Transcription
Hi everyone, welcome to a brand new episode of Ask Joy. Today, I am sharing with you something personal again. Uh, this is my own renting journey so far. As you know, I'm a huge advocate of renting and buying new launch only if you know how to strategize your rental.
The first time I did this and had a taste of it was in 2020. So, what happened in 2020? Let's take a look. All right. So in 2020, my husband and I, we rented a one-bedroom in Eight River Suites. This is a City Fringe property near Boon Keng MRT. So, back then, because it was just two of us, so we needed something less pricey. We got this one-bed at $2,000 per month. Uh, at a point of time, frankly, this rental was okay. Okay, I mean, if you look back at the rate right now, actually, it's very cheap, right? But at that point of time, it was okay.
And the whole reason why we decided to sign for the three years lease is because we already anticipated that rental is going to increase because of what happened during that period of time, because COVID already happened. So, the market was a bit shaky in a way. I think that a lot of construction was stored. So that's why we think that the projected rental will be higher. Hence, we were a bit hassle. So we signed for 3 years and subsequently, once the 3 years rental is up, what happened is that it increased. So we actually signed for another one year at $3,000 per month. So, because of how we anticipated that the rental was going to go up, hence the whole due for these three or over years, we rented this unit at only $87,000 and because of that, we have saved quite a lot. I mean, can you imagine if let's say from the very start, we did not lock in a three years contract? I think we'll be paying more than that.
Then what happened during the same period of time, from December 2020 all the way to uh April 2024, is that we put our hard-earned money into this other property that after much research, we think will make money. And where is that? That is K Residences. Uh, if you have been following me for a while, you would know that I have been talking about it like every time. So, I'm very proud ex-owner of K Residences because this property we got it at 1.581 million and eventually sold it for 2.13 million and that rounds up to be about over half a million profit. This was the rent and buy new launch strategy we used back then. All in all, after minusing off our rental, we actually profited approximately $460,000. So this was the gross profit after all.
So, after having a taste of this, right, we were very excited. So early last year, after we sold off these K Residences, this new launch, we decided to do it again. Except this time, we did not rent a condo. This time, we rent a HDB. So, in today's episode of Ask Joy, I am going to share with you guys the thought process of us wanting to rent a HDB instead of a condo. Even though this HDB is not significantly cheaper than a condo. But before I begin, I just want you guys to actually subscribe to my channel or leave a comment on this channel so that my content can reach out to more people. So, thank you in advance for that.
So, here's the thought process. I'm going to break it down into a few steps. The first step is actually to set a budget for your renter. And this is important because you do not want to be overspending. So, what do I mean by that? After we sold off our K Residences, we proceed to buy Emerald Condo and it was a four-bedroom plus study. It's worth $3.35 million. So, based on whatever research that we have done, we have concluded that okay, maybe in future, we can actually have half a million profit. So, based on this projected profit, right, you work out your rental amount. What do I mean by that? So, if your projected profit is half a million, you cannot be renting for example, $15,000 per month. If let's say I were to be a bit more lavish, I go to Orchard and I rent a three or four bedroom at $15,000 a month. After 3 years, once the seller's stamp duty is up, if you times 36, right, it will work out to be around slightly more than $500,000. So, it does not make sense because after you do the math, the profit cannot even cover your rental. And because of that, I have actually set my own rental budget to be $4K. I can go actually higher, but it's just that I want to save more. So, I use a $4K budget as a gauge first to see what I can get. So, this is the first step, which is to actually work out your budget for your rental and to cut that.
And next, second step is to list down your requirements, your non-negotiables. And of course, the beauty of rental is that you can rent anywhere you want so long as within your budget range. So, for that right, I actually got a few requirements. The first requirement is the location. Location has to be because and last year I was already halfway through my pregnancy. So, I needed because my parents live in Holland, I needed their help to help me take care of my kid. So, location is non-negotiable. It has to be Holland's.
Second, I wanted something brand new. I have a bit of OCD. So, I can't really stand very old developments or old projects. I mean, even if you're not OCD, I'm sure a lot of you will prefer brand new as well, right? So that's the main thing. And second thing is that for newer properties or newer estates right, they tend to require lesser maintenance and lesser repair work, which I feel if I'm going to stay there for two or 3 years right, all these things will add up to my expenses so I have to be a bit more cautious on that. And next is an area with low density. Actually, in the very beginning right, I actually suggested to my parents to rent out their place so that we can combine our budget to rent a landed near. However, they were not very keen because they feel that once they rent out their place in the future, if they were to move in again, it will not feel like their home anymore. So, I totally respect that. So, I didn't enforce it. But for me, an area with lower density is something that I prefer because I don't like an area that is very, very cluttered.
Then next, close proximity to MRT. Frankly, this was not a deal breaker, but after some consideration, I thought that I have to add this in because I'll be getting help from my in-laws, from my aunts. So, when they come over here, if they don't drive, right, it's better if it's more accessible and it's through MRT. And last but not least is near amenities because it's always great to have a place near amenities, right? If you wake up in the middle of the night and you choose to want to like buy something and like grab food options are not there, you could just go downstairs to buy stuff.
So, after having the list of requirements, right, I started to look for units and that is where I start to assess my options. So, we already have a budget of $4K and then right now right, with this $4K, we can either get a four-room HDB in Holland's like newer ones or we can get a three-bedroom condo. In the end, we settled for a HDB all because Holland's condo on average, they are a bit older. They are at least 9 or 10 years old, taking aside all those newer ones per se, but on average right, it's much older as compared to the HDB estate that we were eyeing. And this particular HDB cluster that we were eyeing right, it is also near to MRT. It is also walking distance to MRT and just so happened that reason any condo that is really, really walking distance to MRT. So, after assessing everything, we decided to go for the HDB.
I think when I met with clients who I actually proposed to rent a HDB rather their condo, right, a lot of them talk about like they are not going to compromise their lifestyle. Why should they do that? But frankly, for me, it doesn't feel like a compromise because this particular HDB estate that we choose is basically quite a new MOP cluster. And even though we don't have condo facilities, but frankly, even when we were renting our condo like back then in 2020, right? I only have been to the jacuzzi or the pool like once or twice like throughout the whole 3 to 4 years period. So, I don't think that's a great deal actually. Because of all these like requirements, after that I tell you the budget, eventually we settle for this resale HDB. There is quite a new cluster and in this particular cluster right, I also choose a cluster whereby there are mainly only five room and executive because in clusters like that, it's less cluttered as compared to maybe a HDB neighborhood with two room, three room, four room and five room. Then it will feel a lot more cluttered and a lot more people. So, after assessing all this, eventually we decided to go for the resale HDB option which cost $3,600 per month, which is okay, manageable because it's below our budget, right? So, right now I'm going to show you how this unit look.
[Music] Can you believe that? That is actually a resale HDB and not a condo. The entire unit is so well-maintained and so well-renovated that I don't even feel like I was compromised at all. Shout out to my fellow Cobra Liner from Era. Um, thanks so much for helping us get this unit as well. We did not pay exactly the cheapest in the neighborhood. There are obviously cheaper options, but it was worth every single cent. And so, if today you are also in a similar situation, you are thinking whether or not you should rent while you go and buy a new launch or rather you don't know how to actually strategize your rental or you don't know how to estimate your projected growth or appreciation from your new launch, please do not hesitate to reach out to me. But if you already know that you're going to be renting, do follow the steps that I shared. First is to set a budget. Second is to list out your non-negotiables and third is to assess your options. So, that will be all for today's sharing. Um, I will catch you in the next episode of Ask Joy. See you.
[Music]