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I Sold My Home and Moving Closer to the City

Gallivanter — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 01:06:53 +0000

Yup, after 4 years of living in my own abode in Shah Alam, which I bought in 2004, I have finally sold it off to make a decent profit of 37%. I have until 1 December 2011 to find a new home. We have been house hunting, which can be fun but also tiring, looking at places around the PJ area.

Houses in PJ aren’t cheap to come by, no less than 500K, and around that price, you can a run-down old leasehold-expiring home of under 60 years. With crime rate going up as development continues, moving to a condo is the only right thing to do at this point. It will hopefully be the last condo purchase before I acquire a landed, gated, guarded property down the line, which would easily cost over RM1 million!

Petaling Jaya, Damansara, Bangsar, Mont Kiara are places that we’re looking at but I’m open to the idea of renting at these areas for a year so we don’t rush into buying a property for the sake of it.

Finally, after living in Shah Alam since 1990, more than 21 years, I am finally moving away to my “second home”, Petaling Jaya area at least, a place where I spent most of my life studying in college, working, partying, shopping…the works! I am looking forward to the move with excitement and bated breath.

2 Things to Know Before You Decide to Live On Your Own

Gallivanter — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 16:06:27 +0000

I only started staying on my own in 2002, when I was 25 years old. Yeah, you can say that I was a little late, but at that time, I never had a reason to leave home. It was only when a major relationship came knocking, that I decided to move out.

After breaking up, I moved back in, but immediately saved enough moolah to acquire a property of my own. A new relationship in the form of Mel came calling coupled with a new career, the decision to move out indefinitely became much easier.

Living on Your Own

Here are some stuff for you to consider before you decide to move out:

Budget
Can you afford to move out? There are many commitments like rent, utilities, bills, car payments etc to consider, and even smaller unexpected expenses that can creep up every month. Groceries, cleaning supplies, toiletries, food – well, just about everything. Prepare a budget document to determine your cash flow.

Buy or Rent?
I’ve touched on this subject before. I believe in the beginning, rent first as it’ll give you a good indication to test the waters. Sure, owning a home is beneficial, but it comes with a lot of costs too – taxes, maintenance, improvement expenses. Rent first.

If Women’s Magazines were Written by Men

Gallivanter — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 16:06:16 +0000

If Women's Magazines were Written by Men

Puri Aiyu Thunderstorm Show

Gallivanter — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 16:06:36 +0000

Mel recorded this intimidating daily event that has beset the Klang Valley over the last 2 weeks – THUNDERSTORM. The advantage of living in a high rise building is you get to see this wonder, and the disadvantage is, you get to see this wonder!

[youtube]eth0yaqE8_4[/youtube]

Advantages of Owning a Condo

Gallivanter — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 16:06:08 +0000

Although you pay a maintenance fee (in my case RM170 per month), you don’t have to worry about maintaining the outdoor. No lawn to mow, no drains to clean, pretty much nothing to worry about.

The prime advantage, would certainly be security, especially if you live alone. Living in a condo gives you a greater peace of mind than in a house. There are also amenities that you could use, i.e. swimming pool, gym, BBQ area to name a few.

Also, with land being scarce in prime locations, many new housing development takes place far away from the city. Condominiums, to a certain extent, allows you to live within the vicinity of the city, at a lower cost than a landed property.