Buyer's Time and Landloard's Time

     Currently, it is harder to buy a new property due to tightening loan regulation. Even commercial property sales are affected. This foresight and actions taken by Bank Negara should be applaused because the steps help to stabilize property market especially in Johor Bahru.

     The hardest property segment being hit especially in Johor Bahru is high rise building such as service apartment. I got a new pamphlet from a developer, originally the smallest unit was launched at RM480,000, two years later the same unit was sold for RM380,000, now the same unit is sell for RM320,000. I don't bother to pay any visit to the showroom. So I do not know how this new price will affect the monthly maintenance fee. But the funny thing is there are still a lot of new development of service apartment in Johor Bahru. Those new developments may be already under planning and received approval for development before the property market is confirmed on the downside.

     It is still okey if you buy the apartment for your own stay but it is not good strategy for rental. This also means it is buyers market now in Johor Bahru. However, property price for landed property segment is still strong in Johor Bahru. Even though developers have difficulty to sell some of their units, those who already bought the property should be happy about it. The scenario help to stabilized the rental market. The population growth in Johor Bahru is getting stronger. A few years ago, traffic jam only happened during time to go to work or back from work. Now, it is a bad timing if you try to go to Johor Bahru on Saturday. Some major roads are always under traffic jam on Saturday.

     The good news is economy activities in Johor Bahru is still strong. In fact, there are a few more new investment in Johor Bahru which can offer high salary for those who qualify. This definitely can offset the slowing down in oil and gas sector. Oh I forgot, this sector is still small in Johor Bahru which focused in Pengerang, Kota Tinggi. Most of contractors who got the benefits are from Klang valley. In addition, Oil and Gas sector does not employ as many people as in manufacturing sector.

     Some manufacturers who depend on old products and technology cannot sustain in Malaysia especially with the raising cost of manpower.If they fail to automate their process and reduce manpower, the operational cost cannot be sustained in the long run. Hence, a few companies already shutting down their operation in Johor Bahru. But, new manufacturers in Johor Bahru are value added manufacturers and use a lot of process automation. Thus, minimum salary requirement is not a problem for these new manufacturers. In fact, a few more companies are in discussion to invest more than RM1 billion each of them in Johor Bahru.

     If this scenario can be sustained, job market in Johor Bahru will continuously be stabilized and improved. Hence, the property market can also be maintained. Since developers have to slow down in their property development in Johor Bahru while job market is sustainable, this also mean property rental market is also sustainable.

New House Renovation

Updated on 22-12-2015

There are many cases where house renovation was abandon or over budget or completed not as the owner wanted. Since this is my first time to do a major renovation, I would like to list out my procedure to do so and avoid the above problems.

1. Survey your dream renovation
    - make sure practical usage rather than glamour
    - several layers of renovations: most essential or minimum, must do now to avoid lost in future, safety, convenienc, estatic the last
    - must also consider future needs such as increasing number of children, children getting mature, you getting old, or your parents may live with you
    - my final renovation plan:

    - originally, there was on a bathroom at the back, it is splitted into two bathrooms (Bath 1 & 2) and enlarged.
    - the new room will have its own bathroom
    - dedicated bathroom for each room will ensure privacy to may children when they grow up. It can also ensure to minimize squabbles in the future. It is more expensive and difficult to split the bathroom in the future.
    - the side balcony will be enlarged so that the new room can have its own access door. In addition, the enlarged balcony can protect the ground floor doors during rain. The enlarged balcony can also ensure the family hall to become bigger when I have a high number of guests.

2. Select your contractor: minimum meet 5 contractors from different background
    - local and farther away
    - successful vs small business
    - single vs complete team
    - time, how strong their financial, current and pass projects, pictures, site visit etc.
    - it is alright if some of the contractors refuse to give any quotation. The project might be too big for the contractors. But, you can still explore ideas from them what and how to do the renovation.
    - most of the ideas I collected different contractors. Some of the ideas surfaced in my mind during the conversation with them or after discussion with them.

The first action was to build the foundation

3. Agreement
    - this is the part where most people are lazy and lead them to trouble in the future
    - al quran advise us to write down when dealing a business. Thus verbal agreement is not enough. Handshakings are not enough. The agreement must be written!
    - write down all you want to have or renovate
    - ask contractor to write how are they going to do and progress schedule
    - put forward a propose budget
    - merge two together
    - sign it
    - it is something I cannot show in public. But it is alright in private discussion.

4. Payment by progress
    - agree first on what to be completed in specific time and fund
    - agree first what to inspect
    - next payment only all work progress were done

Demolish the kitchen and store room so that the dinning hall is bigger

5. Payment
    - no cash
    - NEVER PAY ALL THE MONEY AT ONCE!!
    - payment must be made progressively as agreed in 3.
    - all electronically for tracebility, account
    - use more than a single account if you use personal saving account

3rd day work in progress

6. Monitor the progress
    - is an art, time, you can also learn something from the activity
    - cannot trust 100% everything is ok
    - watch , ask and learn a lot

4th day work in progress

5th day work in progress

I will continue update the work in progress in the future.

Property Investment for Long Term Reward

My tenant at Bandar Seri Alam house ended the tenancy last month after extended the rent for a month. The rent rate was RM880. The house was bought in 1997 for RM80,000. The country was about to face economy crash in 1998. The interest loan was 13.9%! As a result my monthly loan was RM800. I could only rent the house for RM350 in the first few years. After about 5 years, I managed to rent the house for RM400. This also means I sponsored my tenant every month.

As time goes by, the rental value increases. My income also increases steadily. So in 2012, I managed to make a full settlement payment for about RM28,000. There were times during economy crashed, I cannot make the monthly payment for 6 months! But there was nothing the bank can do since there were about a quarter of houses in the surrounding area were down under. Thus repossess the houses and auction those houses will not give much capital back to the bank. The best course of action by the bank was to advice me to do my best to settle the late overdue. I managed to do so in 1999 after about 6 months of my discussion with the bank manager.

After improving my financial, I bought my second house in year 2000. It was a strategic decision based on my long term goal. And I successfully used my second house to achieve the goal in the year 2013.

Last year,  my wife want to sell my Bandar Seri Alam house for RM160,000 (read My First Property for Sale). Instead, I preferred to rent the house. Previously the house was rented for RM600. After a new tenant rented the house for RM800, my wife willing to hold the house. The following year (after 12 months contract expire), the rent automatically became RM880. My tenant paid timely every month. And they also informed two months in advance before they want to extend and end the contract. Thus, I have almost two months time to look for a new tenant.

Early this month, I managed to get a tenant from a company who want to relocate her executives in the house. But, I have to upgrade the house from half furnish to fully furnish. In return the company is willing to pay the rent for RM1,600. It was a good deal as long as the company will stay in the house for two years. I need at least a year to recoup my investment to buy furniture. So, the following year will be my profit.

As usual, I repaint, do some repairs and upgrade some of the available facilities before a new tenant stay in the house. This is to ensure the house is well maintain. If my new tenant continuously stay in my house for the same rent fee, how much do you think the house worth!?

It is always profitable to invest for a long term in property.

Security Versus Luxury II

Some people prefer to live in high rise building with many facilities and security. They thought the 24 hours security plus strict floor accessibility and stand by guards are sufficient to ensure they are safe. On the contrary, high rise building even with security guards are still exposed to higher probability for unwanted incidents. I don't really realize this until I made some simple past incidents.

There were many cases where people were robbed while living in an apartment. The most recent case was a woman was robbed in a lift in Setapak Condominium. The condo has a 24 hours security and close circuit TV. Yet, nothing can prevent the robbery. After almost a week, there is still no news that the perpetrators were caught. (http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2015/10/24/Crime-Woman-Attack-elevator/)

Some bad accidents also happened in high rise building which are hard to control. It could be due to young age, unsound mental health, too tired, and etc.. Some of the news I gather here should be sufficient for you to think carefully. Today, your physical and mental health may be at optimum. How about the next 10, 20 or 30 years?

A man in Malaysia fell eight floors from a condominium and not only survived after crashing through the carpark roof, but used his mobile phone to call his father.
The advertising worker had just bruises on his legs after falling from a condominium block in Bagan Ajam in Butterworth, Penang on Sunday evening.
http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/man-falls-8-floors-from-penang-condo-but-survives-mostly-unscathed-calls-dad-on-phone

Foreign student survives fall from condo window

June 24, 2015, Wednesday

KUCHING: A foreign university student survived a fall from a window of her condominium unit yesterday onto the ledge of the floor below.
The victim, a 22-year-old from Mauritius, was found by a female friend sprawled on the ledge of the fifth floor of the condominium complex at Jalan Petanak around 11.45am after apparently falling out the window of her unit located one floor above.

Read more: http://www.theborneopost.com/2015/06/24/foreign-student-survives-fall-from-condo-window/#ixzz3pbTUHDf9

Read more: http://www.theborneopost.com/2015/06/24/foreign-student-survives-fall-from-condo-window/#ixzz3pbTMDe3c

Air stewardess plunges to death from Bukit Jalil condo 

KUALA LUMPUR: An air stewardess plunged to her death from the fourth floor of a condominium block in Bandar Bukit Jalil here.
In the Monday incident, Cheras OCPD Asst Comm Chong Kok Sin said the fully clothed 29-year-old woman was found sprawled face down on the ground at about 6.30pm.
"There were signs of critical injury on her head and body. She was wearing a black shirt and black skirt when her body was found.
"Initial investigations revealed that she had fallen through a window on the fourth floor," he explained.
http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2015/08/25/Stewardess-falls-from-condo/

Somali man falls to his death at condominium

Published: 20 August 2015 8:33 AM

A Somali man died after falling from his 7th floor unit at Kondominium Villa Putra, Jalan Tun Ismail, Kuala Lumpur, about 5pm yesterday.
Dang Wangi police chief, ACP Zainol Samah said Hussein Mohamed Rabi, 44, died at the scene due to the injuries sustained in the fall.

- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/citynews/greater-kl/article/somali-man-falls-to-his-death-at-condominium/somali-man-falls-to-his-death-at-condominium#sthash.oKENHm06.dpuf

New mother falls to her death from 16th-floor condo

KUALA LUMPUR: A new mother fell 16-floors to her death at her Bangsar South condominium, just 10-days after she gave birth to her first child.
Police said it is believed the 30-year-old accountant handed over her crying child over to her maid for feeding at about 10am Saturday, and fell from the balcony of her home while the maid and child were in another room.
She was found in a pool of blood by security guards, on the ground floor. She was declared dead at the scene. Police have ruled the incident a sudden death.

 http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2015/10/25/Mother-falls-from-condo-baby/

Somali man falls to his death at condominium

A Somali man died after falling from his 7th floor unit at Kondominium Villa Putra, Jalan Tun Ismail, Kuala Lumpur, about 5pm yesterday.
Dang Wangi police chief, ACP Zainol Samah said Hussein Mohamed Rabi, 44, died at the scene due to the injuries sustained in the fall.
- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/citynews/greater-kl/article/somali-man-falls-to-his-death-at-condominium/somali-man-falls-to-his-death-at-condominium#sthash.SfbThA35.dpuf

 A Somali man died after falling from his 7th floor unit at Kondominium Villa Putra, Jalan Tun Ismail, Kuala Lumpur, about 5pm yesterday.

Dang Wangi police chief, ACP Zainol Samah said Hussein Mohamed Rabi, 44, died at the scene due to the injuries sustained in the fall.

A Somali man died after falling from his 7th floor unit at Kondominium Villa Putra, Jalan Tun Ismail, Kuala Lumpur, about 5pm yesterday.
Dang Wangi police chief, ACP Zainol Samah said Hussein Mohamed Rabi, 44, died at the scene due to the injuries sustained in the fall.
- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/citynews/greater-kl/article/somali-man-falls-to-his-death-at-condominium/somali-man-falls-to-his-death-at-condominium#sthash.SfbThA35.dpuf

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/citynews/greater-kl/article/somali-man-falls-to-his-death-at-condominium/somali-man-falls-to-his-death-at-condominium

The high probability for bad incidents to happen is one of the main reasons for me to decide not to invest in any high rise building investment (where both have security). And since I live in Johor Bahru, lands are still plenty; it is more strategic to invest in landed property than in high rise property. 

Another consideration you have to think is a landed property development must be completed in 2 years while a high rise property development must be completed in 3 or more years. This also means you have to pay more interest to the bank. Although some developers love to use DIBS scheme, you still lost opportunity for next investment since you income per expenditure is less while the buildings are still under development.

Of course if you live in Kuala Lumpur and Penang Island, you have less choice to invest in landed property. But, investing in landed property in those areas will give you much higher return in the long run. But the most important thing is landed property has less probability for unwanted accidents compared to high rise building. Some of you may disagree, but that is the reality.

The more important question is what is your strategy to ensure you can maintain the bank loan repayment. Anyway, landed property investment should be your next major milestone if you have not done any yet in Kuala Lumpur, Penang and close surrounding area. For Johor Bahru, opportunity in landed property investment is still plenty. Again, what is your best strategy to achieve it!?

Somali man falls to his death at condominium

Published: 20 August 2015 8:33 AM

- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/citynews/greater-kl/article/somali-man-falls-to-his-death-at-condominium/somali-man-falls-to-his-death-at-condominium#sthash.SfbThA35.dpuf

Security Versus Luxury

Some people are willing to spend money to buy expensive cars. For them, it is among the top most priority in life. Most of the time, they justify themselves it is for their comfort. But in reality, it is more for show off than a necessity. This is also the habit most of young work force in Malaysia have including my relatives. They never think that they have put the wrong priority in their dreams.

Some people are more concern to buy a secured home: gated and guarded. Security is always a priority. In some countries, their culture is always emphasis on public and individual safety first before any action. With the global and country's economies are getting slower next year, the impact is already felt this year. Criminals are getting more desperate to gain big. 20 years ago, a crime which involve a human life is a rarity. Nowadays, it is a common incident in Malaysia.

http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2015/10/09/Kidnapped-boy-reunited-with-family-in-Kajang/

I am not saying life in Malaysia is getting worst. As the number of population increasing rapidly every year, and there is no serious effort from the government to reduce illegal immigrants, the number of crimes involve human tragedy cannot be reduced. So, the best course of action is to take action on our own. My car was broke in two years ago. Almost the same months, my neighbor house was robbed while it was still about 10pm! There were also some other incidents beyond my memory. These made me determined to buy a gated guarded house.

End of last month, I finally got the keys to my new home. A week after that, one of my neighbors' house was broken into while people inside were sleeping. The neighbor was also my colleague at work. Fortunately, he only lost a MyVi and hand phones. The following week, my neighbor next door lost a car which was parked outside this house. I am glad that I already got the keys of my new house. I hope I can renovate the house as soon as possible and move in ASAP.

You mentality determine your reality!

Activities After Received the Keys

I got my new house's keys about three weeks ago. Finally, the waiting is over. It is a big relief knowing that there was no delay at all to complete the house. There is a big difference waiting for a house to complete compared to a shop to complete. One thing for sure, there are more tasks to do after a house is completed compared to a shop especially if you plan to stay in the house.

I already settled all my financial obligation to the developer such as interest on any late payment by my bank. It was only RM153! I really appreciate my lawyers and bankers who have done the fantastic job. My current house was bought for about RM144,300 in the year 2000. But, I have to pay more than RM2,000 for my interest on late payment penalty. I also paid the SAJ and TNB deposit and registration before I can get my house's key. Since my new house is a gated guarded development, I have to pay RM756 for a six months advance of RM126 per month fee.

I did not get any free maintenance fee for any month because the maintenance management is already under the community i.e. the developer is no longer taking care the maintenance management. I congratulate the current Joint Management Body for their superb job to take care the area. I cannot find any stray dog in the area. Children freely move around especially to the club house in the afternoon to take a swim. And the guards are really strict to their tasks that outsiders have to follow specific procedure to enter, regular inspection around the gated area, and always watchful if everything is OK with the house's owner especially if there are visitors to the house.

So, what is next? Currently, I am still waiting for the utilities services especially SAJ and TNB to be connected to my house. But, the most important thing to do is the house inspection for defect claims. I have to make sure to list out any unsatisfied work by the contractor to be remedy in 30 days. Once the repair being done, and I am satisfy there are no other defect I want to claim, only then I can do the house renovation. If the renovation is done before any defect claim completion, the defect cannot be claim under the warranty. I have submitted the defect claim on Wednesday last week 7 October 2015. And today, when I inspected the house with my brother, the house is under repair work.

I am quite lucky, internally, there are not much defect. But, there are many cracks on the outside walls. After these repair works, I still need to do inspection on the electricity and water system in the house. If there is any defect, I can ask for repair.

Meanwhile, I should not wait for the defect claim to be completed. I already started to invite renovation contractors to visit my house. I briefed them separately what are the modification my wife and I want to do. What is my master plan for the renovation. And what is the minimum renovation that I want to do if my budget for the master plan is not enough. They should provide the the floor plan drawing and quotation for further discussion. This time around, the renovation is quite extensive. We have to be careful when do any renovation especially a major renovation. This issue is a big topic itself.

I am so anxious to complete the renovation ASAP because since the time I got the keys, two of my neighbors were robbed! That is one of the possibilities you have to face when you live in a non-guarded and non-gated house. And, starting this month, I have to pay full monthly installment. Once my family move in the new house, I need to do some minor renovation on the existing house before I can rent the house. Once I get a tenant, I have less burden to pay the loan.

Anyway, since I already paid the maintenance fee, I should not wait to get any benefit from it. So, I always bring my family to enjoy the facilities especially the swimming pool! We also enjoy the view from the balcony. The surrounding area especially the North and East are about two meters lower than my house. This also means the wind is always breezing through my house. I am planning to capitalize on these advantages.

Staff Sport Inter Department Universiti Teknologi Malaysia 2015

          I have not play chess seriously for the past two years. This year, I participated in the tournament to release some pressure from work, study, research, investment and consultation projects. This chess tournament was held in conjunction with UTM sport day for staffs. Various sports tournaments were held between different faculties, and support departments. For chess tournament, it was held on 12 September 2015.


          My main mission was to ensure my faculty will get the gold medal in this annual tournament. It is a team event. However, the matches were done individually using Swiss format in 5 rounds. After 5 rounds, the top four players from each faculty or department will be accumulated to become the team points.

Round 1
---------- Table 11
Black: PHB/Muhammad Arif Abdul Aziz
1. e4         g6
2. d4         Nf6
3. Nc3      Bg7
4. f4         0-0   
5. Nf3      c6         Actual Austrian attack in a Pirc Defense is Bishop is located at c4 while Black pawn at c7 and d6. But, with Black's c6, White needed to modify the strategy.
6. Bd3      d5    
7. e5         Ng4?   clueless target and a huge mistake.
8. h3         Nh6
9. Be3       Nf5?
10. Bf2      b6      Black wasted two moves while White has improved his Bishop position.
11. Qd2     Ba6    It is too late to exchange the King's Bishop.
12. Bxf5    gxf5   White is breaking Black's pawn structure while misplacing Black Queen Bishop.

What is White next best move?

13. g4!         e6
14. 0-0-0     Qe7    Now, white can focus on his King's side target while misplacing Black Queen Bishop.
15. Rhg1    f6??    Unnecessarily, Black is weakening further his King's side.
16. gxf5      exf5    Double pawn is bad for endgame while exposed g file is a huge problem.
17. Bh4      Qe6    Black realized he cannot defend the f pawn.
18. exf6      Rxf6
19. Rde1!   Qd7   White conquers both open files. While Black last move is not the best defense.
20. Bxf6     c5
21. Rg7+    Qxg7   It is over.
22. Bxg7     Kxg7
23. Qg2+    Kf6
24. Nxd5+  Kf7
25. Re7+    Kf8
26. Qg7++

1-0
Black's Queen Rook and Knight failed to participate in the battle. Black also failed to formulate a better strategy to counter White's central attack.

Round 2
---------- Table 2
White: CAN/Baharudin Mastari
I was nervous in the first round since I have not play any tournament for quite some time. Now, I am more comfortable in this round.

1. d4           Nf6
2. Nc3        d5        It is a weird opening to combine d4 with Nc3. So, I have to play d5 to prevent e4.
3. g3           g6
4. Nf3        Bg7
5. Bg5        Ne4     A weird opening needs a weird or rare response. Hence, I played this move to disrupt any White's normal plan.
6. Nxe4??  dxe4   It is already a blunder by White.
7. Nh4       Bxd4   Free pawn!
8. Be3       Bxb2   Another free pawn with the risk where the opponent has more active Bishop.

How White can give a better fight?

White can give a better fight with 9. Qxd8+  Kxd8  10. Rd1+ Ke8
9. Rb1       Bc3+   If the Bishop goes back to g7, Black may lost a tempo. So, it is better to disrupt White's flow with possibility to trade the opponent more active Bishop.
10. Bd2     Bxd2   This exchange does not introduce any weakness to a1 to h8 diagonal since the Queens will be also traded.
11. Qxd2   Qxd2+
12. Kxd2

What is the best plan for Black to improve his position?

12. ____    g5!     I paused for a longer thinking time since now the game is entering endgame phase (almost no middle game!). This move disrupts the Knight movement and reduce her coverage.
13. Ng2     0-0!   Still needed to quickly activate the Rook
14. Rb4?    f5      White must activated his remaining pieces first. Black used White flawed strategy to conquer the middle squares while supporting g5 and e4 pawns.
15. e3        Nc6  It is important to activate all the pieces.
16. Rc4?   Be6
17. Ra4     Ne5  Two more Black pieces participating in the battle, while White still depend on the same pieces.
18. Ne1  

          After move 18th, Black minor pieces were beautifully located at the central squares while being protected by central pawns uncontested. Both Black Rooks can be easily activated. The only active White piece is his misplaced Queen Rook. So, how the attack should proceed?

18. ___      c5!   Black successfully conquering all the central squares while the only active White piece is the Queen Rook which is also restricted!
19. Be2     Rfd8+ Now conquering the open file.
20. Kc3     a6!    Preparing to attack the misplaced Rook while activating the Queen Rook.
21. a3??    b5     A blunder. Anyway, White position is hopeless. 4 active pieces versus 1, and strong central control by Black pawns give no chance at all to White to escape from defeat!
22. Ra5     Nc6!
23. Rxb5   axb5
24. Bxb5? Ra3+
25. Kb2     Ra2+
26. Kc1     Nb4
27. Kb1?   Rd1++ White one last mistake is punished by the checkmate...in an endgame!

0-1
Conclusion, White battle plan was disrupted in the early opening. As a result, two pawns were easily lost. White was also clueless what was going on and failed to identify the endgame phase. Black can easily win the endgame since all his pieces participated in the battle while White depended on one or two active pieces at a time.

Round 3
---------- Table 3
Black:  FKE/Hj Muhammad Arif Abd Rahim
I was relief to meet my colleague from the same department. I can relax a bit since my objective is to win gold medal for the department team.

1. e4          e5
2. Nf3       d6
3. d4         exd4
4. Nd4      Be7
5. Bc4      Nf6
6. Nc3      Bg4?     Why? It will only loose a tempo.
7. f3         Bh5
8. Be3      0-0
9. Qd2      a6
10. 0-0-0  c5??  My friend looked tired from the previous round intense game. 
11. Nf5     Nc6
12. Nd6             It is a free pawn with a strategic Knight located at the center. Now it is time to offer a draw!

A win or lost is neither good or bad for us since both of us are from the same faculty. The best is a draw!
1/2 - 1/2

Round 4
---------- Table 3
White:  CIC/Nazeri Sharif
This guy is one of the members of UTM staff chess team. During this round, all four players from my faculty is at top four tables. I only needed a draw to help my faculty to secure a gold.

1. e4             e5
2. Nf3          Nc6
3. Bc4          Bc5
4. d3             h6
5. Nc3          Nf6
6. Be3          Bxe3   This is a positional error since it gave White a solid center. Bb6 is better.
7. fxe3         d6
8. Qd2         0-0
9. 0-0           Qe7?   Played without sufficient thinking.
10. Nd5       Qd8
11. Qe1        Be6
12. Nxf6+?  Qxf6   This reduced the tension at the center and freed Black for a counter play.
13. Nh4       Qg5
14. Nf3        Qe7
15. Qg3?     Bxc4!  Black did not miss the chance to weaken the White central control.
16. dxc4      Qe6!
17. b3          Ne7
18. Nh4       f5!       Finally, the pressure is neutralized!
19. exf5       Nxf5
20. Nxf5      Rxf5

Rooks from both players cannot penetrate their opponent's rank. So, the only logical conclusion is to offer a draw.1/2 - 1/2

Round 5
---------- Table 3
Black:  FSS/Kiflan Jimpi
I had almost no pressure in this round. All top three tables were dominated by my faculty colleagues. But, if I can win this round, I can help reduce the pressure to my team members.

1. e4           e5
2. Nf3        Nc6
3. Bb5        a6
4. Ba4        h6?  How to capitalize this weakness?
5. c3          b5
6. Bb3       Nf6
7. 0-0        d6
8. Re1       Rb8
9. d4          exd4
10. cxd4    Be7
11. Nc3     0-0     White has a strong central control.
12. e5!?    dxe5   I decided to break the center since Black is still disorganized. While White has a very strong central pressure by King's Bishop. Thus, Black King's Rook cannot contest the e-file. I had also considered the possibility to enter the endgame.
13. dxe5   Qxd1
14. Rxd1  Nh5    White is better organized in the endgame. And, the e5 pawn is menacing the central board and disconnected the Black pieces. Black should consider to retreat the Knight.
15. Nd5    Bd8
16. h3       g5?
17. g4!      Ng7
18. Be3     Kh8    With every move, White has successfully maximize the activity of his pieces while reducing Black pieces to passivity.
19. Rac1   Bb7

How the attack should proceed?

20. Nf6!    Bxf6  Forced.
21. exf6    Ne8    White's active Knight is traded with the Black's passive Bishop. But now, the pawn at f6 can strangle the King. While the pawn at g4 can support the pawn at f6!
22. Bc5!   Nd6     The pressure is too strong and Black is willing to loose a pawn in order to trade active Bishop with a passive Knight.
23. Bxd6  cxd6
24. Rxd6  Na5
25. Bd1!   Nc6     White realized the Black's King side is totally paralyzed. The Bishop is needed to attack the Queen side.
26. a4       Nd8     If Ne6 26. Rd7 will follow.
27. Ne5    Ne6

 How White should finish off the attack?

28. Bb3!   Bc8     The Bishop is back to exert pressure on the King side.
29. Bxe6! fxe6? axb5 first should be better. But Black took the Bishop almost without thinking. The moment he touched the pawn, he realized his blunder. But, it is too late. Now, Black position is totally collapsed. Anyway, 29. __ Bxe6 30. Rc7 Kg8 31. Rxe6  fxe6  32. Rg7+ Kh8 33. Ng6++.
30. Ng6+  Kg8
31. Nxf8   Kxf8
32. Rd8+  Kf7
33. Rdc8  Rxc8
34. Rxc8  Kf6

1-0
Black failed to find useful purpose of his Queen's Rook at all!

-----------------------------------------------
The result was FKE maintain her dominant in Chess in UTM for another year. No. 1 to 4 and 6 were won by my faculty members.The women team from FKE also maintain her dominant in Chess in UTM for another year after successfully defend the title.

Questions:
1. How can we use chess playing skills and knowledge to invest in a property?
2. What is the similar psychological values in both fields which can be harnessed for property investment?
3. Do you prefer to play as an individual or a team? Why?

Note:
1. Official UTM chess club website is at http://kecas.fke.utm.my/
2. For board display, I used http://www.chess.com/analysis-board-editor

Book Smart versus Street Smart - misconception in learning

     I was sad when I watch at #SayaZAHRA video. Her thinking process shows that there is something wrong in her generation thinking process. Worst, she is a degree holder! Her expectation shows there is a huge gap living in university than the real working world. Many people taught without education they cannot go farther in their life. While many people have misconception with higher qualification they are surely can live in luxury and enjoy their life. There are also a lot of misconception in property investment due to the same thinking process. Although I mentioned these in my previous articles, some people never learn. So, let me begin many misconception in our life by starting from life in education environment.

1. Misconception in learning
    a) Education is just a stepping stone.

• Many people thought higher qualification can guarantee prosperous life, high salary, easy life, live in luxury et etc.
• In vice versa, many people said without education (degree or above) one has no place to grow, difficult to become rich, face a hard life et etc.
• The truth is education is just a stepping stone for us to begin at a higher level, has better option where to start, what field to choose et. etc. But what is more important is what are we going to do once we work than where we begin. Many people don't realize that what they do as they begin their working life was actually being shaped while they were learning in universities...including the bad habits.
• There are many successful people who began their life without higher qualification.
• There are also many educated people (degree or above) who end up in their life with just mediocre achievement.
• You need to meet more people and read more to find out the reality.
• In some countries, there are entrepreneurship programs where people skip their degree and straight away concentrate on the business and technology which they can grow on their own.

     b) Wrong habits will re-enforce wrong philosophy

• Many students learn new knowledge and skills in university. But, they don't realize they also cultivate bad habits during their life in universities.
• These are some bad examples which lead to bad habits when they work:

          i. Many students simply copy other people works and claim they are theirs.
         ii. They don't really understand what they have copied or do.
        iii. Never bother what happen in campus, not involve in community activities in universities
         iv. Never bother to investigate their lecturers' advice especially job opportunities
          v.  Never bother to spend time to learn something outside the classroom or book 

• They actually seen these bad habits on their friends but they are successful in getting good grades. The common mantra: if I do like all other people done, I can also be successful like them. 
• No. Copycats are easily outdated. Why should your employers pay expensively for something out of touch!? Are you going to pay expensively for something you can easily get?
• I should learn the subjects because it is easy to understand and score good grades. 
• No. Easy subjects are for routine works with low pay. I must learn something difficult but widely in demand so that i will stay relevant to industry and get high pay. If your work in industry is easy and can be done by a lot of other people, then you are in trouble.
• The accumulation of wrong habits will shape wrong philosophy in your life, continuously create wrong habits in life, and solving wrong problems. So you don't gain much while the world is getting more complicated.

      c) Glamorous subject cannot provide security in future

• This is a very common thought in students when they choose elective subjects: easy to score, easy going lecturer, easy going content. You should read above why this is bad.
• When I studied in USA, I took two elective subjects that were never taken by Malaysian students before in my university. I end up using a lot of them in my work today.
• Some people prefer to take glamorous course. They like the attention they thought they will get. No.
• Glamour does not last long. It is easily being killed. You should learn practical course and high job demand in present and future.
• Many my former students ignore my advice to focus on electronic design work. Some of them work in production. Now even Intel can easily terminate people who work in the production.
• Students always afraid to take design courses. They are difficult, time consuming and difficult to get A grade. But these subjects can guarantee you to get good pay as a fresh worker.
• Most of my undergraduate students who work in semiconductor industry in Penang will get pay between RM3,000++ to RM3,500++. But, I have a few undergraduate students who got starting salary at RM4,000++ in Johor Bahru! And they are still looking for new recruits.

     d) I can spend time at the last minute to understanding all the learning material

• A street smart know that the moment they face is always the one and only time they have to understand the subject matter being discussed. They cannot wait to bring home the material, read later, and make decision at the last minute. If they don't understand, they will immediately ask. If there are too many related things they do not understand, they will discuss face to face with the speaker privately or read related books.
• Many people lost their money because of this.
• Quick Rich Scheme depends on your greediness and confusion to make money out of you.
• Swindler depends on your confusion to make money out of you.

      e) Learning from the lecture is not enough

• Many students never do extra work when they learn any subject. Some subjects are crucial to do more than what being told in class.
• Once you work, definitely you will have a hard life to identify relevant extra tasks to gain more knowledge, skills and income.
• The more you know the detail in the subject, the more skillful you will be and the more employers want to hire you or give you a lucrative raise.
• Without this skills, some degree holder will end up involve in direct selling. Why do you bother want to do what people without qualification can do? The rosy picture being told upon you by those people are not necessarily true or relevant to you. Many my former students were trapped in this life situation.

     f) Experience is the best teacher

• You can learn from successful people especially the one without higher qualification. Their struggle should be your inspiration.
• You can speed up your learning process by attending short courses. But, when you are young and energetic, you may also learn on your own or asking around.
• People get higher pay because they have more experience. Doing the same thing or the same technique in your learning years cannot help you to accumulate new experience.
• Getting involve in community work can give you the opportunity to see how and what you learn is being used in real life.

     g) Living in your real life is the best university

• Many thought all they need to know to be a successful worker can be learned in classes and provided in university. 
• No. University can only provide minimum knowledge to prepare you for various industry. University cannot focus only on one industry. It is up to you to be specialized in which industry and job functions. 
• Most of the time, it is the thinking process being taught. A correct thinking process can guarantee you future success. 
• Only 20% what you learn is immediately useful while the rest is up to you to explore your abilities.
• The first 5 years in your working life is more critical than 5 years in college. The faster you learn to adopt good philosophy and work ethics, the faster you can grow. Most of these can only be really understood and realize when you live in working world.
• Sometimes you don't immediately get monetary gain from what you learn, but if you focus on your work, the rewards will reach you when you have reach the minimum knowledge and skills threshold.
• Street smart guy are attending this university all their working life. They grow and get more income as fast as they can learn and improve themselves.

 Next I will talk about misconception in life and wealth accumulation.

Developed versus Under Development Property

     My first house was bought in May 1997 after it was launched. It is a medium low cost and 2 storey house. At that time, my salary was small as a fresh engineer. I just worked in the industry for almost two years when I seriously started looking for a house. I did not have much money allocated for the down payment. There was also supply shortage which drive the house prices up. The ratio between house price and salary was as bad as in 2013. To make the situation worst, the loan interest was very high. 9% loan was common. The only good news was job vacancies were abundant. You can demand higher salary if you were willing to do job hopping.  Since my salary was still below average, I had to choose among various medium low cost houses. It was a bad mistake.

Renovated last year with new poach, walls and gate

     By the time my loan was approved, the house was about to be completed. I had only to pay for 2 months interest under development. The house allocated to me was not a strategic one. It was located almost at the edge of the whole phases of development. The master plan of the whole development in the next 10 years looked attractive. But, I was not familiar with the concept of developer's track record and reputation. The worst mistake I  made was failure to anticipate national economy health. After struggling for 16 years, it was fully paid. Now the rent rate is very attractive and all the income is mine. :)

The poach can only fit a car

My second house was bought in July 2000 after the house was completed. It is a medium cost and 1 1/2 storey house. There were surplus of new houses in the market since the market still in the process to recover from 1998 crash. Many completed new houses were not sold. This is an advantage to me since this gave me the luxury to choose the right house for me. My main priority was the house for my living must be very close to my work location. It looked a bit expensive at the time. But my employer has a strong economy effect to surrounding area even for the next 30 years. This greatly justify my house selection. Buying a completed property has the advantages to look closely the quality of the house, checking the surrounding area, and gives better picture of the future situation.  By the time my loan was approved and the fund was paid to the developer, I had only have to pay for a month interest.

     My third house was purchased in February 2013 before the phase was launched. SPA was signed in October. My original plan was to buy a shop office at the area. While surveying the area with my wife, the salesgirl insists us to take a look at the pre-launch houses. It was the last phase of the entire development. It is a medium cost, cluster and 2 storey house. There was no exact show house for the phase. Thus, I have to rely on the show houses of previous phases. In addition, developer's reputation and track records were the benchmarks. Currently, the house is almost finished its development as shown in the pictures.

The architecture is the latest state of the art

At the center right is the traffic light of the main road to UTM (right) or Pekan Nenas (left)

     I choose the house because its close proximity to my work place, gated guarded and there is a swimming pool! My extra bonus was it is a corner house. So there are a lot of extra land. As you aging, land and security will become more important. The time taken to go to UTM is almost the same as from my current house. But the housing development area is only about half of my current house is located. This is fine for me because I don't like crowded area to live in. The monthly maintenance service is a lot cheaper than living in a service apartment.

 

 The club house with a swimming pool and gymnasium on the left door

 Children pool on the right

The pool size is sufficient for relaxation

     To my delight, early this year I learned an adjacent housing development has finally started the 2nd link highway exit construction. The rumors and promises were around for the past five years, but no one believed it anymore. Many buyers cancelled their purchased houses due to late development including my friends. The developer have to return the deposit to the buyer. So, my new house will only be two traffic lights away from the highway exit. It seems my estimation that my new house will worth more than a million upon completion is coming true!

The 2nd link highway exit close to my new house

     There are many differences this time. I have to pay monthly interest during the entire development period. The interest amount is increasing depending on how many development was done, and claim done to my bank loan. During 1st six months, the amount was below RM500. Then it increased to be less than RM1000. Now, it is below RM1,500. The amount should stay the same until the completion of the house in September this year. Normally, the interest amount is slightly greater than 50% of monthly loan payment.

     I hope my experience is useful for your future purchase plans.

HAPPY INVESTING!

Next Financial Crisis on the Wing

     Have you read any news about Greece lately? It was the repetition from the previous crisis started by Cyprus which infected Greece. However, this time the financial problem for Greece is worst than before. The EU want Greece people become absolute slaves. To make it worst, those in power in EU will make this as the reason why every country in EU must give absolute power to central government in EU to dictate their counties' budget. This also mean an absolute power to the central EU. You should guess who are controlling the central machinery in EU. After Greece, there will be another EU country to default in the financial loan obligation. In other words, this is just the tip of the iceberg.

     Anyway, you may say this is just EU problem. But, in my previous articles, I did mention any problem faced by a western country, Malaysia will feel the heat in the next 6 months. After Cyprus crisis, I bought a few properties to hedge against these kind of financial problem. So, this is just a repetition of the same problem. However, you should caution this time to hedge the economy problem by simply buying any property. This time around, the Malaysia's economy already loaded with many debts. You should ponder what type of property and where the property is that immune from the next financial crisis. You still have 5 months ++ to take any action.

     Beside investing in property, there are many other things you can do either increasing your income or reducing your expenses. Either way, it will reward you immediately. Once the storm subsides you can easily invest your excess income. In order words, savers today can easily grab opportunity in the future.

HAPPY PLANNING!

Misconception in Investment

These are some of the bad investment mindset which a lot of people continuously fall into. These can lead them into trouble in a few years. Or they can silently fall into trouble by falling behind the inflation.

1. Saving is a good practice.

    You cannot outrun national and personal inflation by simply saved your income. Saving is a good habit to prevent yourself from indulging in excessive spending, good as a preparation for future investment, and preparation for any emergency needs. No matter what is your income, depending on your saving a lone is not a good idea in the long run. And once in a while, national and personal inflation may jump twice, trice or quadruple depending on related national and personal issues in the year.

    Of course, you should not invest all your saving. There must be a certain portion for saving and investment. The ratio may depend on your experience. But, you may learn from other successful people of their financial planning habits. 

2. I should only invest when my income has reach a certain level of comfort.

    Investment is not for rich people only. In fact, if you feel your income is always not sufficient to cover your monthly expenditure, you should keep saving and invest consistent portion of your income. The more discipline you are in saving and investment at a specific portion, the faster you can grow your additional income and hence solving you financial problem.   

3. Investment is a long term return.

    Some people are worried that they can only get the benefit from the investment only after they have reach an old age.There are many duration of maturity in an investment. In property investment, some of the property can easily mature (profit more than 100% from purchase price) upon the building completion which is between two to three years from signing the sales and purchase agreement. I have met several investors who get a high return (more than 50%) while the buildings were still in development. But this is a very dangerous practice since you may be labeled as a speculator rather than a property investor.

4. My short term investment must give me a high return.
    This is the mantra for a speculator. And this kind of people especially inexperience ones can easily fall into a Quick Rich Scheme!

5. Business is always a good investment for everybody.

    Siti Khadijah invested in the Prophet Muhammad by believing in his ability to give a fair trade while having a profit at the same time. She was 40's while he was 20's. While the Prophet successfully made a good trade in Syam, she was not working in the trade at all. So, everybody has their own suitable role. Siti Khadijah was good in evaluating other people character based on the information she got from other people. 

    Sometimes, the nature of the business is simply not suitable for you to venture in. And you may find easier investment to venture by properly evaluating the nature of the investment. There is always at least one investment which is good for you. You should follow your passion.

6. I can simply know whether it is a good investment by following the crowd especially my close friends, and relatives.

    Herd mentality always make society misery. Educated and creative people can always foresee something beyond current situation.Sometimes, creative people learn based on their life experience rather than informal education centers. Many people fall into Quick Rich Scheme because they have herd mentality. By believing certain prominent names have join the investment, they follow suit. They don't bother to check for a proof. This is a recipe for a disaster. Geneva Gold, Swiss Cash, Pak Man Telo are some of the schemes which have cheated billions of RM from herd mentality people.

Sometimes, the crowd is right. But, you are too late to join the game. However, you can still join the game by changing the strategy and tactics. There is no permanent strategy and tactics in a property investment. Everybody has changes and needs in their lives. The trick is to find the best strategy and tactics for the right moment.

7. I can trust the investment sales person 100%!

    The sales person is the very first person you should always doubt. If the sales person claim how good is the investment, you should always ask for a proof. In property development, the sales person is always confined with the information related to the company's development. If the development is medium to low size, the economy growth in the area is always depending on other areas of development. Sometimes, what a sales person claim may be true to a certain extend such as current economy condition. But, you should always ask the "what if" scenarios especially the worst case scenarios.

    For example, sometimes developers promise to build a flyover to an highway in the developed area. But, how much assurance can the developers give? There were a few cases where the developers fail to develop a flyover even though the development area is almost finished.

8. Unknown business model can always give me a high return.

    Only a master can produce a new property investment model. A novice can easily fall into a new model trap! There are many factors to consider when formulating a new investment model. Most of the time, these are Quick Rich Scheme or an outright cheating scheme. However, if you can think logically, you can easily spot it is a scheme to cheat you. This is especially true if they ask for your money without any guaranteed which is recognized by the government.

9. Gold is always a good investment.

    Gold is only good to hedge your wealth. It is not a mean to grow your wealth. Unless you are willing to trade golds which means you are a businessman rather than an investor, you are welcome to buy gold. You should always ask for physical gold. A certificate gold even it is from a bank is not a 100% assurance. A paper gold can easily wipe out from the market. And you can easily turn poorer.

    The best thing about property investment, you always have the paper proof assurance and law protection either in the form of Sales and Purchase agreement, Land title, or loan agreement. Sometimes you are being protected as a group. You can check whether the deposit to be paid is true by checking various licenses related to the development, company past and current activities, and the others.

10. An investment which can give me a permanent passive income without doing any work is good for me.

     Everybody must work to earn something. Even the richest man in the world is still working. Therefore, it does not make sense you can generate income without doing any work! What you see a successful investor does not need to work is actually, the way they do the work is different than your regular permanent working hours. Sometimes, they are actually working just by casually talking to you. They may be look like traveling for fun, but they are actually evaluating an investment in the area.

11. I have a lot of money to invest. I do not need to ask anybody or friend about the next investment to do especially my friend who has no money!

    It never hurt to ask. You may have to bring you pride down a little. Sometime, people don't want to entertain your questions because they are too busy. Sometimes, the person you ask have personal problem that need immediate attention. But, one thing for sure, knowledgable friends are a commodity. They are rare. You should treasure them by asking them!

12. A high return investment is a headache. I should avoid it.

    There is always an opportunity for a high return of investment if you believe it is out there for you. The moment you believed it is not possible for you, then it will never be even though the opportunity is always in front of your eyes. Most of the time, people lack the sufficient knowledge and experience to identify a problem as an opportunity. Sometime, the investment we do may give us only a small return. But as time goes on, the return may grow especially if you choose a strategic location.

13. Investment is always about money, using money and monetary return.
     No, no, and no! Investment is actually about psychology. Investment is about creativity. And investment can give you more than just money.

14. I should always spend my bonus to reward myself.
    Bonus should be treated as a normal income. But, it is better to treat is as a good opportunity to increase your saving and investment portion which is only once a year! Some companies prefer to give a national average salary but very high bonuses. It is a method to assist and force you to save your money. Once it is in your hand, you must be disciplined enough to follow item 2. Some successful novice  investors will use the reverse ratio of saving, investment and spend for the bonus compared to a normal salary.

15. The first priority in investment is to make money.
    No! You can make me jump from the chair by saying this! The first priority in ANY investment is to ensure you will not lost any money. You must avoid being cheated. You must avoid believing facts which cannot be substantiated especially if the facts are from the sellers. You must avoid using your feelings when making the judgement to invest.

16. I can trust my relative in an investment to be done.
     Your relatives can be your worst enemy if you trust them blindly. Worst, your relatives may give an honest opinion based on what they knew, but you are the one who shoulder the burden from any bad investment. You should do you own homework, research and evaluation before you do any investment. Most people who want to cheat other people are very talented in giving excuses, telling bad luck they had to gain mercy, use religion to show they can be trusted, and tonnes of other tricks in their sleeves.

If you have realized any misconception in any investment especially property investment, please share your experience by writing them in the comments.

Double Check Your Sources When Listening to Rumours

Many people easily believe in rumors. They don't bother to check or double check their sources. Most of them just accept what they heard or learn as how things work. Never they thought they need to think the logic behind what they heard. As a result, they don't know the actual situation or the root cause of the issue. And they implement the wrong plan or action. This is what happening to many of Malay population in Malaysia especially in Johor Bahru.

There were rumors Sultan of Johor bought state lands cheaply and sold them to property developers. There were rumors Sultan of Johor use his position to easily do business in Malaysia. Many actions done by the Sultan just gave harm to the Johorean than true benefits. Johoreans do not gain any financial benefit? Sultan actions just gave hard time to the Johor administration. Are the allegations true?

If you would like to find the truth, below are your opportunity to learn the truth.

1. Sultan of Johor speaks his mind
    http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2015/03/18/Sultan-of-Johor-speaks-his-mind-Ruler-gives-a-special-no-holds-barred-interview-on-a-wide-range-of-t/
   

and related issues:

2. Wawancara khas bersama Sultan Ibrahim Ibni Sultan Iskandar: SAYA BUKAN PENIAGA
    http://www.bharian.com.my/node/42517?m=1

Is he an opportunist? He is a lot better than that! He is incomparable to those who use politician just to get cheap land and than sell at higher price to a developer.

Here why I said so:

From both articles, it is important that those in positions to be business minded and always do things that give benefits to the society in the long run. In order to be a success, you must think differently than the rest of the crowd. Team work is important. Each team member must be an expert in their own field.

DO YOU HAVE THE SUCCESSFUL TRAITS?

Is it also the same factor why JDT soccer team is the best in Malaysia today!?

Opportunity Always Available for Those Who Look for It

People always talk about negative news about the economy especially with the coming of GST implementation on 1st April 2015. There are continuous reports of bad property market all over the country. The property market is very slow especially in Klang valley and Penang for condo and apartment market. There are less new development launch and the sales rates are slower compared to last year. There are also report of condo and apartment being auction.

However, there is always a good place to invest if you look for it. Then, you have to readjust your strategy to fit your requirement. There are still a huge potential in IRDA: more entertainment centers being launch and to be developed in IRDA, Pengerang Oil and Gas hub go on as planned. 1st tanker to dock at Pengerang has been reported. Potential workforce growth is getting stronger in IRDA and Pengerang RAPID as reported in

Bright outlook for oil and gas in Pengerang

"The number of job vacancies in the state was increasing yearly, with 129,921 positions offered last year compared to 128,721 positions in 2013 and 105,993 in 2012, he said.

“In the next five years, we will be creating another 100,000 jobs, with half of them coming from the oil and gas sector.""

You should read until the end of the article:

"Vidyanathan added that with the rapid development and investments coming into the state, Johor was expected to overtake Selangor and Penang soon."

Think of the growth rate. It is bigger than the Selangor and Penang economy size. Thus, there are huge potential in the southern state.


But, we must always cautious in our investment. Although a report mention condo and apartment market is sustainable in Johor Bahru, I would prefer the safer market segment which is landed property. And among the landed property, I would focus on gated guarded houses and shop lots. There are good reasons for my choices.