How much are you earning per annum?

Originally Posted by Unregistered

55, stay home unemployed dad with 2 sons. Wife working part time. Home is a humble FH semi-d at Lentor, worth 3.5mil.

My income:
2 shophouses at little india, each valued at 3mil, rented out for a total of 40k per month.
One 2 bedders condo in Woodgrove, valued 1.3mil, rented out for 4k.
One studio apartment in Novena, valued at 1.2mil, rented out for 3k.

So my annual income is approx $560k thereabout based on my property portfolio with a net value of $8.5mil. My total net worth based on property is $12mil with maybe $3mil in cash, so total is maybe $15mil?

My greatest achievement is staying debt free. I've always believed that real estate is the key to wealth. Just look at the list of richest people. I don't dabble in stocks, I don't see myself in front of the monitor staring at numbers.

Got my big break buying the shophouses in late 90s for 500k each. At that time 800k can buy a condo and I remember very clearly a friend who bought a 4-story house at Bukit Timah for 1.8mil, so sinking my life savings then was a really big life-changing decision. Can't get those prices anymore now, glad things worked in my favour.

Used those shophouses as collateral to get bank loans to purchase my other property. Loans all fully paid. My monthly rental are all cash and banked in as savings.

Now I'm just accumulating more capital and wait for the property market to crash so I can go on another shopping spree. Hope to hit net worth $25mil by the time I'm 65, which is a realistic target in current economic climate.

I find this very incredible. I'm renting a Clark Quay shop house for my business at half of the 40k stated here, how can Little India worth double? Are you telling me Little India is a more attractive place than CQ? And I seriously do not think you can get a shop house for 500k. Nowadays even a HDB void deck shop lot is worth at least 300k.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

I find this very incredible. I'm renting a Clark Quay shop house for my business at half of the 40k stated here, how can Little India worth double? Are you telling me Little India is a more attractive place than CQ? And I seriously do not think you can get a shop house for 500k. Nowadays even a HDB void deck shop lot is worth at least 300k.

he bought it in the 90s, so is ok. But I dont get it, condo at woodgrove (so ulu place) can get a rental of 4k? serious? Really need to clarify because I intend to buy a 2 bedroom condo as well. If really can fetch 4K, I really dont mind investing it in Woodgrove

Small time biz man, 46, net earnings $68k pa. Spouse, 45, is a salaried worker earning $80k pa. Our household expenses $100k pa, shared equally. I save $18k pa, spouse saves $30k pa. We bought our condo in 2003 and now it is paid up. Current valuation $1m. We hope to work until 55 and then retire.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

he bought it in the 90s, so is ok. But I dont get it, condo at woodgrove (so ulu place) can get a rental of 4k? serious? Really need to clarify because I intend to buy a 2 bedroom condo as well. If really can fetch 4K, I really dont mind investing it in Woodgrove

actually still ok la i think. woodgrove if you buy near the american school got ang mo chu and alot of expat families there, near to causeway also, the place quite good. not to mention every halloween that is the enighbourhood there most happening place liao.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

I find this very incredible. I'm renting a Clark Quay shop house for my business at half of the 40k stated here, how can Little India worth double? Are you telling me Little India is a more attractive place than CQ? And I seriously do not think you can get a shop house for 500k. Nowadays even a HDB void deck shop lot is worth at least 300k.

Bro read properly, is 40k for TWO shophouses. So one unit get 20k rental, which is exactly what you are paying for your CQ shop lol.

Thanks again for sharing.

Personally I believe property investment like stock investments need to go thru a fair bit of analysis, location, rental attractiveness, conveniences, plot ratio etc. If anyone buys blindly I would really find that foolish. But unlike stocks property are much easier to read thank god cause everything is laid out.

The two investment properties you refer to are these the shophouses? Were they already tenanted when you bought them?

I'll be frank and say that I would only see that as your better investment. The other two condo's thought the yield is decent doesn't fit in what I look for in a property because I don't see capital appreciation there. (I target 70/100% ROI outside rental income), thought I do agree to keep the loan gearing as small and manageable.

Like you I got a lucky break when I acquired a row of industrial units at bargain price and rented them to a single company. The yield if I calculate is about 10 - 12% on original purchase price.

I do question if making money this way will continue for long (i.e buying on the dips) or will it one day turn stagnant but since I'm done okay so far I will continue to pursue property.

Be interested what areas you are focusing on in the downturn, I'm working on building my areas of interest as well.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Paralysis through analysis.

We are also into property investment. When we started with our first investment property (not our primary home), our immediate goal was to pay off the loans as early as possible.

But in 2008, we changed our mental model when the housing loan was drastically reduced to 1% thereabout. It stayed this low till now - a good 6+ years!

So for our 2 investment properties, we paid down about 30% each and for the rest of the money that we could have used to pay up for the properties, we left some of it in our CPF, invested in blue chips and bought some bonds.

This is what our returns are like:

CPF OA: 2.5%
Bonds : 4 - 5%
Shares dividends : 4.5% (average)
Rental income(net) : 8.5% (based on paid up amount)

Cost of housing loan: about 1.5% currently

Had we fully paid up the 2 investment properties, we would be just earning a net income of 3% pa.

The 2 investment properties were valued at $1.4m when we bought them. Now they're worth about $2.2m (down slightly from its peak)

Housing loans has the lowest interest rate in the market, because the property is the collateral the banks staked their claim on, so makes use of it to generate more money!

The caveats here are:
1. Ensure you can handle the loan payment during periods when you cannot find tenants
2. You are able to generate more returns with the money which you could have used to fully pay up for your property. With current low housing loan rate, this is very easy.
3. You must already have the money. That is, don't over extend yourself

Originally Posted by Unregistered

he bought it in the 90s, so is ok. But I dont get it, condo at woodgrove (so ulu place) can get a rental of 4k? serious? Really need to clarify because I intend to buy a 2 bedroom condo as well. If really can fetch 4K, I really dont mind investing it in Woodgrove

Yup agree that looks off... when the 3 bedders at Woodgrove on propertyguru are asking for $2,700 per month.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Yup agree that looks off... when the 3 bedders at Woodgrove on propertyguru are asking for $2,700 per month.

Bro can give link? Was looking to rent around woodgrove/marsiling area cos I travel to Jb alot but agent quote me 3.5k leh.

2.5k can only get admiralty/gambas there de condo, too far for me liao

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Bro can give link? Was looking to rent around woodgrove/marsiling area cos I travel to Jb alot but agent quote me 3.5k leh.

2.5k can only get admiralty/gambas there de condo, too far for me liao

Do without your agent, deduct 500 from your quote and you will have the market price for the rental. Marsiling 3k and Admiralty 2k sounds about right to me. Assuming those are 2-bedders you are talking about.

Married couple, 46 & 44, combined earnings $175k pa.
Two school going children.
Saves $45k pa.
Upgraded to a condo, $1.1m. No loan.
One year old car. No loan.
Total net worth $2m.
How are we doing financially?