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Singapore millennials look to property for financial security
The latest survey by Manulife found that 68 percent of Singapore millennials plan to purchase property.
Despite having the lowest satisfaction with rental yields in Asia, Singapore millennials (those aged between 25 and 34) favour investing in property to achieve financial security, reported the Business Times, citing the Manulife Investor Sentiment Index (Manulife ISI) survey.
The survey found that 68 percent of Singapore millennials plan to purchase a property, with two out of five doing so to generate rental income.
However, only 58 percent are satisfied with rental yields, down from an average of 78 percent in Asia. Indonesia and the Philippines recorded the highest satisfaction levels in respect to rental yields at 97 percent and 92 percent respectively.
With this, Manulife advises Singapore millennials banking on rental income to look for other alternative investments.
“Overall in the last decade or so we have seen yields falling across the board, be it rental, dividend or bond yields, and the market on the whole has experienced higher volatility,” said Wendy Lim, CEO of Manulife Asset Management.
“Against this backdrop, investors should build a diversified portfolio across asset classes instead of depending on one asset class or property alone to achieve their retirement goals.”
Conducted between September and October 2016, the latest Manulife ISI survey involved 500 online interviews in markets including Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan and China.
Survey respondents involved middle-class to affluent investors, who are the primary decision makers of financial matters within their household and presently own investment products.
Romesh Navaratnarajah, Senior Editor at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact him about this or other stories, email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg
