Should You Buy or Rent Your Home in Singapore?

Should You Buy or Rent Your Home in Singapore? It is an age-old question. Should you rent or should you buy? There are advantages to ...


Should You Buy or Rent Your Home in Singapore?

It is an age-old question. Should you rent or should you buy? There are advantages to both and whether these advantages appeal to you or not will largely depend on your lifestyle and financial prudency. So, before you bite the bullet and pay for a hdb or bto in Singapore, read on so you can make an informed decision.


In this guide, we provide a comparison of the advantage of buying as well as renting.

The pros of renting

1. Lighter financial load

Just because everyone is saying you should ballot for an HDB flat, doesn’t mean that you necessarily should. Purchasing property is a huge financial commitment that needs to be well planned. If you don’t see owning property as your own personal goal, then you may be better off just renting. Many make the decision to buy but end up paying for it all their working lives.

Renting will involve less financial hardship and commitment in the short-term. You don’t have to dig around for enough money for a down payment and you’re not tied down to a mortgage for the next 30 years of your life.

When worse comes to worst, you always have your family to fall back on and you can move back home. If you don’t, you can simply downgrade to a smaller home, or even a shareflat.

2. Flexibility to move

Renting gives you the flexibility to move whenever and wherever you want, subjected to your tenancy lease of course. Most Singaporeans live in accommodation that either they or their families own. So, you often hear of complaints from some guy or girl that lives in Jurong West but needs to commute to the financial district for work. Renters need not face this problem. If you’ve got a new job in a new area, you always have the option of packing up and moving to lessen your commute.

3. Fewer maintenance obligations

If you are renting your home, your only obligation is to pay the rent on time. While you are responsible for the general cleanliness of your home (like cleaning up the vomit your friend left on the living room floor after a night of drinking), most things related to the home are not your responsibility. You are usually just responsible for keeping the place in good condition, of course, depending on your rental contract. However, for larger issues such as maintenance and repair, these are the responsibility of the landlord and out of your hands.

The pros of buying

1. Rents are expensive

Although buying a house may require a hefty down payment, rents aren’t the savvy savings idea it used to be. You might be paying as little as $500 for a room in a shared HDB flat in Yishun, but this cost will rise if you rent a whole property. For example, a one-bedroom or studio apartment can set you back $20 to $2500 in decent areas like Jurong East. On the other hand, if you take out a 20-year $300000 mortgage to buy a 4-room HDB flat, you will be paying a fixed amount of $1400 each month, which would be equal to what you’d be paying in rent for a 1-bedroom HDB unit.

2. Generating income

Buying a home can sometimes help to generate income. You can turn your property into a rental and if everything is in your favor, you might just make steady returns on your investment. Also, if you can accord to purchase a home with more bedrooms than what you need, you have the option to rent them out if you are willing to.

Although with the Minimum Occupation Period, you may be limited in what you can do to make money off of your property if it is a HDB, there are still ways to get a bang for your buck. You can sublet rooms in your house as long as you continue to live in the flat. If you’re young and single, it might even be chance to network and expand your friends list.

3. Government grants

Qualifying for a HDB grant alone is enough of an argument to buy a flat. It doesn’t matter if you really need it or not. The government is essentially giving you free money. So why not take advantage of that to get yourself a financial windfall.

4. Investment potential

Property is a tangible asset. It will appreciate in value in the long-term. Further down the road, you might be thinking of selling the property for a profit, or quickly flipping it in a lipstick flip. As Singapore doesn’t have any capital gains tax, any profit you make from the property yours to keep – of course, after deducting legal fees, property tax paid over the years, interest on your mortgage as well as any renovation and maintenance costs, that is.

5. Tax deductables

Your mortgage and property taxes are tax deductible. That means you get more of your money by buying instead of renting, as renting does not come with any tax breaks at all.

6. Inheritance

Any property you own can be inherited by your descendants. As there is no inheritance tax in Singapore, so this means when you die, your flat or apartment can be passed on to your spouse or your children, without them being taxed for it. You can buy a home for your family members if you want to provide for them after your death. However, bear in mind that most HDB flats and residential properties are on a 99-year lease. This means that they will not be passed down your family forever.

7. Customizable

The good thing about owning your own home is that you can do anything you want to it. Want your home to resemble a nightclub? Go ahead. Want to plaster your walls with BigBang wallpaper? Be our guest. There is nothing you cannot do to your own home.

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8 comments

  1. Masing-masing ada pro and cons dia. At the of the day kena kaji semua especially bab financial stability kan.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Itulah, keduanya ada pro and cons.. Bagus je mana-mana pun, kena check kewangan kita jelah sesuai yang mana

      Delete
  2. Beli rumah pada peringkat awal mmg rasa perit tp tu jd hakmilik sendiri..tp tepuk poket tanya selera..hihi

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ada pahit juga kan, tapi at last jadi manis dah :D

      Delete
  3. thanks for sharing this. Memang sebelum beli rumah kena survey dan kaji dulu. tak boleh hentam beli je. Bimbang menyesal kelak

    ReplyDelete
  4. Good sharing Husniey, Kak Sue pun dalam proses nak beli rumah juga nie. Doakan tau agar dimudahkan urusan.. 😉

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Semoga dipermudahkan urusan pembelian kak sue 😊

      Delete

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