Real estate agents say you’re wasting money by renting instead of buying a condo.

This is why they’re wrong.

Today in 10 minutes or less, you’ll learn:

• 🎯 Cash-on-Cash vs Multiple-on-Money returns

• 🌇 What expats are eligible to buy in Singapore

• 🔍️ How to search properties and get rental data

• 💰️ Stamp duty, mortgage & “hidden fees”

• 📊 BONUS: Rent vs Buy calculator (Link Below)*

*Many thanks to Michael Duyvesteijn for creating the Rent vs Buy calculator and his thoughtful feedback on this post.

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🏘️ Singapore residential property for expats 101

In the past year, condo rents in Singapore have increased 30-50%.

I received DMs from expats asking, “As a foreigner, is it really worth it to buy a condo in Singapore?”

My wife and I have been exploring residential property investments for a cash flow goal (ie creating a new income stream). This is what we learned.

Here are 8 steps to researching the Singapore residential property market:

🎯 1. Decide on your goals

Financial

• Wealth preservation

• Total return

• Cashflow

Lifestyle

• Starting a family

• Mobility

If your goal is purely financial, be careful of agents preying on your rental frustrations. Run the numbers.

If your goal is lifestyle, weigh the numbers AND fulfilling your life vision.

Example: Let’s say you want a 100% passive investment, so you can travel freely. Even if you buy a cashflow-generating property, you may NEED to live near the property in case of repairs and maintenance issues (like pipes bursting). Will this conflict with your passive goals?

🌇 2. Filter property type based on eligibility, goal, market dynamics, and budget

Eligibility

For residential property, foreigners are eligible to buy:

• Private condos and resale-only executive condos

• Landed properties in Sentosa Cove

• Landed properties (with special approval)

Goal

• Total return → Use Multiple of Money (MoM) + expected timeframe

  • Multiple of Money = total capital you receive back (sale event + cashflow) / initial capital you invested

  • Example. If you invested $1,000,000 and received $2,000,000 back over 5 years, then your MoM is 2x

• Cashflow → Use Cash-on-Cash (CoC)

  • Cash on Cash = total cashflow you receive (after operating expenses) / initial capital you invested invested

  • Example. If you invested $1,000,000 and received $50,000 of cashflow in year 1, your cash-on-cash return is 5%

Consider the opportunity cost of investing your capital in residential property versus an S&P 500 ETF, eg VOO (7% inflation-adjusted return)

For this post, we’ll focus more on cashflow (income) than total return (growth) given limited space.

Market dynamics

• Most private home buyers in Singapore are upgraders, eg families, so may be less likely to buy a 1-bedroom unit in the central business district

• Rental market is driven by foreigners. 90% of property is owned, so most renters are foreigners. Your ability to rent out is heavily dependent on government policy towards foreigners (which can change rapidly)

Budget

• Higher budget → afford units in Core Central Region (CCR)

• Lower budget → afford units in Outside Central Region (OCR) or Rest of Central Region (RCR)

🔍️ 3. Search for properties and find price