Should Singaporeans invest in foreign properties?

last SG · 2013-02-06T19:41:06+00:00

Singaporeans will have no choice but to start looking for a new life and future before Singapore sinks under water due to rising sea level within this centur...

Bikeforceful SG

Almost everyday , you will see advertisements of properties for sale in Malaysia , Iskandar developments , Penang , Malacca etc , Thailand in Sukumvit , Pukhet, Australi and New Zealand, UK apartments in London andeven coastal bungalows in Indonesia.

Most of these properties offered are residential properties and some Sohos and commercial properties. Some even promise gaurantee returns for two years. In Johore forexample prices have rising by more than 100% since two years ago and about 30% higher within the last 6 months.

All these developers ar etapping into the Singapore market which is flush with funds . Singaporeans who find that investing in Singapore properties are becoming too risky because of the all time high prices, and ridiculous prices which local developers , agents and speculators are asking , now turn to these overseas foreign properties ,

At exhibitions, tens of millionsof overseas properties are sold on the spot! Are singaporeans making the right moves?

ditzy SG

Why not? Their money, they decide what they want to do with it.

Bikeforceful SG

Of course it is their money …and they wil do what they want to do -no body is stopping them…just a disccusion on comparative risk lah!

PJ_Quek SG

Must go there and see physically, don't blindly invest.

Medicated Oil SG

The investor should be responsible for their own investment.

If they are doing because the rest of the singapore are doing it, then that is their reference.

Lots of other people are doing it does not mean it is also suitable for your risk appeitte.

SMB195G SG

If im not wrong, Singapore invest the new Kotaraya shopping mall

Medicated Oil SG

Anything that Ah Kong invest with our money is all flop.

Buy high, sell low.

Bikeforceful SG

Anything that Ah Kong invest with our money is all flop.

Buy high, sell low.

Hm! I take your point ...so did AhKong or Ah mah invest in Iskandar?

zulkifli mahmood SG

If you have the money why not. The oversea properties cost much lower than Singapore shoe box apartments or flats…even in the US the residential homes there are cheaper than in Singapore.

M the name SG

Cool here, hot elsewhere

New property cooling measures push investors to look beyond S’pore

ALL ABROAD: Prospective buyers at Raffles City Convention Centre attending a launch ot the [email protected] bay Plaza Penang retail mall yesterday.

PICTURE: PROPNEX

REPORT: ESTHER NG

THE Government's latest moves to cool property prices are driving investors to find homes away from home.

Ever since the new measures on Jan 11, marketing agents told The New Paper that Singaporeans are turning their attention to the overseas property pie.

"We saw a 30 per cent increase in attendance the weekend after the cooling measures were announced and we saw a corresponding 30 per cent increase in sales," said Reapfield Property Consultants' executive director Peter Thng.

The firm marketed Melbourne properties on Jan 12 and 13 and Brisbane developments over the weekend.

Mr Thng said Reapfield sold 16 Melbourne homes on Jan 12 and 13, and 10 in Brisbane on Saturday.

"A normal weekend would be 10 sales," he said.

SP Setia International's general manager Neo Keng Hoe said there was also an increase in the number of people at its sale of London's Battersea Power Station project over the weekend

"We had good sales - it was faster than we expected," he said.

SP Setia International is the Singapore arm of Malaysian developer SP Setia

Mr Neo declined to give specifics, such as the actual number of people who visited the showroom and sales figures.

It was the same, too, with District 65, the real estate firm marketing D'Island Residence, an upmarket housing project in Puchong, Malaysia

A salesman, who declined to be named, would only say that sales were "healthy" and that low interest rates had prompted people to invest in property rather than park their money in the bank.

Around the region

Over the weekend, there were a number of newspaper advertisements promoting properties in Malaysia, Australia, Bali, Bangkok and London - 16 in The Straits Times and 13 in The Sunday Times.

The week before - a day after the cooling measures were announced- there were 16 apvertisements, mostly on these same properties in The Straits Times and Sunday Times.

During the weekend before the Jan 11 announcement, there were only seven such ads. One prospective buyer, civil servant C.M. Loh, 50, said the cooling measures had no impact on him. He was at Raffles City Convention Centre on Saturday for a two-day exhibition of a new Penang retail mall.

"I'm just looking around. I'm not buying until I'm familiar with investing in the overseas market," he said.

In Malaysia, the Iskandar development region in Johor has seen increased interest from Singaporeans and foreigners working in the Republic.

Developers there said sales of property were up by 20 per cent the weekend after the cooling measures, according to Malaysian Chinese paper China Press on Friday.

But property consultants and an economist The New Paper spoke to disagreed that the cooling measures had prompted Singaporeans to buy elsewhere.

"The market fundamentals in Malaysia are different," said CIMB Research economist Song Seng Wun.

"People who want to invest in Iskandar Malaysia or any other part of Malaysia aren't going to be swayed by what Mr Khaw Boon Wan (the Minister for National Development) says, but the climate and policies over there.

"If you perceive it's not safe to invest in Malaysia, nothing will move you," Mr Song added.

Following the crowd

Chesterton Suntec International's head of research and consultancy Colin Tan agreed, saying that if people were buying it could be because of "herd instinct".

"You get into the showroom, there are lots of people around buying - some of these properties cost only half the price of an HDB flat - that could influence you," said Mr Tan.

But this month's announcement - the seventh in four years - could have made more people ponder about investing overseas, though this does not translate into immediate sales, he said.

Commenting on buying overseas properties in general, Mr Tan said: "You must be familiar with the rules there, security issues and policy risks.

"For most people, this is a hurdle to cross. If you've been standing on the periphery studying the overseas market, the announcement could have given you more incentive to start looking."

Iskandar cooling down?

As for interest in Iskandar Malaysia, it did not happen overnight. It picked up after the fifth round of cooling measures in December 2011 and sixth round of cooling measures in October last year, and not just recently,Mr Tan added.

There are also policy risks or nationalistic elements to consider when investing overseas, said property consultant Nicholas Mak, who is executive director of SLP International's research and consultancy division.

For instance, the Iskandar Regional Development Authority recently received feedback from a Malay business group that the influx of foreign investment has marginalised Malays in Johor and caused Johor property prices to spiral in what could emerge as an election issue for the state, he noted.

Malaysia's General Election is expected to be held by April.

Foreigners can now only buy property above RM500,000 (S$203,800), except for Penang which increased the floor price from RM500,000 to RM1 million for condos and RM2 million for landed property last year.

The Johor state authorities are reportedly mulling over doubling the threshold for properties bought by foreigners to RM1 million. If implemented, Singaporeans,
as the largest group of foreign buyers, would be most affected.

HOME AND AWAY

THINKING of buying property in another country? Go beyond basics like price and location.

Look At:

• Track record of the developer.

• Any major shareholder with a long-term interest in the project. The developer would have a vested interest to ensure the success of the project.

• The potential resale market for the property so you won't get stuck if you choose to sell.

• Property laws of the country. Make sure the law lets you take money from the sale out of the country.

• Developers offering a rental guarantee for the property. And ensure that the promise is backed up by a watertight contract.

• Countries with weak currencies where any capital gain can be offset by weaker exchange overtime.

• Political risk. Policies and governments can change.

News, The New paper, Monday January 21 2013, Pg 4

zulkifli mahmood SG

I just like to give some of my answers to these questions.

“For instance, the Iskandar Regional Development Authority recently received feedback from a Malay business group that the influx of foreign investment has marginalised Malays in Johor and caused Johor property prices to spiral in what could emerge as an election issue for the state, he noted.”

Not really, for the Malaysian malays, they have term a so called “Bumi Putra” sales prices which is even lower for them when they purchase the property. But I hardly see any of them purchase such luxurious properties unless they have the means to buy it as an investment. Most of the Malay Malaysians have their own lands to build their houses. Anyway, the Malaysian Government has this programme for all Malaysians call the “Wawasan 2020” whereby by the year 2020, all Malaysians will have their own homes.

“Malaysia’s General Election is expected to be held by April.”

I don’t think the GE in Malaysia will aftect the property market there.

“Foreigners can now only buy property above RM500,000 (S$203,800), except for Penang which increased the floor price from RM500,000 to RM1 million for condos and RM2 million for landed property last year.”

Well, it used to be RM300,000 plus now it has increased its quota to RM500,000. Back in the 90s and early 2000s, there were no quotas. Too bad because most developers will take these opportunities to earn more from the foreigners…just like Singapore property market too. As for Penang, the property market policies there are control by the state government which is the opposition party of DAP. I think they would like to run the state like Singapore style…which is rather difficult for them to fulfil.

“The Johor state authorities are reportedly mulling over doubling the threshold for properties bought by foreigners to RM1 million. If implemented, Singaporeans, as the largest group of foreign buyers, would be most affected.”

I guess they would but not so soon…after a few years perhaps when Malaysia development is more robust.

zulkifli mahmood SG

More S’poreans cross Causeway to buy homes

Favourable exchange rate and lure of landed property are among the reasons cited

The Sunday Times – July 22, 2012
By: Melissa Tan and Teo Cheng Wee

When Ms June Chan first went to Johor Baru to scout for potential properties in February, she spotted a villa going for a pretty price.

Built on a sprawling 16,000 sq ft compound was a single-storey bungalow with three rooms and a swimming pool. It was in the Leisure Farm development, in Johor’s Iskandar region. The price: RM3.8 million ($1.52 million).

Within two months, Ms Chan, 52, decided it was a good deal and plunged in.

‘It’s a second home for living in while my Singapore house is for rental,’ said Ms Chan, who is single and retired from a multinational corporation two years ago. She is now doing humanitarian work.

With property prices rising in Singapore, more Singaporeans have begun looking to Malaysia for investment or to buy their second homes. The weakening Malaysian ringgit, the lure of owning landed property and familiarity with the country are reasons they cite for looking north.

The Malaysian property market has been heating up in recent years, much like in the rest of Asia.

Official figures from Malaysia Property Inc – an agency that promotes Malaysia’s real estate internationally – the total transaction value of real estate in Malaysia was RM137.8 billion last year, up 28 per cent from RM107.4 billion in 2010.

About 2 per cent of that figure is foreign investment.

Johor has seen the strongest surge in interest from foreign investors in the past year, according to the agency.

In the first half of 2010, foreigners made up only 4 per cent of Johor property transactions, for properties priced above RM1 million. In the corresponding period last year, however, that figure shot up to 25 per cent.

Much of the demand has been generated by the buzz over the Iskandar region, earmarked by the Malaysian government as a major growth area for the country.

There are also now big Singapore companies investing in Iskandar.

Temasek Holdings has a joint-venture project with Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional to develop land in Iskandar. CapitaLand has been appointed project manager for a 2ha urban wellness project in Medini North, a region in Iskandar.

Growing interest

Property agents have also been pulling out the stops to get Singaporeans interested by advertising, conducting roadshows and taking busloads of potential investors on property tours.

Ms Donna Lim, property agency HSR’s overseas department head, said the number attending its property exhibitions has risen sharply from last year. Agents say the number of transactions by Singaporeans has also risen.

While there is no official data, agents like Propnex say that Singaporeans bought 50 units in the second quarter of the year, compared to around 25 units in the first three months. It is marketing five projects there in total, located in Johor, Kuala Lumpur and Cyberjaya.

Mr Peter Lim, head of Leisure Farm Singapore, which arranges free trips for buyers, said Singaporeans had bought 35 units in the development over the past two months, compared to about a dozen in the first two months of the year.

Mr Edwin Tan, director of the Paragon Residences @ Straits View Malaysia project, also in Iskandar, said Singaporeans booked 116 units at a roadshow earlier this month, compared with 54 bookings from Malaysians.

Apart from Singaporeans, Malaysians living in Singapore have also been buying property there.

Lecturer Jude Nesa Rajah, 51, bought his first JB property on impulse eight years ago after seeing the developer’s promotional booth at a shopping centre. He paid RM100,000 for the 1,016 sq ft unit in Bukit Indah. It is now worth RM220,000.

A Singapore permanent resident and father of two, he said: ‘My investment is literally paying for itself… we’ve been renting out the place for seven years now, for RM1,000 a month.’

He said he is looking to invest in more properties when the market cools, adding that he hopes to retire there with his 48-year-old wife, a teacher.

While Johor properties have always seen demand, now Singaporeans are also heading further north, scouting for potential investments in Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Malacca.

Ms Lily Tan, senior marketing and sales manager at Hunza Properties, said Singaporeans were the top buyers of Hunza’s newest condominium Gurney Paragon in Penang, making up about 15 per cent of total unit sales.

But unlike those who buy property in Johor as their second or retirement homes, Singaporeans who buy in Kuala Lumpur and Penang tend to view purchases as investments, said PropNex chief executive Mohamed Ismail.

Ms Goh Yu Ming, 32, bought a 4,000 sq ft condominium unit in Kuala Lumpur’s main shopping district, Jalan Bukit Bintang, last year for RM2 million. Ms Goh, who works in investor relations, believes she can get a rental yield of 6 to 8 per cent.

Rental yields in commercial hubs like Kuala Lumpur and Penang range from 5 per cent to 6 per cent, while in Johor they are typically 4 per cent to 6 per cent. In contrast, Singapore residential properties generally yield 2 per cent to 3per cent, consultants said.

The weakening of the ringgit against the Singapore dollar is expected to further stimulate demand. It has fallen by 2.7 per cent in the past year to reach a 14-year low against the Singapore dollar.

http://sgforums.com/forums/2092/topics/462630?p…

zulkifli mahmood SG

Real Estate Information & Investment in Malaysia…..

http://realestatemalaysia.weebly.com/buying-pro…

zulkifli mahmood SG

Just for your general information, there are other older international lots freehold properties in Johor Baru that foreigners can purchase like at Bukit Indah and Taman Sri Puteri, besides the Iskandar project in JB. There are some Singaporean owners who will sell it to Singaporeans or other foreign nationalities. The houses there are spacious too.

About Taman Sri Putri, it was developed in 1992, the houses there when compared to Bukit Indah, its much bigger and more spacious. There are in total 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. One bedroom below with attached bathroom with the kitchen area. Upstairs, there is one bathroom with bathtub for the very spacious master bedroom, one attached bathroom with 2 entrances to the two adjoining bedrooms. There is a spacious living room just outside the master bedroom and the two other bedrooms. There is a balcony outside the master bedroom. Downstairs there is a very spacious hall for the living area and dining area. The ceiling downstairs and upstairs are very high and in fact you can also build another floor for attic. There is a garage with a front yard and the backyard. The residents there are mainly Malaysians and Singaporeans. In fact, if you take a drive to this area now there are many houses for sales and some are under the bank auction…lelong. I give you some lead here, there are houses for sales in Taman Sri Putri, Jalan Emas 20, Jalan Emas 21, Jalan Emas 22, Jalan Emas 23, Jalan Timah, Jalan Gangsa etc. You can call the banks or the property agents to enquire for more details. Should you wish to rent a house there, the monthly rental is from RM700 to RM1000. The area is quiet and peaceful. Good place for children to grow up. Plenty of space for you to exercise or cycle. There are frequent patrolling by the Malaysian Police Force in that area.

Near Taman Sri Putri, there is a Shopping Centre – Skudai Parade with supermarket Econsave, very cheap and reasonable price, many local food stalls/coffeeshops, local schools, petrol stations, a Chinese Church, a Tamil Church, Mosques, Hindu Temples, two Taois Toh Peh Kong, Buddhist Temple, Town Council (MPJBT), Post Office, Traffic Police Headquarters, Motels, playground, retail/provision shops, two 711 outlets, many car and motor workshops, Night Market every Sunday evening, Indoor Badminton Courts Stadium, private clinics and many sales of bus ticket counters/agencies going to northern part of Malaysia and Thailand.

By the way, though you are a foreigner when you own a property in Malaysia, you can purchase cars in Malaysia. Usually, the downpayment is 30% and monthly instalments. The disadvantage is if you are a Singaporeans or Singapore PR, you are disallowed to drive in to Singapore. It is an offence if you drive in a Malaysian registered car to Singapore. You have to park your car in Johor Baru and take bus to Singapore.

Take a look at it….

HORIZON HILLS – BUKIT INDAH,JOHOR BARU
http://johor-bahru-real-estate.com/housing-esta…

TAMAN SRI PUTRI – SKUDAI, JOHOR BARU
http://www.iproperty.com.my/propertylisting/153…

Jwjs2011 SG

How about properties in US, Canada, Brazil and Argentina? Does it create interest in Singaporean?

zulkifli mahmood SG

How about properties in US, Canada, Brazil and Argentina? Does it create interest in Singaporean?

I doubt so because generally for Singaporeans when they buy a property overseas is to migrate there and stay there. As for properties in Johor Baru, many bought there because its much cheaper in price compare to Singapore market and its spacious plus its a freehold property. The cost of living there too is much much lower when compare to Singapore. They shifted to JB to live there too because is near and going to work to Singapore is not that difficult.

zulkifli mahmood SG

TERMS AND CONDITION OF BUYING A PROPERTY IN INDONESIA

http://www.expat.or.id/info/buyingproperty.html

zulkifli mahmood SG

SINGAPOREANS BUYING PROPERTIES IN BATAM IN INDONESIA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFJX7W4FL_c

zulkifli mahmood SG

Foreign land purchases have become common in Bali: study

Friday, 16 March 2012 00:00

Source: The Jakarta Post

by Ni Komang Erviani

Despite the local government’s promise to curb such practices, the illegal purchase of land has become common in Bali, which has in turn triggered a sharp increase in property prices on the resort island.

Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika said that the trend had become worrisome because it had a negative effect on the local economy and society.

Foreigners have bought land to build their own houses but mostly have built villas and hotels. Such illegal practices have caused land prices to increase above the normal values.

Bali has the highest rates of increased land prices in the country. According to recent research conducted by Knight Frank and Elite Havens, average land prices in Bali increased 34 percent throughout 2011, while the normal increase rate was only around 8 to 16 percent.

In some areas, the price increase was far higher. Land prices near beaches in Seminyak, such as Legian, Petitenget and Batu Belig, experienced the highest jump compared to other areas in Bali; increasing by between 50 and 87.5 percent last year. Knight Frank and Elite Havens said the sharp increases were influenced by the high demand among investors to build property on those particular tourism sites.

“It is true. Only in Bali, we see phenomenal land prices. Property values on the island are automatically increasing,” Bali branch Real Estate Indonesia (REI) chairman Dewa Putu Selawa told The Jakarta Post recently.

The increase in land prices, he said, could reach 100 percent per year. For example, in 1997 Selawa had built housing that sold at Rp 25 million per unit in Muding village, Badung. “Now, it’s worth Rp 400 million [US$43,600] per unit, even with the old building that I built 15 years ago. That’s because the land prices have soared,” he added.

Selawa explained that the soaring land prices were an impact of the growth of island’s tourism.

“Many foreigners decided to buy a house or villa in Bali, because they felt comfortable living here. That condition has triggered the increasing price of properties,” Selawa said, adding that unequal economic development between South Bali and other regions had become another trigger. Southern parts of Bali are the popular areas for foreigners to invest in property. Other parts of Bali still lack infrastructure.

By law, foreigners are not allowed to own land in the country, so many have purchased property through wives or other relatives. “It is a common practice in Bali. The foreigners buy properties with their own money, but using the names of local people. Usually, they use their partner’s name, or someone else that they trust,” Selawa said.

Southern areas such as Seminyak, Canggu and Kuta, have also become foreigner favorites because many of their friends have lived for years in these areas. Some areas are usually called “Kampung Bule” because many foreigners live there.

“Foreigners usually prefer to live in the same area with their friends from the same country. When one foreigner lives in the area, many others will also live in the same area, and that will be trigger the increasing price of land,” Selawa added.

Many foreigners have also acted as properties agents, illegally. “There are about 15 groups of foreigners who work as property agents. They work illegally through the Internet. However, they are usually more trusted by foreign customers because they come from their country,” he said.

Widiana Kepakisan, another property businessman, said that foreigners had many ways of buying property in Bali. “Marrying locals is the most common way of buying some property in Bali. When they divorce, the property is diverted to other locals that they trust. They will give their partner a small part of the property. And it’s still profitable for them because the prices have increased,” Widiana said.

“Many locals agree to the whole thing because they know that they also get benefits from the practice,” he added.

Besides buying the land, some foreigners prefer to rent land or properties for many years. “They could rent properties for more than 30 years,” he said. Previously, Bali governor asked the Bali Police to closely monitor illicit business practices by foreign nationals, as well as property businesses. “Many foreigners buy land and build villas with their own money but using the names of local people. Later, they sell the villas at a high price. Some of them, indeed, marry local people, or simply pretend to marry local people. This is a common practice because both the foreigners and the local profit from this scheme. I hope police closely monitor this illegal practice,” he said.

http://www.balipropertysales.com/view-all/30-fo…

zulkifli mahmood SG

My personal opinion, the disadvantage of buying a property in Indonesia for foreigners, its not a freehold property for foreigners to buy rather its a form of land leasing for a limited period if I’m not mistaken is usually for 20 years leasing or more. Afterwhich, the Indonesian government will review the land leasing in matters whether they have any development projects in that area. If so they would repossess that land and compensate the residents accordingly. If there isn’t any plans for development in that area then they would probably renew the land leasing.

I know many male Singaporeans still buy properties in Batam because some of them married Indonesians and some keep mistresses over there…hehe..its true. If I were them, I would rather purchase a land in Indonesia under my Indonesian wife name and build a house on that land. I rather do that in Bali. Though it was attacked by terrorists in the past, that would not stop me from staying there because there are terrorist threats all over the world now, even in Singapore. Bali is a safe place to stay and walking late at night on Bali streets is still quite safe almost like in Singapore. The nightlife there, the entertainment clubs are until 5 or 6 am in the morning and there are many 24 hrs restaurants. The other thing is, if you feel hot, you can take a trip to the moutains like Bedugul or Kintamani which is a mountain resort area with a wonderful panoramic view. And if you do business in Bali, its business and pleasure.