Rentals in Singapore

[Swn4]

Good for you. But it doesn't change the fact that it is a terrible investment strategy.

That is why we switched to financial instruments instead.


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[malcontent]

Good for you. But it doesn't change the fact that it is a terrible investment strategy.

That is why we switched to financial instruments instead.


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Your primary residence is generally not considered an investment, because it puts a roof over your head - and if sold, the proceeds are usually rolled over to a new home.

Investment properties are the ones that don’t make any sense. The rental yield can be low to negative, and appreciation in value, same thing.

I think the reason people here love investment properties so much is because they tend to have itchy fingers and property is harder to trade. They probably will do better with investment property because they are stock picking and trying to time the market… the two death knells of equity investing. Worse yet, a lot of people here are using leverage and derivatives, death knells… on steroids.

[truthhurts1]

Had to cough up 30% more from next month to stay put in the apartment I am now.. I tried looking for a new one but people just simply do not want to give out their apartment to Indian people anymore nothing new , I must have contacted close to 50 people and only 2-3 gave a positive response..who are renting these apartments nowadays?

[omshastry]

I am renting a 3 bedder condo, and been asked to vacate by Feb (LL wants to move in). Listings I see around my place are at least 70%+ higher! This is outright robbery! Even then, it's really hard to get an agent even to show the units.

p.s. My current rental is not abnormally low (in case you thought so). I know of at least 10 other families living in the same condo in similar sized units, and paying within +/- $50 of my monthly rental.

[NYY1]

I am renting a 3 bedder condo, and been asked to vacate by Feb (LL wants to move in). Listings I see around my place are at least 70%+ higher! This is outright robbery! Even then, it's really hard to get an agent even to show the units.

p.s. My current rental is not abnormally low (in case you thought so). I know of at least 10 other families living in the same condo in similar sized units, and paying within +/- $50 of my monthly rental.

Obviously, get the actual transactions from URA (not listings) and see where things are actually transacting. I'm not saying 70% is false but some listings are sensible, others are not.

[jwoods1864]

My one is up at the end of June and will result in a 70-100% rise. I will probably move of possible just because I can't stomach living in the same place for so much more.


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[omshastry]

Yeah did that. Transactions in the last 3 months have been at 10-60% higher levels than my current rental. A very wide range. But all landlords/agents seem to now be looking at the highs of the range, especially when getting a new tenant.

I am renting a 3 bedder condo, and been asked to vacate by Feb (LL wants to move in). Listings I see around my place are at least 70%+ higher! This is outright robbery! Even then, it's really hard to get an agent even to show the units.

p.s. My current rental is not abnormally low (in case you thought so). I know of at least 10 other families living in the same condo in similar sized units, and paying within +/- $50 of my monthly rental.

Obviously, get the actual transactions from URA (not listings) and see where things are actually transacting. I'm not saying 70% is false but some listings are sensible, others are not.

[NYY1]

Yeah did that. Transactions in the last 3 months have been at 10-60% higher levels than my current rental. A very wide range. But all landlords/agents seem to now be looking at the highs of the range, especially when getting a new tenant.

Are all the units in the development more or less the same (view, noise, facing, etc) or vastly different? There's no doubt the market is getting squeezed upward (at the moment/previously). But if all the units are more or less the same, the 10%-60% range is a result of negotiations and willingness to walk away. I'm not saying getting a good deal is easy or fun, but they (LLs) are saying everything that I'd be saying (if I were them). Sometimes they are right and someone new will pay +70%. Other times, they will think very hard about what they are willing to pass up to be vacant.

Best of luck, hope you can find something without too much hassle.

[Lisafuller]

Property is a shitty investment. If you want to invest in property, I'd rather suggest REITs instead. And did you factor in ABSD which is a killer of profits and is even higher for foreigners?

I walked the talk - sold our house last year and am now renting now. No regrets!


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No judgment but I'm just wondering why you would do that? Seems like you gave up all your equity just to burn money every month.

[Lisafuller]

Good for you. But it doesn't change the fact that it is a terrible investment strategy.

That is why we switched to financial instruments instead.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Your primary residence is generally not considered an investment, because it puts a roof over your head - and if sold, the proceeds are usually rolled over to a new home.

Investment properties are the ones that don’t make any sense. The rental yield can be low to negative, and appreciation in value, same thing.

I think the reason people here love investment properties so much is because they tend to have itchy fingers and property is harder to trade. They probably will do better with investment property because they are stock picking and trying to time the market… the two death knells of equity investing. Worse yet, a lot of people here are using leverage and derivatives, death knells… on steroids.

I believe investment properties are so popular here because the properties in question are typically in less prosperous countries, where they are not affordable to locals at the time of construction. We buy these properties from the developer at a price that is cheap to us but not to them, and then rent it out once completed for a steady stream of passive income, or sell eventually and enjoy the profits.

[Lisafuller]

My one is up at the end of June and will result in a 70-100% rise. I will probably move of possible just because I can't stomach living in the same place for so much more.


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In addition to avoiding crazy rising prices, moving around is also a chance to experience life in different estates which keeps things fresh.

[malcontent]

The whole reason I decided to buy here (after renting for 16 years) was precisely because I could no longer afford to rent, mortgage rates had dropped to nothing and the numbers finally added up (prior to that, the rent I was paying was definitely a negative rental yield for the LL, so I gladly paid it).

If I was renting today, I would still be inclined to buy in the current market, even with the rising mortgage rates.

[omshastry]

Buying makes sense. But not when you’re on EP

The whole reason I decided to buy here (after renting for 16 years) was precisely because I could no longer afford to rent, mortgage rates had dropped to nothing and the numbers finally added up (prior to that, the rent I was paying was definitely a negative rental yield for the LL, so I gladly paid it).

If I was renting today, I would still be inclined to buy in the current market, even with the rising mortgage rates.

[NYY1]

Rent is not just burning money every month. One needs to consider the opportunity cost of tying up money into one property. We can calculate rent vs. interest + maintenance fees + taxes and that will give you a number to look at. We can also look at money "saved" (or avoided spending) via owning vs returns on investment portfolio.

Additionally, owning offers (more) stability and the ability to reno a unit to your liking while renting offers flexibility (change location when jobs/schools change) and the ability to consume something new/different. People will have different views about spreadsheet monkey math and utility from actual living.

Also, the rental yield (positive or negative) needs to include capital appreciation or depreciation. Can swing wildly for or against you depending on the cycle. Truthfully, a factor that is hard to know for certain ex-ante.

[sundaymorningstaple]

The whole reason I decided to buy here (after renting for 16 years) was precisely because I could no longer afford to rent, mortgage rates had dropped to nothing and the numbers finally added up (prior to that, the rent I was paying was definitely a negative rental yield for the LL, so I gladly paid it).

If I was renting today, I would still be inclined to buy in the current market, even with the rising mortgage rates.

My purchase of my HDB flat in Jan '99 was for exactly the same reason. When my rental rate increased by over 200% (over a period of 2.5 years) and the interest rates at the banks make Interest rates look like they are at the bottom of the Mariana's Trench at .25% It no longer made sense to leave that money there doing nothing so I bought a 5 Room resale and played with figures to only pay cash that would leave me with payments that were the same as my current rental before the next increase started. This was using a 14 year mortgage with the HDB.