About

Welcome to Property Investor Insights. My name is Melvin Gan.

Here I share my thoughts, experiences and insights regarding the Singapore property market.

Who I was before

Immediately after graduating from polytechnic in 1995 , I signed up as a regular in the RSAF – servicing skyhawk fighter jets as part of the maintenance crew for 10 years.

I needed to work to generate income to support my family financially. I was 21 years old then. 

I learnt how to became the sole breadwinner for my family after my mother passed on sometime in 2000.

It was also the same year I got married.

It was a simple ROM ceremony, no traditional dinner was held as I literally had no savings back then.

I was then selected to outstation in France, Cazaux for 2 years to be part of maintenance team for A4 – Skyhawk fighter jets.

That gave me the opportunity to save up more money to apply for a new flat when I came back home after 2 years of deployment. 

More importantly, I also finally have the financial means to hold a traditional wedding dinner for my wife.

 

A happy wife is priceless in a marriage – did you know? 20 years… and counting!

Shifting Outside of My Comfort Zone

I felt that working as a regular – there was going to be a few ceilings to my development and growth.

At the end of the day, I needed to grow myself personally and in terms of income to take care of my family. 

So I decide to join the real estate industry when my 10^th year contract with the military expired.

Making the decision to stop receiving regular pay cheques will definitely force you outside of your comfort zone. 

But if I wanted to build an ideal life for my family – then we have to take small steps towards it by implementing the actions needed.

My Journey Being a Realtor

In my first year as a realtor, I was on the job training following seniors around and attending viewing appointments with them.

I was also encouraged to market a residential condominium ‘Garden Vista’ that had just obtained TOP (Temporary Occupation Permit) in mid 2006.

With my limited experience then, I was only able to secure a few rental deals.

Eventually after 1 year and ongoing marketing efforts, I had my first breakthrough in sales when the property market picked up in 2007,

The property prices back then was soaring to new heights as people were seen buying multiple properties as there were less restrictions back then.

During that period, I helped many clients sell or rent their properties at Garden Vista. 

That initial success at Garden Vista encouraged me to seek out for more clients in other newly-TOP residential projects.

Varsity Park Condo, Botannia, Carabelle and The Sail@Marina Bay were other residential projects that I had previously focused.

Over the past 14 years, I had learned to serve many HDB and private clients at that point of time.

I also helped some of the condominium owners sell their existing HDB flats. 

To date, so many of them are still my clients as I’m still managing their tenancies for some.

My hard work and efforts over the years paid off eventually,

I was able to bag top achievement awards in year 2007,2009, 2010, 2013 and 2014.

Worked With A Property Investor Who Owns 150+ Properties In Singapore

In mid 2014, I took the opportunity to work directly with a true-blue Singaporean property investor as the property cooling measures in 2013 had impacted my business.

The privately-held company managed the reins of a property portfolio that had more than 150 assets in its stable – which included buildings, shophouses, commercial units and residential units.

Over the 4 year period, I shadowed the principal owner – learning the ins and out of managing a Singapore property portfolio that was worth more than hundred of million dollars.

I have witnessed and was heavily involved in:

• challenging buyer-seller negotiations
• crafted tenancy agreements
• liaised with various government agencies
• opened up A&A work tenders worth over $1 million dollars and
• even attended MCST meetings.

You could say – I was a glorified property manager.

But the sheer scale of managing these properties greatly enhanced my knowledge on:

• the Singapore property market
• the intricacies of negotiation and human psychology
• learning the decision-making process of buying investment properties
• understanding a true bonafide investor mindset on a daily basis

However, It was mentally and physically exhausting juggling both my business as a realtor and my job as a property manager.

So I decided to tender my resignation in early 2018 to continue being a full time realtor. 

Since then, I have helped buyers & sellers and landlords from both the HDB and private property segments. 

In 2019 , i had achieved TOP 10% in my present company.

This achievement had not been possible without my clients support and trust given to me throughout these 14 years.

With that, i’m deeply grateful.

I also believed the experience gained from my work years with the investor had benefited me in my real estate business.  

That 4 years working closely with a sharp, successful veteran property investor has left an indelible impression on me.

Thanks to that experience, I have a deep understanding of the property investor mindset.

I have applied some of those insights when dealing and negotiating on behalf of my clients.

To learn more, you can check out the content I share on my FB page & blog.

Any queries – feel free to contact me via the form or drop me a WhatsApp message.

What I do during my free time

In my free time, I am an avid runner.

I realized physical activities like running helps to relax and clear my mind – giving a clarity that allows me to write my thoughts on property.

I had attempted my 1^st half marathon during my years in the military service and ever since then i had been taking part standard chartered marathon and 2XU almost every year.

In the recent 2019 2XU Run, I ran 21km in a period of 2hrs and 8 minutes.

It was not a new personal record.

But it was an achievement I’m proud of because it was an easy and smooth run.

And that’s the experience I hope to bring in when you work with me regarding your property portfolio – an easy and smooth process.

With my 13-year comprehensive experience and insights – my goal is that your property portfolio gets into a better shape when compared to before you met me.

You see, having the knowledge is an important first step, but that is just it.

It is the first step. The implementation of that knowledge is what ultimately allows us to succeed and achieve our goals.

Free yourself from the doubts that might be nagging at you regarding your current property via a no-obligation discussion.