Malaysia Money Matters

How time flies - almost a month since my last post. I'm in the midst of working with my designer on the renovation plans of my new house. Going to do some restructuring as the current layout is not very optimal. Some background - bought a double storey terrace corner lot, the layout is a pretty standard terrace house design. Unfortunately, the previous owner had done some extensions that are not pretty - it looks like it was done without much thought or planning into it. So we're have to break down quite a number of walls to create an open plan space downstairs - dry kitchen, dining, entrance foyer, formal sitting and casual lounge area all into a seamless design while keeping the costs down!! Upstairs, the master bathroom was "remodelled" (if you can call it that) into a heinous L-shaped ... thing! So that is going to need some major work and we're knocking down one room wall to turn it into a central open family lounge area between the rooms. Going bac...

So Avenue K is being refurbished... again. I actually quite like the place but somehow, I think it suffers from *something* but I don't know what. Location is good, right next to KLCC and connected to the LRT but it just cannot seem to make it big. I reckon it has something to do with the management - I used to have season parking there and if the car park management is any indication of the total mall management.. well.. hmm! Not a good experience. One of my fantasies is to take over that place, turn it into a Services & Senses Mall.. yeah baby, it's all about sight, smell, sound, taste and feel. Meaning, focus on F&B, services like spa, massage, beauty and so on. Don't bother fighting for retail because that's what Suria KLCC is all about, you can't win. Anyway, looks like they are positioning themselves as a fashion retail space. *shakes head* Pavilion has just opened its Fashion Avenue - don't think Avenue K can compete. Anyway, walking along J...

I have a friend. Let's call him Kyle. He is obsessed with money. I mean really. Anyway, while talking to him the other day, the topic turned to net worth. So for a laugh, I told him that he's probably a millionaire already; he just didn't know it! Boy, you should have seen him, I swear his ears almost waggled as his (already bulgy) eyes bulged out of their sockets! So I says, look - you've got 3 properties right? And he says, yeah but I still owe the banks for the mortgage. Well, says I, what about your MRTA? Ha! He gets it. Despite his many shortcomings, one thing I do like about him is that he gets things very quickly. There's a lot to be said about that. So so so, if added all together, they come up to about half million already at market value, he stuttered. Uh huh. And now, how about your EPF? There's about 150K in there or so. Oooo... now I'm up to 650K. Still nowhere near a million, what?! Insurance leh? I ask. Not a lot lah, he says. No, what about y...