Yes, Sinkies are rich, high income and high spending. Many are worth
half a million or more just be housing alone. But one thing the Sinkies
did not bargain for or fail to realise, the money in their pockets,
savings and bank accounts flies away faster than the money of their
peers in the neighbouring countries. Our money cannot be kept for too
long and keep flowing out and many would have serious problems on
retirements, selling houses and flats to get by.
Our neighbours may not have big incomes, but the money they have somehow
stay with them much longer. And when they look forward to retirement,
they have no fear of losing their homes, the homes they bought and lived
for their whole lives, just to have some money to get by.
Be careful with your money. They are here today, gone today. One can
have hundreds of thousands wiped out without knowing what is happening.
This is going to be the shocking reality that rich Sinkies would have to
come to terms with. The bulk of the ‘rich’ sinkies, notably the average
living in public housing, will realise that the equation will come to
nought when they reach the end of their life journey. In a way it is a
zero sum game, every cent planned to be used for just this life time.
Nothing left in their CPF or savings, not even their HDB flat when it is
game over.
The ability to plan to such details to perfection is really an amazing
art of ‘gum gum ho’. The precision is an engineering feat unmatched
anywhere in the world.
wat did they indulge???
ReplyDeletescrewing a piece of stone???
praying for hundreds fold return??
cuntparing the carart weights of their diamond rings
knnccb .... here i worrying hoe to keep my stomach warm
RB is correct........
ReplyDeleteI have also always been saying here that in order to survive in Singapore the only way forward is to adopt a simple living strategy.....
One must be debt-free or at least try to be debt-low......
Never never follow the crowds in chasing after things like properties and fall into the many HIGH debt traps around and be ASSET rich CASH poor.....
The future is not always full of roses, economic slowdown, worst reccession.....
One will be in DEEP troubles if being retrenched, "cold storaged", bad health problems, etc......
There are many other HIGH costs of living to meet including the needs of your love ones, etc, etc.....
But remember, you have a choice !
Cheers ...........
Singapore is like a slave ship.
ReplyDeleteWhen the ship is in the middle of the ocean.
The captain can charge you $1,000 for a loaf of bread.
You got choice or not?
ReplyDeleteanonymous 9.41am....
yes.....you have no choice but to buy the bread .....
the BIG problem here is when you have already poured all your money to purchase a cabin with balcony on the cruise ship leaving you with very limited money or no money to buy the bread often......
In Singapore, the cabin does not belong to you.
ReplyDeleteWhat you actually paid for is a rental lease for the cabin for 99 years.
The captain retains ownership of the cabin from Day 1.
That is why you cannot rent out your cabin without the captain's permission and approval.
Even your children cannot inherit your cabin without the captain's permission and approval.
@November 18, 2013 10:08 am
ReplyDelete99 years???
how many will see the lease run out?
have seen many relocated under enbloc (or wat shit they called it),SER????
understand that some of these selected blocks for redevelopment are rented out to foreign talents after local citizens are "paid" to vacant
knnccb .... calling papigs; return by cpf balances knnbccb
The farmers used to have their slash and burn method for farming. That's why we have the haze.
ReplyDeleteSingapore's economy is based on knock down and rebuild method to keep the GDP growing. When buildings are knock down, more resources, material and manpower are needed to rebuild. Next, sell the new buildings at ever higher prices. The banks will offer more loans. Banks and developers make more money.
The new buyers will end up with the new homes and more debt.
The cycle will go on and on and the debt gets bigger and bigger.
But who are the suppliers of this knock down and rebuild?
ReplyDeleteMore $2 companies?
ReplyDeleteanonymous 10.08am .......
you are correct that the cabins are not owned but leased for 99 yrs ......
of course there are freehold cabins or 956 yrs lease period cabins.....
the trouble is that everyone on the cruise ship ASSUME that the 99yrs lease cabins are "FOREVER", as good as freehold, no depreciation, sure SER, sure enbloc, sure make a killing when change hand.....
may be that is the why people willing to pour tons on money into a 99 yrs cabin......
just remember only 99yrs ........
PAP.
ReplyDeleteThe most trusted brand in Singapore politics.
Remember.
They are on our side.
"... people willing to pour tons on money into a 99 yrs cabin....."
ReplyDeleteNovember 18, 2013 10:38 am
You actually own the private apartment in a 99 year leasehold property.
That is why you can rent it out or give it to your children.
No need HDB or gahmen's approval.
In the case of HDB flats.
We are just tenants.
HDB is the owner.
Why anybody would spend $100K renovating a HDB flat that does not belong to them I don't know.
Some more.
Lift upgrading.
HDB as the owner can ask you to pay a share for upgrading the lift that belongs to HDB.
If it's a private condo.
And you ask your tenant to pay a share of the lift upgrading.
Your tenant will sue you.
We are indeed on a slave ship.
We are in the middle of the ocean.
We do what the captain says.
Only chance.
Vote in a new captain in 2016.
60% or more of sinkies are happy with 99yr lease.
ReplyDeleteMaybe some are prepared for 60yr and
30 yr leases, they do not mind and will be happy with smaller pigeon holes too.
Typical sinkies are like caged birds, they have lost their esteem and dignity.
The issue is that there are many people out there ASSUMING that the 99yrs leasehold period is as good as "Freehold", no depreciation even very old, sure SER, sure enbloc, sure make a killing when change hand.
ReplyDeleteThink about it!
redbean:
ReplyDeleteI don't know what you mean by "rich".
I have my own metric:
1. Do not have to work for at least 2 years without a sacrifice in their high-ticket "lifestyles" -- i.e. no "downgrading". (Assuming the cost of living per rich person is around $50k a month for a single or $100k a month for a family).
2. Can write a cheque for USD 1 million -- not overdraft/ personal loan, just an ordinary account with their own money -- with no problem, and still be considered "rich".
3. Very important: their house is not considered an asset and used to calculate their "net worth".
By that metric, I would say most Heartlanders are not rich. They might be wealthy (which is more a psychological state than an "objective" measure), and many if not most would definitely be "comfortable". Many of them -- especially the younger ones -- will be carrying large amounts of debt, and if they having growing families will be on relatively tight budgets.
Yes, there are dark clouds ahead. A lot of these folks could be wiped out. Credit card defaults amongst the young tend to be high. Lucky MAS has stepped in to tighten up requirements for would-be borrowers.
I know people who got into credit card debt in their early 20's were still paying off their loans in their late 30's and 40's. i.e. a vast chunk of their adult life was spent servicing debt.
To most people, life is a struggle, punctuated with moments of "wins" and "happiness". They make a very silly mistake by over extending themselves by taking out OUTRAGEOUS mortgages, car loans, lines of credit/ credit cards and study loans.
To me, this is self sabotage, so perhaps these fuckers deserve what they are going to get ;-)
I know, I use the term rich very loosely here. And I am not the only one.
ReplyDeleteCan you imagine someone living in a million dollar or half a million dollar property expecting helf from the govt or public assistance.
OK, OK, I know, it is their fault. They could sell their properties and downgrade.
The govt is now on the lookout for such folks to offer them help. I think the first consideration is to encourage them to sell their homes. Then all the money will be gum gum ho.
But if they kena a serious illness, encashing the property will only see the money going into their medical bills faster and it would be money not enough.
In neighbouring countries, with $500k, one can practically retire and enjoy the rest of one's life.
ReplyDeleteHere, the money could be blown overnight.
redbean:
ReplyDeleteMiddle class welfare is how most modern governments of the nation states "capture" their voter base so they can bribe and threaten the population into continually voting for the incumbent government.
In the west, it is called the "welfare state". A vast majority of welfare recipients do not require welfare because are definitely not poor. In Australia, for there are 2 people working and paying taxes to one person receiving some form of "welfare". In the US, the ratio is close to 1:1.
Anyway, the HDB price is largely controlled by the government, of course there is some "free" market influence, but the govt can manipulate HDB prices simply by regulation.
Also, the asset inflation of HDB paints a very false picture. People get enamoured and hypnotised by LARGE NUMBERS -- especially if it is their "asset" which they've had to sacrifice for, over many years. The emotional attachment is strong. And so they become "euphoric" and deluded when they see their little box in the sky reach staggering figures in valuation.
Humans are easily deluded. When it comes to money, the delusion is even easier.
No, most people are not rich. However under the CPF-HDB-Ponzi-Tax-Election-Voter-Delusion Scheme, people are easily mislead intto believing they're rich, when in actual fact their mistake is that they don't have their own personal metric to define what "rich" means to them. However if they hear that they are rich from an "authority", then it must be "correct". How can "authority" be wrong?
Singaporeans bich and wail. But at the end of the day, they defer to "authority". Like sheep. Hence Sheeple.
If you are not rich, but believe that you are, you are going to get a nasty wake-up call someday.
Like all yaya-papaya, they'll deserve it.
The gum gum ho system means there is no wastage. Everyone use up all this money and assets, come naked, go naked. Nothing left.
ReplyDeleteOh dear, I mean average Sinkies only lah.
Singapore is only a stopover destination for the purpose of milking. Many have sold their HDB apartments and now living in a villa with private pool and driving nice cars in first world countries. There is no perfect system but this sg system is the envy of many people in other parts of the world when getting employed is difficult not to talk about saving up and migrating. Mobility is the sole advantage of the entire sg system and if people do not make use of it, they will regret in future.
ReplyDeleteActually, sinkies are very rich - just look at the long row of people buying 4Dtoto, going into pubs, disco, casinos, expensive restaurants etc. No where on earth, poverty can be totally eradicated. Not even in the so-called rich western states.
ReplyDelete