KiasuParents - Parenting in Singapore

Shall we discuss overseas property here?

I received a phone call a few days ago inviting me to a seminar. They are selling properties in North Dakota due to oil boom there. They said return is 36% in 2 years and capital is guaranteed by insurance.

I don't buy it. In my mind, if the return is so great, the banks would be lining up to finance them. What do you think?

What countries have good return? Hong Kong is flattening now, just like Singapore. If we want to buy in China, I think needs to use local person's name, right? Same like Indonesia.

ngl2010 wrote:Shall we discuss overseas property here?

I received a phone call a few days ago inviting me to a seminar. They are selling properties in North Dakota due to oil boom there. They said return is 36% in 2 years and capital is guaranteed by insurance.

I don't buy it. In my mind, if the return is so great, the banks would be lining up to finance them. What do you think?

What countries have good return? Hong Kong is flattening now, just like Singapore. If we want to buy in China, I think needs to use local person's name, right? Same like Indonesia.

I have friends who invested in London, USA California and Malaysia in recent years. Those were good investments. Going forward, it is very hard to say. Those who take the right actions now (either buy or sell) will see good returns in future. But it is hard to time the market just like in stock market.

ngl2010 wrote:Shall we discuss overseas property here?

I received a phone call a few days ago inviting me to a seminar. They are selling properties in North Dakota due to oil boom there. They said return is 36% in 2 years and capital is guaranteed by insurance.

I don't buy it. In my mind, if the return is so great, the banks would be lining up to finance them. What do you think?

Sound familiar.
I don't buy it as it is too far and unknown.

I have invested in overseas properties before, namely in Malaysia (KL and Penang).

I have made fairly decent money from such investments but will never invest in Malaysia again for the following reasons (compared to Singapore):-
(1) The transaction costs there is much higher;
(2) The time taken to conclude a sale (after signing Option) is often nearer a year than not (everybody takes a long time to respond);
(3) The market for secondary properties is illiquid;
(4) The rental market in Malaysia is moribund at best;
(5) All tenants want the rental unit to be fully furnished and each time your tenant changes, the new one will request for something different;
(6) You are at the mercy of your real estate agent who is supposed to help you rent out your properties (some of my properties remain unoccupied for a year or two).

Whilst I have made money investing in Malaysia, I took 2 years just to sell my remaining 2 properties (one in KL and one in Penang). I used to own 4 properties in KL, thank goodness I sold some of them off earlier.

Whilst the rental yields and outlook for capital appreciation in Singapore is weak, it's much easier to manage investment properties when it is close to you.

In terms of my property investments, I now think it's either physical properties in Singapore, shares or REITs (global). It's just not worth the trouble as a property requires maintenance and someone to physically take care of it. Can you be there all the time? Can the person whom you entrusted the care of the property to, perform?

There was a newspaper article over weekend abt NZ court throwing out claims by 3 Sporean's on their NZ ppty investments. The ppty developer turned out to be bankrupts. The article commented that there are information that locals have, that foreigners may not have known.

Dh's friend ever told him that as a Msian himself, he wld never buy a ppty in Msia that is uncompleted. Plus, the govt keeps changing legislation there with regards to foreign ownership. So, we have decided agst investing in Msia.

The basic rule of high returns => high risks.

whizzard wrote:I have invested in overseas properties before, namely in Malaysia (KL and Penang).

I have made fairly decent money from such investments but will never invest in Malaysia again for the following reasons (compared to Singapore):-
(1) The transaction costs there is much higher;
(2) The time taken to conclude a sale (after signing Option) is often nearer a year than not (everybody takes a long time to respond);
(3) The market for secondary properties is illiquid;
(4) The rental market in Malaysia is moribund at best;
(5) All tenants want the rental unit to be fully furnished and each time your tenant changes, the new one will request for something different;
(6) You are at the mercy of your real estate agent who is supposed to help you rent out your properties (some of my properties remain unoccupied for a year or two).

Whilst I have made money investing in Malaysia, I took 2 years just to sell my remaining 2 properties (one in KL and one in Penang). I used to own 4 properties in KL, thank goodness I sold some of them off earlier.

Whilst the rental yields and outlook for capital appreciation in Singapore is weak, it's much easier to manage investment properties when it is close to you.

In terms of my property investments, I now think it's either physical properties in Singapore, shares or REITs (global). It's just not worth the trouble as a property requires maintenance and someone to physically take care of it. Can you be there all the time? Can the person whom you entrusted the care of the property to, perform?

Good points. Thanks for sharing.

ngl2010 wrote:Shall we discuss overseas property here?

I received a phone call a few days ago inviting me to a seminar. They are selling properties in North Dakota due to oil boom there. They said return is 36% in 2 years and capital is guaranteed by insurance.

I don't buy it. In my mind, if the return is so great, the banks would be lining up to finance them. What do you think?

What countries have good return? Hong Kong is flattening now, just like Singapore. If we want to buy in China, I think needs to use local person's name, right? Same like Indonesia.

China property market is already starting to correct (or crash). There are a few articles about it last months and you can easily find them in the web. Li ka shing just offloaded his property investment in Beijing last month with a 30% lower price than last year asked price.

Buying overseas property alone is risky unless you have done your own due diligence check and familiar with the local property rulings and taxation. You need to have a good and reliable property manager or it will turn out to be a nightmare since it is on foreign ground.

As for china, the bubble is building to a scary stage. Hope this will not materialise.
http://propertyinvestmentsingapore.sg/b ... -bursting/

Anybody bought property in Australia? Can share experience here?

In Australia, foreigners can only buy from developers. In other words, after you buy your property, you can only sell to locals. Do the maths.