Opinions about upgrading

[Showster]

Nobody can really answer you.

Current size/no of rooms vs target size/room?

Location wise does it help in work or kids schooling?

Will it help you and family exercise more?

The lifestyle does it fit all your family members?

What is the monthly debt commitment after upgrading?

Knowing oneself and the enemy is the key to win every single battle.

[porkfloss]

thanks for all the opinions. 

to answer some of the questions asked: i can service my mortgage with CPF+cash topup monthly but definitely i need to take up a new loan as my current cash+CPF on hand +sale proceeds of the current house definitely are not enough to pay for the new house. the loan is likely to take 20 years to payback, i.e. pay till i retire considering my age.

my main concern is really about whether i should pursue a 'better living environment' at the expense of having to take up another mortgage for the next 20 years and give up the 'worry-less' lifestyle i am enjoying now. on one hand, i will like my young children to enjoy the additional facilities that come with living in a condo, yet on the other, it will definitely be a concern with the new and higher loan amount that i need to service. having been retrenched once early in my career definitely has taught me a very precious lesson: to be prudent with my spending and it is always at the back of my mind. 

upgrading to a bigger size hdb is one possible in-between option with a lower financial burden by giving up the condo facilities.... not that they are need to have but nice to have when you desire them. its probably the lifestyle changes and 'feel good factor' that are driving the desire for a change in the living environment...

 

[Ct3833]

17 minutes ago, porkfloss said:

thanks for all the opinions. 

to answer some of the questions asked: i can service my mortgage with CPF+cash topup monthly but definitely i need to take up a new loan as my current cash+CPF on hand +sale proceeds of the current house definitely are not enough to pay for the new house. the loan is likely to take 20 years to payback, i.e. pay till i retire considering my age.

my main concern is really about whether i should pursue a 'better living environment' at the expense of having to take up another mortgage for the next 20 years and give up the 'worry-less' lifestyle i am enjoying now. on one hand, i will like my young children to enjoy the additional facilities that come with living in a condo, yet on the other, it will definitely be a concern with the new and higher loan amount that i need to service. having been retrenched once early in my career definitely has taught me a very precious lesson: to be prudent with my spending and it is always at the back of my mind. 

upgrading to a bigger size hdb is one possible in-between option with a lower financial burden by giving up the condo facilities.... not that they are need to have but nice to have when you desire them. its probably the lifestyle changes and 'feel good factor' that are driving the desire for a change in the living environment...

 

 this topic is very subjective, so there is no one answer fit all and there is no right or wrong answers. But my view is, if I have no loan now and i have to take another loan till near my retirement age,  I wont want to do that. While providing my family a so call better living by upgrading to a condo, i  subject  myself and my family to certain degree of financial risk, if I get retrenched and unable to find another similar pay job, i will have difficulties paying my installment,  dont forget I am servicing my loan through both CPF  and  cash.

Staying in a condo comes with additional expenses because of the monthly conservancy charges and sinking fund, this  monthly expense range from about $300 to higher,  one has  to be mindful about.  

if your kids are young, you may use the facilities, beyond some age , they wont use the facilities at all. I stayed in condo for nearly 20 years before i moved out, my family , including myself, have hardly used any of the facilities. 

Of course, you can plan it such that you move to a condo, and when you feel that you  no longer have the need to staying a condo, or you are in a situation that you feel stretched to stay in a condo, you can move back to HDB.

the other question is whether your wife is working , two pay checks is always  better than one in financial planning. Whatever plan you have, just make sure that you have some spare cash to tie you over an interim in case of any exceptions.

 

 

 

[ToyotaShuttle]

4 hours ago, porkfloss said:

Hi, I am in my early 40s and I am considered debt free as my current HDB has been paid off and there is no outstanding loan (eg car) to service.
 

Recently I have thoughts about upgrading to a condo to provide a better living environment for my family and young kids. My current house is abit small so the extra space and the facilities would definitely enhance the living experience. 
 

However, I am still reserved as that would imply that I would need to restart the loan again till I retire as it would also mean that all my incoming CPF and a proportion of cash would be used to service the mortgage, which would reduce growing my retirement fund. 
 

Just not sure if I should maintain my current worry-less lifestyle or to have a better living environment at the expense of having debts again.

Opinions?

current hdb is 4 room? can't get a 5 room or EA?

what facilities do you want? buy a hdb beside a swimming pool lol.

difficult to give recommendations unless you provide more info like income and job stability

[Kopites]

5 hours ago, ToyotaShuttle said:

current hdb is 4 room? can't get a 5 room or EA?

what facilities do you want? buy a hdb beside a swimming pool lol.

difficult to give recommendations unless you provide more info like income and job stability

Can consider certain club membership instead of public pool. 

Safra? 

[Kklee]

8 hours ago, porkfloss said:

thanks for all the opinions. 

to answer some of the questions asked: i can service my mortgage with CPF+cash topup monthly but definitely i need to take up a new loan as my current cash+CPF on hand +sale proceeds of the current house definitely are not enough to pay for the new house. the loan is likely to take 20 years to payback, i.e. pay till i retire considering my age.

my main concern is really about whether i should pursue a 'better living environment' at the expense of having to take up another mortgage for the next 20 years and give up the 'worry-less' lifestyle i am enjoying now. on one hand, i will like my young children to enjoy the additional facilities that come with living in a condo, yet on the other, it will definitely be a concern with the new and higher loan amount that i need to service. having been retrenched once early in my career definitely has taught me a very precious lesson: to be prudent with my spending and it is always at the back of my mind. 

upgrading to a bigger size hdb is one possible in-between option with a lower financial burden by giving up the condo facilities.... not that they are need to have but nice to have when you desire them. its probably the lifestyle changes and 'feel good factor' that are driving the desire for a change in the living environment...

 

IMHO.
Perhaps you may also want to consider "better quality of life". 

[Vinceng]

How often would you use the facilities in a condo?

Purchasing a 99 year leasehild condo is as good as a HDB flat. Want to go private, go for freehold or 999 years leasehold, else it's money down the drain.

See those Heartlands condo, look out of windows, 360 degrees HDB flat view. No difference from staying in HDB flat, other than the guarded barrier and facilities.

 

[kobayashiGT]

Maybe instead of upgrading to a condo, maybe you can do some renovation to your current home to spruce it up.

 

This is also a form of upgrading.

[RH1667]

9 hours ago, porkfloss said:

thanks for all the opinions. 

to answer some of the questions asked: i can service my mortgage with CPF+cash topup monthly but definitely i need to take up a new loan as my current cash+CPF on hand +sale proceeds of the current house definitely are not enough to pay for the new house. the loan is likely to take 20 years to payback, i.e. pay till i retire considering my age.

my main concern is really about whether i should pursue a 'better living environment' at the expense of having to take up another mortgage for the next 20 years and give up the 'worry-less' lifestyle i am enjoying now. on one hand, i will like my young children to enjoy the additional facilities that come with living in a condo, yet on the other, it will definitely be a concern with the new and higher loan amount that i need to service. having been retrenched once early in my career definitely has taught me a very precious lesson: to be prudent with my spending and it is always at the back of my mind. 

upgrading to a bigger size hdb is one possible in-between option with a lower financial burden by giving up the condo facilities.... not that they are need to have but nice to have when you desire them. its probably the lifestyle changes and 'feel good factor' that are driving the desire for a change in the living environment...

 

WIth the new and bigger loan, meaning higher monthly installment, do you need to change your current lifestyle? 

Less eating out? Less overseas sightseeing ? less .....

 

[Kopites]

TS. you might want to factor in the following article as to the rising costs of living.

https://www.asiaone.com/money/budget-2021-gst-hikes-extensions-singaporeans-should-prepare

 

[Stratovarius]

12 hours ago, porkfloss said:

Hi, I am in my early 40s and I am considered debt free as my current HDB has been paid off and there is no outstanding loan (eg car) to service.
 

Recently I have thoughts about upgrading to a condo to provide a better living environment for my family and young kids. My current house is abit small so the extra space and the facilities would definitely enhance the living experience. 
 

However, I am still reserved as that would imply that I would need to restart the loan again till I retire as it would also mean that all my incoming CPF and a proportion of cash would be used to service the mortgage, which would reduce growing my retirement fund. 
 

Just not sure if I should maintain my current worry-less lifestyle or to have a better living environment at the expense of having debts again.

Opinions?

From HDB to condo is mostly a downgrade in terms of space. Unless you are looking at very old condos but it may not make any investment sense. The only thing you will be upgrading is your loan. 

You know your own financials best. Like having contingency funds for rainy days should you lose your job or touch wood, developed health issues. Or if you plan to live there after retirement, etc. You should be fine if all these questions are properly covered.

Like what you have said, moving to a condo is a change in lifestyle. Types of neighbours will be different too. lol. Amenities will be good to have if you invite guests over regularly or enjoy going to a gym. 

 

[mersaylee]

Facilities? I see mainly non locals at those facilities...gym, pool, tennis court...

Just move to somewhere near those public facilities if really can utilise on regular basis like few times a week. Otherwise, just book in to a hotel fortnightly to use the same facilities...can always nego better rate and free breakfast as regular booker

[13177]

1 hour ago, Vinceng said:

How often would you use the facilities in a condo?

Purchasing a 99 year leasehild condo is as good as a HDB flat. Want to go private, go for freehold or 999 years leasehold, else it's money down the drain.

See those Heartlands condo, look out of windows, 360 degrees HDB flat view. No difference from staying in HDB flat, other than the guarded barrier and facilities.

 

True, buying condo in heartlands not much difference like staying in hdb. But too bad this is the trend of buying condo now. Since condo in atas area so  uch ex if compared with heartlands condo. Lol.

[t0y0ta]

13 hours ago, porkfloss said:

Hi, I am in my early 40s and I am considered debt free as my current HDB has been paid off and there is no outstanding loan (eg car) to service.
 

Recently I have thoughts about upgrading to a condo to provide a better living environment for my family and young kids. My current house is abit small so the extra space and the facilities would definitely enhance the living experience. 
 

However, I am still reserved as that would imply that I would need to restart the loan again till I retire as it would also mean that all my incoming CPF and a proportion of cash would be used to service the mortgage, which would reduce growing my retirement fund. 
 

Just not sure if I should maintain my current worry-less lifestyle or to have a better living environment at the expense of having debts again.

Opinions?

Condo much smaller than hdb

 

better to get resale bigger hdb flat if all you want is more space

[RogerNg_185295]

13 hours ago, porkfloss said:

Hi, I am in my early 40s and I am considered debt free as my current HDB has been paid off and there is no outstanding loan (eg car) to service.
 

Recently I have thoughts about upgrading to a condo to provide a better living environment for my family and young kids. My current house is abit small so the extra space and the facilities would definitely enhance the living experience. 
 

However, I am still reserved as that would imply that I would need to restart the loan again till I retire as it would also mean that all my incoming CPF and a proportion of cash would be used to service the mortgage, which would reduce growing my retirement fund. 
 

Just not sure if I should maintain my current worry-less lifestyle or to have a better living environment at the expense of having debts again.

Opinions?

quite foolish to upgrade now as retrenchment can happen anytime.  But it's your life,  your money,  so ultimately you decide. 

[t0y0ta]

10 hours ago, porkfloss said:

thanks for all the opinions. 

to answer some of the questions asked: i can service my mortgage with CPF+cash topup monthly but definitely i need to take up a new loan as my current cash+CPF on hand +sale proceeds of the current house definitely are not enough to pay for the new house. the loan is likely to take 20 years to payback, i.e. pay till i retire considering my age.

my main concern is really about whether i should pursue a 'better living environment' at the expense of having to take up another mortgage for the next 20 years and give up the 'worry-less' lifestyle i am enjoying now. on one hand, i will like my young children to enjoy the additional facilities that come with living in a condo, yet on the other, it will definitely be a concern with the new and higher loan amount that i need to service. having been retrenched once early in my career definitely has taught me a very precious lesson: to be prudent with my spending and it is always at the back of my mind. 

upgrading to a bigger size hdb is one possible in-between option with a lower financial burden by giving up the condo facilities.... not that they are need to have but nice to have when you desire them. its probably the lifestyle changes and 'feel good factor' that are driving the desire for a change in the living environment...

 

40+ yo is the start of your most dangerous years in your career.

My advice: If you want money into property, it should be actual investment and not just the pigeon hole you stay in.

For example, if you buy 2nd property for investment, rent-out, I think it is worth the risk.

But if you spend 500k-1mil just to get more atas living env, then maybe not so clever.

With condo:

monthly fee - increase by at least $200, even considering free parking lot

swimming - for kids public pool only about $1 per entry

BBQ - you probably do once a year at most

function room - probably use twice a year

[Atonchia]

TS, 

The other option is 

Rent a full facility condo near your kids school. 

At least school bus is cheaper.

Stay for 1 or 2 years before deciding if want to buy. 

Choose one with bigger floor area then your current place. 

If really like the place. 

Then ask the owner if want to sell. 

 

[Didu]

In 2017, then MND minister LW urged home buyers not to assume that all old flats will be selected for Sers. In fact, only 4 per cent of HDB flats have been identified for Sers since 1995. The vast majority of flats, Mr Wong noted, will be returned to HDB when their leases run out. It was a bombshell to many HDB owners. My colleague during then owned a 4-room unit next to Bishan park. He & his wife decided to sell their unit before it hits 40 yrs-old, expecting its value to drop after which. It was only later that govt released plans for the new MRT Cross Island Line. The new Teck Ghee MRT Station would have been a short walking distance from his old place. Naturally, the value of his old unit would have appreciated. He regretted his decision to sell. It's just pure bad timing.