised the bar in developing properties which have consistently fared very well in the international property competitions.”

Michael also shared that even though it seems that many of these developer winners were bigger players but the truth is, he could see many good boutique developments which were worthy potential winners too. The only issue was that these boutique developments were not submitted for consideration. Thus, he encourage more developers to take part and the focus should be on the product and not the size of the developer.

He said, “I invite local developers who are passionate about their boutique projects to submit for the coming FIABCI Malaysia Property Award. Previous winners are not big companies and projects, many boutique developments have won and went on to achieve international recognition.”

Any local developers who would like to know how to submit their entries for the Malaysia Property Awards by FIABCI should quickly contact the following:

Datuk Hoe Mee Ling
meeling2011@gmail.com
 , Organising Committee Member
Rachel
rachelsiau@fiabci.com.my
 FIABCI Secretariat.

Congratulations to all winners and let’s look forward to ever more Malaysian winners to keep raising the bar year after year.

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Property investment: size, area, price, affordability

Some time back, I wrote about this:
Lower end, Higher end and Mixed Blend

I seriously do not believe majority of Malaysians can afford those properties priced RM 1 million or higher. In fact the mixed blend which is those properties which want to be ‘luxury’ but is not considered by the super wealthy an yet due to it’s above RM850,000 price, there is a very limited number of people who can afford them. An example, 1,000 sq ft for RM850,000. This is definitely excessive for majority and yet the richer ones would definitely not want such a small unit. RM850,000 is nothing and they can easily afford something twice the amount. They definitely do not want their friends to visit their 1,000 sq ft condo…….

My good friend, Dr. Daniele Gambero recently wrote a very good article for propertyguru.com.my which is worth sharing. He shared that statistically, 60 percent of the Malaysian population or 18,000,000 Malaysians are the core middle class who controls a good 55% of the Malaysian wealth. With this, he estimated that properties priced between RM200 to RM700 psf will be targeted by them today and for the next several years. Within the Greater KL and Klang Valley, he predicted that residential properties priced between RM250,000 and RM850,000 (according to different areas of course) will remain a very good product for investors and will guarantee a good capital appreciation.

Anyway, just to prove my point and perhaps reinforce Daniele’s idea of up to RM850,000 I searched for condos between RM800,000 – RM900,000 and found some of the following in property guru.com.my.
I searched for Bangsar. Size is really considered small even if area wise is considered a popular one. To be frank, when I did not have a chance to stay in a bigger place, I have always felt that 1,000 sq ft should be enough. However, with a family of four, I feel that space is now very important and I am not willing to sacrifice space simply because of the area that I stay in. I would prefer to buy what I need instead.

I then searched in iproperty.com.my for Desaparkcity related condos for RM800,000 to RM900,000 and found that the choices are very limited.
Sizes are really small and would not fit a family of four comfortably in my opinion. As for their latest launchings, it is already above the typical prices which I think is affordable. How much should these properties be appreciating in the future? It really depends on how obsessed are the buyers with the area instead of the size. One trend is also emerging within these two years of slowdown. Smaller sized homes are being launched instead of the bigger ones. In fact, not many launchings are beyond 1,200 sq ft. In fact majority are trying to ensure prices are very affordable and the sized are already smaller than 1,000 sq ft. Think really objectively when we buy. Besides just the area, a shortage of certain sizes or an abundance of such sizes would also determine the prices. Happy believing and acting accordingly.

written on 14 Nov 2015

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Skills to survive? If jobs are gone? How to multiply what we have?

I am in Perth, so naturally must write one or two articles for kopiandproperty.com from Perth, right? I enjoyed it a lot thus far,my second trip within 2 years. Yesterday morning, I was having my breakfast and noticed this. The world is changing fast.  Jobs come today, gone tomorrow. Many traditional and manual kind of jobs especially those that is harder to hire will have to be replaced by robots or machines. It’s not because the company hates humans but these companies have to survive and they do not wish to have hiring and retaining plus retaining problems. With assistance from robots /machines, there is no need to do lots of hiring or even firing when times are slow. I was reminded of this sobering fact today in Perth. Look at the image. A machine which takes orders and allows customers to pay immediately.  There were no queues to order at all!  Everyone orders and sits down to wait until their number is announced. By the way, the minimum wage in Perth is AUD640.90 (RM2,053) per week or AUD16.87 (RM54) per hour.
We can read about the minimum wage here.

Actually, when we look at this minimum wage, I think Australians working and staying in Perth should not find it too hard to survive, even with their current property price. A typical lunch in the usual cafes would only cost less than AUD20. This is only around an hour’s work. Meals in fast food restaurants would be cheaper. Well, car prices is not cheap when compared to the U.S, Japan or Germany but it is still considered cheap in relation to their salary. I have no idea how much can one save with this wage but assuming it’s just 20% per month? That’s AUD510 per month. In a year, this would be AUD6,152. I think Australians can start migrating to cheaper ASEAN countries when they need to retire. AUD6,152 x 30 years x just 2% up per year is going to be a lot of money in many ASEAN nations. 🙂  Okay, perhaps not in Singapore. One thing I noticed however is the fact that low salary is still an issue here, especially with the potential of a higher tax. Look at an article in a local newspaper here.

I think it’s important to note that even when the minimum wage is high, it does not take away the fact that without any skills which will always be sought after or an investment to multiply what we have, we will still face an uncertain future in future. An accountant may have a better chance of keeping his job than a manual worker and paid higher too but not everyone can become an accountant. A doctor too, for that matter unless there are way too many doctors. Even lawyers who are not so awesome in ‘arguing’ will struggle too. One common thing is that everyone have access to good investment books (think Western Australia state library) and could even read all these free articles in many media sites and even tiny blogs like kopiandproperty.com too. Perhaps another way may be to just work harder and save even more. One loaf of bread is less than AUD1 anyway. (economy house brand). Generally, I think it’s applicable to everyone, even those in Singapore or Malaysia. G’day Mate.

written on 12 May 2017

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Or my earlier Perth article?
Perth -city with parks or actually parks with a city

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Still about Sky-Cab? Okay, three questions.

I wrote about Sky-Cab before. Here:
CableCar, Tunnel, LRT, more roads and PTMP. Action!

Well, nothing was reported until recently. I still do not see the economic reasons for Sky-Cab. Let’s ask three questions instead so that I get a clearer picture to decide I should support this Sky-Cab or should I not support it? From my writings on PTMP, you would know I support it thoroughly even if not in its entire form. As for Sky-Cab, well, here’s three personal questions:

How many people are expected to use the service? Please, announce that number based on some valid data and analysis. Never build something to benefit only few people and yet having to think so much about environmental concerns, about costing, about transparency in selecting the company to build and wasting so much time of everyone in debating such a ‘small’ project.

Is the public transport ready? Are the taxis ready to support this? These visitors or travellers who arrive would need connections to places they want to visit. Let’s not have horror stories of some taxi drivers monopolizing and charging exorbitant fees. The busses must be enough, with synchronization with arrival times and ALWAYS ON TIME. All these needs to be solved well in advance and not waiting for it to happen first.

Who will build, what benefit would they get? Seriously, if this is to be a private sector initiative, that company must start to tell everyone about its plans now. If this is a government initiative, can it provide timelines as to the progress of this? For example, what stage is this Sky-Cab proposal at? Just an idea? Already being discussed at the state level? Tender will be called soon?

Let’s be very real and very transparent. The NGOs for the environment would be making lots of noise because this will affect the environment. However, Penang as a developing state must continue to develop faster than majority. It’s already ahead today and should not be moving backwards. Thus, any development which would enable the state to reap more benefits should supported. It’s our goal, right? A better and more prosperous Penang benefits all Penangites and even non Penangites with properties there. As of now, that includes me. Happy weekend ahead.

written on 29 Jan 2016

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SKYROCKETing prices causing people to rent. Oh dear.

I personally believe there are still affordable properties in the market today. I meant the total market including the secondary market, the affordable homes being built today and not just the new launches. I also believe that as long as one is disciplined enough, one can buy a property, even if it’s just a 700 sq ft secondary apartment unit. I did just that many years ago when I was still earning RM3,000 per month. (Yes, took some sacrifices…) According to PropertyGuru Malaysia, there are TWO underlying issues why Malaysians could not afford to buy a property. They are skyrocketing prices and buyers’ poor credit score.
The full article in NST here.
 Due to these two reasons, Malaysians prefer to rent instead. It says that Low-to-middle-income earners are facing difficulties in obtaining loans and have no other option but to rent.

My earlier article about
Rent-To-Own (RTO) here.
  According to H
ousing and Local Government Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin last month, there were just too many high-end houses. She shared that her ministry will study the matter to deal with the situation. Bank Negara Malaysia said on Factwatch.my in May that houses priced between RM300,000 and RM500,000 are beyond affordable to households earning the median income in Malaysia. The maximum affordable price of an affordable house should be RM282,000, given the 2016 median household income of RM5,228, as published in the Statistics Department’s Household Income and Expenditure Survey. Meanwhile Rehda Institute, the training and research arm of Rehda, has recently proposed the RM200,000-RM500,000 range, depending on a property’s locality, as threshold prices for affordable housing in Peninsular Malaysia. (I think REHDA Institute’s proposal makes sense).

There may be some clearer direction moving forward. The new National Housing Policy 2 will be announced in September with some changes to
boost the property market. It will make it easier for people to own a home.
National Housing Department director-general N. Jayaselan said at the Affordable Housing Conference 2018 last month that the new national housing policy would focus on reducing house prices by lowering compliance costs. The compliance costs include contributions for utilities like Tenaga Nasional Bhd, Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd and Indah Water Konsortium Sdn Bhd, developer charges, land conversion premiums, infrastructure contribution, surrender of land and construction of facilities. I think the developers are also hopeful that the compliance costs will be reduced once the Sales and Service Tax is reintroduced on September 1.
Here’s that full article in NST for reference.

When we really want something, we will find a way. That’s my advice to every young potential home owner today. It’s always about choices yeah. Earlier article here.
Choices, choices, choices
  Happy deciding for yourselves.

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written on 24th Aug 2018

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When you ‘slap’ me, I will ‘slap’ you back, SERIOUSLY.

Becoming and staying competitive is very important. Subsidies are bad when it’s given continuously, like forever? Please go and read up a bit on how some advanced economies continue to provide subsidies to their uncompetitive agriculture sector and then forcing the weaker nations which has nothing else but agriculture to COMPETE fairly. Manual labour vs machines, who’ll win? Unfortunately, one side has no financial strength to buy machines. What happens then when a country has HUGE trade deficits. Trade deficits meant that they IMPORT more than they EXPORT. So, technically this country’s currency should WEAKEN while some countries with trade surplus should strengthen…. Anyway, that’s another story. Today we look at what may happen when the U.S. slaps a US$60 billion tariff on Chinese goods. (China yeah, not the Chinese in Malaysia).
Here’s that news in CNBC.com

President Trump says that this will curb technology theft from the U.S. companies. While I am very sure the U.S. companies are full of innovations and continue to file ever more international patents, let’s also note that China is now filing the second most international patents in the world, after the U.S. and is expected to OVERTAKE the U.S. in 3 years time.
The article in sciencebusiness.net here.
 Before anyone thinks the U.S. is the number 2 in 3 years time, well, Japan is expected to overtake the U.S. in 3 years time too. So, if the prediction based on current trends are true, it meant that the U.S. will only be in the top 3 for international patents; last place among the top 3. I do not think slowing down China’s international patents is the major reason for the upcoming tariffs because if it is, then I think their next target may be Japan? Okay, so when the U.S really do ‘slap’ China (with tariffs), what then? Do they expect China to accept it?

Here’s what may happen with the Chinese side.
One loser may be Boeing,

which has US$1 trillion orders from China. I think perhaps Airbus is a better choice then? At this moment, I think Boeing is also waiting to see what happens. Do note that Chinese companies do follow what their government says quite closely…  That’s not all, beyond just the TECHNOLOGICAL stuffs, even the wine sellers may be at the losing end. China counts as California’s top wine importers in 2017 and when tariff war happens, we know very well that there are many other wine country choices. From Australia to South Africa and Chile or even France…. choices are just aplenty.
Here’s that article in Bloomberg.
By the way, a professor in a U.S. university is saying that the loser in such a tariff war may just be the
U.S. Here’s her view.
There are many other views and in fact it’s hotly debated. Stock markets are also reacting to this war as well, negatively at this moment. Here’s another ‘doubt’ in an
article in The Washington Post.
For Malaysia, China is our 2nd largest trading partner and the U.S is 3rd.
We have a small trade surplus of US$4.6 billion with the U.S.
  Hopefully the situation does not affect us too much.  Cheers.

written on 23 March 2018

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Slightly up.  Recovery in property market Malaysia?

What are your thoughts about the current state of property market? Getting worse? Or
even that property bubble bursting prediction?
 Hopefully we are wrong in our assessment. Knight Frank is telling us otherwise; market is actually getting better.  Should be a piece of good news right? This was what Knight Frank shared in
an article in theedgemarkets.com
. “Malaysian property market saw gentle recovery in 1H18” It said that this was also following the strong economic growth momentum after the 14th General Election. (By the way, it’s only less than 2 months after GE when we talk about 1st Half of 2018 yeah. However, I think the GST becoming zero has helped in making the sentiment more positive. The car sales has been so good that all those car stocks without GST has already been sold! Here’s an earlier article:
People are simply buying! Not everyone needs new cars right?
)

Coming back to Knight Frank Malaysia’s assessment. Malaysia Associate Director of Residential Sales and Leasing, Kelvin Yip said that for the residential segment, the market sentiment improved during 1H18 and Kuala Lumpur remained one of the well-liked destinations for property buyers and investors. It added, “During the first half, potential buyers and investors switched away from a ‘wait-and-see’ approach and are now genuinely seeking good bargains in the market. This trend reduced the chances of a sharp correction in the residential property market as we expect stronger demand to continue and the oversupply situation to be less severe.” He also said that with being more aggressive in their promotions, and based on current trends, more transactions are expected in 2H18.
Full article here in TheEdge for reference.

Ready to believe Knight Frank’s assessment? Please be savvy to the fact that all these assessments are always based on overall numbers. There are bound to be still some below-market-value properties out there which is waiting for those looking for one. As for buying one and quickly flipping, this assessment would also tell us that the possibility of that happening is low. I am still waiting for the direction of where the economy would be heading. As of now, there’s just too many uncertainties. For example, those public transportation projects. Cancel or not cancel? Or is it just going to be delayed? Earlier news here:
MRT Line 3 can be later but better have it.
In fact, even the HSR has no firm direction yet because we (our Economic Affairs Minister) will only be meeting his counterpart end of July. That’s still many days more. Fortunately, these are not negatives but merely uncertainties. Hopefully everything clears up soon and we have a direction to look forward to.

written on 28 July 2018

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