Issue 283

Copyright 2011-2016 www.propwise.sg. All Rights Reserved.

CONTENTS
p2

FROM THE

EDITOR

How to Tell Savvy Property Investors

Welcome to the 283th edition of the

Singapore Property Weekly.

from Average Ones

Hope you like it!

p7

Resale Property Transactions

Mr. Propwise

(October 10 October 14)

Contribute

Advertise

Do 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 info@propwise.sg, and if theyre good
enough, well publish them here, on our blog and even on Yahoo!
News.

Want 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.

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 283

How to Tell Savvy Property Investors from Average Ones

By Property Soul (guest contributor)

Eating out at Orchard Road on a Saturday

evening, we had just placed our order when
my husband noticed something special about
the restaurant.

The owner
waitresses.

of

this

place

hired

pretty

Pretty? Where?
See the one over there near the counter?

I looked in his direction and saw a voluptuous

figure at the far end of the restaurant. That
one really looks sexy. But she is, strictly
speaking, not a woman.
Not a woman? What do you mean?

Back to Contents

Page | 2

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 283

At that moment, the waitress walked over to
our table to serve the drinks. Now at a close
distance it was obvious that, behind the
heavy makeup, she was a transsexual.
Puzzled, my husband asked: How could you
tell when she's so far away from us just
now?
Of course I can. Because all women can tell
their own kind.
It's like how a mother can tell the difference
between her two identical twins. A plastic
surgeon can always tell whether a celebrity
has gotten a nose job. A gemologist can tell
whether the stone is a real diamond. The only
ones who have no clue are the outsiders or
the amateurs.

Back to Contents

Telling real property investors from fake

ones
The same applies to property investment.
Some may brag that they have made lots of
money from flipping properties, buying highprofile projects or acquiring overseas
properties. Some may claim that they are
successful property investors going from
broke to owning a multi-million property
portfolio, buying properties with no money
down or using other peoples money. Some
may promise that everyone can get rich quick
by going after their exclusive and super high
return opportunities. The stories really sound
sexy. But they are, strictly speaking, not
investors at all. Because they make more
money from the commissions and markups of
selling these high return deals than from the
actual income or return of those projects.

Page | 3

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 283

Savvy investors are the ones who can spot
the hidden gems from the rough. They can
naturally smell a good deal. They are a breed
apart from the fake version in many palpable
ways. Go to any sales gallery or flat viewing
and they know what to look for and how to
ask the right questions. Show them the
sitemap and layout plans and they know how
to pick the best block and best unit in the
whole project. Show them the numbers they
ask for and they know how to calculate the
net return of the property. Give them the facts
of a shortlisted property and they know how
to negotiate for a good deal. Sign on the
dotted line on the Offer to Purchase and they
know which bank and lawyer to work with to
ensure a smooth transaction.

Back to Contents

Telling savvy property investors from

average ones
Are people who buy high-end properties
savvy investors?
Recently,
Bloombergs
article
Saving
Singapores Wealthy disclosed how banks in
Singapore identify wealthy clients simply by
the value of their home rather than their net
worth or investable funds.
This selected group of privileged customers
are signed up as 'accredited investors' and
are qualified to invest in high-risk high-return
products, despite the fact that they have
borrowed heavily to fund their home.

With hunger for investment alternatives amid

low interest rates, they bought lots of energy
bonds (think the doomed Swiber Holdings).

Page | 4

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 283

We already know what happened next:
childrens college fees, retirement savings
and emergency funds are gambled away just
like that.

Below is a table showing the primary

differences between a savvy property investor
and an average property buyer.

We can't tell whether a buyer is well-to-do or

an experienced investor from his home
address. Some people I know have built an
impressive property portfolio for rental income
but still prefer to stay in an HDB flat. Similarly,
people who have purchased several private
properties are not necessarily good property
investors.

Back to Contents

Page | 5

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 283

I am still on a journey to learn and train to be
a savvy property investor. But I can easily tell
whether someone is a value investor in
properties by asking him three simple
questions:
1. What have you bought?
2. When did you buy them?

3. How much did you buy them for?

If he is not keeping the properties for the
long-term, a fourth question will be How
much did you sell them for?

By guest contributor Property Soul, a

successful property investor, blogger, and
author of the No B.S. Guide to Property
Investment.

Back to Contents

Page | 6

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 283

Non-Landed Residential Resale Property Transactions for the Week of Oct 10 Oct 14
Postal
District

Project Name

3
3
4
4
4
5
5
5
8
8
9
9
9
9
9
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10

ALESSANDREA
CENTRAL GREEN CONDOMINIUM
CARIBBEAN AT KEPPEL BAY
THE INTERLACE
THE INTERLACE
FLYNN PARK
CLEMENTIWOODS CONDOMINIUM
WEST BAY CONDOMINIUM
CITY SQUARE RESIDENCES
PRISTINE HEIGHTS
OUE TWIN PEAKS
THE LAURELS
THE METZ
RHAPSODY ON MOUNT ELIZABETH
YONG AN PARK
FOUR SEASONS PARK
LEEDON RESIDENCE
CYAN
RV RESIDENCES
TANGLIN RESIDENCES
D'LEEDON
FONTANA HEIGHTS
D'LEEDON

Back to Contents

Area Transacted Price

Tenure
(sqft) Price ($) ($ psf)
1,001
2,110
1,270
2,056
3,089
2,013
1,076
1,227
1,238
850
1,055
883
581
1,561
3,111
2,260
1,044
1,658
861
1,130
2,250
3,670
2,260

1,410,000
2,350,000
1,750,000
2,250,000
2,704,000
2,350,000
1,165,000
950,000
1,650,000
1,100,000
2,880,150
2,265,000
1,300,000
2,650,000
5,200,000
5,400,000
2,300,000
3,600,000
1,860,000
2,133,440
3,216,000
5,000,000
3,070,000

1,409
1,114
1,378
1,094
875
1,167
1,082
774
1,333
1,294
2,730
2,566
2,237
1,698
1,672
2,389
2,203
2,172
2,160
1,888
1,430
1,362
1,358

FH
99
99
99
99
FH
99
99
FH
FH
99
FH
FH
FH
FH
FH
FH
FH
999
FH
99
FH
99

Postal
District
10
10
10
11
12
12
12
12
13
14
14
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
16

Project Name
D'LEEDON
THE SIXTH AVENUE RESIDENCES
HOLLANDSWOOD COURT
1 MOULMEIN RISE
THE INTERWEAVE
ONE ST MICHAEL'S
OLEANDER TOWERS
KIM KEAT HOUSE
8@WOODLEIGH
TROPIKA EAST
WING FONG COURT
THE SEA VIEW
THE SEA VIEW
PARC SEABREEZE
ONE AMBER
CAMELOT BY-THE-WATER
GRAND DUCHESS AT ST PATRICK'S
SPRING @ KATONG
GRAND DUCHESS AT ST PATRICK'S
BUTTERWORTH VIEW
COSTA RHU
DUNMAN VIEW
BALCON EAST

Area Transacted Price

Tenure
(sqft) Price ($) ($ psf)
2,271
2,637
2,131
1,238
409
1,259
1,141
1,098
398
1,098
947
1,410
1,216
1,593
958
3,035
2,056
1,119
1,507
1,216
2,056
1,216
1,528

3,064,000
2,630,000
1,600,000
1,820,000
630,000
1,518,000
1,270,000
853,000
643,000
1,340,000
723,000
2,180,000
1,870,000
2,380,000
1,410,000
4,350,000
2,780,000
1,370,000
1,820,000
1,428,800
2,248,000
977,500
1,340,000

1,349
997
751
1,470
1,540
1,205
1,113
777
1,614
1,220
763
1,546
1,537
1,494
1,472
1,433
1,352
1,224
1,208
1,175
1,093
804
877

99
FH
99
FH
FH
FH
99
FH
99
FH
FH
FH
FH
FH
FH
99
FH
FH
FH
FH
99
99
FH

Page | 7

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 283

Postal
District
16
17
17
18
19
19
19
20
20
20
21
21
21
21
21
21
23
25
26
27

Project Name
THE CLEARWATER
OCEAN FRONT SUITES
FERRARIA PARK CONDOMINIUM
EASTPOINT GREEN
CASA CAMBIO
REGENTVILLE
RIO VISTA
THE GARDENS AT BISHAN
CLOVER BY THE PARK
THE GARDENS AT BISHAN
JARDIN
SUMMERHILL
CLEMENTI PARK
PARC PALAIS
HIGHGATE
SOUTHAVEN I
THE WARREN
ROSEWOOD
SEASONS PARK
THE MILTONIA RESIDENCES

Area Transacted Price

Tenure
(sqft) Price ($) ($ psf)
947
1,259
1,249
904
495
1,152
1,238
1,206
1,604
883
1,130
947
872
990
1,367
1,302
1,539
1,173
1,076
1,518

820,000
1,170,870
950,000
700,000
710,000
845,000
900,000
1,320,000
1,730,000
885,000
1,620,000
1,060,000
950,000
980,000
1,305,000
1,138,000
1,300,000
900,000
669,000
1,233,000

866
930
761
774
1,434
734
727
1,095
1,079
1,003
1,433
1,119
1,090
990
955
874
845
767
622
812

99
946
FH
99
FH
99
99
99
99
99
FH
FH
FH
FH
FH
99
99
99
99
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.

Back to Contents

Page | 8