Finally the art is here

I almost become a property agent in Malaysia

August 25, 2025

Background is that I had been trying to get a property license in Singapore. Took the night class and I had to pass the RES exam within 2 years. Took paper 1 and 2 which I kept failing paper 1 for four times. Each time you know have to wait few months then retake and fail. Not that I given up but I just exceeded the 2 years time frame. (Super pissed off)

Fast forward to yesterday, we were geo-arbitraging between SG and Johor. Everytime we pass the CIQ, we got approached by all the agent selling property. The way they market the property is like selling fish in the market. Like lelong lelong, cheap cheap must go like that.

Jackie suggested me to go ask the agent if I can work for them like promoting property at a roadshow booth like them and ask about the comm structure etc. So I went in to ask and surprisingly one of the booth accepted and explained some basic info on how to join. I did mention to them that I am a foreigner who is keen to do promotor for condo in Johor.

鬼画符 (ultimate skill a MLM, property and insurance salesman needs to learn)

I was so shocked with the incentive given for promoting these units. Example, you can get an iPad if you close 5 deals within 6 months, car allowance of RM2,088 if you hit 10 deals in a year. Then there are incentive trip and also so voucher for electronic gadgets. It seem very lucrative to me. It is even more so when the business head is young lady with lots of branded stuff on her. She even show her past records of closure in her first year, by leveraging on targeted ad, she is able to ROI very easily on her monthly sales which allows her to be promoted to business head within 3 years. Sound exciting to be honest.

To be honest, the whole day in Johor I was fantansizing about buying a condo or landed in Johor, get a pet dog and just buy ad and play whatsapp, do viewing in Johor close deal and collect cheque. Sound so easy and fun. But after my short internet research, it seems that its very unlikely I going to collect commission like crazy in Johor.

To do real estate work you either becomes an agent which you need to be PR or Malaysian.
As a foreigner you can be a real estate negotiator (REN) but you need to obtain work visa and get proper documentation from authorities.
Even if you do a pure referral to licensed agent in Malaysian, we need to pay 30% on commission earned without expense deduction, also company have to retain 10% retaining tax.
Illegal conduct of real estate work can be fine up to 300k. So....

	Real Estate Agents	Real Estate Negotiators
Definition	Real Estate Agents are fully licensed professionals who have undergone formal training and passed the relevant examinations conducted by BOVAEP.	Real Estate Negotiators work under the supervision of a licensed Real Estate Agent. They do not hold a full estate agent licence.
Process	Step 1. Complete a recognised Diploma or Degree in Estate Agency and have a minimum of two years of practical experience under a licensed real estate firm. Step 2. Apply for a licence to practise as an estate agent.	Step 1. Attend a two-day Negotiator Certification Course (NCC) and register with BOVAEP through their employer (a licensed Real Estate Agent) to qualify as a REN. Step 2. Receive a REN tag with a unique REN number, which allows professional activities.
Roles and Responsibilities	A registered estate agent can run their own real estate agency, hire Real Estate Negotiators, and provide almost all property-related services, including sales, leasing, and property management. Real Estate Agents can sign legal agreements on behalf of their clients and are accountable for all transactions that occur under their agency. They are allowed to act independently or manage a team of negotiators.	Real Estate Negotiators handle regular day-to-day tasks including showing properties, negotiating prices, and managing client relationships. They can’t operate independently. They can’t sign legal agreements or act on their own in official transactions. All their deals must be overseen by the licensed agent or agency they work for.
Legal standing	Real Estate Agents hold an E-licence issued by BOVAEPThey are fully responsible for the compliance of their real estate agency, its negotiators, and property managers.	Real Estate Negotiators don’t have an independent licence but operate under the Real Estate Agent’s licence. Their actions are the responsibility of the licensed agent who supervises them. REN tags serve as their authorisation to work.
Fees and commissions	Licensed agents can set fees for their services within the guidelines provided by BOVAEA. They are also liable for their income and financial management.	Real Estate Negotiators earn commissions from transactions but do not set fees independently.

How to become a Real Estate Agent in Malaysia

Maybe I am just too young too navie.... Don't bother... Just relax..... Stop being entice to work again.

Drawing is a good for you

August 18, 2025

To stay mentally healthy, we need to express ourselves actively. Expression can be in musical form like singing, writing form like blogging or drawing form like doodling.

I love to blog. So I can pen down my thoughts and do reflection at the mean time. Writing as an output also can help you reinforce things you had just learned.

I want to learn drawing. As drawing can potentially help me to get into flow. Getting into flow is important, as we lose track of time. In life we need a passion project that we can suck us into a black hole and forget about time.

Life is already so idling and boring. If not because we have those bullshit job that occupy our time, people will get super unrest and rowdy.

I share my first doodle picture with you using trace function of a free iPad app Sketchbook. It’s fun and it’s created 10mins of flow time for me.

FIRE movement: 10 things that make me happy

August 15, 2025

Live frugal allow faster FIRE

As a saver first and spender latter. I tend to follow the golden rules. Spend below your means and invest the rest. If you let many years of doing the right thing, you can come to a point where your investment income can cover your frugul livestyle. You achieved at least financial independent.

DINK save you 30 years of bullshit job

Marriage, children and mortgage is life's biggest ticket item. If you skip any one of these you save 10 years of working in a job. If you skip all three of them, you basically realise you can't finish spending your money.

I want to die with zero

Therefore, as a D.I.N.K (dual income no kid), I am trying to adopt the new standard of dying with zero as I have no legacy planning. But having been frugal all my life. It is easy to for me to save money as I created my frugal man system. Spending money can be a pain in the ass and always get me into analysis paraylsis.

Then the solution is to, according to Jackie (my partner) to use what was mentioned in FIRE movement book. The 10 things that made you happy.

10 things that made me happy

Coffee
Personal safety, health and wellness
Productive tools that can generate income (solar system, leathertools, carpentry)
Investing into income producing system (Publish book, Affiliate website)
Giving back to community (family, Queenstown Kaki)
Brompton bikes
One bag travel like a nomad
Emotional expression (Singing in a KTV pub)
Blogging and Vlogging
Spend time with myself (space like work station, room coziness decor, gardening)

Damn!!! It is hard to come up with the 10 things specifically. I can only think of 10 areas where I want to put in more money.

Having this list help me in the sense that when I had spare money and thinking if I should spend or save it up. As long as it falls under these 10 items, I should give priority to spend on them :)

Anyway, if you also have things that you think I will enjoy in, please throw them in the comment so that I can get an idea of what I should be spending my money on :)

8 steps to research a company stock to invest in

August 08, 2025

Last post I was sharing how to invest in real estate. I still kept trying to understand why people are still buying property in 2025. The rental yield is not that great after considering cost of borrowing. This asset is hard to sell (illiquid) even when there is capital appreciation.

So far base on my calculation, buying into REIT in Singapore which yield ~5% dividend and 3% capital gain per annumn seem like a better deal compare to buying real estate. Less headache compare to managing tenant, pay management fee, maintainance of building, lawyer and agent fee, stamp duty and property tax bla bla bla.....

So in 2025, I am still hovering around stock and REIT investing at the moment. As interest rate for FD is coming down to less than 2% currently (Jul 2025), it make sense to invest into Singapore stock for dividend payout. Singapore blue chip has a track record of being able to fight inflation and dividend is stable over the year. I can fight inflation and also get some pocket money once every other months.

But choosing which stock to buy can be a headache. Take for example; out of all the local banks in Singapore, which one has better performance. For that usually I use Moomoo app free analytis tools. But I still want to know some fundamental how to assess a company fair value.

No. I do not want to use Warran Buffet method. Too complex and too technical. Book is always so thick and boring. Also as he already retire, his method can be used as a reference but no longer using his method like a bible. Although the intrinic value thingie is evergreen knowledge but I just can't find anyone who can explain it simplier to me.

Yes. I need something simplier. My past job required me to write credit paper for SME business owner to obtain bank loans and facilities. We have to put up a paper for the credit team to review and approve.

There is a systematic way to assess a company background, corporate structure, cash flow analysis, debt ratio, financial analysis and financial spreading for their business trade cycle. It is fun and very systematic to do and follow. The purpose is to obtain some financial ratios YoY and providing justification for potential risk.

I love my job!!!

So..... Is there a systematic way to assess company for the stock purchase? I found online there is a video that provide 8 steps to assess a company whether is it good enough for investing.

Summarize of this video below, I will also provide useful links to find all these informations!!! Thanks me later :)

Business background

Business section 10k mentioned in the video is US specific, provides a detailed overview of the company’s operations, products, customers, markets, and competitive environment; for Singapore companies, similar disclosures can be found in their annual reports on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) security listing > under the Company Information tab.

Management Discussion and Analysis (MD&A)

SGX Listing Rules require Singapore listed companies to provide an MD&A section where management discusses the business performance, risks, future outlook, and other non-financial factors impacting the company. This disclosure helps investors and stakeholders gain qualitative insights beyond financial statements. (SGinvestors.io) > financial statements

Financial statement analysis

The main point of financial statement analysis is to evaluate a company’s performance or value through a company’s balance sheet, income statement, or statement of cash flows. By using a number of techniques, such as horizontal, vertical, or ratio analysis, investors may develop a more nuanced picture of a company’s financial profile. (SGX > financial statement)

Company presentation slide

CEO presentation and earning call. This are usually distributed in AGM and seminar talk where CEO will go over the slide and comment on the earning reports. (Tipsrank.com > earning call & company decks)

Competitor analysis

By conducting a competitive market analysis you’ll begin to understand where the company you’re analyzing ranks among its competitors. This will help you comprehend its advantages and how well it’s serving its customers. (Tipsrank.com > more > similar stocks)

Determine fair value

Fair value is a broad measure of an asset's intrinsic worth. It requires determining the right price between two parties depending on their interests, risk factors, and future goals for the asset. (Simplywall.st > Share Price vs Fair Value)

Identify drivers for the stock

Look at the graph for big movements like a huge drop or huge increase. Identify the date and google the news related to understand what drive the price with such big movement. (try using AI prompts and AI research the result etc using Deepseek)

Wait for a buying opportunity

Once you like the stock you pick and determined the fair value. Add in safety margin, determine your buy price, take profit and stop loss ratio. As a price alert on your broker platform. When the price hit you get alert on your phone go in an buy the dip!!! For that I am using Moomoo.

Conclusion

I play my stock on UOB Kay Hian if I want to have it on CDP linked which I usually do > 3 years kind of long term investing. For short term speculatiion I use Moomoo as I am able to trade fractional shares, lower fee for frequent buying and selling. Usually I buy the stock dip during market downturn. At least 10% discounting and take profit once the stock shoot up to normal again.

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