I wrote this post in April 2016 - Landed property and car with $6K per month household income.
And this article appeared one month later - How feasible is it to move to Johor Baru and drive back and forth for work and school?
Yup, that's the kind of terrace house I was talking about.
See?
Some of us have ready options just waiting in the wings!
We can live on landed property and afford a car - right here; right now.
No need goals, no need plans.
Just need to make a decision only.
Gotcha!
Making a decision is a lot harder than setting goals and making plans right?
One colleague has been living there for a few years and doing it. He said inside his condo feels very safe and once out of the condo driving not so safe and once reach Singapore safe again!
ReplyDeleteLiving in JB is good for people love to stay alert and eye wide open while driving.
CW,
DeleteFree mental exercise to keep dementia away?
If I were to move to Malaysia, my No.1 choice would be Penang ;)
More than just free mental exercise. It makes some more religious and keep praying harder.
DeleteCW,
DeleteI went to the Johor News Facebook group you recommended.
Now everything also have social media!?
Donkey years haven't been to JB...
We can still write blog in Malaysia. no different
ReplyDeleteFrugal Daddy,
DeleteIn the days of old, its not uncommon for people to live and work within a 100 km radius their whole lives.
With social mobility in the modern age, where we choose to live is more a lifestyle choice.
I think its good for youth to study or work overseas to expand their horizons.
World so big :)
I am based in the UK. It is common for people to stay outside of the city and commute to work. If we take the representative commuting distance and apply it to Singapore, it can be as far as driving from Ayer Hitam to Singapore =) If we treat Johor as the suburbs of Singapore, it is doable to have a landed property in Johor and drive to work. If and only if the MRT link to JB materialise, it might get more convenient.
ReplyDeletecaelitus,
DeleteHey, its great to have a Singaporean in UK studying for your Masters!
That's called suburbia for you ;)
Quite common in lots of cosmopolitan cities. When I were working in Shanghai, we have colleagues who stayed at Kungshan and that's more than 2 hours train ride away...
Well, Singaporeans are already adapting... Once upon a time, Punggol, Jurong West, and Choa Chu Kang were considered "ends of the world"...
LOL!
Punggol, Jurong and CCK are still ends of the world for most people. Last week, my colleague staying in redhill just said so again. lol
DeleteFrugal Daddy,
DeleteThose of us who grew up in mature HDB estates like Queenstown and Redhill are "spoilt". LOL!
For many years, I was scratching my head why Tampines and Bishan were the "popular" HDB estates when they were not exactly near the city centre???
As with stocks, there are "fashions" of the decade playsin property, I guess ;)
ha
ReplyDeleteSMOL
i am different, many singaporeans rented out HDB and living in JB. while i staying in singapore although both me and husband from Malaysia.
if travel between sg and malaysia, we may need a car. a car cost at least sgd1000 per month.
so i rather not buying a car and stay in sg. then if got free time, i just give some tuition , one day 3 hour travelling time, i can use that 3 hour to earn 150. * 4 days= 600 per week
one month also got 2.4k extra income.
yeh,
DeleteDifferent strokes; different folks.
The beautiful thing is that by using a bit of creativity and courage to make a decision, we can find ways to earn "extra" money.
Compare your $2.4K per month (only 3 hours for 4 days) versus someone who struts and frets in the markets, only to get 1K per month passive income (and probably sitting on unrealised capital losses).
Now we know how lucrative it is to burn evenings and weekends to "teach" others how to be a millionaire ;)
LOL!
LOL!
DeleteWho is earning passive income?
Trainees or Trainers?
Time to wake up!
OK. OK. Few hundreds or a few thousands is not much. Never mind! But it is more than enough to pay for DIY investment bloggers gathering or AGM. LOL!
CW,
DeleteThank goodness my 10 years of formal education has ensured I can read.
Never attended any investing/trading courses.
I learn by reading and the Thomas Edison ligh bulb way of trail and error to find what fits me best ;)
Short-cut? Sure! Just as long the first element you chose is Tungsten ;)
$1K can buy a library of books!!!
But then, in this instant gratification generation, its better to pay someone to summarise and tell you what to do, right?
Never mind its one size fits all...
Wei Wei
DeleteWho says I teach financial course, I teaching 博大精深的中文
你要不要学？!
Discount for you
好妹妹，
Delete真够力；我在弹玄外之音。
我可是从姐妹们学来的哦！
你有想到大叔， 我几开心！
一小时五十；你赢很多大哥哥！！！
马云曰：30到40岁要为自己而做，做你最专长的事并把它发扬光大！
Delete我现在只能，
Delete看笑谈风云，
捞捞湖中月，
和花儿同醉。
捞捞湖中月-----傻子之所为
Delete傻人有傻福。
Delete天公爱傻人！
temperament,
ReplyDeleteI'm more of a book buyer. I own the books that I like - even if they are gathering dust most of the time...
It's comforting to know that if I need to refer to them, I have ready access anytime :)
Whenever I'm overseas, when I meet a Malaysian or find a Malaysian restaurant, I'm always just as happy as meeting a fellow Singaporean or finding a Singaporean restaurant.
We are related by blood and marriage. My paternal grandmother is from Muar.
Do you stil visit Muar?
ReplyDeleteMy next destination for Exploring Johore is Muar.
CW,
ReplyDeleteVisited the Muar furniture factories there often when I was purchaser at Montgomery Ward.
We would often start at Penang, travel down to KL, then to Muar, JB, and finally Singapore.
Very enterprising our Malaysian suppliers. Often I would ask the owners how they got started, and they would often tell a similar tale:
Start off by being a tiny parts supplier to the big furniture factories there. Slowly and steadily, they would grow and start competing with their customers to buyers like us!
No wonder its the culture of Chinese not to teach their students the REAL powerful secrets - that's reserved for their first born sons ;)
LOL!
I have M'sian ex-colleagues who travel to and fro via public transport from JB to SG for work.
ReplyDeleteFor me even if there's a choice for cheap housing, I will still opt for convenience and time. I don't want panda eyes or fast aging, lol!
Rainbow lady,
DeleteThat's a decision!
Some don't mind the extra travelling time (treat it as OT?) since their purchasing power increases by earning in Sing dollars but living expenses mostly in Malaysian ringgit ;)
In an alternate universe, if 1 Malaysian ringgit can exchange 3 Sing dollars, I think there would be quite a few Singaporeans willing to traverse over to work ;)
Wait. No need alternate universe.
Some Singaporean families are willing to squeeze into a smaller HDB 3 room in mature estate near the city centre to save on travelling time just like you too!
They do it even though for the same price, they could get a HDB 5 room flat at Woodlands, Yishun, or Punggol ;)
Its always good to have options!
Those people who pay $500+k for 3 room HDB flat in mature estate, seriously...It is good to stay in central areas, i know i know.
DeleteFrugal Daddy,
DeleteIn my life time, provided I don't up lorry too soon, I believe HDB 3 room will break $1 million.
Then the majority of Singaporeans will be like our Indonesian neighbour - "millionaires"!?
Many seeking financial freedom will be moving their goal posts...
The same JB-Singapore debate is played out in Singapore:
Mature HDB estates near city centre = smaller apartments but party after midnight take cab home still reasonable.
Or new towns (euphemism for ulu) = bigger flats but spend more money and time on transport... Must wake up earlier :(
Same, same ;)
See? Financial freedom is bullshit! Want to be rich say so lah!
Use to go Penang a lot. That is a better choice for Chinese Singaporean than JB.
ReplyDeleteDiff people diff choices. Some people's time worth less, so they do not mind exchanging time for money. If ur time is worth more, then staying in JB n work in SG does not make a lot of sense.
SG is fast becoming a place where people only see it as a city to earn money. It is quite sad to see the place where we use to grow up and where we have childhood memories becoming like this.
Money for loyalty?
Frankly I know so many Malaysians chinese my relatives or even my MIL who is already SG citizen who are still very loyal to Msia. How about loyalty to SG for our own Singaporeans or others living in this country and benefited from it. Most will say "I m not a bleeding heart!"
In life, is it really only all for ourselves. Very often, you will realise the more u do only for urself, the lesser u get for urself eventually over long term. Ignoring the citizenship n barrier, let's do good for the place that give u ur fond memories n things that u have!
Maybe who treat u good, treat them good back.
Rolf,
DeleteI consider myself a citizen of the world ;)
Where I'm born, live, and die may not necessarily have be the same place - I'm a descendent of immigrants after all ;)
Ah! The Law of Increasing Returns...
The Bodhisattva path does not appeal to me; I much prefer the personal liberation path of the Arhat ;)
temperament,
ReplyDeleteAfter living and travelling to quite a few countries, the only personal complain I have for Singapore is it's too hot!
I miss the 4 seasons :)
Other than that, what's there to complain? I'm a beneficiary of meritocracy am I not?
This is the biggest attraction of Singapore!
However, when I'm in my golden years, I'm not so sure living in a bustling cosmopolitan city with population of 8 million is my thing...
A smaller 2nd or 3rd tier city/town with a slower pace of life may suit my heart better ;)
Yes, its all me, me, me.
Hey! I'm narcissistic. There!
Hi SMOL
ReplyDeleteEvery Sunday, I open the newspaper reading articles that median household income of $15K will only be enough to live comfortably in Singapore with 1 kid.
Everyone is lamenting not enough, who has enough? The poorer in cash but richer in mind.
B,
DeleteI'm glad I don't buy the English dailies anymore. Now I read Zaobao with mom.
I think some of the weekend financial articles have become like women's magazines...
The whole purpose is to make you feel INADEQUATE.
Conveniently on the same page will be ads to "help" make you slimmer, prettier, taller...
Buy ads from me and I'll throw in "editorial" support?
Comparing 15K with other cosmopolitan cities like Tokyo, Hong Kong, London, New York - I can elicit
some expected response from readers.
But when I compare the same 15K with cities like Surabaya, Penang, Chang Mai, Cebu - well, I can bring out other reactions ;)
If we let others tell us what shoes fit our feet better, well, that sums it up, doesn't it?
We don't trust our own feet???
LOL!