We had steak and wine for dinner tonight as a last hurrah before the Phase 2A (Heightened Alert) restrictions kick in tomorrow. And we are having the 2nd vaccine jab in the afternoon as well so we are preparing to go down for a few days. We are expecting more severe side effects this time around and will just be resting at home as much as we can. Not looking forward to it but at least we start the 2 weeks countdown to the time when we will be considered fully vaccinated. We are hoping for a relaxation of the restrictions around the National Day public holiday for the fully vaccinated but are otherwise mentally preparing ourselves to weather the storm until mid Aug.
As I prepare to raise more cash funds within these 3 months for the purchase completion of my resale condo, I have also been thinking about how much CPF-OA to use for the downpayment and for the monthly housing loan instalment payment. Buying a private property at such a high price involves a large downpayment and I don’t have sufficient cash on hand. I have been asked whether it’s better for me to wait for the property market to fall before making a resale condo purchase. Probably true if I have the luxury of having a big enough place to house my family without having to pay rent. But I don’t and renting is not a long term solution to my family’s need for a home.
Photo by JAMES WESTMAN on Pexels.com
I could rent somewhere cheaper or find a way to squeeze my family into my parents-in-law’s house in the meantime to time the property market. But I refuse to compromise on my family’s lifestyle and rather spend the money to maintain it. I have also been asked whether I considered buying newer condos with well-maintained facilities. I’m not touching any new or recent condo launches at the current price level and I don’t think the 3 bedroom apartments are big enough to house my family. I can make do with older facilities and renovate a resale condo to refresh the apartment. But I can’t create more space and change the layout so these are important considerations for me.
Anyway, I plan to wipe out most of my S$120k worth of CPF-OA for the private property purchase to reduce my cash outlay at the start. But keep a small portion of it leftover as a building block. For my monthly housing loan repayments, I plan to pay about S$1k from my CPF-OA each month and keep the few hundred dollars of contributions remaining to stack on top of that building block. The interest accrued on CPF-OA used for private property is a difficult problem to manage. Overusing my CPF-OA means eating into my sale cash proceeds if I ever decide to sell the apartment. Because I have to pay back both the CPF-OA used and interest accrued. I saw that happen to my wife when selling our previous private property. Unless the price has appreciated significantly, chances are I will be left with little sale cash proceeds.