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Made and still making money from S-REITs.

Saturday, September 29, 2012

In an environment of very low interest rates, S-REITs are logical beneficiaries and in more ways than one. Regular readers would have heard this many times already. Readers who are new to my blog might want to read some of my older blog posts on S-REITs and why they are expected to continue performing well.

When we invest in S-REITs, it is with a primary aim of receiving regular and meaningful income. I have also said that any capital gains would be a bonus.

The outperformance of S-REITs' unit prices has led some holders to wonder if they should divest. Well, as market wisdom goes, taking profit is never wrong. However, I would ask that these holders consider if they have better places to park their money. Remember, money will go to where it is treated best.

In economics, we learn about supply and demand and how prices are affected by the relationship between the two. S-REITs are seeing their unit prices rising strongly because more investors are now putting their money in S-REITs.

In the last two years, I have had readers from Malaysia, Hong Kong, Europe and the USA writing to me. The early movers into S-REITs are sitting on some very nice capital gains and receiving regular distributions with yields as high as 10+% in some cases. What's more? Their investments have seen forex gains as the Singapore Dollar continues to strengthen against their home currencies!

I kid you not when I tell you that these readers are all very much richer than I am and have made much more money by being in S-REITs although they came in somewhat later. I am happy with how well things have turned out for their investments in S-REITs.


When Pat (a cboxer in Bully the Bear) told me that I have a pool of funds, I told him I know well that what I have is merely a puddle. Having self-knowledge and knowing what I have achieved is humble, I am not fixated by how much I have versus how much others have. Of course, I am only human and it used to bother me when I was younger.

Instead, just like starting a business, we should have a model for wealth creation. Being fixated with how much wealth we have versus how much others have does nothing to grow our wealth.

For someone who is investing in the stock market for income, first, have a clear goal and that, to me, should be to create meaningful passive income streams which will fully replace our earned income. Pick out likely candidates and do the due diligence to decide on the ones which are likely to help us achieve our goals.

Next, have discipline. Stay the course. Yes, stick to the plan. If circumstances have not changed, why deviate from a good plan? However, what if they did change? Then, ask why was our plan a good plan. If the reasons for the plan being good no longer exist, it is time for a change, isn't it?

Maybank Kim Eng, 28 Sep 12:

Year-to-date, we have seen many pension, insurance and income funds switching into REITs to pursue higher returns for the sheer fact that the yield-curve is almost flat.

 This is further aggravated by the almost "zero-bound yields" which meant that yields have no more room to fall, erasing any prospects of fixed income capital gains for investors. In the quest for returns, many such funds had to turn to slightly riskier asset classes such as REITs for stable recurring distributions.

 We believe that with the latest round of QE3 Infinity, ECB’s unlimited bond-purchase program and BoJ’s yen-asset-purchase program, coupled with the low interest rate environment and a yield-spread of 440 bps over the 10-year government bond with low earnings risk, would warrant further yield compression of 56-73bps, translating to 11%-14% upside for the S-REITs sector.

Link: here.

Now, is investing in S-REITs still a good plan?

Related posts:
1. Investing in REITs: A flawed strategy?
2. Staying positive on S-REITs.
3. Mr. Market is always right.

Ad for charity: Help disadvantaged kids with MILK.
It costs us nothing. Just follow this link:
LIKE Marigold's facebook and help a child.

Tea with AK71: Ipoh Hor Fun (Holland Village).

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Some time ago, I blogged about a higher purpose in having passive income in our lives which, to me, is to be able to spend more quality time with family as we spend less time at work. Of course, being able to spend money more freely is a nice feeling too.

Since moving back to stay with my family, I have been spending more time with my family, especially my mother. We would go and exercise in the gym and attend yoga classes together. We talk a lot more too, which can be good and bad (and this is the honest truth).

Today, we were supposed to go to the gym but I asked if she would like to skip gym and go for Ipoh Hor Fun in Holland Village instead. Since both of us are naturally lazy, I didn't have to do any persuading for her to agree to it.


Ipoh Hor Fun with vegetable, fried wanton and char siew. $4.50.

Ipoh Hor Fun with vegetable, fried wanton and char siew in curry. $4.50.

Dumpling soup. $5.00.

Inexpensive. :)

Burp.

Related post:
Passive income: A higher purpose.

Marco Polo Marine: Accumulation mode.

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

On 19 June, I blogged about Marco Polo Marine's persistent insider buying activity. I initiated a long position and I have been updating that blog post in the comments section. The latest update happened yesterday.

Today, I added to my long position as its share price retraced to 34c a share.



Technically, we see the Bollinger Bands narrowing on the weekly chart. Expecting a big move in share price in the coming weeks. With the MACD forming higher lows on the weekly chart, momentum is improving as sentiments towards the company turned positive. The OBV bears this out as it shows accumulation taking place over the longer term.

Immediate support is at 33.5c while immediate resistance is at 35.5c a share.

Some might wonder why I look at the weekly chart here instead of the daily chart. I do this because I am interested in holding on to my investment in Marco Polo Marine for a longer period of time and the weekly chart shows me the longer term probabilities.

I would buy more on further weakness in its share price, everything remaining constant.

Related post:
Marco Polo Marine: Persistent insider buying.

Tea with AK71: Home made sandwich!

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

My last blog post on what I had for lunch was a cause of concern for some readers. I have to say that I don't eat instant noodles all the time and I apologise if I have given anyone the wrong impression. I am happy to note, however, that so many readers of ASSI are into healthy eating.

So, what am I having today for lunch? A home made sandwich.



Ingredients:
1. Wholemeal bread
2. Tuna flakes
3. Lettuce
4. Cheese

Yummy!



This is probably the least expensive and yummiest wholemeal bread I have come across. Available at all Cold Storage and Shop N Save supermarkets. It is their house brand.

NTUC Fairprice's house brand wholemeal bread is cheaper, if I remember correctly, but it is a bit dry and not as tasty. Of course, taste is a very personal thing.

Related post:
Breakfast and lunch for 96c.

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Find out how you could enjoy Introductory Korean I course at $39.90 instead of $180.

Follow this link to: Hankuk Centre.

Help disadvantaged kids with MILK.

Monday, September 24, 2012

I remember how when I was in primary school, we were made to drink a packet of milk a week by the school. My favourite was the green color one: banana flavour! I was very fortunate. There are those who are less so.

Marigold HL Milk believes that milk shouldn't be a luxury but a necessity for every child to grow into a healthy adult. The underprivileged shouldn't be undernourished.

Marigold HL MILK has committed to donating 10,000 packs of milk to MILK (Mainly I Love Kids) Fund which reaches out to disadvantaged children and youth in Singapore and overseas.


You can help! How?

Simply LIKE Marigold's facebook and Marigold will donate an additional pack of milk for every LIKE received!

Follow this link:
LIKE Marigold's facebook and help a child.

Thank you!


About MILK (Mainly I Love Kids) Fund:
Registered in June 2004, MILK reaches out to disadvantaged children and youth, both in Singapore and overseas, in the hope of developing them into contributing members of society. These children and youth come from troubled or low-income families and impoverished communities, and are often caught in a downward cycle that their circumstances destine them to. MILK supports them in their education, care and guidance, vocational and livelihood development, or other special needs so as to help them break out of the disadvantaged circumstances they were born into.

Ever thought of being an entrepreneur?

More and more, people are starting online businesses. In Singapore, where a small shop space in a popular mall could cost more than $20,000 a month to rent, having a virtual shop makes sense.




Follow a few successful online shop owners and see their entrepreneurial journey. See how they carve out a niche in a market where fickle minded consumers are an everyday staple.

Find out also how they use technology to give them a competitive edge.

This could just inspire you to take that first step.
Read: Own an online shop!

1 for 1 lunch deals at The Esplanade are back!
Enjoy free lunchtime parking!
Terms and conditions apply.

Find out more here at:
1 for 1 lunch deals.


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