Don't sell your homes prematurely for a quick buck: PM Lee

http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/sub/...73491,00.html?

Published February 22, 2010

Don't sell your homes prematurely for a quick buck: PM Lee

Govt concerned over market's exuberant mood

By ONG BOON KIAT


(SINGAPORE) Please take good care of your home and don't sell it prematurely to make a quick buck.

It is an important investment for the future. It can help see Singaporeans through their old age. And it can be passed on to one's children or grandchildren.

That's the message from Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to the 1,300 residents attending the gala annual Teck Ghee Chinese New Year dinner in Ang Mo Kio yesterday.

'I have seen so many residents come to see me at my meet-the-people sessions, who have sold their houses, who have used the proceeds to pay debts or to do something else, and now their money has run out and they are in trouble and they want help.'

He said that the government has been closely watching the property market and has announced recent moves to prevent a speculative bubble from forming so that more drastic measures will not be needed later.

'The prices have risen very sharply over the last six months,' Mr Lee noted. 'It has not yet reached a dangerous level. But the trend has been so fast and the mood has been so exuberant that we were worried that people will get carried away and they will go beyond what is wise and we will have a bubble.'

The government cannot control property prices to the tee. 'But what we can do is to make sure that for all Singaporeans, homes remain affordable,' he said.

The Prime Minister is also worried that not enough Singaporeans are starting families and that they are not reproducing enough. He noted that Singapore's Total Fertility Rate fell to a record low of 1.23 last year, and the rate among the Chinese is even lower at 1.09.

He urged Singaporeans to have babies this year, notwithstanding the Chinese superstition that babies born in the Year of the Tiger will take on the fearsome attributes of the Chinese Zodiac animal. 'Tigers are good animals, and Tiger babies are good babies,' he quipped.

'So have a Tiger baby and have a new member to your family and a new member to the Singapore family.'

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mr funny

(SINGAPORE) Please take good care of your home and don't sell it prematurely to make a quick buck.

It is an important investment for the future. It can help see Singaporeans through their old age. And it can be passed on to one's children or grandchildren.

---

I'm pleasantly surprised that the Prime Minister himself shares the same faith as me and is a staunch believer of the Propertism religion. :scared-4:

Propertism Rule No. 1 - Properties should only be bought. Not sold.

Property prices will always go up in the long term simply because paper money will return to its eventual value of ZERO.

I propose the Government to implement seller's stamp duty of:

30% for properties sold within 10 years;
20% for properties sold between 10 and 20 years;
10% for properties sold between 20 and 30 years;
Zero thereafter.

:cheers1:
I think the Great Philosopher Voltaire should be made our national hero.

http://www.iwise.com/authorIcons/288...aire_64x64.pnghttp://dermapthera.files.wordpress.c...apore_flag.gif

“At the end fiat money returns to its inner value—zero.”
- Voltaire (21 November 1694 – 30 May 1778)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jlrx

I'm pleasantly surprised that the Prime Minister himself shares the same faith as me and is a staunch believer of the Propertism religion. :scared-4:

Propertism Rule No. 1 - Properties should only be bought. Not sold.

Property prices will always go up in the long term simply because paper money will return to its eventual value of ZERO.

---

May I ask, then, that if paper money reaches zero value, what will people buy a Property with?

When the man in the street cannot buy your Property with paper money, how much do you think your Property is worth at that time?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by jlrx

I'm pleasantly surprised that the Prime Minister himself shares the same faith as me and is a staunch believer of the Propertism religion. :scared-4:

Propertism Rule No. 1 - Properties should only be bought. Not sold.

Property prices will always go up in the long term simply because paper money will return to its eventual value of ZERO.

I propose the Government to implement seller's stamp duty of:

30% for properties sold within 10 years;
20% for properties sold between 10 and 20 years;
10% for properties sold between 20 and 30 years;
Zero thereafter.

:cheers1:
I think the Great Philosopher Voltaire should be made our national hero.

http://www.iwise.com/authorIcons/288...aire_64x64.pnghttp://dermapthera.files.wordpress.c...apore_flag.gif

“At the end fiat money returns to its inner value—zero.”
- Voltaire (21 November 1694 – 30 May 1778)

---

He did not say `don't sell', he said do not sell prematurely. You have completely misread his message and tried again to mislead readers. In other words, properties have to be sold eventually, just not prematurely.

PM is saying that when market reaches its peak, your property is matured to sell for a big gain. He is telling us to time the market carefully for selling, he did not say don't sell at all.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by jlrx

I'm pleasantly surprised that the Prime Minister himself shares the same faith as me and is a staunch believer of the Propertism religion. :scared-4:

Propertism Rule No. 1 - Properties should only be bought. Not sold.

Property prices will always go up in the long term simply because paper money will return to its eventual value of ZERO.

I propose the Government to implement seller's stamp duty of:

30% for properties sold within 10 years;
20% for properties sold between 10 and 20 years;
10% for properties sold between 20 and 30 years;
Zero thereafter.

:cheers1:
I think the Great Philosopher Voltaire should be made our national hero.

http://www.iwise.com/authorIcons/288...aire_64x64.pnghttp://dermapthera.files.wordpress.c...apore_flag.gif

“At the end fiat money returns to its inner value—zero.”
- Voltaire (21 November 1694 – 30 May 1778)

---

Quote:

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Originally Posted by HP65

He did not say `don't sell', he said do not sell prematurely. You have completely misread his message and tried again to mislead readers. In other words, properties have to be sold eventually, just not prematurely.

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Anytime before infinity is "premature".

The Prime Minister said "And it can be passed on to one's children or grandchildren."

If it is sold by the buyer, then how can it be passed on to the "children"? And if it is sold by the "children", then how can it be passed on to the "grandchildren"?

Therefore, it is very clear that he meant properties should never be sold.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Regulators

PM is saying that when market reaches its peak, your property is matured to sell for a big gain. He is telling us to time the market carefully for selling, he did not say don't sell at all.

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The market will never reach its peak.

Property prices will always go up in the long term. Even when it reaches a temporarily peak and falls back, it will one day reach a higher peak than the previous peak. This is simply because paper money will eventually lose all its value.

If someone buys this:

http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/n...ow19771114.jpg

And then sells it for a "big gain" 7 years later at this:

http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/n...rk19840412.jpg

He is going to regret it.

It is impossible to time the market, because the market is totally unpredictable.

Read this:

The Straits Times Feb 20, 2010

PROPERTY booms, crashes, fads… you name it, real estate tycoon Kwek Leng Beng has seen them all in his 68 years.

Yet even one as experienced and savvy as he could not have predicted the way the market has roared back to life after being knocked flat on its back by the financial crisis.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mcmlxxvi

May I ask, then, that if paper money reaches zero value, what will people buy a Property with?

When the man in the street cannot buy your Property with paper money, how much do you think your Property is worth at that time?

---

Infinity! :cheers1:

http://bigpicture.typepad.com/photos...9/03/zimbo.jpg

http://www.straitstimes.com/PrimeNew...ry_493203.html

Feb 22, 2010

Homes are for keeps, not speculation: PM

Singaporeans advised not to sell their homes for a quick buck

By Rachel Chang


PRIME Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday urged Singaporeans to treasure their homes and not use them as an easy means to make a quick buck or settle a debt.

He disclosed that MPs have been approached by many residents who have sold their homes for cash to pay off loans or make purchases.

'They have a problem finding another home or getting a loan to buy another home...it is not easy to solve the problem,' he said, in a speech underlining the importance of treating a residential property as a long-term investment.

'Property is for people to buy to live in, not for speculating,' he said.

His remarks, in Mandarin and English, at a Chinese New Year dinner last night came two days after the Government made a surprise announcement to cool property speculation.

Mr Lee stressed that the Government cannot control property prices.

'We can try to influence it, but whether it goes up or goes down depends on sentiment, depends on what happens in the region and the world...

'But we can apply measures to try to guide it in a broad way, so that if it is getting carried away, we can pull it back a bit,' he added.

The measures announced last Friday include the introduction of stamp duty on those who sell their residential property within a year of buying it. The duty is around 3 per cent of the price.

Also, buyers can borrow only up to 80 per cent, not 90 per cent, of their property's value from a financial institution.

Mr Lee said these measures were a pre-emptive move. Prices have risen sharply in the last six months, he noted.

'While it has not yet reached a dangerous level... the trend has been so fast, and the mood so exuberant, that we are worried it will get carried away beyond what is wise,' he told about 1,300 Ang Mo Kio GRC residents attending the dinner at his Teck Ghee constituency.

'It is better to pre-empt a bubble than wait for it to get serious and have to take more drastic measures,' he said, assuring Singaporeans that his government's priority is to ensure homes remain affordable.

At the other extreme, falling home prices is undesirable for the many Singaporeans who own their homes, he added.

A home, an appreciating asset in Singapore, is a nest-egg, said Mr Lee.

'Please take good care of it. It's for you to live in, it's for you as an investment, it's for you for your old age.

'Don't think of selling prematurely to make a quick buck,' he advised.

Alternatively, home-owners can pass their flats on to their children, he said and added: 'This means you need to have children to pass your home to.'

Mr Lee then reiterated his worry that not enough Singaporeans are starting families. Total fertility rate last year hit a new low of 1.23. For the Chinese community here, it was even lower at 1.09.

But falling birth rate is an issue faced by East Asian countries, he noted, and it is partly a result of changing values.

In China, young people, to avoid nagging from their parents, have resorted to 'renting' a boyfriend or girlfriend to take home during this new year period, Mr Lee observed.

'It's amusing, but it's also sad,' he said. 'I'm relieved there's no such reports in Singapore. I hope it doesn't happen.' Still, a little social pressure is useful but more importantly, parents and relatives need to encourage them and show them support.

Unmarried residents interviewed said they first needed to save enough and have a stable career before settling down and starting a family.

Said Mr Jason Quak, 28, an operations manager: 'Now you need money for everything, especially for a wedding.'

He and his 25-year-old girlfriend want to buy a flat in Ang Mo Kio, near his parents, but he is not confident he can find one within his budget of around $300,000.

Teacher D. George, 32, welcomed the latest anti-speculation measures but argued that these will not have a major impact on rising HDB prices.

[email protected]

Look at the highlighted words of what PM is trying to say, then look at the graph I have produced (below) to see his intentions.

You can see that the PM, like me, believes in the Propertism religion that properties should only be bought. Not sold.

Because property prices will always go up in the long term!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mr funny

Feb 22, 2010

Homes are for keeps, not speculation: PM

Singaporeans advised not to sell their homes for a quick buck

By Rachel Chang


PRIME Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday urged Singaporeans to treasure their homes and not use them as an easy means to make a quick buck or settle a debt.

He disclosed that MPs have been approached by many residents who have sold their homes for cash to pay off loans or make purchases.

'They have a problem finding another home or getting a loan to buy another home...it is not easy to solve the problem,' he said, in a speech underlining the importance of treating a residential property as a long-term investment.

'Property is for people to buy to live in, not for speculating,' he said.

His remarks, in Mandarin and English, at a Chinese New Year dinner last night came two days after the Government made a surprise announcement to cool property speculation.

Mr Lee stressed that the Government cannot control property prices.

'We can try to influence it, but whether it goes up or goes down depends on sentiment, depends on what happens in the region and the world...

'But we can apply measures to try to guide it in a broad way, so that if it is getting carried away, we can pull it back a bit,' he added.

The measures announced last Friday include the introduction of stamp duty on those who sell their residential property within a year of buying it. The duty is around 3 per cent of the price.

Also, buyers can borrow only up to 80 per cent, not 90 per cent, of their property's value from a financial institution.

Mr Lee said these measures were a pre-emptive move. Prices have risen sharply in the last six months, he noted.

'While it has not yet reached a dangerous level... the trend has been so fast, and the mood so exuberant, that we are worried it will get carried away beyond what is wise,' he told about 1,300 Ang Mo Kio GRC residents attending the dinner at his Teck Ghee constituency.

'It is better to pre-empt a bubble than wait for it to get serious and have to take more drastic measures,' he said, assuring Singaporeans that his government's priority is to ensure homes remain affordable.

At the other extreme, falling home prices is undesirable for the many Singaporeans who own their homes, he added.

A home, an appreciating asset in Singapore, is a nest-egg, said Mr Lee.

'Please take good care of it. It's for you to live in, it's for you as an investment, it's for you for your old age.

'Don't think of selling prematurely to make a quick buck,' he advised.

Alternatively, home-owners can pass their flats on to their children, he said and added: 'This means you need to have children to pass your home to.'

Mr Lee then reiterated his worry that not enough Singaporeans are starting families. Total fertility rate last year hit a new low of 1.23. For the Chinese community here, it was even lower at 1.09.

But falling birth rate is an issue faced by East Asian countries, he noted, and it is partly a result of changing values.

In China, young people, to avoid nagging from their parents, have resorted to 'renting' a boyfriend or girlfriend to take home during this new year period, Mr Lee observed.

'It's amusing, but it's also sad,' he said. 'I'm relieved there's no such reports in Singapore. I hope it doesn't happen.' Still, a little social pressure is useful but more importantly, parents and relatives need to encourage them and show them support.

Unmarried residents interviewed said they first needed to save enough and have a stable career before settling down and starting a family.

Said Mr Jason Quak, 28, an operations manager: 'Now you need money for everything, especially for a wedding.'

He and his 25-year-old girlfriend want to buy a flat in Ang Mo Kio, near his parents, but he is not confident he can find one within his budget of around $300,000.

Teacher D. George, 32, welcomed the latest anti-speculation measures but argued that these will not have a major impact on rising HDB prices.

[email protected]

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http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/n...iceCooling.jpg