Originally Posted by
Daredevil
Hi "Interested Investor",
What I am going to share with u might be contrary to the opinions of the Geylang or "prostitute" experts you have heard from. So you decide.
I own another Geylang unit (99 year leasehold) which I will not tell u where (since i have received so many judgemental comments. A few have even concluded that I am a property agent which I am not).
I will give u my advice based on my own experience in living there for at least 2 years - and renting my apartment for the last 7 years. I do not claim to be an expert (as I always try to learn from others esp the other experts in this forum) but I guess that qualifies me to give u my own 2 cents worth (vs many others who have made judgements based on their own subjective perceptions and impressions).
Here are 3 strategies
Strategy #1: Get a condo near to the MRT stations (Paya Lebar or Aljunied) or the Circle line. While people tend to conclude that Geylang is a red-light district, in reality, the main activites are at lorongs (<20). There might be stray prostitutes from time to time - no choice.
Strategy #2: Do it the LEGAL way. Do not rent to any tom, dick (pun intended) or harry (another pun intended). No Students (let alone prostitutes). Ensure you check their documents. In my last 7 yrs, I have rent out to Chinese, Koreans, and Indians - all are legitimate working professionals in IT, banking (contrary to what is being said in this thread). I have never had to wait more than 1 month to find a tenant and i have not had huge difficulties collecting the rent. In fact, my current tenant is going to extend his current lease and increase his rent by another $500.
Strategy #3: Ensure you have ongoing "intelligence" of your tenants. Check with the guardhouse when you go there for maintenance. You will be surprised how much they know. Also ensure that the condo management knows who you are and how to contact you if there is an emergency. (this advice is applicable even outside Geylang). In my case, I insist that for air-con maintenance, the tenants use my contractor (who reports to me what is going on inside)
Having shared the above strategies, look for condos away from the main activity area. You can consider the odd-number lorongs like The Alcove, where banks are more open to providing loans. Then there are condos in Geylang Central and East (where all banks will provide loans - contrary to popular opinion. ).
A typical condo (>5 years) with 3 rooms cost between $450-550k. Assuming you place a 20% deposit (80%LTV:loan-to-value ratio), and go for the maximum loan period, you should be able to get a $300-500 positive monthly cashflow (that's extra cash after factoring in your condo maintenance).
There are people who are going to pour cold water on my recommendations but it's my own 2 cents worth since u asked.
While this thread has attracted serious investors, clowns, "prostitute" experts and kaypos who have provided entertaining, controversial and sometimes conflicting opinions, the fact is that the verdict is still open on the future of Geylang - which is going to be subjected to political, economic and social factors. For me, I am awaiting the Master Plan 2008 - which changes every 5 yrs. I have also based my investment plans on where Singapore is heading and not on opinions or perceptions.
Whether or not the red light district moves is immaterial to me. But if there are positive effects of IR, then I am sitting on a gold mine (make it 2). yes, I am taking a risk - and a few call me an idiot - but I have taken a calculated risk - with much upside. Good luck.
Disclaimer: accept my recommendations at your own risk. I will NOT share anymore other than the above