Top Billionaires are in Real Estate industry!

Top Billionaires are in Real Estate industry!

Posted On 11 Mar 2007


The results are out. Forbes rank Mr Ng Teng Fong(Far East Org) as the richest billionaire in Singapore at US$6.7b while Mr Kwek Leng Beng(CDL) stands at US$4.3b. And new entrant Mr Yong from Yanlord makes his presence felt at US$1.7b. In case, you still didn't realise, they made their millions in real estate.

It's amazing how many millionaires make their fortune in real estate, especially in Asia. A quick run through on China's top 100 millionaires will see more than 40% in real estate businesses. Hongkong is no different with Mr Li Ka Shing leading the pack as the richest man in Asia.

Well, so much for these billionaires & millionaires. How about us? Not even thousand-aires? Not to worry. You don't need to be a millionaire to be happy and contented.

However, if you aspire to become one, the real estate is probably one of the best choice to hit it big. And this time around, many are going to make a decent(moderate risk) or obscene(speculative risk) profit in a short time.

There are many ways in property investment or speculations. The easiest and the least risky being buying Reits and wait for dividends. However, with a little more budget, you may wish to select some good Property Stocks like Capitaland, CDL, Kepland, etc. Check out the charts and you'll realised many of these stocks had doubled in 2006. There are still some upside to benefit from, especially Capitaland, where its portfolio in China will reap very good results in the short term.

With the loosening of HDB rules on rental, you may consider renting out your HDB and buying a private property to leverage your monthly payment. But hold it, check out the rules before jumping in:
- You have occupied your non-subsidised flat (flat purchased from the open market without a CPF housing grant) for at least 3 years; or
- You have occupied your subsidised flat (flat purchased directly from HDB or from the open market with a CPF housing grant) for at least 5 years.

If you're currently staying in a private property, get a re-valuation and check with your banker on financing a new purchase. If one banker says no, find another. If not, write in to us and we'll give you some suggestions on creative financing.

If you consider yourself wealthy, perhaps project development may get you excited. However, it's not for everyone and the greatest care must be taken or you'll end up a bankrupt. No kidding, I've witnessed a few.

To answer to some requests on property investment, we'll be taking on a mini-series on real estate investment in the coming weeks. If you aspire to make it big, watch all your small moves