CT Ong

17/11/2025

Developers sold 2,424 units in Oct 2025, which was 9.5 times more than Sep 2025 and 224.1% higher than a year ago.

2,233 units were launched in Oct 2025, which was 111.7 times higher than Sep 2025 and 318.2% more year-on-year. Four major projects were launched in Oct 2025 - Faber Residence, Penrith, Skye at Holland and Zyon Grand. All four performed extremely well, achieving take-up rates ranging from 84% to 99%.

Buyer demand remained strong with almost two-thirds of Oct sales between $2 million and below $5 million. Singapore’s economy continued to show resilience despite tariffs. It grew 3.9% year-on-year in the first nine months of 2025, which helped support buyers’ confidence in the property market.

The Sen launched in Nov 2025 as the first new project in the Upper Bukit Timah area in five years. It sold 80 units during its launch weekend at an average price of $2,358 psf. Coastal Cabana, the first EC in Pasir Ris in more than ten years, is also expected to attract strong pent-up demand when its show gallery opens in Dec 2025. For the full year, developers are expected to sell as high as 11,000 units, with private home prices projected to grow 3% to 4%.

14/11/2025

HDB resale transactions in Singapore fell 38.4 per cent in October, reaching the lowest monthly volume since 2020.

Resale prices dipped 0.6 per cent while million-dollar flat transactions decreased by 49 per cent to 87 units, representing 6.5 per cent of total transactions.

Analysts suggest buyers are resisting high prices, shifting to private homes or Build-To-Order units, but expect a market pick-up after the seasonal lull.

Full article in the comments.

20/10/2025

Wishing all my Indian and Hindu friends, acquaintances and business associates a great Festival of Lights!

20/10/2025

Deepavali Greetings

08/07/2025

Upgrading from HDB? Not sure if EC or Condo is better?

Each has its perks, but which one truly fits your goals, budget, and lifestyle?

Join this FREE webinar by 99.co and get the answers you need — clear, honest, and easy to understand.

🗓 Date: 16 July (Wed)
🕗 Time: 8pm–9pm
📍 Location: Zoom (join from anywhere!)

💡 What you’ll learn:
✅ Key pros and cons of ECs vs condos
✅ Rules you need to know before buying
✅ Big financial differences to watch out for
✅ Which suits your lifestyle better
✅ How each option performs as an investment

This one hour could save you years of regret. Limited slots — sign up now and take the guesswork out of your upgrade!

Registration link in the comments below.

04/07/2025

So they made SSD even stricter now. Four years to hold instead of three, and higher penalties if you sell early.

This won't stop people from buying property.
It just changes how they buy.

When SSD was first introduced, then raised again before, buyers didn't give up. They just got smarter about it.

People didn't just stop buying, they started looking at new launches instead of resale flats. Why? Because when the new launch TOP, it is about 3-4 years, ready for a brand new sale.

The demand was still there, just moved to a different part of the market. This time will probably be the same.

People still need homes.
Investors still want to build wealth.
The higher SSD just makes them think twice about which properties to buy.

So while resale sellers might have a harder time, new launch developers are probably feeling pretty good right now.

What do you think?
Are you looking at new launches differently now?

02/07/2025

Do you really need a property agent to buy or sell a home? 🤔

It's something many people wonder about, especially with all the info online these days.

A recent CEA survey found that 9 in 10 buyers and sellers were satisfied with their agents, and it’s not hard to see why.

A good agent does more than just paperwork or viewings.
They help:
✅ Price realistically (not just based on hope)
✅ Make sense of the market — what’s moving, what’s not
✅ Handle the nitty-gritty — from documents to timelines
✅ Negotiate and manage the process without drama

The key here is that it works best when there’s trust and teamwork.

If you're working with an agent, a few simple things go a long way:
💬 Be clear about your goals and budget
📂 Share what you’re comfortable with early on
📞 Keep the communication open and honest

Buying or selling property can be emotional and complicated, but it doesn’t have to be messy.

With the right partnership, it’s a lot more manageable.

Worth thinking about if you're starting your property journey.

11/06/2025

Using a Malaysian contractor you found on Facebook?

When reputable Singaporean renovation companies engage Malaysian subcontractors, they generally have established processes for quality control and ensuring reliability.

If you hire directly, you're essentially taking on those responsibilities yourself. It's important to ask yourself if you have the expertise and time to effectively manage these aspects.

Ultimately, with renovations, the price often reflects the level of assurance and quality you can expect.

The renovation company has engaged a debt collector to recover the remaining S$13,000.

14/04/2025

Before you split your property into shares among family members, consider this sobering reality: co-ownership often creates more problems than it solves.

Family dinners quickly transform into legal consultations when co-owners disagree on property decisions. That "thoughtful" gesture of giving your kids partial ownership of your property might just be setting everyone up for a family feud that even the Lees would find excessive.

And those partial property shares gifted to your children? That partial ownership disqualifies them from HDB BTO and incurs additional stamp duties. Congratulations! Your generosity just cost them thousands.

A smarter approach: specify in your will that properties be sold with proceeds distributed according to designated shares. It's less sentimental but infinitely more practical.

No inheritance plan is bulletproof, but this approach at least prevents your beneficiaries from needing court intervention just to access their inheritance.

Check-in with an experienced advisor who can help structure your estate planning to truly benefit your loved ones rather than inadvertently restrict their future options.

Your legacy should provide opportunities, not complications.

01/04/2025

I should also mention that some ETFs make use of synthetics and active management. If you are not comfortable with that, do leave them alone.

I have also told people to look elsewhere if they want to invest in real estate for passive income. The rental income outlook for Singapore's residential real estate is poor, and this is even worse for certain commercial and industrial properties. However, since their capital exercises dilute your units and, consequently, your returns, I also advise avoiding S-REITs. In Singapore, real estate is not an income but a capital-gain play.

For retirees planning for their retirement, they should look for high-yield dividend ETFs that are neither synthetic nor fee-reducing.

If you’ve been following this page, you’ll know I’m a strong advocate of dividend investing as a source of retirement income. However, unlike most investors, I believe that to maximize returns, we must take calculated risks. Even in retirement.

This is why I don’t invest in Dividend Kings or Aristocrats. The logic is simple. While these companies have a long track record of increasing dividends and avoiding cuts, their average returns range from just 1.5% to 4% - barely keeping up with inflation. Instead, I focus on high-yield dividend ETFs, many of which offer annual yields above 20%, with some exceeding 50%. By investing strategically, I can generate up to 10 times the income of traditional dividend stocks in a given year.

Now, before you dismiss this approach, hear me out.

The appeal of Dividend Kings and Aristocrats lies in their perceived stability. As mature companies with consistent earnings, they offer reassurance that capital is safe. However, historical data tells a different story. Dividend Kings have an annualized volatility of 12% to 20%, while Dividend Aristocrats range from 15% to 25%. In other words, capital losses can and do happen. For comparison, the high-yield dividend ETF TSLY has an annualized volatility of 26.14%. Not significantly higher.

Consider this. This if a market downturn causes a Dividend King or Aristocrat to lose 20% of its value, it could take up to 6.5 years of dividends just to break even. In contrast, a high-yield ETF like TSLY, which has paid a 50.7% annual dividend, would recover the same 20% loss in under six months.

High-yield ETFs aren’t for everyone. But for those willing to take calculated risks and apply disciplined strategies, they offer a compelling path to accelerated wealth generation. The question isn’t whether this approach is conventional, it’s whether it aligns with your income goals and risk tolerance.

21/03/2025