singapore property weekly issue 122.pdf

7/29/2019 Singapore Property Weekly Issue 122.pdf

1/12

Issue 122Copyright 2011-2013 www.Propwise.sg. All Rights Reserved.
http://www.propwise.sg/http://www.propwise.sg/


2/12

ContributeDo you have articles and insights and articles that youd like to share

with thousands of readers interested in the Singapore property

market? Send them to us at [email protected] , and if theyre good

enough, well publish them here, on our blog and even on Yahoo!

News.

AdvertiseWant to get your brand, product, service or property listing out to

thousands of Singapore property investors at a very reasonable

cost? Head over to www.propwise.sg/advertise/ to find out more.

CONTENTS

p2 4 Outrageous Claims Made by

Property Experts

p8 Singapore Property News This Week

p11 Resale Property Transactions

(September 4 September 10)

Welcome to the 122th edition of the

Singapore Property Weekly.

Hope you like it!

Mr. Propwise

FROM THE

EDITOR
mailto:[email protected]://www.propwise.sg/advertise/http://www.propwise.sg/advertise/mailto:[email protected]


3/12

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 122

Page | 2Back to Contents

4 Outrageous Claims Made by Property Experts

By Gerald Tay (guest contributor)

A Business Times article titled Property

Investment Seminars on CEA Rader was

recently published, where PropNex Reality

Chief Executive Mohamed Ismail said:

Theres a need for the authorities to regulatethe content and claims by these speakers. I

support Mr. Ismails call for the authorities to

tighten the content and claims made by these

speakers, be it in property, stocks, or

commodities investment.

More Singaporeans looking at overseasproperty investments

With the implementation of multiple rounds of

cooling measures and the Total Debt

Servicing Ratio (TDSR) framework,


4/12



more Singaporeans are looking at overseas

properties to invest in. From a business point

of view, it is enterprising for some seminar

providers to tap on this demand pool of

potential buyers with enticing claims in theiradvertisements.

Having spent more than two decades in sales

with a majority of that in direct sales, Ive

known and used every sales trick in the book.

Ifyouve been to free seminar previews, you

would know what I mean. Some speakers arein fact more a salesman than the expert they

claim to be.

From my personal wealth background and

experiences, Ill share and debunk four

popular outrageous investment claims by

property experts.

Claim #1: Own Multiple Properties in

Multiple Countries

I suspect the real reason these speakers are

saying to invest in multiple countries is to

make themselves sound like jet setting

international tycoons. They advocate that

ordinary folks should invest in multiple foreign

countries, although they give no reason fordoing so other than their contention that it is

easy and the properties are cheap.

To invest overseas, you have to learn the real

estate tax framework of each country,

numerous real-estate laws and customs and,

worst of all, how to value properties in eachcountry. Its amazing how these speakers

know so much about so many different

countries they claim to invest in when they

neither live nor were born there.

My late multi-millionaire grandfather never

owned any overseas properties outside

Singapore. I mentioned this once and he

asked, What would be the point of investing

in different countries?


5/12



You could get some diversification against

certain nationwide risks like adverse changes

in government policies, but the potential

losses could outweigh the gains.

Also, owning in different countries does not

protect you from multi-national risks like

higher global interest rates or worldwide

recession or depression. I know of a couple of

property investors who have a vacation home

or two in foreign countries, but no competentinvestor wants to own rental properties in

multiple countries.

Some major developers have decided to

conquer the world by doing their thing

outside Singapore. Not everyone is

successful. About the only property investors

who should be in multiple countries are

owners of hotel chains and theme parks like

Disneyland.

Your rental properties generally should be in

one specific country you know very well, i.e

Singapore and maybe two at most.

Claim #2: Own Multiple OverseasProperties with Little or No Money Down

The main reason the mass market gurus

push nothing down is to overcome the

objection ofI dont have any cash to invest

when they try to peddle their expensive boot

camps ormentoring services.

Gurus do not push little or no money down

because it makes sense for an investor.

Rather they push it because it helps them

market their products and services.

I mentioned this advice to one of my USAfriends who is a local multi-millionaire real-

estate investor and he said, In the USA, a

sound,


6/12



long-term investment, in other words, quality

properties in good neighbourhoods, is much

more important than finding a deal with 100%

financing. Even if its 100% financed, a bad

property is a bad property.

From experience, no money down is not the

bed of roses most people think, especially for

foreign investors. The type and quality of the

property offered by sellers willing to finance

you is rarely mentioned. Quality properties in

good markets rarely if ever can be bought with

little or no money down.

An example is my recent successful

acquisition of a US$2.2 million commercial

property in the USA which was financed

partially by a US bank with some cash down-payment. With tight credit financing in the US,

the only reason why banks are willing to

finance such deals is because it is a quality

property deal with a quality tenant.

Unfortunately, many local gurus have made

buying overseas properties with no or little

money down more important than buying a

quality property. Ordinary folks would be better

off in most cases spending the extra timeworking a second job and saving money for a

down payment instead.

Claim #3: Below-Market Value (BMV) Deals

are the Norm

This is an old chestnut of property gurus. Inthe real world, below-market value (BMV) or

under-valued deals are very rare. Experienced

investors regard them with suspicion. They

typically mean the buyer overpaid or the

property is just worth what it is.

Competent investors always pay market priceif it meets their required yield returns. It is

much more time consuming to find BMV

deals, so it is mainly a strategy for those

whose time has little value.


7/12



If you always try to source for BMV deals, you

would be forced into a few niches where you

would wander the land as a sort of beggar

pleading with sellers to sell you their

properties at below-market price. You dontbecome rich by being cheap to others.

Instead of trying hard to find that magical BMV

deal, try asking yourself this: Where can I find

under-valued areas to invest in instead? Also,

Have I acquired enough financial education

to know when that opportunity comes along?

Often, the answer lies in your own backyard.

Claim #4: Anyone Can Play the Property

Game and Become Rich/a Millionaire

When property gurus peddle their expensive

boot camps or mentoring services to themasses, this makes a very compelling sales

pitch. But this is the opposite of the truth. As

long as anyone is holding on to a day job as

an employee, this dream is forever

improbable. I do not know anyone attending

those expensive boot camps or mentoring

services who have become rich or a

millionaire. Have you?

You can become wealthy through

investments, but you might not become rich or

a millionaire. Theres a huge difference in

those terms. Becoming wealthy means being

financially free without having to work (if you

dont want to) as you have other recurring

income sources. And in property, it means

recurring net income after all debts and

expenses.

You dont need a large number of properties

to become wealthy. All you ever need as an

ordinary investor is learn to acquire one or tworeally good quality properties that will put

money in your pocket every month and help

pay off your home mortgage and daily

expenses.

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY I 122


8/12



Bottom-Line

The more important problem is that the

novices these gurus target cannot

tell whether the sales pitch is a bad idea or a

good idea. There are no magic formulas,

secret techniques or fanciful investment

strategies to bring you quickly from rags to

riches.

For Property Wealth, as in any successful

business venture, theres only your hardwork, constant education and an

entrepreneurial mind-set with steep learning

curves to successes. I hope youll discard

sales advice and get sound advice on

property investment through proper

education.

I welcome your comments if you are one of

those who have been ripped off with these

over-hyped claims disguised as wisdom.

By guest contributor Gerald Tay, CEO of

CREI Academy Group, who exposes widely-

held property investment myths that have

proven highly ineffective in creating wealth,

and prevent a comfortable retirement for theordinary investor.

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY I 122
http://www.crei-academy.com/http://www.crei-academy.com/usa-pals/http://www.crei-academy.com/http://www.crei-academy.com/http://www.crei-academy.com/http://www.crei-academy.com/http://www.crei-academy.com/


9/12


Singapore Property This Week


Residential

TDSR c o n t in u es t o aff ec t A u g u s t

developer sales

Despite a recovery last month, new private

home sales were suppressed in August by

the double influence of the TDSR framework

and the Hungry Ghost month. According to

the data of the Urban Redevelopment

Authority (URA), there were 742 private

homes transacted in August, not including the

hybrid ECs, which was 54 percent higher than

that of July, but just over half of 1,427 sales of

last August. Mass-market residences

dominated August property activities, with

Outside Central Region homes accounting for

73 percent of sales and 76 percent of

launches. Rest of Central Region made up 15

percent of sales and 13 percent of launches,

and Core Central Region took up 12 percent

of sales and 10 percent of launches. 726 EC

units were sold in August, compared with 112

units sold in July. Developers launched 927

units for sale in August, compared with 557

homes of July. A Religare Capital Markets

report said this was the first time that sales

have lagged for two straight months since

January last year. It is said that TDSR caused

sales to take longer to go through due to

more detailed financial assessments.

(Source: Business Times)



10/12



H D B ex t e n d s i n t e r im h o u s i n g s c h e m e

More families now can temporarily rent an

HDB flat while waiting for their new one to be

ready through a faster and more convenient

process. Under HDBs Parenthood

Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS),

couples engaged to be married, married

couples either as first-time or second-time

applicants, and divorced or widowed parents

with children are also eligible for applying for

these flats, with priority still reserved for

married couples. Monthly rentals for 800 flats

available are from $800 to $1,900 depending

on size and location. All eligible families can

now apply for PPHS flats on HDB's website or

at e-kiosks at any HDB Hub or branches.They can also move in faster, as they can

apply for a PPHS unit right after booking a

new flat, instead of having to wait for an

Agreement for Lease, which could take a few

months. HDB expects families to be able to

move into their interim homes by the following

month. Engaged couples can now apply for

the scheme provided that they must produce

their marriage certificate within three monthsof moving into the PPHS flat. It was reported

that the latest changes are unlikely to impact

the overall housing market much. Since the

schemes introduction in January, 327 married

couples have moved into PPHS flats.


H DB 5-y ear b o n d i ss u e s o ld f or $1.45

b i l l i o n

HDB had its largest bond sale ever last week,

when its $1.45 billion five-year bonds were

sold amid a volatile market. This proves that

demand is always strong for a solid

Singapore issuer. The HDB, a statutory board

and frequent issuer, initially wanted to put the



11/12



issue at $1 billion, but then increased it to

$1.45 billion given the strong demand. The

deal was priced at 2.365 per cent, 55 basis

points above the five-year swap offer rate

(SOR) at 1.815 per cent. HDB usually sellstranches of $400 million to $500 million under

its $22 billion multi-currency medium term

note programme, but in January it had a $1.2

billion deal.


Commercial

Prime of f ice rent s increases by 1. 4% in Q3

A report released by Knight Frank revealed

that prime office rents increased in Q3 amid

higher leasing enquiries. On contrary toseven consecutive quarters of decreased or

flat growth, prime Grade A+ rents in Marina

Bay and Raffles Place went up by 1.4 percent

quarter-on-quarter, standing at between $9.90

and $12.00 psf. In this sub-segment, smaller

office spaces received high demand from

smaller companies who were previously

located in serviced offices and are moving

back to traditional office space. CapitaGreen,the latest premium Grade A office

development, is now open for interested

tenants with asking rents between $13 and

$14 psf. Other Raffles Place Grade A office

rents also increased by 0.6 percent quarter-

on-quarter to between $9.30 and $10.45 psf.Outside the CBD, Orchard Roads average

office rents for Grade A space increased by

0.6 percent quarter-on-quarter, to between

$7.00 and $10.90 psf. Average rents in the

Suntec/Marina Centre/City Hall area rose 0.5

percent quarter-on-quarter, while rents in theBeach Road/Middle Road decreased by 0.4

percent quarter-on-quarter.




12/12



Non-Landed Residential Resale Property Transactions for the Week of Sep 4 Sep 10

NOTE: This data only covers non-landed residential resale propertytransactions with caveats lodged with the Singapore LandAuthority. Typically, caveats are lodged at least 2-3 weeks after apurchaser signs an OTP, hence the lagged nature of the data.

Postal

DistrictProject Name

Area

(sqft)

Transacted

Price ($)

Price

($ psf)Tenure

3 MERAPRIME 1,313 1,900,000 1,447 99

8 PARC SOMME 441 706,000 1,600 99

8 CITY SQUARE RESIDENCES 1,518 2,000,000 1,318 FH

9 GRANGE INFINITE 2,680 6,378,000 2,380 FH

9 ILLUMINAIRE ON DEVONSHIRE 721 1,660,000 2,302 FH

10 VALLEY PARK 1,216 2,050,000 1,685 999

10 JERVOIS GROVE 1,410 1,900,000 1,347 FH

11 NINETEEN SHELFORD ROAD 915 1,350,000 1,476 FH

11 THE ARCADIA 3,810 4,000,000 1,050 99

12 TREVISTA 1,281 1,800,000 1,405 99

15 WATER PLACE 1,227 1,600,000 1,304 99

15 VILLA MARINA 1,249 1,410,000 1,129 99

15 SERAYA BREEZE 1,001 1,128,000 1,127 FH

15 BLU CORAL 1,163 1,300,000 1,118 FH

15 MOUNTBATTEN SUITES 700 750,000 1,072 FH

15 HOMEY GARDENS 1,744 1,700,000 975 FH

15 BLU CORAL 2,056 1,680,000 817 FH

15 LAGOON VIEW 1,647 1,270,000 771 99

16 COUNTRY PARK CONDOMINIUM 1,389 1,700,000 1,224 FH

16 THE CALYPSO 764 933,888 1,222 FH16 COUNTRY PARK CONDOMINIUM 1,173 1,400,000 1,193 FH

16 BAYSHORE PARK 1,292 1,448,000 1,121 99

17 CARISSA PARK CONDOMINIUM 1,378 1,298,000 942 FH

18 LIVIA 1,539 1,460,000 949 99

Postal

DistrictProject Name

Area

(sqft)

Transacted

Price ($)

Price

($ psf)Tenure

18 DOUBLE BAY RESIDENCES 3,111 2,700,000 868 99

18 MELVILLE PARK 990 835,000 843 99

19 THE SPRINGBLOOM 1,130 1,280,000 1,133 99

20 THE GARDENS AT BISHAN 883 1,031,000 1,168 99

20 SIN MING PLAZA 1,442 1,620,000 1,123 FH

20 FLAME TREE PARK 1,862 2,080,000 1,117 FH

21 THE CASCADIA 1,421 2,579,000 1,815 FH

21 SUMMERHILL 1,604 1,815,000 1,132 FH

21 SHERWOOD CONDOMINIUM 915 1,000,000 1,093 FH

21 SIGNATURE PARK 1,690 1,760,000 1,041 FH

21 CLEMENTI PARK 1,345 1,400,000 1,041 FH

22 THE MAYFAIR 1,163 1,120,000 963 99

23 PARK NATURA 1,378 1,600,000 1,161 FH

23 HILLINGTON GREEN 990 1,088,000 1,099 999

23 PALM GARDENS 1,206 940,000 780 99

26 BULLION PARK 1,873 1,850,000 988 FH

27 EUPHONY GARDENS 732 668,000 913 99

singapore property weekly issue 122.pdf

Documents