Latest FB Posts from Second Property Investors

I brought my daughter to the bookstore recently.

She is currently obsessed with anything related to space.

Astronauts.
Rockets.
Planets.

So when she saw this space book, she immediately wanted it.

At first, I thought it was because of the topic.

But after observing her for a while, I realised something interesting.

What attracted her wasn’t really the information inside the book.

It was the cardboard torch that came with it.

The book has special pages where you can shine the cardboard torch through them and discover hidden things.

For almost 20 minutes, she kept going back to the same book.

Shining the torch.
Looking for hidden objects.
Trying to figure out what else was inside.

In the end, we didn’t buy the book.

We decided to check if the National Library has it instead 😅

But watching her play with it made me realise something.

Most people think value comes from information.

☝🏻 Actually, value often comes from seeing something that others cannot see.

The facts about space were already inside the book.

Every customer in the bookstore had access to exactly the same information.

But without the cardboard torch, many of the hidden details remained hidden.

And I feel property is becoming a little bit like that today.

Almost everyone has access to information now.

PropertyGuru.
URA data.
99.co
YouTube.
AI.

Information is no longer the problem.

If information alone was enough, everyone would already be making great property decisions.

🔺 The real challenge is interpretation.

⭐️ Because two people can look at the exact same market and arrive at completely different conclusions.

🔴 One person sees risk.

🟢 Another person sees opportunity.

❗️ One person sees a policy announcement.

💡 Another person sees how that policy may affect demand and prices 5 to 10 years later.

The information is the same.

The lens is different.

And perhaps that is why some people make decisions earlier than others.

Not because they know more.

But because they see something earlier.

The funny thing about the cardboard torch was this.

The hidden pictures were already there.
The torch didn’t create them.

It simply revealed what was already there.

Maybe many opportunities in life work the same way.

The question is not whether the information exists.

The question is whether we know where to shine the light.

🤔🤔🤔 ... See MoreSee Less

AI helped me solve a problem this week.

But the interesting part wasn't the AI.

It was the problem that AI helped me spot.

Recently, I was preparing a unit for sale.

The owner was very cooperative.

We repainted the house.
We touched up the small details.
We packed away unnecessary items.

After everything was done, I went down to take the marketing photos.

When I looked at the photos, something felt strange.

📍 The house looked clean.
📍 The walls looked fresh.
📍 The built-ins still looked modern.

But somehow the house still felt older than it should.

I couldn't figure out why initially.

Then it hit me.

The flooring.

The flooring wasn't bad.

In fact, if you saw it before all the touch-ups, you probably wouldn't even notice it.

But once everything else became newer and fresher, the flooring suddenly became the oldest-looking thing in the house.

And it started pulling down the entire presentation.

So instead of guessing, I tried something.

The vinyl contractor sent over a few flooring samples.

I took the actual photos of the unit and used AI to superimpose the different flooring colours directly onto the house.

Within minutes, I could see the difference.

Not just whether the flooring looked nice.

But whether it matched the kitchen cabinets.

📍 Whether it matched the TV feature wall.
📍 Whether it made the entire house feel brighter.
📍 Whether it made the home feel more current to today's buyers.

And honestly, I was quite amazed.

The photos almost looked real.

What used to require imagination can now be visualised almost instantly.

But while playing with the different versions, one thought came to mind.

Most people think selling a house is about taking photos and putting it online.

What they don't see are the hundreds of small decisions behind the scenes.

📍 Should we repaint?
📍 Should we declutter?
📍 Should we repair this?
📍 Should we leave that alone?

Should we spend $3,000 here if it potentially makes the house feel $30,000 more attractive?

And now with AI...

We can even test ideas before spending the money.

The funny thing is this.

AI can generate the image.
AI can generate the options.

But AI doesn't know what buyers notice when they walk into a house.

AI doesn't know which improvements create value and which improvements are just wasting money.

AI doesn't know how to position a property against competing listings.

That's still a human decision.

Technology is becoming more powerful every day.

But sometimes the real value is not the tool.

It's knowing where to point the tool.

And in property, that small difference can sometimes create a very different result. ... See MoreSee Less

Not too many years ago, many people focused heavily on “investment-style” properties.

Meaning:
1-bedroom.
2-bedroom.
Small quantum units.

Why?

Because back then, many people still had the mindset of:

“Stay in HDB. Save money.
Buy second or third property to collect rental.”

So people didn’t mind staying in their existing HDB for very long.

The goal was not really to improve their own lifestyle.

The goal was:
accumulate investment properties.

But once the market started shifting because of policies like ABSD and TDSR - many people didn’t adapt fast enough.

And some eventually got stuck quite badly.

Because their thinking was still based on the old market environment.

And because of that behaviour - smaller “investment-style” properties became very popular.

While larger, more “consumable” properties were actually less favoured.

When I asked people to buy a bigger unit a few years ago,
the response was usually:

“Gary, this one for investment leh.
Why buy 4-bedroom?
Will people rent from me anot?”

At that point in time - most people judged property mainly based on rental efficiency.

Smaller unit.
Lower quantum.
Easier to rent.
Higher rental yield.

That was the dominant thinking.

And because developers also knew buyers preferred smaller investment-style units - they sometimes had no choice but to lower the $psf pricing for bigger units to attract demand.

Which quietly created very interesting value in the larger units.

But one thing I kept thinking about back then was this:

Would ABSD eventually reshape buyer behaviour completely?

Because once buying second and third properties became much - harder, more expensive, and heavily taxed due to ABSD…

Would people still continue using their money the same way?

Or would they eventually start upgrading their own lifestyle instead?

And slowly - that was exactly what started happening.

Instead of buying another small investment property,
many families started using their money to improve their own stay.

Better layout.
More space.
Better environment.
Better daily living.

Then Covid accelerated everything even further.

Suddenly - people realised how important the home actually was.

And that was when demand for “consumable” properties started becoming much stronger.

Not because the property changed.

But because human behaviour changed.

But now, something else is happening again.

Developers already know this trend.

So increasingly - more pricing and profit are now being loaded into larger “consumable” units because developers know demand is there.

Which also means…

Just because a certain concept worked in the past...

It doesn’t automatically mean buying the same thing today will still produce the same result.

Because markets evolve.
Policies evolve.
Human behaviour evolves.

And if our thinking doesn’t evolve together with it - sometimes we may unknowingly use yesterday’s logic to buy tomorrow’s problem. ... See MoreSee Less

A few weeks ago, the government announced major changes to the EC market.

The headlines focused on things like:

• 90% quota for first-timers
• Longer 10-year MOP
• Deferred Payment Scheme removed

And naturally, many people started discussing whether ECs are becoming harder to buy.

But when I was reading the policy, I found myself focusing on a different question.

If second-timers can no longer compete for as many EC units as before...

Where will all these buyers go?

Interesting right?

When most people read a policy, they focus on what changed.

I tend to focus on where the demand is likely to go after the change.

Let's think about it.

These second-timers don't suddenly disappear.

They still need a place to stay.

They still want to upgrade.

Many of them still have substantial proceeds from their existing HDB.

The demand doesn't disappear.

It simply gets redirected.

And this is where things become interesting.

If demand is redirected away from ECs, where does it go?

📍 Does it flow towards larger resale HDBs?
📍 Does it flow towards resale condominiums?
📍 Does it flow towards selected new launches?

📍 Or does it flow towards older private properties that suddenly become relatively more attractive?

Most people spend their time asking:

"Can I still buy an EC?"

A different question might be:

"If fewer people can buy an EC in the future, where will all that demand go instead?"

Because very often, property opportunities are not created when demand appears.

They are created when demand gets redirected.

The same way Prime and Plus flats redirected demand.

The same way the 15-month wait-out rule redirected demand.

The same way ABSD redirected demand.

Policy is rarely just about restriction.

Policy is often about demand control.

And sometimes the biggest opportunities are found in the places where demand eventually lands.

That's why whenever a new policy is announced, the first question I ask is not:

"Who is affected?"

The first question I ask is:
"Where will the demand go now?"

Because once we understand how demand is being redirected...

We can start positioning ourselves in those areas before the demand arrives.

And very often, that is where the biggest opportunities are found. ... See MoreSee Less

Some people buy property and make money.

Some people buy property and don’t.

But recently, there’s one question that keeps coming to mind.

When someone made money from property over the last few years…

Was it really skill?

Or was it simply because the market moved in their favour?

Because if we are truly honest with ourselves,
a lot of times this is what happens.

We use a certain way of thinking.
A certain way of choosing property.
A certain way of making decisions.

Then a few years later, the property goes up.

And naturally we assume:

“Means my thinking was correct.”

But was it really?

Or did the market simply reward almost everyone during that period?

This part is very important.

Because if our thinking never evolved…
our decision-making process never improved…
our understanding never deepened…

Then technically our “ability” never really changed.

Only the market changed.

And if the market changes again,
while our thinking remains the same,
the outcome can become very different.

That’s why one of the most dangerous things in investing is when people accidentally treat luck as skill.

Because once luck disappears, they suddenly realise they were never actually seeing deeper than the crowd.

To me, good investing is not about repeating what worked before.

It’s about constantly asking:

“Is the market still rewarding the same behaviour today?”

Because markets evolve.

Policies evolve.
Human behaviour evolves.

And if our thinking stays the same for 5 years…

Why should we expect the results to suddenly become different? ... See MoreSee Less

I finally changed my MacBook.

The previous one lasted me almost 10 years.

To be honest, it was still working.

Just that recently, with all the AI tools, video editing, content creation and software updates...

I could feel it struggling.

So I started looking around.

And that's when I got confused 😅

There were so many versions.

Different chips.
Different specifications.
Different prices.

Some friends told me to buy the older version because it was cheaper.

Some told me the difference wasn't that big.

Some said I wouldn't even feel the difference.

And honestly...

They were probably right.

But in the end, I still bought the latest version.

The one launched just a few months ago.

And it wasn't because I understood all the technical specifications.
I don't.

It wasn't because the older version was bad.
It wasn't.

The difference was only a few hundred dollars.

Yet somehow I just felt more comfortable buying the latest one.

Then it hit me.

Maybe this is just how human beings behave.

🔸 We like knowing that we bought the latest version.
🔸 We like knowing that we are less likely to miss out.
🔸 We like knowing that we won't look back 2 years later and wonder if we should have topped up a bit more.

In a way...

✅ We are not really buying the product.
✅ We are buying peace of mind.

And strangely enough, I see the same thing happening in property all the time.

Many buyers say they are buying based on numbers.

But very often, they are buying based on how the property makes them feel.

The numbers simply help justify the decision afterwards.

📍 Why do some people pay more for a newer condo?
📍 Why do some people insist on being near the MRT?
📍 Why do some people pay extra for freehold?
📍 Why do some people prefer a project that everyone is talking about?

Sometimes it is not because the difference is huge.

Sometimes it is simply because they don't want to feel they missed out.

⭐️ They are buying certainty.
⭐️ Or at least the feeling of certainty.

And that made me realise something.

When buying a property, maybe the question is not:

"What property do I like?"

Maybe the more important question is:

"What property will future buyers feel comfortable buying from me?"

Because one day, when we decide to sell...

Our opinion no longer matters.

The future buyer's opinion matters.

And sometimes the hardest thing is that we cannot see our own blind spots.

The things that feel important to us may not be the things future buyers care about.

Which is why buying property has never been just about understanding property.

It is about understanding people.

The funny thing is...

I thought I was buying a MacBook this week.

But somehow it ended up reminding me why human behaviour will always be one of the most important things to understand in investing. ... See MoreSee Less

Today I brought my girl to Popular Bookstore.

As usual, we walked through rows and rows of assessment books.

Math books.
Science books.
English books.
Chinese books.

Then a strange thought came to my mind.

I wonder how all these publishers will survive in the future.

Because if we think about it...

What are they really selling?

Questions.

And today, AI can generate questions almost instantly.

Need 20 Primary 4 fractions questions?
Done.

Need 50 Primary 5 science MCQs?
Done.

Need questions based on your child's weak topics only?

Done.

In fact, AI can probably create more questions in 10 seconds than what an assessment book contains.

Which means one day, all a parent may need is a printer at home.

No need to buy stacks and stacks of assessment books anymore.

But then I realised something.

Maybe parents were never buying the books because they lacked questions.

Maybe they were buying the books because they wanted guidance.

Because having 1,000 questions doesn't mean your child will improve.

The real challenge is knowing:

📍 Which questions should be done first?
📍 Which topics are weak?
📍 Which mistakes matter?
📍 Which areas should be ignored for now?

Suddenly I realised this is exactly what is happening in property today.

Twenty years ago, information was valuable.

Agents had information.
Developers had information.
Industry insiders had information.

Today?

Almost everything is online.

You can see prices.
You can see transactions.
You can see rental data.
You can even ask ChatGPT.

Information has become almost free.

Yet people are still buying the wrong property.
Selling at the wrong time.
Holding the wrong asset.

Why?

☝🏻 Because the problem was never information.

☝🏻 The problem was interpretation.

Just because a parent has unlimited questions doesn't mean they know what their child should do next.

🔺 Just because someone has unlimited property information doesn't mean they know what decision to make next.

Maybe that's why AI will replace some things.

But it won't easily replace people who can help others make sense of what they are seeing.

And perhaps that's the real shift happening today.

The winners may no longer be the people with the most information.

The winners may be the people who can create the most clarity.

⭐️ Because when information becomes free...
⭐️ Clarity becomes expensive. ... See MoreSee Less

Recently, I drove past one of the developments that a buyer bought a few years ago mainly because of fengshui.

So I dropped him a text to say hi and asked him how his stay there has been so far.

And he shared something quite interesting.

He told me:

“The layout is very good.

The stay is comfortable.

But somehow the development itself doesn’t really feel very lively or vibrant.”

And honestly, this is something quite common in many freehold developments.

Not because they are bad.

But because many freehold projects in Singapore regularly sit on smaller plots of land.

And when the plot is smaller, developers naturally have limitations.

Less space means:
📍 smaller facilities,
📍 less landscaping,
📍 less separation between spaces,
📍 fewer activity zones,
📍 and sometimes less of that “resort” or “community” feeling inside the development.

Compared to some large 99-year leasehold developments,
where developers can create:
✅ huge arrival areas,
✅multiple pools,
✅clubhouses,
✅walking trails,
✅kids zones,
✅tennis courts,
✅shops,
✅and even different “communities” within the same project.

And this made me think about something deeper.

When we buy a property,
especially for investment,
are we buying based on our own preference…

or are we buying based on the psychology of the future buyer?

Because different developments attract completely different types of people.

For example,
when someone buys a freehold property,
what are they usually valuing?

Very often, it is:
“legacy”
“scarcity”
“hold long term”
“better tenure”
“ownership value”

Which means many freehold buyers are actually more logical and value-driven.

They are willing to compromise on certain lifestyle elements because they prioritise ownership psychology more.

This is why many freehold developments can still perform well,
even if they may not feel as lively or vibrant as larger projects.

But the buyer must still feel that there is value inside the purchase.

Because ultimately - they are buying the idea of ownership.

But when it comes to large 99-year leasehold developments,
the psychology can become very different.

Now the buyer may care more about:
🔸community,
🔸family lifestyle,
🔸vibrancy,
🔸facilities,
🔸energy within the development,
🔸convenience,
🔸or even the emotional feeling when entering the project.

Because these buyers are usually a lot more emotional in their buying behaviour.

They are willing to pay for something they love staying in.

It is actually quite similar to Toyota and Mercedes.

Some people buy Toyota because it is reliable and value for money.

Some people buy Mercedes even if it is an entry-level model.

Because they are not only buying specifications.

They are buying the lifestyle, the feeling, and the identity that comes together with the brand.

And sometimes both cars may even be similar in price…
Yet give completely different specifications and product quality.

But both will always have their own group of buyers.

And this is where things become interesting.

Because many people compare property by asking:

“Freehold or 99-year?”

But sometimes - the more important question is:

⭐️ “Who is the future buyer that will buy from me?”

⭐️ What do they actually prioritise?

Do they value tenure more?
Or daily living experience more?

Do they think logically?
Or do they buy emotionally?

And once we understand this - we start to realise that different projects cannot be evaluated the same way.

A small freehold development cannot be judged the same way as a mega 99-year development.

Because they are attracting completely different human behaviours.

And these are usually the small small things that most people don’t really pay attention to before buying.

But sometimes, these behavioural differences…

Are exactly what shape the future demand of a property. ... See MoreSee Less

Something I shared 7 years ago

Have a great week aheadSaw this somewhere and I think it is good to share with my readers here.

I had always been a lazy student since primary 1.

Never do homework, never learn spelling, went to normal academic, failed my O level English twice with E8 and just a C6 on the third attempt.

But my mother has never given up on me before.

And never once will she comment like you are so lazy or stupid... She will never say something to let me feel that I will have no future... She just let me be and wait for the day that I will shine.

She did this for all my siblings and today I must say we are all shining well in where we are supposed to shine. We all had a happy childhood even though we were very poor.

Happy Mother’s Day. I love you mother ❤️❤️ ... See MoreSee Less