SINGAPORE: A 29-year-old man is contemplating moving out of his parents’ house, as the ongoing “bad blood” between them has made the living situation unbearable.
In a post on the Reddit forum r/SingaporeRaw, he shared that, despite being unemployed, he has managed to save an impressive $500,000, which he believes would be enough to purchase his own home.
“Did lots of financial trading for a few years, and saved a lot of money by living a simple life. But I admit I take some seriously suicidal trading risks so yeah I know it’s not normal for most people my age,” he said.
“I’m not 35 y/o yet so I can only buy resale. I’m currently single but prob don’t see myself getting married, so I think a 2-room flat might be well sufficient already. I see the price going for these flats are 300-400k, so if I buy outright, I’m only left with 100k worst case.”
The man also mentioned that he intends to forgo renovations, maintain a simple lifestyle, and rent out part of the flat for additional income.
He then asked the Reddit community, “Is this a sound strategy to follow with? I know the rental income prob won’t be much but I live a pretty simple low expense life so can get by monthly with as low as 1K per month. I think the capital appreciation of the flat may help as well.”
“You can’t. Resale age minimum is still 35.”
In the discussion thread, several Redditors pointed out that the man is not eligible to purchase a resale HDB flat yet, as he is under 35 years old.
One Redditor said, “You do not have to worry about whether you should buy HDB for another 6 years.” Another commented, “You can’t. Resale age minimum is still 35.”
Others suggested that he use the next six years to grow his savings further, explore other investment opportunities, or even travel. One Redditor said, “Bro, it’s not the time now, bull market, crypto hype. You should still stick to financial trading for now (next few months at least).”
Another recommended a more adventurous option, writing, “A more fun way to spend a couple years would be to live in Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos or Thailand, and do visa runs. Plenty of digital nomads I know sign short to medium term leases and trade out of those countries.
“Can even skip the capitals and go live in smaller cities like Da Nang, Hoi An etc and stretch your dollar. Enjoy man, you’ve amassed a really nice nest egg and you don’t have to live in this rat race hellhole until you want to.”
Meanwhile, a few Redditors advised him to consider renting a flat and finding a job. One wrote, “Find a job and rent somewhere cheap for 6 years to wait it out. Park this money somewhere that can earn interest for the time being.”
According to the Housing and Development Board (HDB), unmarried or divorced individuals must be at least 35 years old to qualify to buy a resale flat. However, if you’re widowed or orphaned, you can purchase a resale flat from the age of 21. Additionally, there is no income ceiling for purchasing resale flats.
Featured image by Depositphotos (for illustration purposes only)