Singapore Property Weekly Issue 101.pdf

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CONTENTSp2 The Difference Between How Successful

and Average Property Investors Think

p8 Property Renting Tip #5: Rental Rate

p9 Singapore Property News This Week

p14 Resale Property Transactions

(April 10 – April 16)

Welcome to the 101th edition of the Singapore Property Weekly.

Hope you like it!

Mr. Propwise

FROM THE

EDITOR

mailto:[email protected]

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 101

Page | 2Back to Contents

By guest contributor Gerald Tay

I recently ran across this book titled How Rich

People Think by Steve Siebold. I was

immediately struck by the differences

between the thoughts and actions of the

“World Class” investor and the “Middle Class”

investor.

In the book, Steve listed 21 ways that the

wealthy think differently from average people,

categorizing them as “World Class” and

“Middle Class” thinkers. In this article, I will

call the two investor groups the 99% and the

1%.

The Difference Between How Successful and Average

Property Investors Think



I‟ll list nine of his 21 Rules here (you can read

his book and educate yourself on the rest)

and briefly explain the similarities on some of

the rules in the arena of property investment.

1. The 99% have a lottery mentality. The

1% have an action mentality.

I hear the 99% say all the time: “Prices will

sure go up. If I can simply invest on some

„expert‟ opinions I‟ll be rich. If my big break

would come in. If I could just win the

lottery….” Until they realize that lottery is a

tax on people who don't know how to do

math, they'll never get it.

The 1% don‟t expect anything to be given to

them. If they want it, they go and get it

themselves. The 99% stupidly play the lottery,

buy stupid investments on hopes of capital

gains, make stupid investment decisions

sitting in front of the TV, and make stupid

excuses.

2. The 99% think the road to riches is

paved with formal education. The 1%

believes in acquiring specific knowledge.

Universities are leftist indoctrination facilities.

And they are full of deluded morons. You

must educate yourself financially. You can

learn anything you want to learn about on

money and investments. Almost everything is

on the internet, for free. If you want to learn

about it the only thing stopping you is you. I

will say it again: Everything you learn in

school might be less useful if you want to be

an entrepreneur/investor. It‟s up to YOU to

learn your craft.

3. The 99% would rather be entertained

than educated. The 1% would rather be

educated than entertained.

Television, magazines, celebrity websites,

sports pages – the mark of the average. If

you can‟t learn or earn from it, burn it.



I spend my free time learning about global

economics, world history, the history of

money and government, doing intense

property diligence, doing cash flow analysis,

etc.

Rather than looking forward to weekends,

playing Xbox and getting drunk, spend some

hours investing in yourself. Join a course,

read marketing or finance books, learn to

invest, think of how you can provide others

with value.

4. The 99% plays not to lose. The 1%

swings for the fences.

You hear about property cooling measures

and hot media reports. You often hear people

rushing to queue up at property showrooms

and seminars to buy that property because

everyone is doing so and worrying that the

price will go up further, and not doing so will

make one look like a fool.

Who‟s really the fool? Investing in property

because “the price won‟t go down” or

“everyone is buying” are such crappy

reasons. Unless of course, that‟s your only

reason? Then all the best in your investment.

5. The 99% believe the markets are driven

by logic and strategy. The 1% knows

they're driven by emotion and greed.

Personally, I‟ve no time for people who

constantly talk about logic and strategy. I

often hear these people say, “Price will go up

because of limited land and MRT. Tell me

about your strategic buy/hold/sell

recommendations. Tell me specifically or a

range, where prices will be in the next four

years.”



I like logic. I deal with things logically. But,

logic is only one part of the picture. If you look

at everything logically, you aren‟t looking at

the big picture and I‟ll tell you why. Most

people in the world do not think logically, they

think emotionally. When you speak to them

logically, you are not getting through to them.

But these “I‟m so logical” types always

assume that everyone else also thinks

“logically”.

Logical thinking is only half the puzzle.

6. The 99% live beyond their means. The

1% live below theirs.

Why do the 99% always complain they‟ve no

money to invest?

One of the habits that are common between

all wealthy people is that they live below their

means. This means that they buy a small car

when then can afford a medium sized car,

then buy a medium sized car when they can

afford a big car. They buy a big car when they

can afford a small helicopter, and they buy

the helicopter when they can afford the

private jet. They don‟t own expensive toys to

boast to the world “I‟ve arrived.”

When the 1% makes money, they plough the

profits back to buy more investments that will

put more „passive‟ money into their pockets.

The 99%, after making their profits will first

think what bigger car to drive and which

bigger house to live in.

When you‟re rich, you can have a lot of stuff

and still be rich enough to afford more stuff.

When you‟re middle class or working class,

you cannot. If you live within your means,

you‟d be surprised by how much you

ultimately have to invest when the opportunity

comes to be financially free.



7. The 99% believe you need money to

make money. The 1% use other people's

money.

I made my first bunch of money using only a

LITTLE of my own money. The 1% makes

money with NO money. If you want it bad

enough, as in you are obsessed with it, you

will get it. Even if you only have $12 to your

name, it makes no difference. It‟s the idea

that makes money, NOT money to make

money!

“I can‟t make money because I don‟t have

any money“. Sounds pretty stupid doesn‟t it?

“I have to make money because I don‟t have

any money” sounds much better.

8. The 99% love to be comfortable. The 1%

find comfort in uncertainty.

The 99% often loves to buy properties from

beautifully decorated property show rooms,

sit in a nice air-con room and be served like a

king by the property salesman.

The 1% love to rough it out in the hot sun,

walk-the-ground, buy old resale properties the

99% will shun, convert them and offer

massive value to tenants with extraordinary

returns.

9. The 99% play it safe with money. The

1% know when to take risks.

What I have found is that when I take certain

risks, the kind of risks that give others

nausea, diarrhoea and anxiety for days, they

tend to be a payoff for me.

Risks come from ignorance and zero control

over the investment. The 99% only know how

to invest in REITS, gamble in stocks, buy off-

plan properties and let others manage their

investments.



They have a „Follow-the-Leader‟ mentality,

and will invest in something if only someone

is also doing it.

Risks cannot be totally ignored but they can

be managed well. The 1% follow a strict

personal investment system and criteria.

They will only invest when the investments

meet those requirements. And they always

have absolute control over their investments

to manage risks.

Conclusions

If you want to be financially free, you‟ve to get

it yourself. No one gets anything for you or

offers you a chance of becoming rich the free

and easy way. You see, there‟s a difference

between a Hand-out and Help.

A Hand-out requires giving over and over

without the receiver doing anything with what

was given besides using it for their own

leisure.

Help requires giving to someone else but this

time the receiver uses what was given to gain

ground and stand upright on their own two

feet instead of relying on constant future

hand-outs.

So don't seek hand-outs, seek help for good

financial education and you will find it. Once

you do, try your best to make it work.

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 the

ordinary investor.

http://www.crei-academy.com/







Property Renting Tip #5: Rental Rate

Would you rather accept a lower than

expected rental or leave the rental unit vacant

when you are not able to find a Tenant who

can pay your expected rental?

Besides looking at the rental yield, which is

dependent on the purchase price, another

element to help in making such a decision is

to understand the future plan of this rental

property.

Do you plan to sell it in the near future for

capital gains OR do you regard this as a long

term passive income vehicle?

If you are looking for capital gains, you have

to rent the property at an attractive yield to

appeal to the next Buyer.This means that you

may leave the unit vacant until a suitable

Tenant appears.You can do a simple

renovation and/or include nice furniture,

fixtures and fittings to attract a higher rent for

your investment property.

If you do not plan to sell it in the near future,

then having positive cash flow is important

and you would want to rent it out as soon as

possible to have uninterrupted rental

income.You can start arranging with your

Tenant to allow for viewings about two

months prior to the expiry of the Tenancy

Agreement.

By Eileen Tan and Ui Wei Teck, property

investors and authors of Enjoying Mid-Life

Without Crisis. This tip and dozens more are

from their book.

http://aktive.com.sg/store/enjoying-mid-life-without-crisis/











Singapore Property This Week


Residential

Twin Fountains at Woodlands 2.3 times

subscribed

Twin Fountains, the first EC launched in

Woodlands since 2005, saw a total of 963 e-

applications for its 418 units, making it 2.3

times subscribed. One third of the subscribers

are first-time buyers, the rest are second-time

buyers. Its appeal lies in its location, being

near the upcoming Woodlands South MRT

station and expressways such as the Seletar,

Tampines and upcoming North-South

expressways. Units range from two-bedroom

suites to three- and four-bedroom units. 104

dual- key units are also offered in the

development. There will also be a "Fountain

Villa" for residents to host private functions or

to accomodate visiting guests.

(Source: Business Times)

Freehold Versailles at Paya Lebar up for

collective sale

Versailles, a 55-unit four-storey condominium

freehold condominium located near

Guillemard Road and Paya Lebar Road has

been put up for collective sale. The 53,073 sq

ft site with a 2.1 GPR is asking for $105-110

million or $1,088-$1,133 psf ppr including

development charge. It has a potential GFA of

122,598 sq ft which could yield potentially 148

units and has a maximum height of 24

storeys.



Any new development on the site is expected

to be popular since there is a general lack of

new residential projects in the area and it is

located near the upcoming Paya Lebar

Central, Paya Lebar MRT station and schools

such as Kong Hwa School, Haig Girls'

School, Tanjong Katong Primary School, and

Chung Cheng High School. The tender will

close at 2.30 pm on Thursday, May 30, 2013.


Increase in private home price slows in Q1

In Q1 2013, private home prices saw a mere

0.6% increase from Q4 2012, compared to

the 1.8% increase then. This is attributed to

the cooling measures in the residential sector

in January. 5,412 private homes were sold in

the primary market Q1, compared to 4,353

units in Q4. The secondary market, however,

saw a fall in transactions from 3,447 units to

1,871 units in Q1. The overall rental index

saw a 0.8% increase, slightly higher than the

0.7% increase I Q4 2012, while the vacancy

rate fell to 5.2% from 5.4% in Q4. The

number of rental transactions, however, fell

by 33% to 7,676 deals in Q1.

Meanwhile, the URA's All Industrial price

index increased by 4.5% in the same period,

compared to a 0.7% fall earlier. This is

despite the 51.4% fall in transaction volume

of strata industrial units since the proportion

of transactions involving freehold/999-year

leasehold industrial properties which have

higher values more than doubled from 11% in

Q4 2012 to 24% in Q1. The price indexes for

multiple-user warehouse space and multiple-

user factory space also increased by 10.6%

and 2.9% respectively. The price index for

office space also increased by 2.1% in Q1,



compared to a 0.3% increase in Q4 while the

price index for shop space also increased by

2.1% in Q1 after 0.2% fall in Q4.


Commercial

Office leasing market expected to bottom

out in 2013

The office leasing market is expected to

bottom out towards the end of 2013 despite

the fall in rents in Q1 and the expectation of

rents to remain flat. Even if there is any

increase, it would be marginal increases of

around 0.5% at the end of the year. There

had been a 2.5% fall in rents for grade A+

office space in the Marina Bay and Raffles

Place area from Q4 2012 to Q1 2013. Rents

in the Shenton Way/Tanjong Pagar and

Robinson Road area are also expected to fall

given the ongoing construction of buildings in

the area. Meanwhile, rents in the suburbs are

expected to remain stable given the

development of new good quality office

buildings and their high pre-committed rates.


Bright Chambers sold for $46 million

Bright Chambers, a nine-storey eight-unit

commercial development located at 108

Middle Road next to Bugis+ near Bugis MRT

station is said to have been sold via a tender

exercise for $46 million. The development

with a total strata area of 34,972 sq ft sits on

a 5,263 sq ft site zoned for commercial use

which has a balance lease term of about 60

years. It can be refurbished and further

strata-subdivided for sale or retained by the

new owner for rental income.




65 retail units at 99-year The Midtown at

Hougang sold at preview

60% of 65 of the 107 retail units at The

Midtown, a 12-storey mixed-development in

Hougang, have been sold. Of the retail units,

there are 55 F&B units, 51 shop units and a

supermarket space. The F&B units (721-969

sq ft) are sold at an average of $4,039 psf, or

between $3,588 psf and $5,013 psf while the

shop units (258-893 sq ft) at an average of

$5,800 psf or between $4,687 psf and $6,737

psf.

In addition, 40 of the 160 residential units at

Midtown Residences have also been sold at

an average price of $1,400 psf. Unit sizes

range from 441 sq ft for a one-bedroom

apartment with a study to 1,572 sq ft for a

penthouse. Prices start from $660,000 for a

one-bedroom unit on a low level to $2.1

million for a four-bedroom penthouse.


Vacancy rate of office space falls in Q1

The net absorption of office space increased

to 269,098 sq ft in Q1, up from 183,000 sq ft

in Q4 last year. This resulted in an office

vacancy rate stood at 9.2%, compared to

9.4% in Q4 2012. There has also been an

increase in non-CBD office rents while the

gross average monthly rent for Grade A office

space fell by three cents to $9.55 psf in Q1

this year while the gross effective monthly

rent for prime Grade A offices in Raffles Place

remained at $8.90 psf.




30-year Tuas Bay Walk and Buroh

Crescent industrial sites awarded to

highest bidders

The first is the 0.58-hectare site zoned for

Business 2 (Food only) use located at Tuas

Bay Walk plot. The top bid out of the four the

site attracted was $8.988 million or $84.57 psf

ppr from Yee Lee Development Pte Ltd. The

second is the 1.77-hectare site at Buroh

Crescent in Jurong which attracted a total of

five bids. The top bidder OKH Holdings Pte

Ltd bid $39.017 million or S$82 psf ppr for the

site zoned for Business 2 use.


http://www.moneymatters.sg/



Non-Landed Residential Resale Property Transactions for the Week of Apr 10 – Apr 16

Postal

DistrictProject Name

Area

(sqft)

Transacted

Price ($)

Price ($

psf)Tenure

1 MARINA BAY RESIDENCES 710 1,750,000 2,463 99

1 EMERALD GARDEN 980 1,810,000 1,848 999

3 THE ANCHORAGE 1,173 1,500,000 1,278 FH

4 REFLECTIONS AT KEPPEL BAY 1,442 3,200,000 2,219 99

4 CARIBBEAN AT KEPPEL BAY 883 1,550,000 1,756 99

4 REFLECTIONS AT KEPPEL BAY 1,076 1,850,000 1,719 99

5 BLUE HORIZON 1,163 1,328,000 1,142 99

5 WESTCOVE CONDOMINIUM 1,206 1,155,000 958 99

5 THE PARC CONDOMINIUM 1,927 1,710,000 888 FH

8 CITIGATE RESIDENCE 614 975,000 1,589 FH

8 KERRISDALE 1,927 1,935,000 1,004 99

9 THE PIER AT ROBERTSON 743 1,475,000 1,986 FH

9 ASPEN HEIGHTS 1,130 1,820,000 1,610 999

10 ALLSWORTH PARK 1,959 3,080,000 1,572 999

10 ASTRID MEADOWS 1,023 1,570,000 1,535 FH

10 VILLA AZURA 1,356 1,810,000 1,335 FH

11 RESIDENCES @ EVELYN 2,250 4,130,000 1,836 FH

12 TREVISTA 1,130 1,708,000 1,511 99

12 THE ABERDEEN 1,399 1,620,000 1,158 FH

14 LE CRESCENDO 947 1,180,000 1,246 FH

14 NICOLE GREEN 1,238 1,480,000 1,196 FH

14 MERA EAST 1,033 1,180,000 1,142 FH

14 SIMSVILLE 980 980,000 1,000 99

14 ASTON MANSIONS 1,012 888,000 878 99

15 AALTO 1,550 3,472,000 2,240 FH

15 THE BELVEDERE 2,583 4,370,000 1,692 FH

Postal

DistrictProject Name

Area

(sqft)

Transacted

Price ($)

Price ($

psf)Tenure

15 ARTHUR 118 990 1,450,350 1,465 FH

15 SERAYA 9 850 1,200,000 1,411 FH

15 WATER PLACE 1,281 1,720,000 1,343 99

15 SANTA FE MANSIONS 1,163 1,500,000 1,290 FH

16 LAGUNA 88 1,119 1,180,000 1,054 99

17 CELADON VIEW 1,442 812,000 563 999

18 RIS GRANDEUR 1,292 1,322,000 1,023 FH

18 RIS GRANDEUR 3,111 1,980,000 636 FH

19 SUNGLADE 1,109 1,130,000 1,019 99

20 COUNTRY ESQUIRE 1,270 1,610,000 1,268 FH

20 KINGSGROVE 1,615 1,460,000 904 FH

21 THE RAINTREE 926 1,088,000 1,175 99

21 HILLVIEW GREEN 1,593 1,675,000 1,051 999

21 PINE GROVE 1,755 1,580,000 901 99

23 HILLVIEW HEIGHTS 958 1,100,000 1,148 FH

23 MERAWOODS 1,345 1,400,000 1,041 999

23 MONTROSA 861 890,000 1,034 999

23 HILLBROOKS 1,238 1,260,000 1,018 FH

23 MERALODGE 1,819 1,650,000 907 FH

23 HILLTOP GROVE 1,184 980,000 828 99

23 PHOENIX HEIGHTS 1,335 792,888 594 99

26 SEASONS PARK 1,109 945,000 852 99

27 ORCHID PARK CONDOMINIUM 1,733 1,350,000 779 99

NOTE: This data only covers non-landed residential resale property

transactions with caveats lodged with the Singapore Land

Authority. Typically, caveats are lodged at least 2-3 weeks after a

purchaser signs an OTP, hence the lagged nature of the data.

Documents

Singapore Property Weekly Issue 101.pdf