I found that a car buyer can bid for the COE and, after being successful, is given 6 months to find a car. The deposit to bid for a COE for a car is $10,000 and the balance of the COE price is payable on the purchase of a car.
If you have $10,000 in cash, you can bid for a COE on your own and benefit from any drop in price. You may be negotiate a better price for a car, if you have a COE and can go to shop around. If you do not have $10,000 in cash, perhaps you should not consider buying a car?
Friday, April 16, 2010
Escalating COE prices
The COE prices has increased sharply due to a reduction in COE available for bidding, and has been exaggerated by greed and fear.
We have to accept that COE prices will be high, due to limited supply and high demand, but we should try to avoid the large fluctuation in prices caused by the current bidding system. The system should be changed to reduce the volatility.
Some people have suggested the "pay as you bid" approach. I think that it has merits. The other change is to make it easier for consumers to bid for COEs directly, instead of relying on the motor dealers to do the bidding. Their profit on the COE increases the cost of ownership.
A better long term strategy is to reduce the demand for private car ownership by improving public transport and the use of taxis.
We have to improve the feeder service to bring commuters from their homes to the MRT stations or bus interchanges. The feeder services should have a waiting time of less than 5 minutes and be affordable (say 40 cetns).
We should also reduce the cost of taxi fares and increase the supply, so that more people can use taxis instead of cars. Each additional taxi on the road can reduce the demand for cars by 5 to 10 times. The cost of taxi fares can come down by reducing the taxis and levies on taxis and by removing unnecessary regulations that add to the cost of operations. If more people uses taxis instead of private cars, there will be less demand for parking spaces.
Tan Kin Lian
We have to accept that COE prices will be high, due to limited supply and high demand, but we should try to avoid the large fluctuation in prices caused by the current bidding system. The system should be changed to reduce the volatility.
Some people have suggested the "pay as you bid" approach. I think that it has merits. The other change is to make it easier for consumers to bid for COEs directly, instead of relying on the motor dealers to do the bidding. Their profit on the COE increases the cost of ownership.
A better long term strategy is to reduce the demand for private car ownership by improving public transport and the use of taxis.
We have to improve the feeder service to bring commuters from their homes to the MRT stations or bus interchanges. The feeder services should have a waiting time of less than 5 minutes and be affordable (say 40 cetns).
We should also reduce the cost of taxi fares and increase the supply, so that more people can use taxis instead of cars. Each additional taxi on the road can reduce the demand for cars by 5 to 10 times. The cost of taxi fares can come down by reducing the taxis and levies on taxis and by removing unnecessary regulations that add to the cost of operations. If more people uses taxis instead of private cars, there will be less demand for parking spaces.
Tan Kin Lian
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Dental health
Recently, I changed my brushing habit. Apart from using the ordinary brush, I spent a minute to use the interdental brush to remove the food particles between the teeth. It was quite easy and is likely to be quite useful.
Like to share your experience on dental health?
Here is a picture of an interdental (christmas tree) brush.
Property market in USA and China
Hi Mr Tan,
Here is an interesting article about the housing crash continuing in US even after all the stimulus.. I suspect that China(Shangai and HK) and eventually Singapore will suffer the same fate. http://patrick.net/housing/crash.html
Here is another interesting article on possible crash of china propery bubble for you to read.
http://www.dailymarkets.com/economy/2010/04/09/jim-chanos-on-the-coming-collapse-of-chinas-property-market/
Here is an interesting article about the housing crash continuing in US even after all the stimulus.. I suspect that China(Shangai and HK) and eventually Singapore will suffer the same fate. http://patrick.net/housing/crash.html
Here is another interesting article on possible crash of china propery bubble for you to read.
http://www.dailymarkets.com/economy/2010/04/09/jim-chanos-on-the-coming-collapse-of-chinas-property-market/
Why Life Insurance Is Not an Investment
Life insurance is one of those things that most of us need but none of us enjoy talking about.
When it does come up in conversations, it’s mostly because someone is complaining about being sold a whole life insurance or variable life insurance that is both expensive and complex, who would be better off with a plain term insurance policy.
http://bucks.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/04/12/why-life-insurance-is-not-an-investment/
My comment
The same message is given in my b ook, Practical Guide on Financial Planning ($12) which is available here. Spend $12 and save a few thousand dollars by avoiding a bad investment.
When it does come up in conversations, it’s mostly because someone is complaining about being sold a whole life insurance or variable life insurance that is both expensive and complex, who would be better off with a plain term insurance policy.
http://bucks.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/04/12/why-life-insurance-is-not-an-investment/
My comment
The same message is given in my b ook, Practical Guide on Financial Planning ($12) which is available here. Spend $12 and save a few thousand dollars by avoiding a bad investment.
Develop thinking skills with puzzles
Singaporeans need to develop the ability to think independent and to solve problems, rather than rely on their bosses for detailed instructions at every step of the way. This confidence and skill can come from a liberal arts education and can also be developed through practical training.
I have created four puzzles (i.e. tangram, shape quiz, einstein quiz and sudoku) that are useful in developing the thinking skills. These puzzles can be downloaded here. Watch these videos to learn about how these puzzles help to develop the thining skills.
You can buy the puzzle books here. Spend some time to learn the thinking skills and develop the confidence through practice. It is also fun and interesting.
Tan Kin Lian
I have created four puzzles (i.e. tangram, shape quiz, einstein quiz and sudoku) that are useful in developing the thinking skills. These puzzles can be downloaded here. Watch these videos to learn about how these puzzles help to develop the thining skills.
You can buy the puzzle books here. Spend some time to learn the thinking skills and develop the confidence through practice. It is also fun and interesting.
Tan Kin Lian
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