Property Analysis

SERS: What Is It, Where Has It Happened, And What Are Your Odds?

The Selective En-Bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS) is often considered the next big “HDB lottery winner”, next to a central region BTO flat. In fact, one of the reasons many Singaporeans want a central region flat is because they believe there’s…

• 14 Mar 2021
• 5 min read
• 0
• 1.2k

Why ABSD For Developers Needs To Be Tweaked And How It Affects You As A Home Buyer

Most home buyers are familiar with the concept of Additional Buyers Stamp Duty (ABSD) as it applies to them. What’s less commonly known is that property developers also have to pay ABSD; and this added tax shapes multiple decisions. From…

• 12 Mar 2021
• 7 min read
• 2
• 556

The Last Tranche Of “En-bloc Fever” Homes From 2017: Here’s How They’ve Performed So Far

You may recall that a few weeks back, we mentioned there’s a chance of a new en-bloc surge in 2021. This is because the last tranche of en-bloc purchases from 2017 will be completed by this year or 2022. Assuming…

• 2 Mar 2021
• 8 min read
• 0
• 1.4k

Humility Is The Greatest Investment Strategy. Here’re 5 Reasons Why.

I listened to the story with fascination as the property agent shared with me the story about how his seller turned down a record price for his unit. Why? Because the buyer had remarked that “the kitchen was ugly”. I…

• 24 Feb 2021
• 7 min read
• 0
• 498

How Bad Is The Price Gap Between New Launch And Resale Condos? An Analysis Of 13 OCR Districts (Part 2)

Last week we looked at the price gap between new and resale condos in various districts (Click here for Part 1). This week we’re continuing on from that, as well as examining why the gap between absolute prices (the quantum)…

• 23 Feb 2021
• 9 min read
• 2
• 622

If You Invested $10,000 In Bitcoin, Tesla Or The ‘Best’ Singapore REIT 2 Years Ago, What Would That Be Today?

“Passive Income”  Or in other words, investing in assets and making free money while you sleep.  To the new investor, the idea itself might seem ludicrous. But to weathered tycoons, this very sentiment is the driving lifeforce behind massive oceans…

• 22 Feb 2021
• 7 min read
• 0
• 935

How Bad Is The Price Gap Between New Launch And Resale Condos? An Analysis of 13 OCR Districts (Part 1)

“Price gap between new and resale units in this region (OCR) stands at 47%, widest in 25 years” With such a statistic, there’s only going to be two trains of thoughts here. One, new launches are overpriced. Or two, resale…

• 19 Feb 2021
• 12 min read
• 0
• 3.2k

4 Reasons Why Resale Condos May Be More Popular In 2021

2020 was dominated by a slew of new condo launches. If you were listening to the radio or browsing property portals, there wouldn’t be a single day where you wouldn’t come across two or three ads – minimum – for…

• 18 Feb 2021
• 6 min read
• 0
• 1.1k

What’s Behind The Surge Of New Launch Condo Purchases In January 2021?

At this point, the prediction of new cooling measures may have become a self-fulfilling prophecy. New condo sales surged month-on-month, between December 2020 and January of this year; and while the reasons are varied, one of them may ironically be…

• 16 Feb 2021
• 6 min read
• 0
• 609

An In-depth Update Of 88 New Launch Condos: Have Prices Risen Or Fallen?

“You’ll make instant profit”, the sales team will tell you, “if you buy at a discount now, and then the prices rise in a few months”. It’s a familiar sales pitch in many show flats; and to Singapore’s property investors…

• 13 Feb 2021
• 9 min read
• 4
• 2.7k

URA Is Asking Questions About Property Agent Commissions; Here’s How It Could Affect You

Property developers have been grumbling of late, and we’re not talking about potential new cooling measures. The gripe has been about property agent commissions, and how they’ve been growing over the years. In recent news however, agents and market watchers…

• 9 Feb 2021
• 6 min read
• 0
• 868

5 Common Scenarios In A Divorce Settlement: How Your Property Will Be Divided

Sometimes, despite our best efforts, marriages go wrong. In an ideal scenario, everyone involved parts ways amicably. In a realistic scenario, the division of assets gets messy; and the most serious complication typically involves the home we stay in. Most…

• 5 Feb 2021
• 9 min read
• 0
• 374

Can We Expect Cash Over Valuation (COV) To Keep Climbing For HDB Flats?

Late last year, property agents already alerted us to the issue of rising Cash Over Valuation (COV) in resale flat transactions. As of last week, news reports seem to affirm that COV is, indeed, creeping its way back into the…

• 4 Feb 2021
• 6 min read
• 0
• 1.1k

5 New Retirement Realities For The Millennial Singaporean

In an era of low interest rates, the traditional strategy of saving and stashing away your monies in higher-interest rate accounts is dead in the water. With various banks slashing their interest rates multiple times in 2020 – there is…

• 30 Jan 2021
• 9 min read
• 0
• 1.1k

4 Reasons Why HDB Upgraders Prefer Executive Condos To Private Condos

Two common expressions you’ll hear in Singapore are “What? Why is an EC so expensive?” followed by “What? The EC sold out again?”  Few market watchers will ever forget the famed Piermont Grand EC. When it first came on the…

• 26 Jan 2021
• 6 min read
• 0
• 633

Are Sentosa Cove Bungalows Really Seeing A Turnaround?

If you’ve been reading the news lately, you may be surprised to hear about the “wave of regional buyers” that are expected to descend on Sentosa Cove. Yes, we’re talking about the same place where the prices of detached homes…

• 25 Jan 2021
• 6 min read
• 0
• 158

13 Former HUDC Estates: How Are They Doing Now?

In 2017, Singapore saw the end of the Housing and Urban Development Company (HUDC) scheme. That was when Braddell View, the last of the remaining HUDC estates, was privatised. In that same year, no less than four HUDC estates went…

• 23 Jan 2021
• 11 min read
• 2
• 2.9k

Could We See More Property Cooling Measures In 2021?

In an “oh no” moment on 18th January, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat said the government is paying close attention to the property market; and that they “don’t want to see the property market run ahead of the underlying…

• 22 Jan 2021
• 7 min read
• 0
• 1.6k