singapore property weekly issue 207

8/9/2019 Singapore Property Weekly Issue 207

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CONTENTS

p2 5 Lessons Learned on Avoiding Buying

the Wrong Property

p7 Singapore Property News This Week

p10 Resale Property Transactions

(April 21 – April 28 )

Welcome to the 207th edition of the

Singapore Property Weekly .

Hope you like it!

Mr. Propwise

FROM THE

EDITOR

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 207

Page | 2Back to Contents

By Property Soul (guest contributor)

I spent my Labor Day holiday spring cleaning

my wardrobe. How hard can it be? Well, any

lady will tell you that this is a labor-intensive

and mentally-draining chore, with lots of surprises and heartbreaks along the way.It

took me almost two days to complete the job,

after endless rounds of repeating three tasks:

1. Keep pieces that are still in favor

To maximize the chance of wearing the good

ones, mix and match different pieces to try

various combinations and create new outfits.

5 Lessons Learned on Avoiding Buying the Wrong Property

http://propertysoul.com/author/propertysoul/http://propertysoul.com/author/propertysoul/http://propertysoul.com/author/propertysoul/http://propertysoul.com/author/propertysoul/


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2. Put aside pieces that need some work

Many pieces need some work before they

can be worn again, like cleaning or ironing,

sewing missing buttons, fixing damage,tailoring to make them fit, etc.

3. Throwing away pieces that I will never

wear again

These are pieces that haven’t been worn for

the past two years. Some are old clothes that

have seen better days and are now ready for

retirement. Others are simply not trendy

anymore.

For new clothes that are used just once or

even brand new, the strong feelings of guilt

and regret come every time I decide to throwthem away.

There are three common reasons why I end

up buying the wrong thing:

1. Buying on a whim

It looks nice in the catalog and fashion

magazine. Or I can imagine myself lookingfabulous in it.

2. Buying under pressure

There is peer pressure when a shopping

companion tells me that it looks nice on me. A

few times I fell for the flattery of a salesmanwho is full of praise when I step out of the

fitting room.

3. Buying for the future

It is tempting to buy now and save it for a

future occasion. And I am not the only ladywho tries to buy clothes one size smaller,

thinking that one day I can fit in. But

somehow that day never comes.


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Who are the third parties reaping the benefits

from my silly mistakes? They are my

domestic helper and my elder girl who turns

ten next month. They are excited by this

treasure hunt game to find gems from the pile

of my discarded clothes.

Property spring cleaning

During the previous property bear markets,

many investors had to deal with the long

overdue task of spring cleaning their propertyportfolio.

How painful is the process? Well, any owner

selling at a loss can tell you that this is a time-

consuming and heart-wrenching chore, with

lots of headaches and disappointments along

the way.

It can take months or even years to decide

what to do, though it will still consist of the

same three steps:

1. Keep the good quality properties

These are the properties that still have

positive cashflow during bad times. Measuresare taken to minimize costs and maximize

returns, such as refinancing to get a lower

interest rate, renting rooms rather than the

whole unit, etc.

2. Fix the properties that need some work

In a soft rental market, no one will rent a

place that needs repair. To secure good

tenants in a competitive market, it’s time to

touch-up old apartments and renovate

rundown houses.

3. Dump the properties that have

underperformed

For properties that have low or negative net


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rental returns, it make little sense for owners

to continue subsidizing tenants to stay there.

Owners have to cut loss in time before their

values drop further.

There are three common reasons why

investors end up buying the wrong thing:

1. Buying on a whim

The project looks nice in the advertisement

and the showflat. Everyone is buying now and

you can’t afford to lose out in the property

game.

2. Buying under pressure

All your friends, colleagues and relatives stay

in a condo. It is such an embarrassment

telling people that you are living in an HDB

flat. Noises from every direction tell you to go

for it. And you find it very difficult to say ‘no’ to

that persuasive property agent.

3. Buying for the future

It is tempting to buy now and pay later.

Buying a project still under construction

means that you only have to pay years from

now. By then you will have enough savings

and a higher salary to support that pricey

property.

Who are the third parties reaping the benefits

from your silly mistakes? They are the

bargain hunters or value investors who havebeen waiting for this day to come. They are

excited by your cutting loss and are busy

finding gems among the bulk of fire sales.

With the ‘new’ properties in their arms, they

smile and hope there are more to come.

Lessons learned on avoiding buying the

wrong property

1. The most terrible feeling is the realization

that you have spent a lot of money buying the


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wrong thing.

2. Good taste and good insight often have

nothing to do with money. Having money and

knowing how to pick the good stuff are two

different things.

3. Resist the temptation to buy something the

day you first see it. Put it on hold for a few

days in order to minimize the chance of

regretting the purchase later.

4. Buy only what fits your budget now, not

what is going to fit you in the future.

5. You can’t make choices based on what

everyone says is good. Don’t imitate others.

Don’t follow the trend. Find your own style.

By guest contributor Property Soul, a

successful property investor, blogger , and

author of the No B.S. Guide to Property

Investment.

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY I 207

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Singapore Property This Week


Residential

April’s HDB r es al e f l at t ran s ac ti on s

h i g h e s t i n 2 y e ar s w h i l e p r i c e s f a l l b y 6 %

According to flash estimates by SRX

Property, in April this year, the overall resale

prices of HDB flats have fallen by 6 percent

year-on-year. Based on those estimates,

resale prices of HDB flats in mature areas

have dropped by 4 percent year-on-year. On

the other hand, resale prices of HDB flats in

non-mature areas have fallen by 7.4 percent

year-on-year. Particularly in April, the overall

price index for HDB resale flats has increased

by 0.2 percent month-on-month. Also, the

resale transaction volume for HDB flats has

also increased by 19.3 percent from 1,349 to

1,610 units in April from the previous month.

This has been the highest in two years.

Nevertheless, the transaction volumes in April

is still 55.9 percent below the peak in May

2010, where 3,649 HDB flats changed hands.

Eugene Lim from ERA Realty predicts that

around 18,000 to 20,000 HDB flats may

change hands this year. Lim believes that

transaction volumes will surge as there are

lesser build to order flats being released by

HDB this year. Lim added that he predicts

that the overall price fall for the HDB resale

market may be less than 5 percent. Ong Kah

Seng from R’ST Research added that resale

prices of HDB flats in mature estates have not

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY I 207


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suffered a big price cut due to the appeal of

their locations. Also, there is a small supply of

flats put up for resale in mature estates, said

the Business Times.

(Source: Business Times)

Ten d er r eo p en s f o r t em p le an d

c o l u m b a r i u m s i t e a t S en g k a n g

The Ministry of National Development (MND)

has reopened the tender for a temple and

columbarium site at Sengkang, after a mutual

termination agreement was signed between

Eternal Pure Land and the ministry. Eternal

Pure Land had previously been awarded the

tender. According to the Ministry of National

Development, Eternal Pure Land had

intended to use the site to test out its

automated columbarium system and

operating model. A smaller plot of land may

be awarded to Eternal Pure Land to test its

pilot project, said the ministry. According to

the Ministry of National Development, the site

has been zoned for cemetery use and will be

priced at market value based on columbarium

use as determined by the chief valuer.


Commercial

M a r k e t e x p e r t s e x p e c t C B D o f f i c e r e n t s t o

e a se f o r r e st o f ye a r

Market experts believe that office rents in the

CBD area is likely to decrease for the rest of

the year. The fall in office rental prices is due

to weak rental growth in Q1 this year, said

experts. Also, market experts said that the

office rents of Grade A offices in the CBDarea have been affected by an increase in

demand for office spaces in business parks.

Nonetheless, tenants may benefit from the

lowered office rents.



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According to the Business Times, the office

market is expected to grow in the coming

year due to a few upcoming big leasing

transactions. Yet, CBRE predicts that the

rental prices of offices in the CBD area willremain flat for the rest of the year, as rental

levels have only increased by 1.8 percent

quarter-on-quarter to $11.40 psf in Q1 this

year. Moray Armstrong from CBRE said that

despite the weak rental prices in Q1, there is

strong interest in offices that are located outof the central region. Armstrong added that

office occupancy rates have also been high

this year. On the other hand, Savills

Singapore predicts that office rental levels will

drop to about $11.90 psf by the end of the

year. Not only so, Savills believe that therewill be a further drop in office rentals next

year.


C P F B u i l d i n g t o b e p u t o n m a r k e t i n Q 3

Located at Robinson Road, the CPF Building

will be marketed by CBRE. According to the

Business Times, the CPF Building will be put

on the market in Q3 this year. This would be

done either through a tender or an

expression-of-interest exercise. The CPF

Building has a remaining lease of 52 years

and has a net lettable area of about 325,000

sq ft, and is expected to command a price

that is more than $450 million. The site has

been zoned for commercial use with a

maximum 50-storey height. The maximum

plot raio is 12.88. According to the Business

Times, the site has great redevelopment

potential. Market experts believe that

potential buyers need to consider the

authorities’ plan for the area.




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Non-Landed Residential Resale Property Transactions for the Week of Apr 22 – Apr 28

Postal

DistrictProject Name

Area

(sqft)

Transacted

Price ($)

Price

($ psf)Tenure

1 MARINA BAY SUITES 2,045 4,900,000 2,396 993 DOMAIN 21 926 1,296,400 1,400 99

5 THE FOLIAGE 506 688,000 1,360 FH

5 WESTCOVE CONDOMINIUM 1,216 1,020,000 839 99

5 GLORIA MANSION 1,227 1,000,000 815 FH

5 FABER CREST 2,088 1,648,000 789 99

5 PARK WEST 1,249 970,000 777 99

8 KERRISDALE 1,259 1,540,000 1,223 99

10 NASSIM PARK RESIDENCES 6,878 22,500,000 3,271 FH

10 DUKES RESIDENCE 926 1,560,000 1,685 FH

10 THE TESSARINA 1,324 2,070,000 1,563 FH

10 TANGLIN REGENCY 1,044 1,303,750 1,249 99

11 NEWTON 21 1,227 1,920,000 1,565 FH

11 SHELFORD 23 1,755 1,950,000 1,111 FH

13 THE ACACIAS 1,249 1,260,000 1,009 FH

14 CENTRA SUITES 452 630,000 1,394 FH

14 SIMSVILLE 969 870,000 898 99

14 SUNFLOWER REGENCY 1,152 850,000 738 FH

14 WING FONG COURT 947 680,000 718 FH

15 CORALIS 1,281 2,000,000 1,561 FH

15 PEBBLE BAY 2,626 3,790,000 1,443 99

15 WATER PLACE 1,281 1,598,688 1,248 99

Postal


Area

(sqft)

Transacted

Price ($)

Price

($ psf)Tenure

15 COSTA RHU 990 1,230,000 1,242 9915 COSTA RHU 1,970 2,380,000 1,208 99

15 WATER PLACE 1,356 1,625,000 1,198 99

15 VENTURA VIEW 753 865,000 1,148 FH

15 THE MAKENA 1,615 1,850,000 1,146 FH

15 ESTERINA 1,206 1,340,000 1,112 FH

15 DONG XING COURT 1,012 980,000 969 FH

15 CALLIDORA VILLE 1,141 1,060,000 929 FH

16 COSTA DEL SOL 1,313 1,500,000 1,142 99

16 LANDBAY CONDOMINIUM 1,249 1,380,000 1 ,105 FH16 EAST MEADOWS 1,216 1,110,000 913 99

16 COUNTRY PARK CONDOMINIUM 1,561 1,400,000 897 FH

16 EAST MEADOWS 1,356 1,210,000 892 99

16 EASTWOOD GREEN 1,173 975,000 831 99

16 KEW GREEN 2,842 1,850,000 651 99

18 MODENA 969 885,000 914 99

18 LIVIA 1,539 1,360,000 884 99

18 THE TROPICA 1,195 970,000 812 99

18 ELIAS GREEN 1,528 936,800 613 9919 FONTAINE PARRY 1,023 1,150,000 1,125 999

19 EVANIA 1,227 1,230,000 1,002 FH

19 EVANIA 1,227 1,220,000 994 FH



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

Postal


Area

(sqft)

Transacted

Price ($)

Price

($ psf)Tenure

19 KOVAN MELODY 1,238 1,220,000 986 99

19 THE SPRINGBLOOM 1,130 1,050,000 929 9920 CLOVER BY THE PARK 1,281 1,490,000 1 ,163 99

20 LAKEVIEW ESTATE 1,615 1,300,000 805 99

21 GARDENVISTA 1,163 1,388,000 1,194 99

21 PANDAN VALLEY 1,173 1,200,000 1,023 FH

21 ASTOR GREEN 980 960,000 980 99

21 ASTOR GREEN 1,475 1,445,000 980 99

22 PARC VISTA 1,281 1,072,800 838 99

23 REGENT HEIGHTS 1,163 900,000 774 99

27 ORCHID PARK CONDOMINIUM 958 712,000 743 99
http://www.moneymatters.sg/

singapore property weekly issue 207

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