Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 54154)

If you are buying a $5m condo, you need income of $400k pa.

For $1m condo, if you loan only $500k, your income need only be $100k pa assuming no other loans.

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 54158)

What I don't understand is why those who can qualify for EC not go for EC? The qualifying salary ceiling is $12k pm.

Why stretch your finances unnecessarily and compete out of your league. After taking out a huge loan for the condo, you will be hard pressed to follow through with a car to keep appearances with your neighbors. All these are unnecessary.

Live within your means and your life will be happier. There is enough stress from work already, no need to take on more on the home front!

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 54092)

There is no end to the debate whether the rich or the poor is happier. People on both sides of the debate tended to see things at the extremes and treat wealth and happiness as mutually exclusive. We all know this is not so in real life. The rich can be happy, just as the poor can also find happiness in non fiduciary aspects.

For me, believe it or not, every time I have a bad at the office, I will come home, take a look at my little excel sheet detailing my investments, net worth and passive income, and I will be at peace.

More than a decade ago when I found myself at a cross road in my career, it dawn on me that I better not just depend on my job for income. That was when I started investing in earnest. It helped that my wife was a career woman. Together our combined income allowed us to consistently save and invest every year. Our dividend income was very modest at the beginning and now we are getting $40k per year (give or take a thousand or two year on year).

To spread our risk, we also invested in a condo for rental income generating another $45.6k per year (gross). On top of that, we are also getting interest from our CPF of about $20K per year. We cannot draw out the CPF interest as we are not yet 55, but the thought of having yearly interest coming in has a very calming effect for us.

We were looking forward to retiring by 55, but not so now. Each time we reviewed our net worth and investment income, we get this satisfied and happy feeling that we will be alright. We joked that it has become the anti-dote to office stress.

So I guess my point is, building up your wealth can be a good thing if you take a positive mindset to it, and not be overly obsessed by it.

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 54205)

Is it the same joker who keeps emphazing that he has "made it" just that he moved to a condo? REALLY?
Does everyone believe that?

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 54205)

Is it the same joker who keeps emphazing that he has "made it" just that he moved to a condo? REALLY?
Does everyone believe that?

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 54208)

The Singapore dream is

Cash
Condo
Car

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 54204)

In this forum, it is amazing to see to many Singaporean professionals earning big bucks. While our story is not as amazing, we are grateful and happy for what we have. Married couple with two teenage kids, we live in a new condo which we bought at $1m last year. As we like to be debt free we paid in full after we sold our previous property. We live a humble life, earning $150k pa only.

Our combined net worth is just $1.5m. We describe ourselves as a middle class couple in our late forties. We are neither rich nor are we poor. We are contented with what we have achieved so far in our blessed life. Someone mentioned 85% of Singaporeans live in public housing (HDB flats) and we are lucky enough to be among the top 15% of Singapore families who live in a private property. It has always been our Singapore dream to own and live in a condo and we have made it.

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 54214)

I wanted to applaud you on your happy life, but there are certain parts in your story I took issue with.

1. Those staying in condos are not necessary the top 15% (neither in wealth nor achievements). For eg, your household income and net worth will be below many HDB dwellers. It would have been enough to just say that you are among the 15% staying in a condo, rather than among the top 15%.

2. You bought a brand new condo last year at $1m -- this must be a MM unit. Last year, the prices for most new condos especially newly TOP ones were still commanding >$1K psf. If that were true, your condo would be smaller than a 5 roomer HDB.

3. It would be more appropriate to describe your lifestyle as simple rather than humble. If you want a humble life you shouldnt have moved to a condo. Your aspiration to own a condo also dont quite jell with living a simple lifestyle.