Malaysia Money Matters

I created a simulator based on price, loan paydown, market value, profit on sale (including RPGT) and compared against using the same cash outlay into FD or investments. Running the 2 investment options against each other, while property wins in the long run, the returns actually flatten out over a long period of time because a cash investment (e.g. even at the safest asset class which is FD) gives an ever growing rate of return while a property's value growth slows after 8 to 9 years! That explains why mortgage portfolios price their rates on an 8-year longevity. Here is the final result of the simulation with the RPGT in place means that while you are better off holding in FD for 5 years, your maximum return is within the 7-9 year window before the property value growth begins to flatten: So you would break even at year 5 and have to hold for a few more years - up to 10 or 11 if you want to cash out more but that's up to you. update: Some anonymous reader ...

Not sure if this is launched but the details are up at the Guocoland website already  but not on iProperty. Anyway, looking through it, I quite like the 2-storey bungalow design called Sage whereby they have made the length of the lot (66 feet!) into the frontage. The house's footage is about 2,000 sq ft only at 66 x 33 , not sure of the entire lot but there is a curving driveway into the house which is very posh! Love it .. prices for the project is from 1.5MM to 3.9MM. Purely for own stay and enjoyment, I reckon. Not for investment or rental income for sure! Oh I'm sure the value will increase over time but not like a fast flip for quick profits. Those days are gone and while I believe they will come back when the next big wave comes, I don't think that is going to happen for the next couple of years.

I am honestly a bit taken aback at the sudden rush of cash flow and savings that occurred within the past couple of months. To wit: Bonus - zomg, it is the biggest I have ever had in my whole (long) working life! 6 figure bonus. Very grateful and happy.  Salary Increment 10% Got about a 30k discount on the car I bought 3k on insurance return - this is a regular thing every few years but I tend to forget about it so it's a nice 'surprise' 8k on a cancelled MRTA that was sent to me like 8 months ago but I didn't get the mail because it was at the old address Saved about 5-6k on airfares using up all my points - non-cash for sure but savings is still income by accounting rules. Or as Benjamin Franklin said a penny saved is a penny earned. Cash back on sale of old car - 24k, gave half to parents for holiday spending. Latest EPF announcement of 6.4% dividend - by my calculations, that would be around 30k wow... I attribute all this to following Buddhist teachi...

This development is out of my league but I must say, it is very attractive. Being on Jalan Conlay, a stone's throw away from Pavillion and the developer is building the Kempinski hotel tower as well next to it! Aiyo, if only I was a multi millionaire who can buy a unit in cash - the pricing is from RM1.8 million to RM5.6 million - size from 700 sq ft to 3,500 sq ft. By location, by design - all on point. It's one of those buildings that just so sophisticated and so perfectly placed. Like OMG. The only "bummer" about it is that the target completion date is December 2020. Yes, a full 5 years plus - well, quality takes time? Hmm .. perhaps I should set myself a target whereby I will be able to afford to buy into & live in that building post-2020 (using cash money!) ; well provided that I still want that urban sophisticated lifestyle la... I could be retired by then and having a slower pace, then Conlay 8 wouldn't be suitable for that kind of lifest...

Firstly, on a macroeconomic level, I think this is a good move. Increasing disposable income will increase consumption, hence increase overall economic output - thus the economy will continue to grow. Taking a more nuanced view - even if a lot of the increased income flows to debt reduction, this means less pressure on capital requirements on bank balance sheets. However, revenues will suffer slightly in the short term but in the medium term, this frees up capital to lend - this will stimulate growth. So the debate is raging on social media on what should one do and there are of course all sorts of accusations and pictures of calculations showing how much you will pay on GST, taxes etc .. there are so many angry people out there... sigh My suggestion is very simple - You Do What is Best for YOU . Don't Listen To People Telling You What They Want You to Do Just Because That Is What THEY Want To Do Themselves! So what is best for you? I've broken it down to 3 main categ...

First time in my life I received such a substantial bonus! OMG! And I also got a 10% increment! One telling thing that my boss mentioned in front of everyone is that I don't complain. I may look shell-shocked at the amount of work he piles on me BUT I don't complain he he he Guess that could be one of the factors why he gave me so much.... Also because during the discussion on the bonus people, my peers were all showing him their unhappy look and I was keeping quiet, then he asked me what did I think and I blurted out that in all my years of working in international banks, this pool looks very generous already so I'm happy with it - then he burst out laughing and that, I think, probably contributed towards my payout - also because budget-wise, I "gave back" a substantial portion of my allocation due to some circumstances so that helped I guess. SO .. the big question is, what should I do with the money? At the moment, I shunted the whole lot into a 1 mon...

It's a Malaysian dream to own a property - our culture is not geared towards renting long-term. Renting is considered something you do either as a student / newly working / a temporary solution if you're prone to being transferred - but in the long run, conventional wisdom is to bite the bullet and buy at least ONE property for your permanent residence. So the conundrum lies in the wherewithal for the deposit and attendant costs. To some, the need is urgent and saving up takes too long - so what are your options? The fastest but most expensive: Credit Card cash advance - that baby will hit you with an 18% p.a. interest rate the moment the cash comes out of the ATM. Do Not Use This Method. Please. Even though it pays my salary. The slightly less fast, also kinda expensive but sort-of bearable: Personal Loan - you can take a bigger amount, take a longer time to pay it off and you have that lump sum to help secure the property you want to buy. Only use this method ...