Contributed by Alan Poon
The election fever has finally hit the shores of Malaysia, now that the polling date has been announced. Being a real estate industry observer, I see this as a sign of relief as the many months of guesswork for the big day is drawing to a close.
Previously, the uncertainty surrounding the polling date was one of the reasons most investors are holding back their purchases. This is because a change in the state or federal government may present a concern to them.
Motivated property owners have been struggling to sell their prized assets in recent months. Coupled with the General Election factor, the market is somewhat perceived as being slow and lacklustre.
It is every developer and property seller’s hope that more transactions will happen once the election dust has finally settled, and the market can be liquid again as forecasted since the beginning of the year.
Truth to be told, there are still plenty of qualified buyers out there who are hunting for properties despite what the general market sentiment portrays currently. I had been told that many projects are being offered right now. In fact, there are just too many property launches and deals for a person to buy.
The question I always receive from those who are looking is, “Too many options, how to choose?”
For the unassuming purchasers, indeed it is a buyers’ market right now as sizeable unsold units of certain types of properties in their specific sector are available directly from the property developers.
If one can arrange for bulk purchases of these units, there would be room for negotiation when it comes to discounts and rebates. In property cycles, opportunities surface in a market crisis. And I believe the time is now for those who are trying to expand or increase their portfolio in real estate as an asset class.
The question is how to choose the right property over another since all these deals seem to be so attractive? My sincere advice to any beginner or veteran investors is always the same. Start with your investment objective!
Your intention of buying the property should be clear. The clearer it is, the better your chances of choosing the property that would serve your future needs. It is never the case of buy first, then decide what to do later, be it for self-usage or for renting purposes.
Practically, buying a property presents you with a cash flow situation. This may work in your favour or not, depending on your entry price, location and other factors.
Buying property isn’t as easy as the early days where one can expect prices to always go up.
However, the fundamentals remain the same. An individual is merely in control of the asset that he or she has so-called “acquired” for a limited time until the liabilities of the mortgage is cleared. Hence, there is no point to be emotionally attached to any property during the initial consideration of the purchase.
It is imperative that a prospective buyer understands the game plan and numbers well to capitalise on a positive cash flow of an income generating asset with the potential upside of high capital appreciation.
When these factors are met, one can comfortably move on to acquire more properties peacefully, as the equity that is being built in the real estate of choice will be unlocked shortly in the future.
To determine any factors or considerations for a property purchase, you will need to understand your financial position at the point of sale.
Since everyone has their commitments and financial plan, it is not conducive to lay out in general, the factors that determine a single purchase. I have experienced first hand how complicated a single purchase can be especially when every one of us has our fair share of problems and concerns.
Things can get interesting when it involves more than one party, for instance, a married couple. Hence, I encourage buyers to educate themselves further and perform a health check on their financial position first.
Once the right strategy is adopted, you can duplicate them over and over again. However, one wrong move could set you back for many years not to mention the loss of future opportunities. Therefore, wisely identify your investment objectives and adopt a suitable game plan before going for the execution.
All the best and remember, the best investment is always to invest in yourself: Your Investment Knowledge!
Till next time, let's ‘Borak Real Estate’!
About the contributors
Alan Poon
Alan Poon, founder and CEO of SuperiorWealth Group, is a passionate Real Estate industry observer as he regularly speaks and appeared in major media publication nationwide. Alan is the author of three “Good Tenant Great Tenant” series of books and is recognized by The Malaysia Book of Records as “The First Author to Launch Three Books Simultaneously”. Alan welcomes feedbacks and can be contacted via alanpoon@superiorwealthmastery.com. Do visit Superior Wealth Group for more info.
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