Property News & Market Trends

How do you define "Trading" in property investment?

Recently, the High Court accept a "Fengshui" appeal but reject the "Tenant" problem situation for taxing a couple's property investment.  This is a public awareness drive by the Taxman to 'highlight" the many property speculators, option traders that "trading" properties for profit IS taxable, though there isn't any capital gain tax.

The recent spike of activities since Dec 2006 till 1st week of July 2007 will expose many property investors, speculators and option traders to such taxes. Some may escape but don't bet on it as all transactions are accountable unless they are not under your name. As such, many option traders may escape undetected unless there are paper trails.

If you're investing in some properties and holding them for a definite period for leasing purposes, you may have a competent case of not buying/selling for a profit. However, if you sell out within a couple of months or weeks, without valid reasons; unless it's because of "Fengshui", then it's best to account your profit as income. Anyway, those who purchased New Projects(before TOP) and selling them have better be prepared for the taxman to invite you for "coffee".

Since the 2nd week of July, the number of speculators and option traders have almost been wipe out clean. With the Sub-prime crisis taking the lead and the ghost month haunting potential buyers, transactions for private properties have dwindled rapidly. We don't forsee any speculative activities until the sky is clear and the US market stabilises.

However, HDB transactions are still healthy as this market is immune to speculation & option traders. Only genuine buyers exist. And since these buyers are less sophiscated, their reaction to sub-prime crisis has a slight delayed action. Tenancy still holds good demand and commercial space is still lacking in the short term. However, private rental asking has seen a slight drop in many areas last month.

For now, we await further news from URA for the 3rd Qtr statistics. Whether the speculators will return depends largely on the hype and figures. Without these speculators, the private sector can expect a slight dent in their asking prices till year end. So, to those looking for good bargains, good for you. Enjoy shopping! - Danny 'Bingo'

More ...

	Property Investment Made Simple - Part 1 Who says you can't invest with little or no money down(nMd) in Singapore? 99.999% of the investing population would say so, I think. Then again, why not? If we didn't try, how can we derive the impossibility of a human's ingenuity? Honestly, I've yet to see a successful deal myself, though I've hea ... 16 Jan 2008 - Read Details
	Property Investment Made Simple - Introductory Is it too late to learn about property investment? All the action seems to happen in the first half of 2007. Let me assure you it's not. However, if your intention is to make a quick fortune, that's speculating, not investing. And it's over. Property investment is a long term hobby that can eventua ... 5 Jan 2008 - Read Details
	If you're selling or buying, be precise, be prepared. The report book for 2007 is out - private residential prices in Singapore rose 31%. As of the 3rd quarter, URA reports that there were 65,400 private residential units under construction, 41,600 expected to be completed between 2008 and 2010. Of the current supply, there are still 38 ... 4 Jan 2008 - Read Details
	Happy New Year yet again - How happy? It's a sad occassion for many, in fact. Firstly, for every owner who managed to sell beyond expectations, there were at least 7 who failed to sell at all. From Oct - Dec, transactions had dampened so much, many veteran Agents ponder if it's the sub-prime that spooked the buyers even after the ghost ... 1 Jan 2008 - Read Details
	Merry X'mas & a joyous New Year! Seasons greetings to all! What a year we had in 2007! It's been a long time since I wrote and it's gooood to be back! Interestingly enough, I should end this chapter in 2007 and begin a new series for 2008. 2007 had been both an exciting yet challenging year for the real estate industry. The ... 31 Dec 2007 - Read Details
	Property sales & enquiries seem to slow more than expected Buyers seem to be grinning the days. With the Sub-prime fears tailing off, the unwelcome news of the mammoth increase in Development Charges or the new rules for en bloc sales, the frenzy has literally disappeared. Thanks to the massive exodus of speculators & option-traders. Though buyers ... 3 Sep 2007 - Read Details
	Where have the buyers gone? It's really mystifying. In the first week of July, a 3cm display ad in ST Classifieds would get hordes of enquiries. In fact, we recorded more than 50 calls for 8 projects we placed out. You can feel the adrenlain flowing. If you're a seller or an agent, you'll feel esctatic. You may change your min ... 15 Aug 2007 - Read Details
	Is the sub-prime financial breakdown in US giving us a warning? Stocks bore the brunt of it all, banks, especially. In US & Europe, fears of the sub-prime markets sent sirens the world over. Asia, at its strongest growth was not spared. Miraculously, Singapore escaped the massacre. No doubt it fall by almost 4% in a day, confidence in our economy regain some ... 12 Aug 2007 - Read Details
	Can the Government's hike on Development Charge stem the rise of En Bloc sales? Property stocks got hit by a 2% drop. I say you should buy them. Seriously, what the Government did by introducing a back to normal DC is basically a gear shift. It will not impact any big developers as they can easily pass the buck, about an increase of 2-3% of the cost to the end buyers. ... 20 Jul 2007 - Read Details
	Do you know the current supplies of properties? We know about caveats(property sold & price) but who knows the supplies, really? The government will always supply back-dated figures of new project sales, office vacancy but not the number of residential properties on the market. Is that important? If so, why is there no such mechanism in place ... 13 Jul 2007 - Read Details