6/10/2010

Why sell properties when you can sell papers?

Selling bricks and mortars, and land, is a very lucrative business. Buy the land, build it into something fanciful, and walla, big profits. But our land is limited and the cost of material is increasingly rapidly. There is also a political cost. Why not sell pieces of papers? The most valuable piece of paper to sell from this little red dot is the Red Passport. I am not sure what is the going rate in the black market for a fake or stolen one. But it must be in the thousands. It is like getting a passport to heaven. The Red Passport carries a lot of weight and makes travelling very convenient and quite respectable too. Why not make it official and sell it to the highest bidder like COE? But no, to avoid queer results like $1 a piece, make it $100k a piece. No worry about double citizenship or national service. It is a special passport. And to make it high class, or only for the high net worth people so as not to tarnish its reputation, the buyer must also buy a property here to have an official residential address. In this way, the cheap skates would not be able to get one easily. This does not rule out the mafias and drug lords. Never mind, close one eye. As long as they are rich, they are welcomed. And we can call this the Premier Passport, with no voting rights of course. Just a convenient card to carry around. Good for revenue and good for the property market.

9 comments:

Wally Buffet said...

With the absurd number of "premier" foreign trash now holding this once treasured red passport, I'm afraid your plan won't work. The real Premium eligibles won't want to be carrying the same passport as the hooker or masseuse, the fake hand phone businessman operating from a cubby hole, who got their citizenship like a walk through the park.

And soon, immigration authorities around the world would come to know that the revered red Singapore passport is no longer only carried by law abiding kiasi, kiasu, kiabo true blue Singaporeans but ex peasants from third world banana republics, India and China as well.

Nah, it won't work.

Hehe.

Anonymous said...

Surely Mr Redbean must be have known that many thousands dumped their little red book ant the Little Red Dot yearly.

That's how much it is worth to the Many Locals now.

patriot

Anonymous said...

The vehicle COE is also just a piece of paper.

Why make cars when you can make easy money selling COEs for cars?

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

Doesn't matter whether it works or not. Just think money and everything will look and sound right.

Anonymous said...

The little red book is considered a treasure by those from PRC, India, Bangladash, Vietnam and many other third world countries. I do not think any European, North American, Aussies or New Zealanders would consider the little red book a worthwhile possession. It all depends on where you are coming from,

Wally Buffet said...

Those buggers from the third world third rate banana republics and the two Asian giants only treasure your red book before later changing it for the green book of the US, Australia, Canada and NZ.

If you want to know the rate of immigration to this country, just go to the ICA building and every day you will see hordes of peasants clamouring for S pass, work permits, long term stays, short term stays from opportunists, pseudo entrepreneurs, hookers, conmen et al.I daresay it's the busiest public bureau.

Anonymous said...

From the comments, it seems that ICA must have made and making tons of money. So redbeans suggestion was already in practise?

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

As long as there are buyers, make hay while the sun shines. Citizens of some countries will value our red book while some will not. Just sell it to those who want it and willing to pay for it. Take the money and run.

Test Article said...

Buyers are everywhere and it is never easy to sell a property. Why sell papers if you can sell properties effectively? I mean you can go for a pomeroy potts point for sale or other real estate properties so people will be looking for that.