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OCR

A collection of 15 issues

The 3-Bedroom You Are Buying Today Is the Size the 2-Bedroom Was in 2005

In Tampines in 2002, the typical unit at Tropical Spring measured 1,378 sqft. In 2023, the typical unit at Treasure At Tampines — same planning area, same general buyer — measured 915 sqft. That is a 34% reduction over 20 years without moving a single block. The Sengkang corridor tells the

Projects located near MRT stations usually command a premium and the logic makes sense, but what does the math actually say?

Buyers who paid $600–$800 per sqft more to live beside an MRT station in Singapore's OCR earned annualised resale returns of 0.7%–3.4%. Buyers who paid less and lived 20–28 minutes from the nearest station earned 1.5%–5.7%. Across 17 projects and

S&P 500 vs Private Property: Which Performed Better Over 10 Years?

Most people who bought a $1.5M condo in 2013 and sold it a decade later will tell you they "roughly broke even." They paid $1.5M. They sold for maybe $1.35M. Small loss, they say — held through the cooling measures, survived the cycle, not bad. That

You Bought the 2-Bedroom Because It Was the Smarter Exit. The Data Disagrees.

Most buyers who choose a 2-bedroom condo in an OCR estate have a version of the same reasoning: smaller unit, lower entry price, easier to rent, easier to exit. The logic feels airtight. The data, across five tested projects, suggests it may not be. In four of those five

The Headline Said 60%. The Number That Matters to You Is Closer to 200%.

The typical seller at The Minton (Hougang Ave 8, about a 10-minute walk from Kovan MRT) booked a profit of around $631,000 on a unit they bought for roughly $1.03 million. The headline you would have read called that a 60% gain. That number is correct. It

The 1-Bedroom New Launch Nearly Vanished. The Market That Killed It Still Has More Than the Market That Never Wanted It.

Here is the finding that should not be possible: OCR — the heartland region, where buyers stepping up from HDB shop for their first private home — now has fewer new-launch projects offering a 1-bedroom unit than CCR, the region where the foreign investor who drove 1-bedroom demand was

Every 2BR Buyer at Treasure at Tampines Made Money. The 3BR Buyer Made 6pp More — and Got Out Faster.

The standard advice for a first-time condo buyer is to start with a 2-bedroom. Lower entry price. Easier to exit. Bigger buyer pool at resale. Most agents will tell you this without hesitation. At Treasure at Tampines, every single 2-bedroom seller followed that path and made money.

You Are 97% Safe From Loss After 4 Years. How Much You Make Was Decided the Day You Bought.

Most condo owners assume patience does two things at once: it reduces the chance you lose money, and it grows the profit. The first part is true. The second part is more complicated than it looks. Win rate among Singapore resale condo sellers reaches 97% after just four years and

Your Agent Said to Hold It Long Enough. For 9 in 10 Sellers at Marina Bay Suites, 14 Years Was Not Long Enough.

Everyone has heard the claim. A friend who bought in 2012 and sold last year for a decent gain. A parent who says property always goes up if you wait. An agent who tells you the entry price doesn't matter as much as the holding period. The idea

The Fear of Being Stuck in a 4-Bedroom Is Real. The Fear of Losing Money Is Not — If You Buy in the Right Place.

The agent advice goes like this: bigger units are harder to sell, harder to rent, and you'll be stuck holding a depreciating asset while smaller units fly off the market around you. For families choosing between a 3-bedroom and a 4-bedroom condo in the $1.8M–