How much are you earning per annum?

This is a good plan. Tour packages to Europe can actually be cheaper, depending on the location and number of days. If you go during non peak season, it will be cheaper.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

We were lucky to upgrade to a condo a few years ago. Now our condo is worth $950k and we no longer have any loans on it. We are not very high income earners, just $80k pa and $100k pa. We are now in our early 50s.

When we retire at 65, we will downgrade to a studio condo and use the net cash proceeds to buy annuities. Our CPF Life will also provide us a good monthly income.

We hope our annuities will give us $3k pm while our CPF Life will give us $3.5k pm. Our kids may give us $500 pm ($250 from each child). In total, we will have $7k pm as passive income. Our expenses will be $3k pm the most as we do not plan to own a car nor employ any helper. We can save $4k pm which we can use to go holidays to Europe once we save enough. I think a trip to Europe may cost $10k per person.

It seems that at quite a lot of people is considering of downgrading their home as they are closer to their retirement. Imagine if every does it, there will be an over supply depending on location and age of the unit. Just look at the large no of condo units TOP in punggol, sengkang and yishun in the next two years. Rental will be affected and home price will soften too.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

It seems that at quite a lot of people is considering of downgrading their home as they are closer to their retirement. Imagine if every does it, there will be an over supply depending on location and age of the unit. Just look at the large no of condo units TOP in punggol, sengkang and yishun in the next two years. Rental will be affected and home price will soften too.

As retired couples downgrade from their 3 or 4 bedroom condo units, there will be an oversupply of the big condo units. Demand for the smaller condo units (studio, one bedroom and two bedroom units) will be in high demand as the retired couple downgrade to these smaller units.

yes, when you see herd mentality, you see bubble bursting soon - many of these suburbs condos have poor workmanship, far away from mrt, high maintainance fees, 99 leasehold, poor tenant profiles. hdb dwellers are much better off.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

It seems that at quite a lot of people is considering of downgrading their home as they are closer to their retirement. Imagine if every does it, there will be an over supply depending on location and age of the unit. Just look at the large no of condo units TOP in punggol, sengkang and yishun in the next two years. Rental will be affected and home price will soften too.

i am accumulating cash and ready to pick up 2 or 3 private properties when the downturn comes in 2017-2018

Originally Posted by Unregistered

yes, when you see herd mentality, you see bubble bursting soon - many of these suburbs condos have poor workmanship, far away from mrt, high maintainance fees, 99 leasehold, poor tenant profiles. hdb dwellers are much better off.

When buying a condo, you must buy:

1. Buy for stay and NOT for investment. Property prices going down and down because of big oversupply.
2. Buy condo next to an MRT station (one minute walk) only.
3. Buy from blue chip developers only.
4. Buy big condo developments with big swimming pool, tennis courts, gym and nice landscaping. Avoid those small condo projects with small pool.
5. Buy with 50% cash downpayment so that even if property prices crash by 50%, you are still safe. Those with only 20% cash downpayment cannot sleep well.
6. You must have cash buffer of at least 3 years worth of mortgage payments so that if you lose your job, you have time to sell your condo.
7. Clear your condo mortgage as fast as possible so that you can sleep well.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

I just checked mine as well. I received about same amount as you for Y2015.
$11,500 in total. Feels very shiok.

16.4K leh - How to add a screen shot here?

I realised more and more people in their 60s and 70s are dying especially those highly stressed executives. I've decided to retire from salaried work as soon as I can. I am now in my early 40s and will target to retire by 55. This will allow me to travel the world for holidays (not work) while I'm not too old and still healthy. I think I deserve to retire at 55. If I die at 70, at least I have 15 years to travel the world and do things which I never had time for. I've worked very hard all my life from childhood till now. I worked very hard in school, in Uni, in my career until today. By the time I retire at 55, my passive income will be sufficient to cover my household expenses and travels. I've paid off my 3 bedroom condo unit mortgage and I'm debt free. I also have decent cash savings.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

This is a good plan. Tour packages to Europe can actually be cheaper, depending on the location and number of days. If you go during non peak season, it will be cheaper.

why not just stay in Europe for good when you retire?

rent/food/moving around over Europe is even cheaper than sg and you would have a much higher living quality.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

16.4K leh - How to add a screen shot here?

Wow. Even more shiok!