Me & My Money Series (Sunday Times)

[pianist]

i think it just means sg is a inflating place.

can i still earn points by paying income tax through credit card instalment plan?

[Temperament]

i think it just means sg is a inflating place.

can i still earn points by paying income tax through credit card instalment plan?

Ya lol! We don't have agriculture; we don't have oil or metals/coal mines; all we have are "blood, toil, tears & sweat". Of course, some people (Elites) live on our
"blood, toil, tears & sweat". Oops! Now who dared to say that? Not me, i am just borrowing from this great man.

[koh_52]

Hehe, another ppty agent speaking on ppty???
Dun misled dat there exist property timing expert....if my remiser ppty sifu read this he will laugh until peng.
Think he is a high risk ppty speculator.....i bot my bukit timah FH ppty in april'97 still holding it the ppty just sit above the new downtown line but current market price only 2 times the price in 1997.

Ppty agent make more money from comm when price keep shooting up...my ex partner from DW now said selling HDB is the best, high price n comm get from both side...this field is not my cup of tea, must be thick skin n good talker.

Never mention about opportunity fund how can one self claim a timing expert, how long has one track the pppty, which district? What type commercial, industrial, landed....has he look at ppty outside SG,
Say what you like, Ppty is about location......even if you tikum the timing correctly, bot a ppty in ulu JB you still dun make money but instead loss on exchange rate.i

[mobo]

This is a very confusing piece. It starts off espousing the importance of market timing as well as this guy's supposed expertise in that. But reading through the whole article, I could detect no particular consistent approach to his market timing - the only deliberate timed trade he ever did seems to be a one-off liquidation 16 years ago before the Asian financial crisis. Sounds like a one trick pony not repeated since then.

The rest of his supposed property deals are basically just riding the general property appreciation since then, which I gather many elder Singaporean uncles and aunties (including my parents) have done since the late 90s. Not quite sure what exactly is the theme of this article...

To me if ST is going to do a column on any self proclaimed property investor, the subject needs to offer something more than just buying and praying for market wide appreciation - such an approach is mindless and no better than writing a fortune cookie.

For example, I know an uncle who is a retail property expert. He is good at spotting rundown retail units in niche places and doing the necessary renovations and procuring the needed licenses to convert his purchases into F&B outlets which he then sells/leases to usually Zap Cai Peng & Chicken/Duck rice stalls at a profit. There is real human value add input into the wealth creation process and he is not hanging around everyday hoping that property prices will rise. Too bad he won't share his secrets even if ST approach him

[NTL]

The rest of his supposed property deals are basically just riding the general property appreciation since then, which I gather many elder Singaporean uncles and aunties (including my parents) have done since the late 90s. Not quite sure what exactly is the theme of this article...

Hi mobo,
I agree with you. It basically riding on the property prices appreciation. My parents are "experts" too. The HDB that they are living in right now had appreciated close to 6x since their purchase in mid 1980s.

This article has no meaning at all. No motivation value. Waste of time writing, and reading.

[Musicwhiz]

A strange case, this guy. How can a time-share hotel membership be considered an investment when it does not generate cash flows? He said it was his "worst". As for his "best", it's his live-in apartment, not his investment property!

The article should also have shed some light as to what he bought to enable his stellar 45% capital gains and 7% dividend yield (do note though that the STI was up +19.7% for 2012). And paying $8,000 a year for $500,000 insurance coverage is really expensive, mine is about $5,800 a year for $800,000 coverage.

The Straits Times
www.straitstimes.com
Published on Jan 06, 2013
Me and My Money
'I should have invested in education'
Remisier says it was a mistake to plunge straight into the market as a beginner

By Alvin Foo

The stock market gave Mr Wang Han Hui several reasons to smile last year.

The 29-year-old remisier saw his stock portfolio surge, and was rewarded with a 45 per cent capital gain and 7 per cent dividend yield.

He also finished second in the professional category of the Singapore Exchange's online share investing contest, StockWhiz, winning $3,000 in prizes.

Mr Wang, who works for UOB Kay Hian, believes that education is the most crucial tool for investors who are just starting out.

Initially, he learnt the hard way, chalking up losses due to poor judgment.

Later, he decided to take up investing and trading courses.

Four years ago, Mr Wang studied part-time for a finance degree while working full time with the military.

But a finance degree was not enough. Two years ago, he left the army and became a remisier.

His wife Yih Shan, 29, is a nurse. They have no children.

Q: Are you a spender or a saver?

My family background had a major influence on me in my earlier days, when I saved most of my salary.

Now, with a better understanding of the financial market, I prefer to make my money work harder for me through stock investments.

I save about 20 per cent of my income monthly, and set it aside for any good investment opportunity which may come along.

Q: How much do you charge to your credit cards every month?

I charge about $1,000 to my cards monthly, preferring to use cards depending on their perks.

For example, I charge my SingTel bills to my UOB-SingTel card for the rebates and use my OCBC-Robinsons card for shopping at Robinsons and John Little.

I withdraw about $500 a month for my daily expenditure, mainly for meals.

Q: What financial planning have you done?

Since I started working, I have taken out a number of insurance policies and have been increasing coverage over the years.

I have a whole range of policies, from term disability to whole life policies. My recent addition is a MediShield Plus plan to cover the deductibles and co-payment portions and also an early-stage crisis plan to cover any major illnesses.

These bring my annual insurance premiums to more than $8,000 with a sum assured of more than $500,000.

However, I do not have investment-linked insurance policies.

I feel that when insurance is kept distinct from investment, coverage is higher for the same amount of premiums. At the same time, I would rather manage my own investments as there is potential for higher returns than with investment-linked policies.

Q: Moneywise, what were your growing-up years like?

I come from a lower-income family. My father is a taxi driver and my mother is a cashier.

We lived in a four-room HDB flat. My parents taught me the importance of saving.

I had to work part-time during my school holidays for extra money, which I would either spend on outings or to buy items which I considered as my little extravagances.

Q: How did you get interested in investing?

I had always wanted to achieve financial freedom and investing is one of the ways to do so.

I did a part-time degree course in finance in order to receive some proper education before I started.

I learnt the hard way by paying "school fees" to the market - losses due to poor judgment.

I later decided to sign up for investing and trading courses. I have also learnt a lot from investment books.

I believe education is the single most important aid for people who are just starting out in investing.

Investors should know what they are getting themselves into.

Looking back, I think I should have invested in proper education on investments right from the start, rather than plunge straight into the market.

Q: What property do you own?

My first foray into property is a five-room HDB apartment that I share with my wife.

It is 114 sq m and we bought it four years ago for $250,000.

Q: What's the most extravagant thing you have bought?

The most extravagant thing that I have bought would be my apartment together with all the furniture and renovations done.

It is definitely a worthwhile long-term expenditure as it is a love nest built with my wife.

Q: What's your retirement plan?

I plan to retire in 30 years, and believe I will need at least $3,000 per month for my daily necessities at that point in time.

I hope to achieve a capital growth rate of at least 20 per cent a year from my investments.

As my goal is financial freedom, I hope to achieve a sufficiently large portfolio of dividend stocks that will provide me with a stable cash flow to meet my retirement needs.

I am one year into my plan and I am glad that I have outperformed my expectations with a 45 per cent capital gain and a 7per cent dividend payout.

Q: Home is now...

A five-room apartment in Jurong West.

Q: I drive...

I do not drive.

alfoo@sph.com.sg
------------------
WORST AND BEST BETS

Q: What has been your worst investment to date?

My worst investment is a time-share hotel membership which cost me $18,000 but is basically not useful to me.

Q: And your best?

It has to be the share portfolio I began building a year ago.

Over the one year, I was rewarded with a 45 per cent capital gain and a 7 per cent dividend yield from my share investments.

On a per annum basis, this even beats the five-room Housing Board apartment that I bought for $250,000 four years ago, which is worth $500,000 today.

[pianist]

seems remarkable person...dunno if he uses leverage for his stock investment?

[WolfT]

Firstly save 20% is never enough,
2nd, Invest is time-share shows his EQ is not there yet.
3rd, he boast abt his 45% return on his FIRST YEAR protfolio.
lastly he is a saleman...

[Share Investor]

I think he has no investment property. Just his HDB flat which is bought for $250k.

[KopiKat]

The article should also have shed some light as to what he bought to enable his stellar 45% capital gains and 7% dividend yield (do note though that the STI was up +19.7% for 2012).

To get such high Capital Gains + Dividend Yield for 2012, one possibility is REITs. For 2012, the Top 6 Performing REITs were all up >50%, with their Yield computed using end-2011 prices and DPU at that point,

1. FCOT +78.4% / Yield = 7.51%
2. Fortune +69.4% / Yield = 6.84%
3. CapitaComm +59.7% / Yield = 6.98%
4. AIMSAMPIReit +58.2% / Yield = 10.25%
5. K-REIT +56% / Yield = 7.64%
6. SuntecReit +55.8% / Yield = 8.81%

Further, as it's only his Year 1 in investing, his total Capital outlay is likely small and he may be forced to be concentrated on a few stocks. It's therefore highly possible to achieve that kind of results with a little bit of luck if he'd just gone for REITs cos' of the high yield...