The one-bedroom unit near Clarke Quay was a good bargain. But it took months to close the deal.
Every time I had a request, offer or counter-offer, it took ages for the property agent to get back to me.
His excuses included (but not limited to) owner in different time zone, cannot get hold of owner, owner not replying e-mail, too expensive to use IDD, etc.
For instance, a simple task of getting a signature from the owner on the OTP (Offer to Purchase) could take weeks.
And his explanation was: Under heavy snow, the poor owner had to cycle to the post office to pick up the mail. Shouldn’t we be more patient?
It didn’t help that the property agent knew the owner personally. He insisted that we should respect the owner because the latter used to be a renowned person (in a respected profession).
Looking back, the teaming of a weird agent and a laid-back seller might be a blessing in disguise.
I bagged a good value property, not because I was lucky, but probably because the rest of the potential buyers were so frustrated that they could have backed off for long!
The OTP was finally signed by both parties on the last week of April 2004. I had waited four whole months to seal it!
But it’s all worth it.
The unit was originally rented out for $2,500. That’s a net return of close to 7 percent. Above all, this was the lowest rent I received for this property.
It provided me every month with a satisfactory rental return for 5 1/2 years. The rent did surge to $5,000 at one time in 2007. My net rental return was an impressive 26 percent!
I figured out that the tenant was paying $167 a day, similar to the daily rate of a five-star hotel at that time.
And for the number of days he was out of the country, it’s actually more cost-effective to stay in a hotel. At least he could enjoy housekeeping and other hotel services, minus paying the utility bills and servicing the aircon!
The condo was once popular among Caucasian expatriates. Over time, it was attracting Japanese and Korean tenants. The majority were company lease.
I also learned that for properties that can fetch a rental over $2,500 (or $3,500 during good times), the profile of the tenants is very different from those who have a lower budget.
I am also grateful to meet my property agent during one of the changes of tenancy in this property. She became my sole agent and provided me with invaluable advice and great support over the years.
I refinanced the property with another bank on the second year. The new mortgage charged only 0.98 percent interest for the first year. It also gave me 5 percent cash on the loan amount (i.e. $21,000), to be refundable pro-rata if property was sold/refinanced in 15 years.
When I decided to sell the unit, I received several offers that came at different times.
It was finally sold for $980,000.
I know similar units are sold slightly higher than $1 million subsequently. But I am still happy with my 87 percent profit.
I guess I am the type of investor who are most willing (and only comfortable with) making money by “selling too early”.
Thank you for sharing. I can’t see the effort and patience are well rewarded.
: )
Hi Mrs PS, thanks for your sincere sharing. I learn a lot from your posting and look forward to your every new update. Your profits in property investments helping you to achieve financial independence really inspire me. Hope that you will share when it will be a good time to buy a property again.
One question : What is the best way to find a bargain in property ? eg. newspaper, from propertyguru, from agents ?
I am glad that you like my posts!
“Mrs” sounds a bit like addressing school teachers ; ) “PS” will do.
1) Good time to buy again:
– When you mention the word “Property”, people respond in pain or in contempt.
– When you see very short listings in Classified under “Property” section.
– When you call up property agents, they have the time of the world for you.
– When you are the only one coming for viewing and the seller “begs” you to buy.
2) The best way to find a bargain is through hard work, hard work and hard work. I found all of them through the Classified. I made countless calls and went for a hundred viewings before finding a good bargain.
Thank you for sharing your experience on the golden time to buy properties again. This is very valuable for people who have not experienced the last downturn in the property market. We tend to think that such time has never occurred before, given the frenzy that we are going through today in Singapore.
Hi Mrs PS, thanks for your sincere sharing. I learn a lot from your posting and look forward to your every new update. Your profits in property investments helping you to achieve financial independence really inspire me. Hope that you will share when it will be a good time to buy a property again.
One question : What is the best way to find a bargain in property ? eg. newspaper, from propertyguru, from agents ?
I am glad that you like my posts!
“Mrs” sounds a bit like addressing school teachers ; ) “PS” will do.
1) Good time to buy again:
– When you mention the word “Property”, people respond in pain or in contempt.
– When you see very short listings in Classified under “Property” section.
– When you call up property agents, they have the time of the world for you.
– When you are the only one coming for viewing and the seller “begs” you to buy.
2) The best way to find a bargain is through hard work, hard work and hard work. I found all of them through the Classified. I made countless calls and went for a hundred viewings before finding a good bargain.
Thank you for sharing your experience on the golden time to buy properties again. This is very valuable for people who have not experienced the last downturn in the property market. We tend to think that such time has never occurred before, given the frenzy that we are going through today in Singapore.
excellent investment. Thanks for the detailed sharing. Learnt a lot from your experience.
excellent investment. Thanks for the detailed sharing. Learnt a lot from your experience.
Thanks Peter. Hope to learn from you and other readers too.