Buying a Private Condo at Age 45 (or older)

Are you a HDB upgrader or current private property owner (i.e. upgrader or downgrader) thinking of buying a private condo at age 45. Below are 3 factors for your consideration when buying a private property at age 45 or older

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     Table of Content

• Loan Tenure & Amount
• Freehold vs 99 years
• What is your Exit Strategy?

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📌1. Loan Tenure & Amount

• At age 45, your loan tenure will be capped at 20 years (assume 1^st home loan, max 75% Loan).
• As we age beyond 35 years, our loan amount will get lesser because our loan tenure will get shorter
• You can calculate your loan tenure by using “65 minus Your Age” (assume only 1 home loan)
• See my article “Everything about Income Requirements & Loans”
• For buyers who currently owns a HDB or condo, you may want to consider the hybrid buying-selling method (How to Upgrade from HDB to Condo without ABSD – Hybrid Method).  
• Otherwise, you will incur additional buyer stamp duty (ABSD) if you buy first and sell your existing home later

📌2. Freehold vs 99 years

• Those who are financially stronger will likely consider freehold properties for legacy planning.
• Freehold condos are more expensive but there will be no lease decay issues.
• For buyers who are open to 99 years resale condos, I will suggest to either buy newer condos (T.O.P. within last 10 years) or those that are very old (25-30 years).
• Condos will usually have the highest capital appreciation in the first 10-15 years.
• Older condos are bigger and have stronger en bloc potential when they hit a certain age.
• A recent study observed a price increase when condominiums reach 31 to 40 years old.
• It is a fact that very few condos in Singapore survive beyond 40 years.
• See my article “Resale Condo Checklist: Review these 4 Items Before Buying an Older Condo”

📌3. Near MRT vs Parks/ Beach

• When you are 45 years or older, you may want to buy a property that may cater to your retirement lifestyle in 15-20 years’ time.
• The conveniences of online ordering and private car hires have made “near MRT” a less important factor when choosing the next property.
• Electrical cars and even driverless cars will perpetuate this trend as the government pushes to ban petrol and diesel cars by 2040.
• Post covid has also encouraged Work-from-Home and Home-Based-Learning trends.
• Being near a garden, parks or beach may be more attractive factors than being near an MRT station 20 years later

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