Property price is coming down fast

[seletar]

http://www.todayonline.com/Business/...covery-delayed

S'pore exports drop most in 14 months as recovery delayed

Todayonline
09:21 AM Jan 17, 2013


SINGAPORE - Exports from Singapore declined the most in 14 months in December as manufacturers shipped fewer electronics and pharmaceuticals, hurting economic recovery.

Non-oil domestic exports slid by 16.3 per cent from a year earlier, after a revised 2.6 per cent drop in November, the trade promotion agency, IE Singapore, said today.

The median of 18 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey was for a 7.6 per cent decline. The drop was the worst since October 2011, based on previously reported data.

The World Bank this week lowered its global growth forecast for this year as austerity measures, high unemployment and low business confidence weigh on developed economies.

Singapore's growth last year was the slowest in three years and the government forecasts exports will rise 2 to 4 per cent next year, restrained by a faltering recovery in global demand.

"The electronics sector has faced a particularly tough time," Frederic Neumann, co-head of Asian economics research at HSBC Holdings in Hong Kong, said before the report. "We will have to be deeper into 2013 before exports pick up more notably as conditions in the US and Europe improve."

Singapore's electronics shipments by companies such as Venture fell 19.1 per cent last month from a year earlier, after slipping 16.5 per cent the previous month. BLOOMBERG

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http://sbr.com.sg/economy/news/chart...-trade-down-82

Singapore Business Review
ECONOMY | Staff Reporter, Singapore
Published: 17 Jan 2013


Chart of the Day: Total trade down 8.2%


Exports declined by 13.8% last December.

International Enterprise Singapore reported:

On a y-o-y basis, total trade contracted by 8.2 per cent in December 2012, following the 3.6 per cent decrease in the previous month.

Total exports declined by 13.8 per cent in December 2012, following the 2.8 per cent contraction in the previous month.

Total imports decreased by 1.5 per cent in December 2012, following the 4.5 per cent decline in the preceding month.

[seletar]

http://sbr.com.sg/economy/news/nodx-...ts-163-decline

Singapore Business Review
ECONOMY | Staff Reporter, Singapore
Published: 17 Jan 2013

NODX disappoints with 16.3% decline


Both electronic and non-electronic domestic exports nearly crashed.

International Enterprise Singapore reported:

On a y-o-y basis, NODX decreased by 16.3 per cent in December 2012, following the 2.6 per cent contraction in the previous month, due to a decline in both electronic and non-electronic domestic exports.

On a y-o-y basis, electronic NODX contracted by 19.1 per cent in December 2012, after the 16.5 per cent decline in the previous month. The decrease in electronic domestic exports was largely due to ICs (-23.4 per cent), parts of PCs (-32.9 per cent) and disk media products (-27.3 per cent).

On a y-o-y basis, non-electronic NODX contracted by 14.8 per cent in December 2012, compared to the 6.1 per cent increase in the previous month. The decrease in non-electronic NODX was led by structures of ships & boats (-97.7 per cent), pharmaceuticals (-11.5 per cent) and specialised machinery (-24.4 per cent).

[seletar]

Bank issued housing loans grew $3 billion in one month from Oct to Nov, private debt up to 165% of GDP.

Total bank loans in November 2012 = $481.7 billion (165% of GDP)

Business loans = $277 billion (94.9% of GDP)

Consumer loans = $204.8 billion (70.1% of GDP)

Housing loans = $150.3 billion (51.5% of GDP) , this amount excludes cpf issued housing loans for HDB, if included the total housing loans in s'pore could be over 100% of GDP.


http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stori...245279/1/.html

Total bank lending in S'pore up 15.9% in Nov: MAS

Channel News Asia
By Thomas Cho | Posted: 31 December 2012 1334 hrs


SINGAPORE: Total bank lending in Singapore continued to grow in November, up 15.9 per cent from a year ago.

The latest Monetary Authority of Singapore data showed loans and advances by domestic banking units amounted to S$481.74 billion in November. This was about 0.5 per cent higher than the S$479.42 billion in October.

Loans to businesses in November contracted slightly from S$278.1 billion in October to S$277 billion. This was mainly due to the drop in loans to financial institutions from S$65.1 billion in October to S$62.8 billion in November.

Meanwhile, total consumer loans rose 1.7 per cent to S$204.8 billion on a month-on-month basis.

Housing loans to consumers came in two per cent higher at S$150.3 billion in November. Credit card loans remained stable at about S$8.7 billion.

Meanwhile, loans and advances in Asian currency units or other currencies apart from the Singapore dollar was S$385.1 billion in November, up from S$381.4 billion a month before.

-CNA/ac

Private Debt as a Percentage of GDP

Private debt as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product is an important economic indicator of a country's future financial stability. This is because it shows what percentage of the Gross Domestic Product is paid for with borrowed money.



GDP Definition

Gross Domestic Product is the total value of all the goods and services produced in a country. This means that it is a good rough indicator of economic strength, particularly in relation to previous years. If people are working, doing services for money and producing things, then the GDP will rise and the economy is doing well.



Private Debt

Private debt is debt such as credit cards, home loans, auto loans, and any other debt owed by individuals and businesses, who borrow to fuel their growth.



Implications

When private debt as a percentage of GDP is large, this means that the GDP is effectively growing because of that private debt--goods and services are being bought by borrowing money rather than being bought with earned money. The larger the ratio, the larger the problem--even people who do not owe any money are still connected to it because the people buying from them and/or employing them are doing so on borrowed money.

What this means is that GDP can grow artificially fast when credit conditions are good and interest rates are low. However, it can do the converse when interest rates rise again because a large portion of private debt means that the entire GDP relies on peoples' access to this credit.

In Singapore, GDP is propped up by massive private debt such as mortgages and business loans from easy credit and low interest rates. But even with the massive private debt, Singapore's real GDP is in recession, exports have plunged and business is poor. Singapore is increasingly uncompetitive with the high costs and high SGD. Many highly leveraged businesses and people are stuck. Interest rates hike could trigger numerous defaults and bankrupcies, Singapore could sink into deep recession and the property bubble could burst.

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http://sbr.com.sg/residential-proper...roperty-market

Singapore Business Review
RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY | Staff Reporter, Singapore
Published: 18 Jan 2013

Watch out for these 2 key risk factors in Singapore's property market


Brace for higher interest rates and large supply.

According to DBS, among factors such as a slower economic growth and tighter foreign labour/immigration policies, two key risk factors stand out: higher interest rates and large supply in the pipeline.

Here's more from DBS:

Low real mortgage rates have been a key driver of the property market in Singapore. Risks increase when interest rates start to go up. Our interest rate strategist has recently pointed out that steepening pressures are building up on the USD yield curve.

This could drive longer term interest rates higher across Asia, including Singapore, in the coming quarters. At the moment, markets have the first Fed hike fully priced in in mid-2015.

For most people, investment into property is a long term commitment. Hence, it is important for households and other investors to do the necessary “stress testing” to account for potentially higher interest rates going forward and to determine whether their current properties will still remain affordable under higher rate scenarios.

Secondly, there is a large supply of new housing in the pipeline that comes largely on the back of the increased government land sales (GLS) over the past few years. Some 128,100 new housing units that will hit the market in the coming three years, with a peak likely in 2015.

The combination of rising interest rates and abundant supply by 2015 argue for more than the usual amount of caution and the latest round of property cooling measures should be viewed against this backdrop. Whether more are required remains to be seen.

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http://sbr.com.sg/economy/news/techn...gapore-economy

Singapore Business Review
ECONOMY | Staff Reporter, Singapore
Published: 18 Jan 2013

Technical recession is creeping closer to Singapore economy

Manufacturing would suffer the 4.2% dip in NODX.

According to CIMB, non-tech DX (67% of NODX) declined 14.8% yoy, the worst in nearly four years, on the back of a 5.5% fall in chemicals (-12% fall in drugs) and a 98% yoy plunge in “structure of ships & boats.”

For the full-year, non-tech DX expanded 3.0% (11.7% in 2011).

Drugs and lumpy items did not do what they had to do. It’s a familiar story, but with a stronger sting: poor non-tech export growth was compounded by weaker tech, causing Dec’s NODX to retreat a sharper-than-expected 16.3% yoy (consensus: -7.6% yoy).

There was no reprieve from tech again (33% of NODX). Tech DX declined 19.1% yoy in Dec, the worst in over a year, pulling 2012 tech DX down to -4.1% (2011: -11.6%).

All key segments declined last month, led by weaker exports of semiconductors (-23.4% in Dec and -1.5% in 2012) and disk-media products (-27.3% and -0.8%).

Here's more from CIMB:

The fifth straight month of yoy declines in chip exports this year is a cause for concern as chips are among Singapore’s top manufactured exports.

The segment accounted for 42% of 2012 Tech DX and 14% of NODX, ahead of pharmaceutical exports (13%).

Technical recession risk increases. The worse-than-expected 4Q12 NODX decline of 4.2% yoy (-3.2% in 3Q12) would weigh on 4Q12 manufacturing, which, two weeks ago, was estimated by MTI to contract 1.5% yoy (-1.6% in 3Q12).

A downward revision in 4Q12 industrial production (IP) could lead to a similar downward revision on 4Q12 GDP, which would rekindle the risk of a technical recession.

Dec IP is slated for release on 25 January next week. Watch this space.

[DKSG]

While you are reading all these reposts of news that are similar to those 2 years ago (ie interest rates will go up, supply is large, blah blah)....

QBay sold nearly half of the 600 units in the development on the first day of preview !

From the ground you can easily sense that there are really ALOT of people out there will ALOT of cash and many deem property investment as the best and safest in this era!

DKSG

[kane]

While you are reading all these reposts of news that are similar to those 2 years ago (ie interest rates will go up, supply is large, blah blah)....

QBay sold nearly half of the 600 units in the development on the first day of preview !

From the ground you can easily sense that there are really ALOT of people out there will ALOT of cash and many deem property investment as the best and safest in this era!

DKSG

sneak peak of what is to come if the CMs are unwound one by one.

[Rysk]

NB! Ya better don't go hiding anymore..
Last time talk BIG BIG what S'pore property price will crash is due to external news.. nothing to do with cooling measures..

Too many CANNOT MAKE IT post, I'm still waiting for MR B to come back to answer to us.. but I just name a few below..

March-2012


July-2012


July-2012

TWIST & TURN cum DIVERT ATTENTION MR B (aka David Lim from sghouse) last time talk BIG BIG.. S'pore pty price will not crash due to local news..

Seeing price keep climbing.. now lan lan act blur keep posting local news over at sghouse

http://www.sg-house.com/classifieds/...perty-286.html

[seletar]

Parents lending their retirement savings to their kids to buy unaffordable housing, many young couples with combined $4K -$5K monthly income committed to over $500K housing loans over 30 - 35 years term from banks at temporary low interest rates, not to mention the loans from parents. When interest rates goes up and recession hits, many of these kids will struggle with their housing loans and need more financial assistance from parents.

This was what had happened in Spain before the property bubble burst in 2008, loving parents lent their retirement savings to help kids buy / invest in expensive homes as property boom and prices shoot up. But when the country hits deep recession in the 2008 financial crisis, many kids were unable to service their mortgages and needed parents assistance, there was no demand for their properties as property began to crash. Parents lost their savings and unable to provide more financial assistance. The kids became bankrupt and their homes foreclosed, they moved back with their parents or became homeless. The bad housing debts piled up and the recession became a depression...


The Straits Times
http://www.straitstimes.com
Published on Jan 20, 2013
Home sweet loan
As property prices rise, couples are getting help from mum and dad to buy their first home

By Eve Yap And Cheryl Ong

Excuse me, dad - do you have $20,000 or more to spare? I need it to help pay for my flat.

That is a request that young couples are making these days, say property agents and conveyancing lawyers SundayLife! spoke to.

With property prices reaching record levels, young couples struggle to stump up upfront cash payments for their first home from their household kitty or Central Provident Fund accounts.

So dad and mum pitch in. Such parents are not just the uber rich who can afford to buy a plum property for each child, but also include those who live in HDB flats.

Property agents and lawyers interviewed say as many as up to four in 10 couples receive some form of financial help from parents in buying their first marital home.

Property players and couples SundayLife! spoke to say the trend of parents helping with home purchases applies mostly to those who have to fork out more cash upfront.

These are couples buying HDB resale, Design, Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS) or executive condominium (EC) units, or private apartments as they need a cash kick-start, says MrDerek Lim, 45, vice-president of DTZ Property Network.

This is because of the higher down payment, cash premiums or cash-over-valuations required.

Mr Lim adds that these couples are usually between 23 and 27 years old, have two to four years of working experience and a combined monthly income of $4,000 to $5,000.

Mr Lee Liat Yeang, 45, a partner at Rodyk & Davidson Real Estate Practice Group, says in some cases help from the older set is "obvious".

Sometimes, parents issue the cheque for the down payment or are involved in decisions such as choosing the apartment unit and the law firm, he notes.

"The parents are the ones who instruct the law firm and take care of the process the entire time," adds Mr Lee, who has 20 years of experience in conveyancing.

In other cases, the young couples tell the property agents and bank officers upfront that they are receiving financial help from their parents.

Sometimes, it is a simple case of doing the maths. As one loan officer who does not want to be named says: "We know how much these people earn, we know their CPF contributions, their financial commitments, we know how much they can save with this kind of income, we can tell if they will be able to come up with the down payment.

"Just calculate how much it takes to save $100,000. It's obvious that their parents are helping with the property payment because they would have taken a much longer time to save up for that 20 per cent.''

So how does receiving a generous sum from parents - even if it is a loan - impact the relationship? Is the younger set expected to invite their parents to live with them, for instance? Or does mum call the shots as to when she can visit?

Lawyers also caution that the gifts of love could prove contentious when relations sour, such as if a couple split and assets are divided up, or when parents expect obligations of care in return.

Mr Yao Weixiong, 32, a programme executive at a social service organisation, who with his wife borrowed $30,000 from his parents for their home, says he does "not feel indebted or obliged".

He adds: "If they need to live with me, it is fine." He and his 31-year-old wife, a housewife who does not want to be named, sought the sum for the cash-over-valuation on a three-room HDB resale flat in Toa Payoh. It was valued at $170,000.

This was five years ago, when he was 27, an army regular, and his wife was 26, a social worker. The 90 per cent HDB loan was $153,000, with their CPF covering the 10 per cent down payment of $17,000.

They wanted to live close to his parents - his father, 58, is a technician and his mother, 56, is a finance administrator. They were unable to select a Build-To-Order flat then, which requires almost no cash upfront, because their queue number was too high.

With property prices rising over the past few years, couples have to fork out higher cash-over-valuations. In September last year, the amount asked for was as high as $200,000 for an executive flat in Bishan that went for $980,000 in total.

In 2007 and 2008, a resale five-room Sengkang flat cost $300,000, including a cash-over-valuation of $10,000 to $15,000, says DTZ Property Network's Mr Lim.

Young couples also seek help from the Bank of Mum and Dad for other property types such as DBSS and EC units. The cash down payment required is 5 per cent of a flat's value if the borrower takes out a commercial loan of 80per cent.

For a four-bedroom, 86sqm DBSS unit, prices can range from $550,00 to $620,000, and the 5 per cent down payment is from $27,500 to $31,000 if the bank loan is 80per cent of the purchase price, says PropNex Realty's chief executive, Mr Mohamed Ismail, 49.

As for a 96 sq m three-bedroom EC unit, its price can range from $750,000 to $780,000, and the down payment would be from $37,500 to $39,000, he says.

These are hefty sums, so no wonder couples do not have enough savings to buy their first home without some help from their parents. However, couples must be "upfront and transparent" about the sums needed, says MrsRachel Lee, 44, assistant director of Fei Yue Family Service Centre.

"If they are thinking of buying, say, a four-room flat, they should know how much savings and CPF they have, what the shortfall is, and how much they would like to borrow from their parents," she adds.

Older folk entering into a family loan arrangement must still respect a young couple's privacy - loan not withstanding. Expecting a set of keys, so they can "pop over" as and when, is unreasonable, says Mrs Lee.

But couples and parents interviewed seem to want to keep the whole set-up loose and eschew contracts, insisting they are not needed among family members.

For Ms Kay Tan, 22, a $46,600 loan from her mother-in-law, a bank executive, will be repaid "as and when".

Her 23-year-old husband, who along with his mother does not wish to be interviewed, had just finished national service when they bought their home last year.

MsTan is a third-year communications studies student at the Nanyang Technological University.

"We had just $20,000 in savings between the two of us, and a few hundred dollars in our CPF from our holiday jobs," she says.

Her mother-in-law, whom they live with, gave Ms Tan and her husband the $46,600 cheque after the three of them viewed Pasir Ris One, a DBSS project, in September last year.

Both sets of parents live in Pasir Ris and told them to "go for a flat nearby", says Ms Tan. Their parents also worry that flat prices may rise further if they do not get a home soon.

Their three-room flat cost $433,000. They received a $40,000 CPF housing grant for living near their parents. The 20 per cent initial payment of $86,600 meant they were short of $46,600, hence her mother-in-law's helping hand.

For Mr Ben Koh, who runs a software firm, home is a three-room HDB flat near Chin Swee Road, close to his office in South Bridge Road. He bought it three years ago with $30,000 from his mum.

Says Mr Koh, who is married and the middle of three grown-up sons: "It was something to tide us over. I didn't want to deplete my savings." His parents are both retirees in their 60s.

His mum, who does not want to be named, says the loan was a straightforward arrangement. Her son instructed his bank to credit $1,000 to her savings account each month. The interest-free loan was paid off at the end of last year.

She and her husband do not expect their son to be more filial just because of the loan. She sees it as a smart money move.

She says: "If our parents were able to help us when we married 36 years ago, we could have bought something better."

Indeed, National University of Singapore sociologist Paulin Straughan says contracts "reduce family ties to a transaction".

"It would be hard to expect that loans translate to hands-on, everyday care of the parents in old age. You can't say, 'I lend you $70,000. You take care of me when I am old'."

Rather, care depends on how strong the parent-child relationship is.

Family lawyers caution against fuzzy terms in loans of endearment.

Two of them say things get ugly when couples split up and lawyers or the courts must decide how to divide the matrimonial assets.

They notice that about two out of five divorcing couples cite parents' contributions in the purchase of their homes.

"Make it clear whether it is a gift or a loan and to whom," says family lawyer Rajan Chettiar, 46.

"Otherwise, the parent may not get any money back," says Mr Rajan, "because there is no documentary proof and the other party will allege that the parent is siding with their child."

Mr Lee Terk Yang, 37, a director of Characterist law firm, says: "Family members may feel weird writing up a contract. But in the absence of formal documentation, at least have something in writing, perhaps saying, 'I have deposited X amount into your savings account as a loan for the purchase of your home'."

He cites a case in which a mother doled out $300,000 from her inheritance to her son to buy a $1 million condominium apartment five years ago.

This affects the calculation of each party's direct contribution to the matrimonial assets and the division of assets between the parties, says Mr Lee.

"The courts will take their direct financial contributions when dividing and awarding matrimonial assets to each party," says Mr Lee. If the $300,000 sum were a loan, the mother would be paid as would any creditor, he adds.

In the end, the disputing couple chose to settle the matter out of court, he says, with each party compromising on the amounts they were to be awarded.

Financial controller B.H. Chua, in his 50s, feels that parents who can afford to pitch in financially should readily do so.

"With housing so expensive, there's definitely a need for parents to give children a helping hand," he says.

He and his wife, Mrs L.B. Chua, have a son aged 28, who is single, and a daughter, 27, who is engaged.

The couple sold their second condominium unit in Queenstown about five years ago and now live in an apartment in Bukit Panjang. They have allocated about $100,000 to each child, likely for their housing needs, he says.

His daughter and her fiance, who bought a $640,000 DBSS home in Clementi, did not want to be interviewed.

So is Mr Chua concerned whether they will look after him after marriage?

He says: "We give to them unconditionally. We don't expect to be paid back, but we believe they will respect us and take care of our interests."

[email protected]

[email protected]
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The Straits Times
http://www.straitstimes.com
Published on Jan 20, 2013
$144,000 from dad to buy flat

Copywriter Amos Yeo, 26, got a helping hand from his father when he and his girlfriend, scriptwriter Pamy Tan, 24, wanted to buy a five-room public housing flat under the Design, Build and Sell Scheme.

The couple had recently graduated and been working at their jobs for about six months when they saw the unit at Parkland Residences along Upper Serangoon Road, next to Punggol Park, and which had a price tag of $720,000. They had combined savings of less than $15,000 and, with hardly enough in their Central Provident Fund accounts, it was a far cry from the initial 20 per cent payment of $144,000 that was required.

But Mr Yeo's father, a civil servant, 56, who declined to be named, stepped in to give their plans a kick-start in February last year.

Knowing that they would be able to support paying the maximum loan of 80 per cent from a commercial bank, Mr Yeo's father loaned the couple the full $144,000 to secure their new home.

They did not need to touch their savings.

Mr Yeo said of his father's gesture: "I didn't really feel good about asking my parents to help pay for the flat. It shouldn't be their responsibility to help us own a flat."

But Parkland Residences' proximity to Ms Tan's parents' home in Hougang convinced the couple to proceed with the purchase of the 122sqm flat on the 18th floor.

Thinking ahead to the time when they might get married in 2015 and be parents soon after, the practical Ms Tan said: "If I need help with childcare, my parents are across the road. It's also very comforting to know I'm near my parents."

With a high queue number of 252 in hand, the couple - who bought under the fiance/fiancee scheme - did not expect to get a choice unit and had set their sights lower. When the unit on the highest floor was available, Mr Yeo's father told them to "go for it", said MsTan. "He said it would have good value."

Parkland Residences, launched in January last year, will have kitchen fixtures, air-conditioning, and sanitary fittings ready for its occupants, and also facilities such as a barbecue area and mini-mart. About 550 of the 680 units there have been sold.

But Ms Tan was not without reservations accepting the loan. "I felt that the flat was a bit expensive. We are young and starting out in our careers. If we had chosen somewhere else in Punggol, it would be much cheaper. These were real concerns," she said.

However, the interest-free loan from Mr Yeo's father is as far as it goes. The couple will take care of the monthly mortgage instalments of $1,500 with their combined monthly income of about $5,300. This is in addition to repaying $800 to MrYeo's father every month.

While Mr Yeo's father did not give them a deadline, they plan to repay the loan as soon as possible. "I think he would like to be able to use the money for his retirement," said Mr Yeo.

Cheryl Ong
---------------------

The Straits Times
http://www.straitstimes.com
Published on Jan 20, 2013
$30,000 from in-laws for cash premium and renovation

Unlike several of those who turned down SundayLife!'s request to be interviewed about getting financial help from family to buy a home, tutor Janice Wong feels there is nothing to be shy about.

Those who declined an interview typically said they did not want to come across as getting a handout from daddy dearest, when they should - as adult and married children - be caring for their old folks instead.

But Ms Wong says: "Why feel pai seh? It's not like we are not returning the money and taking them for granted." (Pai seh is Hokkien for embarrassed.) "It beats borrowing from loan sharks or giving interest to a cold financial institution. The interest we give is in the form of an occasional feast or trip overseas."

She and her engineer husband Shane Liew, both 33, have a 14-month-old daughter Kaelyn. Home is a five-room HDB flat in Kembangan, a five-minute walk from the five-room flat of Mr Liew's parents - semi-retired hawker C.P. Liew, 62, and housewife Q.E. Lim, 58.

Mr Liew, the second of three grown-up children, borrowed $9,000 from his father to pay the cash premium for the $387,000 flat in mid-2006. With money for renovation, the total borrowings from his father came to $30,000.

He had been working for about a year and his wife, for about four years at the time they bought the flat. Their combined monthly income was about $5,000. They both had study loans of about $20,000 each to pay off. The couple, who registered their marriage in November 2006, were also saving for a customary wedding banquet in 2007.

Ms Wong says that repayment was free and easy, with her in-laws being "extremely understanding" about it. They paid an interest-free sum every month, although it was not a fixed amount.

Her husband, she says, repaid more when, say, he received a bonus and less when they were tight financially. He cleared the loan in three years.

The older set declined to speak directly to SundayLife!. Asked about expectations from the loan, MsWong says her father-in-law laughed.

"They thought the question strange," she says. "They said, 'If we teach our children the right values, they will know what to do because they were brought up right'."

Besides, help is only a holler away, she says, adding that her husband's grandmother lives in the flat next to hers.

Of being near to her parents-in-law's home, she says: "We visit them almost every other day for dinner, especially now that my mum-in-law takes care of Kaelyn. We pick her up after work every night. The proximity saves us a lot of trouble."

[seletar]

4 years after Spain's property bubble burst...


http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-0...6-million.html

Spain Recession Scars Exposed as Jobless Seen Reaching 6 Million

By Angeline Benoit - Jan 21, 2013 7:00 AM GMT+0800
Bloomberg News

Spain’s scars from the slump that overshadowed Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s first year in office will emerge this week as data shows the toll on economic output that may have kept as many as 6 million people out of work.

Spanish trade figures due today will be followed by house-price data tomorrow showing if the property market endured a fourth year of declines. The Bank of Spain may also release its estimate for fourth-quarter gross domestic product, and the data will culminate in jobs figures on Jan. 24, forecast by economists to show a record 26 percent of Spaniards unemployed.

Officials predict the euro-area’s fourth-biggest economy faces a further slump this year at a time when the government will struggle to meet its budget goals. Such a backdrop hasn’t deterred investors, with the prospect of a European Central Bank backstop in the event of a bailout enabling the Treasury to fast-track higher 2013 funding needs, selling 16 billion euros ($21 billion) at its first three auctions at lower costs.

“Spain may be attractive to buy now, economic fundamentals point in a different direction,” said Ricardo Santos, an economist at BNP Paribas SA in London, who sees the rate ending the year at 27.1 percent. “Spain is in the worst part of its cycle as the harshest part of the fiscal adjustment starts to produce its impact, the social cost will increase as the public sector sheds jobs on top of the private one.”

Bad Loans

Unemployment probably rose to 26 percent of Spain’s active workforce in the last quarter, reaching 6 million unemployed, according to a median of 10 estimates in a Bloomberg survey. One-in-three of all jobless in the euro zone are in Spain.

Missed payments as a proportion of total loans at Spanish banks rose to a record 11.38 percent in November, the Bank of Spain said last week, while purchases of the country’s banks’bonds and shares have spurred rallies of 19 percent this year in Banco Popular Espanol SA and 16 percent for CaixaBank (CABK) SA. Lending shrank 0.3 percent in November from October and 5.7 percent from the same month a year ago.

The default rate on loans to companies rose to 17 percent in the third quarter, 30 percent for real estate-linked activities and 3.49 percent for homeowners. The Bank of Spain is seeking to improve data on evictions due to mortgage defaults after suicides linked to home repossessions provoked public outrage, prompting government measures to limit them.

[seletar]

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-0...-cut-cost.html

Cathay, SIA May Fly Empty Premium Seats as Banks Cut Cost

By David Fickling & Jasmine Wang - Jan 21, 2013 12:01 AM GMT+0800
Bloomberg News


Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. (293) andSingapore Airlines Ltd. (SIA) are spending $207 million fitting flat-bed seats and larger TV screens in business-class. Finding passengers to fly them may be a challenge.

Sales at the front of the cabin fell short of its expectations in December, Cathay Pacific said last week, as the Hong Kong-based carrier this month introduced promotionalbusiness-class fares. Qantas Airways Ltd. (QAN), Australia’s biggest, offered 28 percent discounts on return premium tickets to Hong Kong during the holiday season.

Premium ticket prices between Asia and the U.S. averaged $5,859 in December, their lowest level since 2009, while in Australia an index of business-class ticket prices dropped 30 percent from a year earlier to a record low. Wall Street’s cost cuts and dismissals, which have helped erase more than 300,000 financial-industry jobs in the past two years, aren’t over yet as Citigroup Inc. (C) and Morgan Stanley (MS) announced a combined 12,600 job cuts in the past month.

“When financial institutions are firing people, traffic and profits at airlines like Cathay and Singapore Airlines are affected because they are known for serving premium passengers like bankers,” said Li Lei, a Beijing-based China Minzu Securities Co. Ltd. analyst, who has covered aviation for more than a decade. “Their home bases are too reliant on financial services and trade.”

Airlines that invested in entertainment systems, seats and lounges to compete for business traffic may see growth in business-class fares slowing further this year, according toAmerican Express Co. (AXP)

Travel Cuts

New York-based AmEx said Jan. 11 it will eliminate 5,400 jobs this year, mostly in travel services, as consumers and businesses rely more on digital technology for bookings.

“When revenues are light, one of the first things to happen is a cutback in travel,” said Michael Werner, a banking analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. in Hong Kong. “You’d prefer to cut travel expenses before cutting headcount.”

Bank of America Corp.’s Merrill Lynch & Co. unit, UBS AG (UBSN),JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM), and Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc all ordered staff to fly economy on short-haul routes during the global financial crisis in 2008.

That pressure is returning as companies try to rein in expenses, said Kelvin Lau, a Hong Kong-based transport analyst at Daiwa Securities Group Inc.

[seletar]

http://sbr.com.sg/economy/news/chart...s-did-our-nodx

Singapore Business Review
ECONOMY | Staff Reporter, Singapore
Published: 21 Jan 2013

Chart of the Day: Look what the US did to our NODX


It was the top contributor to the decline.

International Enterprise Singapore reported:

On a y-o-y basis, NODX to all of the top 10 NODX markets declined in December 2012.

The top three contributors to the NODX contraction in December 2012 were the US, Malaysia, and South Korea.

NODX to the US decreased by 27.7 per cent in December 2012, following the previous month’s 7.0 per cent decline, led by specialised machinery (-59.6 per cent), ICs (-32.6 per cent) and parts of PCs (-42.6 per cent).

NODX to Malaysia contracted by 19.9 per cent in December 2012 after the 16.7 per cent decrease in the preceding month, due to ICs (-41.4 per cent), parts of ICs (-71.8 per cent) and civil engineering equipment parts (-30.2 per cent).

NODX to South Korea declined by 26.8 per cent in December 2012, following the previous month’s 0.6 per cent contraction, led by specialised machinery (-73.6 per cent), parts of PCs (-53.5 per cent) and petrochemicals (-41.4 per cent).

[seletar]

http://sbr.com.sg/residential-proper...0000-new-homes

RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY | Staff Reporter, Singapore
Published: 21 Jan 2013

Singapore must brace itself for 200,000 new homes

There'll be enough units for everyone, says Minister Khaw.

In a blog post, Minister for National Development Khaw Boon Wan said that some 200,000 new housing units will be constructed. 80,000 of which are private properties, 10,000 are ECs and about 110,000 are public housing. "This is equivalent to the building of four new Ang Mo Kio towns by 2016, and we are still building more," he wrote.

[seletar]

http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/prem...-half-20130123

Business Times
Published January 23, 2013

Foreigners' share of private home buys seen shrinking in first half

'Very high' ABSD rate of 15% will significantly cut demand, say consultants


FOREIGNERS' share of private home purchases in Singapore is expected to decline in the first half of this year, given the harsher additional buyer stamp duty (ABSD) rates imposed on them under the recent property cooling measures, say property consultants.

Last year, foreigners who were not Singapore permanent residents (PRs) accounted for just 6.3 per cent of all private home purchases on the island - the lowest proportion since 2003 and a significant drop from the 17.6 per cent share in 2011, Knight Frank's analysis of URA Realis caveats data showed.

"The record low proportion is a reflection of reduced foreign buying interest arising from higher (transactional) cost, with the introduction of 10 per cent ABSD on all residential property purchases by non-PR foreigners starting Dec 8, 2011," said Knight Frank's senior manager, consultancy and research, Alice Tan.

And with the ABSD rate for this group jacked up to 15 per cent since Jan 12 this year, Knight Frank forecasts that these non-PR foreigners' share of private home buying will shrink to 5 per cent in the first six months of this year.

International Property Advisor's CEO Ku Swee Yong predicts the share could fall to 4-5 per cent, while Ong Teck Hui, Jones Lang LaSalle's national director of research and consultancy, projects the share may contract to "no more than 3 per cent". "Most of the demand will be eliminated by the very high ABSD rate of 15 per cent on non-PRs," added Mr Ong.

PRs' share of private home purchases increased from 13.4 per cent in 2011 to 15.8 per cent last year. This, Knight Frank attributes to first-time PR home buyers being spared the ABSD rod last year. However, things have changed. Since Jan 12, PRs have to pay 5 per cent ABSD even on their first Singapore home purchase, and 10 per cent for any subsequent purchases.

As a result, Knight Frank expects the PR buying share to slip in the first half to 12-15 per cent, though Mr Ku suggests a more severe drop to around 10 per cent, and Mr Ong, to 5-10 per cent. "The ABSD's impact on PRs is a bit hard to assess as it depends very much on whether it's their first property purchase, in which case a 5 per cent ABSD rate is a figure that some people may be able to stomach, but some can't," says Mr Ong.

IPA's Mr Ku pointed out that PRs who currently own a HDB flat may postpone their decision to upgrade to a private property as they would be slapped with 5 per cent ABSD. They will also be required to sell their HDB flat.

[seletar]

http://sbr.com.sg/economy/news/singa...n-two-quarters

Singapore Business Review
ECONOMY | Staff Reporter, Singapore
Published: 22 Jan 2013


Singapore’s business optimism weakens for the first time in two quarters

Check out which sector sees the glass half-empty.

According to Dun & Bradstreet, following the government’s official forecast for the economy to grow between 1 to 3 percent in 2013, local business optimism weakens for the first time after an upward trend for the previous two consecutive quarters.

The latest quarterly Business Optimism Index (BOI) survey findings, just released today by Dun & Bradstreet (D&B) revealed that 3 out of 6 leading business indicators have fallen into the contraction region for the first quarter of 2013. This comes after a positive showing in Q4 2012 when all 6 business parameters are in the expansion region.

Here’s more:

Business confidence in Singapore began showing early signs of weakening in Q4 2012 when optimism levels have plateaued. Given that the global economy will remain sluggish, Singapore is expected to face more uncertainties in the coming months. The labour market will also be expected to remain tight in 2013.

This quarter, business optimism on volume of sales, net profits and inventory levels have all experienced sharp declines. Optimism levels for net profits are expected to decrease from 9.3 percentage points to -1.6 percentage points. Inventory levels have also fallen from 7.9 percentage points to -4.9 percentage points.

Meanwhile, volume of sales took a plunge from 10 percentage points to -5.1 percentage points quarter-on-quarter. With unemployment rates likely to remain at a dismal 2 per cent in 2013, hiring expectations for Q1 decelerated from 10.9 percentage points to 5.8 percentage points. Selling price is projected to increase at 1.6 percentage points while new orders are likely to remain unchanged for Q1 at 0 percentage points.

Business pessimism is most evident in the manufacturing sector as net optimism levels for net profits and volume of sales dived to -50 percentage points on both indicators. The poor showing for manufacturers is also being reflected in a decrease in inventory levels and selling price at -62.5 percentage points and -25 percentage points respectively.

According to the Ministry of Trade and Industry’s (MTI) recent report, the deepening decline of electronic, ship parts and machinery exports in Singapore will continue to persist into the year, thus affecting business confidence within the sector.

“The lackluster performance of the manufacturing sector and the overall economy as a whole has certainly dampened business sentiments here. With rising business costs from several sides including foreign worker levies and office rents, firms will have to cope with the difficulties which lie ahead.

Thus we can expect the recovery to be slow and the downward trend to continue moving into the first quarter.” warned Ms. Audrey Chia, D&B Singapore’s Chief Executive Officer.

[seletar]

http://sbr.com.sg/economy/news/these...singapore-down

Business Times
ECONOMY | Staff Reporter, Singapore
Published: 22 Jan 2013

These 5 market threats will knock Singapore down


Home sales crashing 40% is just tip of the iceberg.

According to UOB Economic Treasury Report, 2012 was a year of contrasts. Despite anaemic economic growth of 1.2% in Singapore, a low unemployment rate of 1.9%, together with abundant liquidity, has supported a rally in almost all major asset classes including equities, bonds and property.

UOB-ETR expects inflation to moderate to 3.0% in 2013 from 4.7% in 2012. Domestic inflationary pressures could persist in the year ahead as transport costs rise along with a lower COE quota and an anticipated increase in bus fares.

A tight labour market and slowing immigration would also lead to wage increases.

Here are the key risk factors that could adversely impact the market according to UOB ETR:

a) Earlier or sharper-than-expected rise in interest rates. Currently, US interest rates are expected to only trend up in mid-15, in accordance with guidance from the Fed.

b) Regulatory changes in Singapore. This could pertain to several areas, including foreign labour, gaming and property. The government’s drive to improve productivity by restricting the inflow of foreign labour could result in near-term bottlenecks and an escalation in costs. Another sector that could be affected is the gaming sector in Singapore.

c) Strong decline in Singapore property prices. We forecast residential prices to fall 5% in 2013 and transaction volume to decline 20-40%. This is after the recent property cooling measures. A sharper than expected fall in prices could have a significant impact on the banks.

d) Weaker-than-expected recovery in US’ GDP recovery. The issue of the US fiscal cliff is still not resolved and negotiations will be ongoing to decisively deal with the “sequestration” of broad spending cuts and the US sovereign debt ceiling limit which will arise again end-February.

e) Significant deterioration of euro zone debt crisis. This remains a key risk to global growth, which would have a significant impact on Singapore’s growth prospects.

[seletar]

http://www.stproperty.sg/articles-pr...falls/a/102202

KepLand mulls over cutting home prices if market falls

THE boss of property developer Keppel Land has flagged a possible cut to its home prices if the market falls away in response to the Government's recent cooling measures.

The Straits Times - January 24, 2013
By: Melissa Tan


THE boss of property developer Keppel Land has flagged a possible cut to its home prices if the market falls away in response to the Government's recent cooling measures.

"We will monitor the market... If the market comes down and we can't sell our projects, then we'll have to cut prices," said recently installed chief executive Ang Wee Gee.

He was speaking at a briefing yesterday, where the firm announced a 39 per cent decline in full-year net profit to $838.4 million a year earlier.

But turnover for the 12 months to Dec 31 was largely flat, dipping 1.1 per cent year on year to $938.9 million.

For the fourth quarter, net profit slid a steeper 55.4 per cent to $527.3 million on a 25.8 per cent jump in turnover to $471.9 million.

The drop in full-year earnings was largely because of a record net profit for full year 2011 due to a one-time gain from its $480.3 million sale of its stake in Ocean Financial Centre.

Excluding gains from divestment and revaluation, the firm's net profit was $451.5 million for the full year.

This is 61.4 per cent higher than the $279.7 million net profit excluding divestment and revaluation gains in 2011, Keppel Land said in a statement.

A strong performance from property trading helped to cushion the net profit decline. Net profit from this segment shot up 68.5 per cent to $323.9 million for the year.

Keppel Land cited stronger earnings from projects such as Reflections at Keppel Bay and Marina Bay Suites.

Mr Ang, who took the reins at the start of this year, said at the briefing that a 622-unit condominium it is developing in Sengkang, The Luxurie, has only eight unsold units left.

The Luxurie accounted for the bulk of the 430 residential units Keppel Land sold in Singapore last year.

Mr Ang also disclosed that Keppel Land was in the midst of designing a residential site at New Upper Changi Road next to Tanah Merah MRT and design work for another site at Keppel Bay was "at an advanced stage".
It would "monitor the market closely for a suitable time" to launch those two projects, Mr Ang said.

About half of the developer's total assets are in Singapore and 35 per cent are in China, where Keppel Land sold 1,650 homes last year.

Earnings per share were 55.5 cents for the year, down from 93.8 cents in 2011. Net asset value per share was $3.99 as at Dec 31 last year, up from a restated $3.74 as at Dec 31, 2011.

Keppel Land proposed a final dividend of 12 cents per share.

Its counter closed five cents higher at $4.06 yesterday.

[seletar]

Developers currently have 36,352 unsold private units and 15,215 private units not launched yet for sale. Total unsold private units by developers = 51,567.


http://sbr.com.sg/residential-proper...n-next-4-years

Singapore Business Review
RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY | Staff Reporter, Singapore
Published: 25 Jan 2013

Over 100,000 private homes and EC units to be available in the next 4 years


It's a healthy pipeline supply.

According to URA, as at the end of 4th Quarter 2012, there was a total supply of 86,475 uncompleted private residential units from projects in the pipeline, higher than the 83,975 units in 3rd Quarter 2012. Of the supply in the pipeline, 36,352 units remained unsold as at 4th Quarter 2012.

There was an additional supply of 10,201 EC units in the pipeline. In total, the pipeline supply of 96,676 units, including ECs, was the highest ever recorded since such data were first available in 2001.

In addition, another 15,215 units are expected to be added to the pipeline supply soon. These units are from Government Land Sales (GLS) sites that had been awarded to developers, but for which planning approvals had not been obtained yet as at 4th Quarter 2012, as well as from Confirmed List sites from the 1H2013 GLS Programme that have not been awarded yet.

If these units are included, there will be close to 111,891 private housing and EC units in the overall pipeline supply, many of which are expected to be completed in the next 3 to 4 years.

[seletar]

http://sbr.com.sg/economy/news/singa...emain-sluggish

Singapore Business Review
ECONOMY | Staff Reporter, Singapore
Published: 25 Jan 2013

Singapore's industrial production feared to remain sluggish

A decline of 4.1% is forecast.

According to DBS, industrial output and export performance have remained sluggish. And today’s industrial production index for Dec12 should further reinforce this point, particular after the poor set of non-oil domestic export (NODX) figures in the month.

Here's more from DBS:

December NODX contracted 16.3% YoY (1.8% MoM) on account of declines in both electronics and pharmaceutical exports. Although NODX and industrial production do not always run parallel to each other due to fluctuations in inventories, the signs are there for a poor outcome today.

A decline of 4.1% YoY has been penciled into our forecast, which is essentially weaker than the implied -2.3% from the recent advance GDP estimates. That said, this weaker than expected production output is not enough to drag the economy into the red. Overall GDP growth may get revised downwards marginally but the economy will still avert a technical recession for the second time in a roll.

That said, economic data has been improving in many Asia economies but Singapore has not been able to benefit from this recent development due to its declining competitiveness. A strong Sing dollar and the rapidly rising business costs domestically will continue to weigh down on industrial and export performance in the coming months.

[seletar]

http://sbr.com.sg/residential-proper...-rental-market

Singapore Business Review
RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY | Staff Reporter, Singapore
Published: 25 Jan 2013

Why it's foolish to say rising rents indicate strong rental market


Average rents up to $3.52psf in 4Q12 from $3.36psf a year ago.

According to Savills, the 4th Q is seasonally a low point. Nevertheless, the 4th quarter’s drop of 18.5% in the number of leases over the 3rd quarter was less pronounced than that of 2011 when we saw a 21% decline.

For the year 2012, the total number of leases was 49,500, 9.8% higher than the previous year.

Alan Cheong, senior director at Savills cautions that one should not be fooled into believing that rising rents for non-landed properties signal a strong rental market. On a $psf basis, the increase, he said, is because tenants, when faced with less ostentatious budgets are leasing smaller apartments and also at further out places.

"As they back into this lower segment of the market, rents are bound to rise on a $psf basis. The larger apartments and those in the prime districts are not getting tenancy traction and are thus seeing rentals fall by up to 15-22% since mid-2010. Their plight are probably not reflected in the URA rental statistics because there are not enough such transactions to outweigh the greater number of low quantum sign-ons."

For 2013, the private residential leasing market will be one that will be defined by tenants with low budgets and leasing on personal terms; a tendency towards leasing on short term basis as tenants are engaged on a project basis; and quiescence on the financial sector front but active from the chemical and oil and gas sectors, said Savills. "Owing to the preponderance of short term leases, their constant renewals may also give us a false reading that rental market is in the intuitive sense of the word, very healthy."

[seletar]

Developers are truly greedy despicable cheats... inflating the caveat price, hiding the true price, manipulating the property price index , and lying about the actual sales numbers to consumers. And the unknowing consumers upon seeing the inflated caveat prices from the developers' price deception and manipulation, ended up being conned to pay more to the developers for their units.

http://www.straitstimes.com/premium/...rices-20130126

Straits Times Forum
Published on Jan 26, 2013

PROPERTY SALES

Concerns over practice of inflating prices


HAVING visited several property launches over the past year, I wish to share some observations ("Tough action to cool property market"; Jan 12).

To create a rising price scenario, developers commonly mark up the selling price of their units, and then offer discounts or rebates in the form of furniture vouchers and stamp duty refunds.

As buyers, we are advised to lodge caveats based on the higher price before the discounts and rebates, so that we can qualify for higher bank loans.

While most banks require buyers to declare the purchase price and discounts, many people do not do so in order to qualify for higher loans.

This benefits the developers as it will show an increase in the residential property price index, which in reality may not be the true price transacted.

Unfortunately, this strategy of price manipulation has now spread to the resale market.

Of late, some owners who may have bought several units in new launches are now offering refunds and cashback.

As is the case for new launches, a buyer must agree to lodge the caveat based on the seller's inflated asking price, and refunds via a cashier's order will be given on the completion date.

The price lodged in the caveat requested by the seller is to support the bank valuation as well as show price increases to generate future sales for the seller.

This is a grey area that I hope the Monetary Authority of Singapore and Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) can address as it may have legal implications.

I also encourage the URA to conduct thorough checks on claims by developers of their projects selling like "hot cakes".

This is because when one checks the URA's actual sales figures later, they are often lower than what was initially claimed.

It would be helpful if the URA could publish a monthly update of all recent project sales and units left unsold.

Lastly, I thank The Straits Times for publishing both the caveats and actual rental prices of private properties. This is a positive step as it allows for transparency and helps buyers and tenants make informed decisions.

David Lim Beng Heng

[sabian]

Developers are truly greedy despicable cheats... inflating the caveat price, hiding the true price, manipulating the property price index , and lying about the actual sales numbers to consumers. And the unknowing consumers upon seeing the inflated caveat prices from the developers' price deception and manipulation, ended up being conned to pay more to the developers for their units.

http://www.straitstimes.com/premium/...rices-20130126

Straits Times Forum
Published on Jan 26, 2013

PROPERTY SALES

Concerns over practice of inflating prices


HAVING visited several property launches over the past year, I wish to share some observations ("Tough action to cool property market"; Jan 12).

To create a rising price scenario, developers commonly mark up the selling price of their units, and then offer discounts or rebates in the form of furniture vouchers and stamp duty refunds.

As buyers, we are advised to lodge caveats based on the higher price before the discounts and rebates, so that we can qualify for higher bank loans.

While most banks require buyers to declare the purchase price and discounts, many people do not do so in order to qualify for higher loans.

This benefits the developers as it will show an increase in the residential property price index, which in reality may not be the true price transacted.

Unfortunately, this strategy of price manipulation has now spread to the resale market.

Of late, some owners who may have bought several units in new launches are now offering refunds and cashback.

As is the case for new launches, a buyer must agree to lodge the caveat based on the seller's inflated asking price, and refunds via a cashier's order will be given on the completion date.

The price lodged in the caveat requested by the seller is to support the bank valuation as well as show price increases to generate future sales for the seller.

This is a grey area that I hope the Monetary Authority of Singapore and Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) can address as it may have legal implications.

I also encourage the URA to conduct thorough checks on claims by developers of their projects selling like "hot cakes".

This is because when one checks the URA's actual sales figures later, they are often lower than what was initially claimed.

It would be helpful if the URA could publish a monthly update of all recent project sales and units left unsold.

Lastly, I thank The Straits Times for publishing both the caveats and actual rental prices of private properties. This is a positive step as it allows for transparency and helps buyers and tenants make informed decisions.

David Lim Beng Heng

Why you make it sound like housing agents are low-life scums of the earth who would sell their own mothers to the devil if the price is right?

[teddybear]

He is trying to get back at them for making so many property sales and property prices hot hot..............

Why you make it sound like housing agents are low-life scums of the earth who would sell their own mothers to the devil if the price is right?

[Lemonlaw]

More property agents is going jobless. Goodluck

[Rysk]

Why you make it sound like housing agents are low-life scums of the earth who would sell their own mothers to the devil if the price is right?

Hate developers.. hate agents.. hate homeowners.. hate landlord esp..
Cos YOUNG KOK cum INEXPERIENCE SELETAR airbase cannot tahan pay rental anymore..

SELETAR airbase (aka SMARIAN) hate from 2008 till now still have so much hatred
http://www.sg-house.com/classifieds/...-property.html

[Rysk]

OK, now, my first thread has garnered around 7000 views within 12 hours, with more than 10 pages of reply. What does this tell us?
http://forums.condosingapore.com/showthread.php?t=16552

Lots of forumers here who are owners with vested interest (well, probably including myself) have deep inner fear of a price decline, and they can't help by checking who the desperate owners are and whether the market really starts going down, it's going to freak out lots of people here...

Another explanation is of course I'm probably quite handsome when I write posts.

Jokes aside, thanks for the interest in replying, and,

To those forum readers who are only buyers, do take note that a lot of views expressed here are biased, as they have vested interest. You will see the proof from the replies to this post and my maiden thread.

Helo MR B (aka economist),
Your this thread have much much more "Owners who are even more fearful".. with over 715k viewers
Feared from the start of this useless thread since Oct 2011.. Fear till you go MIA.. Till you again changed your nick, but this time round economist (aka MR B).. then lan lan act blur come back with your desperate new thread..

[lajia]

Hahaha...u poke somemore later all four letter words start coming and then poke this backside, that wife, and all sort of nonsense will come out....
Not only ths, I think now got quite a lot of clones lately...

Sorry, I shouldn't step into this thread....OUT!

Helo MR B (aka economist),
Your this thread have much much more "Owners who are even more fearful".. with over 715k viewers
Feared from the start of this useless thread since Oct 2011.. Fear till you go MIA.. Till you again changed your nick, but this time round economist (aka MR B).. then lan lan act blur come back with your desperate new thread..

[Sam88]

More property agents is going jobless. Goodluck

u happy people out of job

[Regulators]

if people dont buy residential, they go to commercial, if they dont buy residential and commercial in singapore they buy overseas projects, property agents always have ways to make money. Do you know property agents can also make money through assignment of businesses and takeovers?

More property agents is going jobless. Goodluck