2020 is a double spring leap year (双春闰年) in the Chinese lunar calendar. With a double fourth month (闰四月), this year we have 13 months and a total of 384 days instead of the normal 354 days in a lunar year. For the same reason, the start of the 7th month in the Chinese calendar has shifted from July to August. This year the Ghost Month falls on much later dates from August 19 to September 16.
This is the month when the underground floodgate (for both deceased locals and foreigners) is opened. Your Chinese parents may remind you not to go out at night, especially when you can see things that most people cannot (I don’t mean the emperor’s new clothes as said in my old post). For the same reason, sales galleries should close early and property agents can take a break in the evenings.
During this period, there are many taboos among the Chinese. Below are six common property myths that we hear in the market. Let’s exam them one by one below.
Myth #1: You cannot go property viewing during the Ghost Month.
Despite what others tell you, it is perfectly fine to arrange property viewings on the 7th month, both for rental and for sale. Just remember that before you make your entry, say this aloud or in your heart repeatedly: “Excuse me, I am coming in” or “Sorry for disturbing”.
Chances are you won’t see more than five spirits in a group at any single point of time. Above all, they cannot harm you with the one-metre apart social distancing rule. In the event you see any dirty things, remind them that we are still in Phase Two: Everyone must maintain a safe distance of at least one metre. First-time offenders will be fined $300. Subsequent offenders will face prosecution. Non-residents will be deported and barred from re-entering Singapore again. If they fail to wear a mask in public or flout the social distancing rule in any way, you can report them via the OneService tip-off app.
Myth #2: You cannot do renovation during the Ghost Month.
Some say the sound of renovation can draw wandering spirits to your home. The noise of renovation particularly drilling and hammering, or making changes to the layout can antagonize ghosts who have been staying there all along.
From where I stay, I notice at least three neighbors in the street are having a big renovation of their new house now during the Ghost Month. The owners are all Chinese. Obviously, the unexpected two months’ project delay due to circuit breaker has made them non-superstitious. I will probably follow-up with them whether myth #2 is valid after they move in.
The fact is: These days renovation projects are upsetting the owners more than the ghosts due to project delay and higher cost from lack of manpower. Right after the circuit breaker, a new neighbor staying three houses away from mine rushed their contractor to complete all the work in six weeks’ time. They managed to move in just before the start of the 7th month.
Myth #3: You cannot move house during the Ghost Month.
For the superstitious, it is a taboo to move house during the Ghost Month for fear of Inviting the unwanted spirits to move in with you. With no Zhongyuan Festival celebration this year, they might look for other alternatives like housewarming and stay on after the party is over. It is therefore no point pressurizing your contractors to make up for the lost time. Even if they speed up to finish the job for you, you still cannot move in now until after September 16.
Fortunately, effective from September 1, Malaysian workers crossing the border to work in Singapore can use the Green Lane and Periodic Commuting arrangements and are only required to fulfill a 7-day Stay-Home Notice. Hopefully, this can ease the problem of shortage of workers in the renovation market.
For those who really have to move house during this Ghost Month, say you are a Malaysian coming back to work in Singapore and need to settle down in your rented place, you can pick a date and time from the Chinese almanac that is auspicious to your bazi. Consult a fengshui master if you can’t read Chinese.
By the way, moving companies (not couriers or delivery companies) are not that busy during this period. You may be able to negotiate a better deal with them.
Myth #4: You cannot buy properties during the Ghost Month.
You are not advised to move house but it is absolutely fine to buy a home during the Ghost Month. From the time you sign on the dotted line to the time you move in, it takes two weeks to exercise the option and 12 weeks to complete the transaction. It will be 3 to 4 months later before you move in.
In September 2015, The Straits Times did a study together with the local universities on the buying behavior of Chinese and non-Chinese homebuyers during the Ghost Month, using data of 82,001 non-landed private transactions from 2000 to 2009. Contrary to what many people thought, sales was quite strong with no significant dip during the Ghost Month. Non-superstitious homebuyers were even able to find good bargains because Chinese above 50 years of age are more likely to avoid buying homes during this time.
Property spokespersons and analysts please don’t use the 7th month as an excuse to explain why the market is quiet and sales is slow. Historical figures showed us that, when the real estate market was hot, transaction volumes were high even during the Ghost Month. In case they need to justify the poor performance of both new sales and resale transactions, September school holiday may be a better excuse.
After the Ghost Month and the school holiday, developers should be able to go ahead with the planned launches. With more new projects launched, more new units will be sold. It is a no-brainer that the following month will see a surge in new sales volume.
Myth #5: You cannot go for staycations during the Ghost Month.
To satisfy your travel bug, there is currently a total of 207 hotels in Singapore being approved by the Singapore Tourism Board for staycations. However, one of the taboos during the Ghost Month is traveling or staying overnight in other places other than your home because you don’t know whether a place is haunted or not. Furthermore, since the 7th month is in the heart of summer (China is in the northern hemisphere), the spirits will join you for a swim in the swimming pool under the hot weather. And water ghosts are the fiercest.
On the other hand, those who are big fans of The Haunted Rooms, you might want to plan for an adventure of ghost sightings at rumored haunted hotels. But take note that most of the staycation packages are prepaid bookings. You cannot ask for any refund if you see nothing mentioned in the forums by people who claimed they have seen, heard or felt “something” there. In your booking, there is no black and white stating that you will see “something”.
Just like you believe you will see JB–Singapore RTS link, KL-Singapore High Speed Rail, etc. when you buy properties in Iskandar, Woodlands and Jurong East. When exactly they will come nobody can tell. Now you see me, now you don’t.
Are there really ghosts in the first place? This is a similar question I got recently: Did new home sales really go up when we are having a recession? Or are developers just clearing the backlog after lockdown or forgetting to count the returned units? Well, it is the same as asking me whether there are ghosts around. If you believe, there are. If you don’t, there aren’t.
Myth #6: You cannot escape from offerings during the Ghost Month.
Every year during the Ghost Month, there are different celebrations of the Zhongyuan Festival in the neighborhood. We have sumptuous dinners, large-scale auctions, getai performances and Chinese operas to entertain both the living and the dead. It is believed that only when wandering spirits are appeased with food and entertainment that they will not give us troubles during their one-month free and easy on earth.
With the prohibition of social gatherings during Covid-19, there is no more Zhongyuan Festival celebration this year. Dissatisfied ghosts who are unhappy about the cancellations of feasts and parties are likely to turn to individuals to ask for “goodies”.
Here is a suggested interim solution: Just as our government has set aside $100 billion to provide Covid-19 financial relief and assistance to Singaporeans, we can ask them to refer to their respective support portal at www.supportgowhere.ghost.sg
Since the outbreak of Covid-19, Federal Reserve has pumped $700 billion into the equity and bond market. The cheap money has supported prices of stocks and IPOs but the global economy and country recessions continue to deteriorate. The Fed has shot all its bullets and they can do nothing but to maintain low interest rate, a weak currency and inflation in the US.
Down under there is also QE Infinity with mass printing of underground money like nobody’s business. With close to zero interest rate from underground banks, there is no point burning more paper money this 7th month. During this difficult time, the Taoist and Buddhist residents or merchants need to consider more practical support and relief measures for our ancestors and wandering ghosts. We can help them to park their wealth under shelters of safe havens by burning more paper gold and paper silver instead. Stock up on the yellow metal whenever we spot there is any retreat in prices.
Leave me a message if you have more to add to the property myths of the Ghost Month.
P.S. For the health of our club members, Property Club Singapore will not be organizing any seminar or workshop during the Covid-19 period. Members are now free to watch seminar videos of Year of the Pig Property Strategies and Singapore Property Market. Just log in and access them under the “Members Only” tab.
Members can continue to learn through our online courses at $299 for each course:
– Buying My First Private Property Online Course
– How to Buy Good Quality Properties Online Course
– Choosing Prime Properties In Singapore Online Course
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Quote “www.supportgowhere.ghost.sg” Unquote
This is hilarious 😆.
Need to have sense of humor when times are bad.