Source : The Straits Times, March 28, 2009
HONG KONG: - The oracle of Hong Kong has spoken. And his message: It's time to consider buying stocks and real estate.
The proclamation on Thursday by Mr Li Ka-Shing, the self-made billionaire who controls some of Hong Kong's largest companies and carries enormous sway among investors throughout Asia, was made at a rare public appearance.
Exuding confidence, he joked with reporters and looked anything but depressed about the sharp fall in profit his companies reported on Thursday.
Whether he is proved right about stocks and property - and he certainly has a lot to gain personally if he is right - his comments come at a time when stock markets have rallied on hopes that the economic slump may be bottoming out.
'If you have money in your pocket', consider buying into stocks, said the tycoon.
As for the property market in Hong Kong, he said: 'History tells us that if you buy in a slow market, in the medium term, you get good returns.'
He advised against borrowing to invest in what remains a shaky and volatile environment.
Even though they were couched with caution, Mr Li's comments were enough to echo around the investment world and helped send the Hang Seng Index up 3.6 per cent on Thursday.
Shares prices closed 0.07 per cent higher yesterday as investors traded cautiously after the recent bull run. - NEW YORK TIMES
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Property Auction Sales Up In Q1
Source : The Business Times, March 28, 2009
More mortgagee properties going on the block, with trend seen deepening.
SOME $18 million worth of properties was transacted at auctions in the first quarter of this year, more than three times the $5.4 million notched up in the preceding quarter and also surpassing the $9.5 million in Q1 last year.
The market revved up in March after a muted start in January and February.
Colliers International figures also showed that while the number of repossessed properties put up for auction sales by banks and financial institutions (or mortgagee properties) rose 17.8 per cent quarter on quarter to 53 in Q1 2009, the number of properties put on the auction block by owners themselves slipped 15 per cent over the same period to 136.
The property consultancy group's deputy managing director and auctioneer Grace Ng is predicting only a slight increase in the number of mortgagee sale properties being put up for auction in the next quarter. However, with an expected increase in retrenchments, which would result in more defaults by borrowers on loan repayments, Ms Ng reckons the pace of mortgagee sale properties going under the hammer could pick up later this year or next year.
'There's generally a lag time of about six months or more between when a buyer defaults on his loan repayments and when the bank repossesses the property and puts it up for auction sale,' Ms Ng observed.
She recalled that during the Asian financial crisis, the number of mortgagee sale properties put up for auction rose markedly only in first-half 1999, although retrenchment numbers had begun to rise as early as Q4 1997.
However, she pointed out that some mitigating factors are also at play this round which may reduce banks' propensity to race to auction houses when borrowers default on mortgage payments. 'Financial institutions tend to be more sympathetic and flexible now compared with the Asian crisis days. For example, to help owners ride through this trying period, some financial institutions have provided options, like allowing borrowers in financial difficulty to service only interest payments. Such a move helps reduce or delay the number of properties being repossessed,' Ms Ng said.
DTZ's senior director for investment advisory services and auctioneer Shaun Poh said: 'This time, both banks and borrowers are better prepared than during the Asian crisis, when some people panicked and just handed the keys to their banks. Now, banks are more prepared to talk to the borrowers; that's partly why we don't see a lot of mortgagee properties put up for auction. Banks are trying to space out the properties a bit, restructure, renegotiate. And they're asking owners to try and sell their properties themselves first, whether it's by auction or private treaty.'
'It's also a value preservation strategy. Banks have learnt from the last round that if they pull the plug and take over a property, its value falls. Potential buyers' perception is that they can strike a bargain for mortgagee sale properties as they're like fires sales,' Mr Poh added.
Colliers' Ms Ng suggests another reason for banks not being in a hurry to foreclose on properties this round may be due to a rule change in 2002 that gave banks first claim to a mortgaged property - ahead of the Central Provident Fund Board - in the event of borrower default. 'The pressure to foreclose the property by banks/financial institutions is now lower, as their exposure to losses - due to unrecoverable outstanding loan amount - is reduced,' she added.
Colliers' analysis showed that 77 per cent or 41 of the 53 mortgagee properties that went on the auction block in Q1 were residential properties; 27 were apartments/condos while the remaining 14 were landed homes. These landed properties were mostly in District 19, which includes Serangoon Gardens, Hougang and Punggol.
'We can expect to see more apartments/condos surfacing at auctions as there are about 14,600 non-landed properties due for completion in the next two years,' Ms Ng said.
Just four properties were sold at auction for nearly $5 million in January and February this year but things started to hot up a bit in March, with eight properties transacted for $13 million. 'The price gap between sellers' asking price and buyers' offer price appears to have narrowed in March. The rallies in the stockmarket, together with the positive take-up rate at developers' launches in the past two months, seem to have spilled into the secondary market - resulting in buyers' commitment to purchase the units.
'Interestingly, owner occupiers constitute the bulk of buyers making commitments to purchase now,' Ms Ng said.
More mortgagee properties going on the block, with trend seen deepening.
SOME $18 million worth of properties was transacted at auctions in the first quarter of this year, more than three times the $5.4 million notched up in the preceding quarter and also surpassing the $9.5 million in Q1 last year.
The market revved up in March after a muted start in January and February.
Colliers International figures also showed that while the number of repossessed properties put up for auction sales by banks and financial institutions (or mortgagee properties) rose 17.8 per cent quarter on quarter to 53 in Q1 2009, the number of properties put on the auction block by owners themselves slipped 15 per cent over the same period to 136.The property consultancy group's deputy managing director and auctioneer Grace Ng is predicting only a slight increase in the number of mortgagee sale properties being put up for auction in the next quarter. However, with an expected increase in retrenchments, which would result in more defaults by borrowers on loan repayments, Ms Ng reckons the pace of mortgagee sale properties going under the hammer could pick up later this year or next year.
'There's generally a lag time of about six months or more between when a buyer defaults on his loan repayments and when the bank repossesses the property and puts it up for auction sale,' Ms Ng observed.
She recalled that during the Asian financial crisis, the number of mortgagee sale properties put up for auction rose markedly only in first-half 1999, although retrenchment numbers had begun to rise as early as Q4 1997.
However, she pointed out that some mitigating factors are also at play this round which may reduce banks' propensity to race to auction houses when borrowers default on mortgage payments. 'Financial institutions tend to be more sympathetic and flexible now compared with the Asian crisis days. For example, to help owners ride through this trying period, some financial institutions have provided options, like allowing borrowers in financial difficulty to service only interest payments. Such a move helps reduce or delay the number of properties being repossessed,' Ms Ng said.
DTZ's senior director for investment advisory services and auctioneer Shaun Poh said: 'This time, both banks and borrowers are better prepared than during the Asian crisis, when some people panicked and just handed the keys to their banks. Now, banks are more prepared to talk to the borrowers; that's partly why we don't see a lot of mortgagee properties put up for auction. Banks are trying to space out the properties a bit, restructure, renegotiate. And they're asking owners to try and sell their properties themselves first, whether it's by auction or private treaty.'
'It's also a value preservation strategy. Banks have learnt from the last round that if they pull the plug and take over a property, its value falls. Potential buyers' perception is that they can strike a bargain for mortgagee sale properties as they're like fires sales,' Mr Poh added.
Colliers' Ms Ng suggests another reason for banks not being in a hurry to foreclose on properties this round may be due to a rule change in 2002 that gave banks first claim to a mortgaged property - ahead of the Central Provident Fund Board - in the event of borrower default. 'The pressure to foreclose the property by banks/financial institutions is now lower, as their exposure to losses - due to unrecoverable outstanding loan amount - is reduced,' she added.
Colliers' analysis showed that 77 per cent or 41 of the 53 mortgagee properties that went on the auction block in Q1 were residential properties; 27 were apartments/condos while the remaining 14 were landed homes. These landed properties were mostly in District 19, which includes Serangoon Gardens, Hougang and Punggol.
'We can expect to see more apartments/condos surfacing at auctions as there are about 14,600 non-landed properties due for completion in the next two years,' Ms Ng said.
Just four properties were sold at auction for nearly $5 million in January and February this year but things started to hot up a bit in March, with eight properties transacted for $13 million. 'The price gap between sellers' asking price and buyers' offer price appears to have narrowed in March. The rallies in the stockmarket, together with the positive take-up rate at developers' launches in the past two months, seem to have spilled into the secondary market - resulting in buyers' commitment to purchase the units.
'Interestingly, owner occupiers constitute the bulk of buyers making commitments to purchase now,' Ms Ng said.
Number Of Mortgagee Properties On Auction Block Up In Q1
Source : The Business Times, March 27, 2009
The number of repossessed properties put up for auction sale by banks and financial institutions in Singapore has risen by 18 per cent - from 45 in fourth quarter 2008 to 53 in Q1 2009, according to Colliers International.
'This indicates an impending trend of continued growth in the number of properties put up for mortgagee sale, which is in tandem with the deteriorating economy and rising level of retrenchments,' the property consultancy said in a release issued on Friday evening.
Colliers deputy managing director and auctioneer Grace Ng said: 'We can expect to see a more significant number for repossessed properties in the later part of the year or in 2010. This is due to the general lag time of approximately six months or more - between when a buyer defaults on his loan repayments and when the bank repossesses the property and puts it up for auction sale.'
The number of repossessed properties put up for auction sale by banks and financial institutions in Singapore has risen by 18 per cent - from 45 in fourth quarter 2008 to 53 in Q1 2009, according to Colliers International.
'This indicates an impending trend of continued growth in the number of properties put up for mortgagee sale, which is in tandem with the deteriorating economy and rising level of retrenchments,' the property consultancy said in a release issued on Friday evening.
Colliers deputy managing director and auctioneer Grace Ng said: 'We can expect to see a more significant number for repossessed properties in the later part of the year or in 2010. This is due to the general lag time of approximately six months or more - between when a buyer defaults on his loan repayments and when the bank repossesses the property and puts it up for auction sale.'
Expats' Recession Blues
Source : The Straits Times, March 28, 2009
IT WAS meant to be a holiday to see his elder sister but in the one week that Mr Filip Maes spent in Singapore last April, he managed to secure two job offers - and from top-notch global asset management firms too.
Ecstatic, the Belgian returned to New York, where he was working in hedge fund portfolio financing, turned in his resignation and packed his bags for Asia.
Shortly after he arrived in Singapore last August, however, he received a phone call from his prospective employer telling him that his services were no longer needed - even before his work contract had been signed.
Read the full report in The Sunday Times.
IT WAS meant to be a holiday to see his elder sister but in the one week that Mr Filip Maes spent in Singapore last April, he managed to secure two job offers - and from top-notch global asset management firms too.
Ecstatic, the Belgian returned to New York, where he was working in hedge fund portfolio financing, turned in his resignation and packed his bags for Asia.
Shortly after he arrived in Singapore last August, however, he received a phone call from his prospective employer telling him that his services were no longer needed - even before his work contract had been signed.
Read the full report in The Sunday Times.
新推出519个四、五房式单位 榜鹅预购组屋比同区转售组屋便宜
Source : 《联合早报》March 27, 2009
建屋发展局在榜鹅推出新预购组屋项目（BTO），建造413个四房式和106个五房式单位，售价比该区的组屋转售价格低。
这个名为“The Nautilus @ Punggol”的组屋项目位于榜鹅东和榜鹅域（Punggol Field）的交界处，附近有榜鹅生活聚场（Punggol Plaza），里头设有能满足居民日常所需的超级市场和食阁等设施。绿苑小学（Greendale Primary School）、绿苑中学和弥陀学校（Mee Toh School）等学府也近在咫尺。
组屋项目“The Nautilus @ Punggol”共建八座组屋，有413个四房式和106个五房式单位。
该地段共建八座组屋，单位面积从90平方米到110平方米不等。四房式组屋的售价介于22万8000元至27万4000元，五房式介于30万5000元至35万7000元。
与去年底推出的榜鹅预购组屋项目“Punggol Arcadia”和“Punggol Regalia”比较，这批组屋的售价较便宜，因为它离榜鹅地铁站较远，地点不如之前推出的两个组屋项目适中。另外，这个项目所建造的是标准组屋，室内设施一般，整体设计感也不如前两个项目的优质组屋来得突出。
建屋局重申，当局是参考该区的组屋转售价格后才为预购组屋定价，因此预购组屋的价格都会比市价来得低。除了当局的高额津贴，家庭月入在5000元或以下的申请者也能享有高达4万元的额外公积金房屋津贴。
根据当局的计算，预购组屋的售价仍维持在国人可负担的水平。以一个月入4300元的中等收入家庭来说，要是他们购买一个售价25万元的四房式组屋，每月所需缴交的房屋贷款约900元。这笔贷款完全可从他们的公积金户头里扣除，所以无需掏出现金支付。
博纳集团（PropNex）企业通讯及行销经理陈家扬相信，The Nautilus@Punggol应该会获得不俗的反应，因为其售价比该区的组屋转售价格低约20％至30％。他说，目前的经济走势低迷，榜鹅组屋的转售价格已自去年第四季起开始滑落，因此这批预购组屋的保守定价是务实的。
昨天是组屋接受申请的第一天，截至傍晚5时，519个单位共获得72份申请。
公众可通过建屋局网站www.hdb.gov.sg提出申请，并可到大巴窑建屋局中心3楼展示厅参观及索取销售资料，展示厅平日开放时间是上午8时至下午5时，星期六是上午8时至下午1时。
公众也可上建屋局网站，或电邮hdbsales@hdb.gov.sg，或办公时间拨1800-8663066询问详情。申请截止日期是4月8日。
建屋发展局在榜鹅推出新预购组屋项目（BTO），建造413个四房式和106个五房式单位，售价比该区的组屋转售价格低。
这个名为“The Nautilus @ Punggol”的组屋项目位于榜鹅东和榜鹅域（Punggol Field）的交界处，附近有榜鹅生活聚场（Punggol Plaza），里头设有能满足居民日常所需的超级市场和食阁等设施。绿苑小学（Greendale Primary School）、绿苑中学和弥陀学校（Mee Toh School）等学府也近在咫尺。
组屋项目“The Nautilus @ Punggol”共建八座组屋，有413个四房式和106个五房式单位。该地段共建八座组屋，单位面积从90平方米到110平方米不等。四房式组屋的售价介于22万8000元至27万4000元，五房式介于30万5000元至35万7000元。
与去年底推出的榜鹅预购组屋项目“Punggol Arcadia”和“Punggol Regalia”比较，这批组屋的售价较便宜，因为它离榜鹅地铁站较远，地点不如之前推出的两个组屋项目适中。另外，这个项目所建造的是标准组屋，室内设施一般，整体设计感也不如前两个项目的优质组屋来得突出。
建屋局重申，当局是参考该区的组屋转售价格后才为预购组屋定价，因此预购组屋的价格都会比市价来得低。除了当局的高额津贴，家庭月入在5000元或以下的申请者也能享有高达4万元的额外公积金房屋津贴。
根据当局的计算，预购组屋的售价仍维持在国人可负担的水平。以一个月入4300元的中等收入家庭来说，要是他们购买一个售价25万元的四房式组屋，每月所需缴交的房屋贷款约900元。这笔贷款完全可从他们的公积金户头里扣除，所以无需掏出现金支付。
博纳集团（PropNex）企业通讯及行销经理陈家扬相信，The Nautilus@Punggol应该会获得不俗的反应，因为其售价比该区的组屋转售价格低约20％至30％。他说，目前的经济走势低迷，榜鹅组屋的转售价格已自去年第四季起开始滑落，因此这批预购组屋的保守定价是务实的。
昨天是组屋接受申请的第一天，截至傍晚5时，519个单位共获得72份申请。
公众可通过建屋局网站www.hdb.gov.sg提出申请，并可到大巴窑建屋局中心3楼展示厅参观及索取销售资料，展示厅平日开放时间是上午8时至下午5时，星期六是上午8时至下午1时。
公众也可上建屋局网站，或电邮hdbsales@hdb.gov.sg，或办公时间拨1800-8663066询问详情。申请截止日期是4月8日。
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