More looking to refinance home loans with lower interest rates
More people are looking to refinance their home loans in the past few months with lower interest rates, but not without difficulties. Key benchmark interest rates have been dropping since governments around the world embarked on their rate cutting campaign a few months ago to revive the slumping economy. As a result, the Singapore Interbank … Read more
Testing time for Commercial-Mortgage Backed Securities refinancing
The global credit crunch and increasing competition for funding spell tough times ahead for Commercial-Mortgage Backed Securities (CMBS) in Singapore. Fitch Ratings says such securities will face difficulties when it comes to refinancing this year. This is due in part to growing competition for funding from various real estate and casino developments in Singapore. However, … Read more
Bargain hunting starts in tepid property market
Four recent sub-sales have been transacted at 20% below launch prices THE hunting season seems have begun in the property market, with at least four buyers making a killing. A UBS report says that according to URA data, four recent sub-sales have been transacted at 20 per cent below launch prices. Two units at Ardmore … Read more
SMEs feel pinch of rising rents
Some petition landlords for reductions; others seek help over disputes SOARING rents for some industrial properties are becoming a hot issue among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with flashpoints opening up on a couple of fronts. Worried tenants at Toa Payoh Industrial Estate have petitioned their landlord, Mapletree Investments, to reduce their rents by 20 … Read more
Sands puts eggs in S’pore basket, will open on time
LVS says it has sufficient cash and will scrimp and save on costs elsewhere Las Vegas Sands (LVS) needs US$4 billion to complete the Marina Bay Sands (MBS) and says reassuringly that it currently has US$6.2 billion in borrowings and liquidity. Speaking at an investor conference in the US, LVS president and COO William Weidner … Read more
Banks should pass on lower interest rates: Case
I REFER to the letters, ‘Bank unfair to existing home loan clients’ by Mr Khor Eng Hao (Dec 31), and ‘Home loans: No interest savings despite falling market rates’ by Mr Toh Hai Joo on Monday. The Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) agrees with Mr Khor and Mr Toh that banks should pass on the … Read more
Punggol the next big thing?
PM Lee’s vision of water town has made once-sleepy town hot WHEN business development manager Roy Lim moved into Punggol five years ago, he wondered if he had made a big mistake. The infrastructure was lacking and the amenities were inadequate. As a result, Punggol was often viewed as the poorer cousin to the up-and-coming, … Read more
Bank’s rationale behind home loan rates
I REFER to Mr Toh Hai Joo’s letter on Monday, ‘Home loans: No interest savings despite falling market rates’. We thank Mr Toh for his feedback and would like to clarify that under a Variable Rate Home Loan Package, interest rates are generally tiered over the first two to three years with the interest rate … Read more
