Home sweet home is also a wise investment

Civil servant Sebastian Tan has come a long way from poor childhood days to own property, stocks and insurance

Lorna Tan
Invest Editor/Senior Correspondent


Saying that civil servant Sebastian Tan had it tough growing up doesn't come near to describing the hardship of his childhood.

Having three decent meals a day was a luxury for him. His home was a cramped three-room HDB flat in Queen's Crescent that he shared with 10 or 11 others at times.

He was so malnourished then that he was given cartons of milk in the morning in school.

"I grew up in a very poor family in a flat where the utilities were frequently cut off due to non-payment. Maggie mee (curry flavour) was my best friend - I ate that almost every other day as it was probably the cheapest meal back then, with an egg added on rare occasions," he recalls.

Mr Tan, 45, who is responsible for operations in a statutory board, said his mother left home when he was two or three, leaving his father to care for the family, which he managed by working long hours at various odd jobs.

Mr Tan, his brother and their dad lived with his paternal grandmother and her children.

He learnt how to earn a living part-time by peddling otah (grilled fish cake) and festive greeting cards from block to block when he was just eight years old.

He became a caddie at Sentosa Golf Club on weekend mornings when he was 13, and worked part-time during the school holidays.

"Looking back, I am glad that I saved the majority of my bonuses without splurging on luxuries like the latest IT gadgets, including mobile phones, and branded stuff," he says. "I also invested wisely in blue-chip stocks and was not tempted by market hearsay. I'm easily satisfied and would let go, once a certain stock or property has reached my desired/targeted price, and won't be greedy and hope for more upside."

Mr Tan has made capital gains from six properties.

Besides being a volunteer for his grassroots organisation and the Singapore Hokkien Association, he plans to set up a charity foundation.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Justice (International Policing) from Queensland University of Technology in 2002. It was a long-distance programme sponsored by his former employer.

Mr Tan is married to Ms Caren Lim, 40, who works in a government agency. Their daughter Kaizaree Jade-Eden is nine.

Q Can you describe your home?
A I bought my current freehold 1,518-square-foot (sq ft) apartment in St Patrick's Road in 2015 for $2.05 million. At the time, it was one year after it received the Temporary Occupation Permit. It has three bedrooms and a fairly large living room. It is valued at $2.5 million or about $1,650 per square foot (psf).

Q Why did you choose this property?
A I had previously lived in that area and I love the vibes and environment. Besides the nice food in the area, being close to East Coast Park means I can go there for my long-distance training runs while enjoying the sea breeze.

It was really a steal for the psf for an almost new freehold apartment in that area. The project beside my condo was already selling at $1,600 to $1,700 psf.

It was also very near Tao Nan Primary School, where I wanted to enrol my daughter in.

In addition, the unit was unoccupied and untouched as the seller did not live in it. As I had already sold my apartment, I needed the shortest time possible to move in. And there was a future MRT line (East Coast-Thomson) parallel to it.

Q What is your favourite part of the home?
A It has to be my living room as I spend lots of time there with my wife and daughter chit-chatting, playing board games, watching TV... it was where she would be revising her schoolwork or practising on her piano, and where we would be pampering our three hamsters. I also have a huge collection of rare figurines, toys and collectibles nicely displayed in my custom-built display cabinet in the living room!

Q What's in your property portfolio?
A Except for my first matrimonial home in the early 2000s, when I suffered a $40,000 loss, albeit in CPF money, I have been extremely lucky to achieve modest gains from all my past properties.

In 2003, I bought a 560 sq ft freehold condo in Kembangan under the Deferred Payment Scheme for $345,000 and sold it for $420,000 just before obtaining the Temporary Occupation Permit in 2005.

In 2005, I bought an 829 sq ft leasehold condo in the Marine Parade area for $370,000 and sold it for $520,000 in 2007. That year, I bought a 1,760 sq ft jumbo HDB flat in Yishun for $378,000 and sold it for $610,000 in 2010. This was followed by a 1,400 sq ft leasehold walk-up apartment in Telok Kurau acquired for $810,000 in 2010, and sold for $1.1 million a year later.

In 2011, I bought a 1,830 sq ft leasehold condo in the Pasir Ris area for $1 million and sold it for $1.25 million in 2015. In 2013, I bought a 355 sq ft freehold condo in the Sims Avenue area for $420,000 and sold it for $550,000 in 2015.

Q Describe your property investing strategy.
A After owning both leasehold and freehold properties, I realised that freehold property is the way to go if you are looking at long-term gains.

When buying a new home, it is actually not rocket science to look at the factors commonly used by many people - near an MRT station and good amenities (wet markets, hawker centre, libraries, eateries, shopping malls). Near good schools would also be a major plus point as there would be (younger) parents who would need it.

Come to think of it, my present home ticked all the boxes. However, I would be looking to sell it once the Marine Terrace MRT station is completed around 2022/2023 as that would be the time when my daughter completes her primary school education. I would still be looking for a freehold property in the same area.

Q What's your view of the property market?
A Due to the various cooling measures and foresight by our Government to prevent the property market from overheating, it is actually not wise to buy additional properties for investment now (unless you bought those properties before all the various cooling measures were introduced or you really have very deep pockets) as the sub-sale market is as good as dead.

The days when you could make a tidy sum from a short holding period have long gone and are very unlikely to return unless the Government suddenly does away with all the cooling measures, which will not happen any time soon.

Q What's your financing strategy?
A I typically try to take as small a mortgage as possible. I am grateful that my current loan is pegged to my bank's fixed deposit home rate. As it is less volatile compared with the SOR/Sibor, I have peace of mind knowing the monthly instalments won't be increased so regularly.

Q Do you have insurance cover for property and contents?
A On the advice of my wise wife, I am more than sufficiently insured against my property so that my wife and daughter need never worry about mortgage repayments.

Q What's your overall investing strategy?
A I am only holding on to my current property. As I keep very long hours at work, I do not have much time to monitor the market closely and hence most of my portfolio is in blue-chip stocks like Singapore Airlines and Singapore Press Holdings since they are not volatile in nature.

In terms of percentage, I would say I'm 40 per cent invested in property and 30 per cent in stocks with the balance in cash and insurance.

Q My dream home is ...
A My dream home would be by the beach front in the East Coast area, which is not possible in Singapore (that's why it is a dream).

For my next home (likely to still be in the East area), besides the bedrooms, ideally it has to have enough space for an individual room to house my toy/figurine collection, a TV/music room, and also a long walkway to display my framed-up posters of movies and artistes.

Most importantly, the new home should continue to have plenty of warmth and happiness like in my current home.

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times on February 24, 2019, with the headline 'Home sweet home is also a wise investment'.