Property tips, observations, and actual experiences

[Victor68]

While it is true you have a higher chance of selling by impressing prospect buyers with well done interior. 1st impression counts. 

 

For buyer like me, the interior finishing is the least concern because I have my other ideas after purchase. Therefore the least the better as I don't want to pay for things I need to tear down later.

 

It is always about location and the development, not the interior. So keep it simple and don't try to oversell. The prospect comes broadly for 2 reasons. Just to see and compare and those really interested with this development. Most have already done their homework, would you if you are investing more than a million? 

[Stary]

 

4) Respect the Initial Tenancy process

 

This point is so obvious, but again some people doesn't  take it seriously. The initial process starts with an offer and requirements from the tenant. Often it is a verbal offer for the landlord agent to bring back to the landlord for discussion.  If the landlord accepts it, the tenant should quickly proceed with the LOI and the first month booking deposit for the landlord to sign.

 

It is a simple process, but some tenants exploit it. They would make 3 offers at the same time and 2 of the landlord will get rejected even if they had accepted the offer. The rejected landlords will then feel so frustrated that it is their turn to treat the next offer less seriously when the next one arrives. 

 

And then sometimes it is the other way round. The tenant followed the process,  got the LOI to the landlord promptly, but the landlord now sit on the LOI and refuse to sign  even though he has verbally accepted the offer. Reason being that he is waiting for other better offer. The poor tenant is now being delayed, not sure whether  to wait or simply cancel the deal. 

 

All the above creates sour feeling right from the start and is the beginning of doubts and skepticism that will slowly ruin a possible good tenancy. The only time the above situation is minimise is when both sides have their agents and  the agents have the obligation to respect the process as part of their code of conduct. 

 

 

 

The above very true...... good post. 

[Albertstain]

nice share

[Wt_know]

wah ... real experience no fake news

your only home also can flip flip and continue to flip

keep buying selling and huat ah

Edited February 24, 2019 by Wt_know

[Icedbs]

wah ... real experience no fake news

your only home also can flip flip and continue to flip

keep buying selling and huat ah

 

actually quite common.

 

A lot of owners flip very often before the ABSD and SSD measures. 

 

Thesedays, if they can make some $$$ after the SSD period, they will sell and buy again too.

[Wt_know]

actually quite common.

 

A lot of owners flip very often before the ABSD and SSD measures.

 

Thesedays, if they can make some $$$ after the SSD period, they will sell and buy again too.

agreed.

good times bad times

up times down times

previous, now and future

there is always opportunity to make money

in uniquely spore property market

i repeat .. it’s unqiue to spore with “magic hand”

because even city like tokyo, shanghai, melbourne, sdyney cannot sustain like sinkieland ...

Edited February 24, 2019 by Wt_know

[Showster]

agreed.

good times bad times

up times down times

previous, now and future

there is always opportunity to make money

in uniquely spore property market

i repeat .. itâs unqiue to spore with âmagic handâ

because even city like tokyo, shanghai, melbourne, sdyney cannot sustain like sinkieland ...

Other cities can not prevent uprising in prices as well from 2013 to 2017. Only 1 country that is doing well economically succeeded in doing so during that period.

[Theoldjaffa]

wah ... real experience no fake news

your only home also can flip flip and continue to flip

keep buying selling and huat ah

Gotta give it to him for putting money where the mouth is.

 

Nowadays, hard to flip properties for quick bucks liao.

[Showster]

Duplicate

Edited February 24, 2019 by Showster

[Sdf4786k]

Gotta give it to him for putting money where the mouth is.

 

Nowadays, hard to flip properties for quick bucks liao.

 

yeah. Long time back, when I was doing my regular reservist, there was this hokkien peng in my group that always have a need to change address.

 

Being typical me, I ask, whao.. u runaway from Ah long is it. I see u keep changing address.

 

To my amazement, he say, he being flipping HDB and resale as well as selling condo queue and apparently doing quite well .

 

So while I was cautious on such good lobang, I also went doing what he shared.

 

But soon enough, MBT curbed it and I only manage to do perhaps 3 throws.

[GEBuyingAgent]

Thank you

I am starting this thread as a complement to the main thread on property news and prices. I hope some of these tips/suggestions gained from actual dealing on the ground would be helpful to homeowners/buyers.  I will start off with the below burning question that  I get all the time....why some units break record prices but some could not be sold for months and months.

 

Selling your property for top dollar

 

Firstly, let's define what is top dollar? In my terms, top dollar would means selling above market valuation. Often, it also means breaking the record price of similar units in the same estate/condo. Over time, I observed that these price record transactions had a similar trend. To get top dollar, contrary to most beliefs,  it definitely has much more science to it than art.  Top dollar deals seldom come from just listing and pray; it has a method to it. Unfortunately most sellers/agents never really took the method seriously and in most cases, never get top dollar for their units.

 

As this is a post and not a blog, I will keep it short and concise. To sell for top dollar, you need to understand the below on the psychology of a buyer when they come for viewing:

 

1) Buyers use very little logic when viewing, they tend to follow their emotions more

2) Emotions arise not just from what they see, but also from the other senses such as smell, feel,  touch and hear

3) Sellers always make mistake by assuming that the buyer can imagine an empty house. The buyers don't and they won't

4) The key then is to be able to reach down to the sub-conscious of a buyer by invoking their positive emotions during viewing.  Houses that gets top dollar often make the buyer feel 'right" and they then use their emotion to justify their logic.

 

Failure to consider the above is the key difference between getting no offers (or market valuation at best) and one with a top dollar offer.

 

Understanding the above,here are my 10 tips for sellers based on my experience:

 

1) A cluttered house kills good emotions. Always un-clutter the house before viewing. Throw away junks and keep the house tidy. The owner is selling the house and will need to move soon...use that opportunity to start clearing the house. This issue is so prevalent in many units that the seller  think that the buyer will imagine an empty house. Again they won't!

 

2) Fix all minor defects. Again, too many sellers thinking that the house gonna be sold, what is the point of fixing it up. You don't have to renovate the house, but you should fix up all visible defects. Even a new coat of paint on any old house does miracles in getting good offers

 

3) Clean the kitchen top and uncluttered it. A clean good looking kitchen makes a lot of difference in getting top dollar. If there is one place that make the difference in offers, it is the kitchen. The buyer's wife/gf/mother has a lot of emotions attached to the kitchen and in most cases, they are also the CFO to the purchase.  Unclutter the kitchen top  and make sure the stove and built-in oven looks clean. I even had a seller once storing his microwave away just to clear up space for his very limited kitchen top space. 

 

4) Dining table. Another culprit which is always full of everything except dining stuff. Clear it, and put an attractive piece, a vase with flowers, etc at the center. Pull the buyer eyes to the center of the dining table and let him feel that they can eat comfortably at that table. 

 

5) A well lit, unblock, entrance door. Clear away your shoes or anything untidy at the entrance. An unblock well lit entrance creates eagerness to explore more of your house. 

 

6) Masterbed room is important and it must look like it is ready for relaxation and sleep. I have seen many master bedrooms that has clothes hang in it, or the seller cramped a study table into the master. If you confuse the buyer over the purpose of that room, chances of getting a good offer is as good as nil.

 

7) Always give exclusive to your trusted agent. I seldom see record selling deals that are from open listing.  Open listing agents are prone to be "tested" by the buyer agent and their motivation to close will bring you a lower price. Furthermore exclusive agents are motivated to do every viewing for you hence has minimal viewing leakage.

 

8) Be flexible in your ability to open doors for viewing. Great offers can come from any viewing time and if you restrict your viewing time to evening or weekends only, you are restraining your ability to get good offers, Two of my record breaking sales came from afternoon weekday viewing. Hence, never, never have viewing leakage.

 

9) Check if your house has certain odors especially for those with pets. The houseowner is often immune to any smell, but the buyer will sense it at a distance. And if you have pets that could walk around the house, (or make noise, for.e.g barking) , please bring them out somewhere if you have viewings. Again, please don't assume that the buyer can imagine that your pet won't be there when they make the purchase. They won't. Remember, the sense of smell and hearing invoke powerful emotions so if you want to get top dollar, make sure those senses of the buyer are not affected.

 

10) I leave the last point to the advertising. Good advertising attracts viewers. Unfortunately I've seen many seller/agents use mediocre handphone photos to advertise. Some photos are so bad that a young Instagram-obsessed teen  would probably take better. If you already took the effort to do fix up, unclutter the house, etc, the last thing you want is to have photos that does not depict your house accurately. Wide angle photos, imo, is  the minimal requirement.  Videos and virtual tour are great, but only if your house is of a certain size.  Buyers will sub-consciously drawn to  sellers/agents who take pride in advertising their house and first impression does count in this business. Don't neglect this which I somewhat keep seeing all the time.

 

There are many  more concepts that I can keep going (the use of colours for e.g)  but the above is suffice for most sellers if they want their property to fetch good offers. Infact, I seldom see all 10 points click into place, but if they do, that property should get good offers.  It is very often for me to hear that some units could not be sold for months, but when another agent took over, it get sold within  one month at the same asking price. I don't believe it is all luck.  It has to do with the method right from advertising to preparing the house for sale.

 

I hope the above helps in giving some ideas in getting good offers for your property at your location. Your property is one of your biggest investment so it is worth the effort in putting the right "sciences" into it and get the top dollar offers.

 

[blueunicorn]

Having their own property is an ultimate goal for many Singaporeans. When done properly, investing in real estate could offer many benefits for individuals. I came across this great article. I hope it helps. 

 

 https://www.edgeprop.sg/property-news/real-life-dos-and-donts-property-investing-2462166-0

[Icedbs]

deleted

Edited November 2, 2019 by Icedbs

[bluesky3000]

On 7/30/2019 at 10:08 AM, blueunicorn said:

Having their own property is an ultimate goal for many Singaporeans. When done properly, investing in real estate could offer many benefits for individuals. I came across this great article. I hope it helps. 

 

 https://www.edgeprop.sg/property-news/real-life-dos-and-donts-property-investing-2462166-0

❤️

[raymond_khoo]

i finally........ rented out my condo after about a month of viewing and rejections!

i changed my agent and got a younger (and hungrier) agent! The first thing he recommended me to do was to invest $1K to just repaint the entire home and it will make a big difference. 

He was damn right! within 2 days i finally got a tenant.. the painting trick works wonders!

I used homepainting.sg ,for their painting services .. paid $700++ for my 2 bedder condo unit and painted all white.

PS : White walls + warm lights really hit it!!

Another tip which i felt we all need to know - NEVER give exclusivity to agents.. they will take their time and not push for sales/rent. And of course, i always prepare ferroro rocher every time i meet him for some bromance action. 🙂

[Showster]

Yes, exactly. Rents increasing, interest rates decreasing.

The tides are turning although everyone is just concerned about the virus statistics.

[Throttle2]

Muayhahahahaha. 

 

Huat ah!

Edited April 1, 2020 by Throttle2

[Philipkee]

41 minutes ago, Icedbs said:

You are spamming this thread with all your advertising post.  Please stop doing it.

If you are a agent, contribute your experience and insights or something of value to the readers here.  You are not suppose to  self promote by putting your property links here

Perhaps you should tell the mods like @Carbon82

Having said that, I was discussing with a friend.  During the GFC 10 12 years plus ago, my cousin bought a mansionette for $100k in Hougang plus and a condo was about $300k.  My friend told me that is impossible or one off BUT if it happens this time round, don't buy cos its probably haunted cos the owner would have committed suicide...

Property price can drop.  But if it crashes too much, those overleveraged should would be in deep deep trouble and MANY are overleveraged..