“Bro, did you manage to get a unit at ABC Condominium?”
“No la bro, didn’t.”
“Why not? Hot property la that one!”
“I didn’t know! I thought only gonna launch next month!”
How many times has this happened? You’ve been saving up for property downpayments and you’re ready to buy a good property, but all the new ones just keep getting snapped up before you even know about it!
The problem with the property market is that it is rather fast paced despite all the laments that it is slowing down, and popular properties are selling out even before they get their advertising permits (APDL) or even before they are launched. By the time you hear about it, about 80% of the development is gone.
So how do you keep up with the latest developments? This is actually harder than it sounds, as by the time you see a new development in the newspapers it is usually already quite sold out, and most websites only give you the complete details of projects that are paid for and hence advertised and only have limited units left.
Fortunately, there are actually a few ways to keep up with these projects, and some of which are as follows:
1. Get Intimate with the Developer’s Companies
Don’t get any wrong ideas, it just means that you’ll need to know the developer inside and out. You’ll need to get all their annual reports, because if you read it closely, you will notice that they actually state their future upcoming developments as they need to keep their stakeholders updated – whereby most of the developments are not announced yet.
2. Stalk Facebook property groups
This is a rather fun way to get information on new properties, as there are so many new properties to look out for. There are also of course many groups that requires you to register for the project before they will tell you the name of the property, but it is still a great way to find out about new projects.
3. Follow every developer’s website you can find
The developers will usually start emailing teasers to their database when they are going to launch a new property, asking you to register for it. Oft times, if you contact them or go straight to the site of the new development (if you manage to find it), you will find that they are already taking bookings during this ‘pre-sale’ period.
4. Use Wikimapia
Most of you have heard of Wikipedia before, but how many of you have heard of Wikimapia? This is actually one of the most time consuming ways to search for a new property, but if you have an idea of where you wish to buy a property, zoom in to that area and then start moving the map around and hovering your mouse over the spots of empty land.
If you are diligent enough, you can come up with a list of properties which you can cross check online to see if they are new or whether they already exist. A little bit more research will tell you if it is a soon-to-be-launched project.
5. Use PropertyGuru
There are a couple of websites that keep its readers very much in the loop on the latest hot cakes in the market, and one of them is PropertyGuru. Their priority is to keep their readers and property investors up-to-date on all the latest projects in the market, in all the hottest locations. It is noted that they study newly launched projects in detail, provide detailed reviews and analyses on the project’s location, pricing and future potential.
So now you know how to find the latest projects in the market, get started searching for your next hot buy!
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