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工程技术，地产投资，信仰家园，时尚生活
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Me & My Money Series (Sunday Times)
Seems like in most of the interviews, the most expensive item is a car! And in Singapore, they are seriously over-priced - a $200,000 VW Convertible? Wow. Plus he also owns a BMW 5 Series .
The Straits Times
http://www.straitstimes.com
Published on Nov 04, 2012
Striking gold after losing money
World Gold Council's Far East boss has no regrets about selling his first home at a loss
By magdalen ng
Selling the first property he bought at a substantial loss was the best decision businessman Albert Cheng ever made.
He had just graduated from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, tied the knot and splashed out HK$330,000 on a 395 sq ft apartment in Sha Tin for him and his wife, a teacher.
But the mortgage drained about half of their joint monthly income.
"I lived there for two years, and then I sold it at a loss, for about HK$280,000. I didn't want to suffer any more. Having half of our income gone was not sustainable," he says.
And while a HK$50,000 hit may not seem like a lot, it was a huge amount of money for the then advertising executive.
But life took a turn for the better shortly after he sold it around 1982.
Mr Cheng, who is managing director for the Far East at the World Gold Council, moved into a rented apartment which was more spacious and cheaper.
Opportunity also came knocking when the Royal Canadian Mint offered him a job to market its Maple Leaf Gold coins to banks in the region.
He moved to Singapore in 1993 with his wife and two daughters when he took up a job with the World Gold Council.
Mr Cheng, 57, says: "Life moves in cycles. Sometimes we have to lose something in order to gain something else."
Through his exposure to gold for work, he has developed a passion for convincing people to buy gold jewellery rather than costume jewellery, which has no intrinsic value.
He has also bought a gold necklace and bangle with the traditional Chinese dragon and phoenix design in anticipation of his daughter's wedding, although there are no plans as yet.
"I bought it in Vietnam a few years ago because I am afraid that by the time she gets married, I will not be able to find handmade, pure gold jewellery. Nowadays, all jewellery is made by machines."
Q: Are you a spender or saver?
I'm a saver.
I travel a lot for work, and on average, I am out of the country for 15 to 20 days a month, which does not give me time to spend a lot.
Most of my spending each month tends to be business expenses, so I save about 40 per cent of my income.
When I am overseas, and I see something that I like, I do like to reward myself.
I also like expensive "toys", or electronic gadgets such as the iPad and mobile phones.
Q: How much do you charge to your credit card every month?
Usually, it is about $3,000 to $4,000. If I go on a long-haul trip, that can go up to $6,000.
I use my credit card to accumulate points on most of my spending such as meals, but for small amounts, I prefer to use cash.
There is about $200 to $300 in my wallet all the time.
Q: What financial planning have you done?
I have about five term-life policies and I do not buy any life insurance products that have investment elements. I prefer to invest my own money.
My portfolio is divided into two pots. About 70 per cent is in property-based assets, and the remaining 30 per cent is in "callable assets", such as equity, funds and gold, which means that I can liquidate them relatively easily.
Half of my callable assets is in gold-related investments. I have gold bars, gold equities and even a gold trading account.
I am in the business, so I try to have a bit of everything, and I watch the market.
Q: Moneywise, what were your growing-up years like?
I was very thrifty in my growing-up years.
I come from a large family but we were not wealthy. I still remember my days of growing up in Hong Kong, sharing one Californian orange with my five siblings, sleeping on the floor of a one-room government flat.
However, I have never felt poor in my life as I always adjust my expectations based on what stage of life I am at and the circumstances I am in.
Q: How did you get interested in investing?
My first investment was actually a property in Hong Kong.
But after I joined the Royal Canadian Mint and joined the industry, I became more interested in investing, and the development of the gold industry in the region.
Q: What property do you own?
I have a 1,700 sq ft condominium apartment in the Holland area, which I bought for about $600 per sq ft in 2001. It has since doubled in value.
Three years ago, I sold my investment property, another condominium in Bukit Timah. I bought it at the height of its price in 1998 for about $1.9 million and sold it for a slight profit at $2 million.
At its worst, the value of the apartment was only about 60 per cent of the purchase price, and I was getting worried.
Luckily I could still continue with the mortgage payments as I (still had) a job.
Q: What's the most extravagant thing you have bought?
A new Volkswagen EOS sunroof convertible sports car that I bought this year for about $200,000.
I bought it as a reward for myself. I'm not a flashy person, so I won't consider a Porsche.
Actually, I was deciding between a Mini Cooper and a Volkswagen, but the former was too small, and my daughters wouldn't be able to sit comfortably at the back.
Q: What's your retirement plan?
I plan to travel to places that I have previously visited on business, but this time with my wife and without my BlackBerry and e-mail.
My company has purchased a pension fund, but I haven't really checked what the value is. There should be a few hundred thousand, combined with the savings and investments that I have, and the money in CPF.
I think I should definitely have enough to retire, as long as I don't lead an extravagant life.
Q: Home is now...
My condominium in Holland Road, where I live with my wife and children, aged 27 and 23.
Q: I drive a...
Sometimes my BMW 5 Series, but I usually drive my Volkswagen sports car.
songyuan@sph.com.sg
WORST AND BEST BETS
Q: What has been your worst investment?
It would be the first apartment that I bought in Hong Kong in 1980. While the apartment was 395 sq ft, the usable area was only 250 sq ft. It was tiny. I made a loss of HK$50,000 when I sold it, and the money was actually borrowed from my brother-in-law. Luckily, it was an interest-free loan.
Q: And your best?
It was the next property that I bought, also in Hong Kong, in about 1988. I bought the apartment in Tai Koo Shing for about HK$800,000, and sold it two years after I came to Singapore, in 1995. It fetched about HK$4 million.
The Straits Times
http://www.straitstimes.com
Published on Nov 04, 2012
Striking gold after losing money
World Gold Council's Far East boss has no regrets about selling his first home at a loss
By magdalen ng
Selling the first property he bought at a substantial loss was the best decision businessman Albert Cheng ever made.
He had just graduated from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, tied the knot and splashed out HK$330,000 on a 395 sq ft apartment in Sha Tin for him and his wife, a teacher.
But the mortgage drained about half of their joint monthly income.
"I lived there for two years, and then I sold it at a loss, for about HK$280,000. I didn't want to suffer any more. Having half of our income gone was not sustainable," he says.
And while a HK$50,000 hit may not seem like a lot, it was a huge amount of money for the then advertising executive.
But life took a turn for the better shortly after he sold it around 1982.
Mr Cheng, who is managing director for the Far East at the World Gold Council, moved into a rented apartment which was more spacious and cheaper.
Opportunity also came knocking when the Royal Canadian Mint offered him a job to market its Maple Leaf Gold coins to banks in the region.
He moved to Singapore in 1993 with his wife and two daughters when he took up a job with the World Gold Council.
Mr Cheng, 57, says: "Life moves in cycles. Sometimes we have to lose something in order to gain something else."
Through his exposure to gold for work, he has developed a passion for convincing people to buy gold jewellery rather than costume jewellery, which has no intrinsic value.
He has also bought a gold necklace and bangle with the traditional Chinese dragon and phoenix design in anticipation of his daughter's wedding, although there are no plans as yet.
"I bought it in Vietnam a few years ago because I am afraid that by the time she gets married, I will not be able to find handmade, pure gold jewellery. Nowadays, all jewellery is made by machines."
Q: Are you a spender or saver?
I'm a saver.
I travel a lot for work, and on average, I am out of the country for 15 to 20 days a month, which does not give me time to spend a lot.
Most of my spending each month tends to be business expenses, so I save about 40 per cent of my income.
When I am overseas, and I see something that I like, I do like to reward myself.
I also like expensive "toys", or electronic gadgets such as the iPad and mobile phones.
Q: How much do you charge to your credit card every month?
Usually, it is about $3,000 to $4,000. If I go on a long-haul trip, that can go up to $6,000.
I use my credit card to accumulate points on most of my spending such as meals, but for small amounts, I prefer to use cash.
There is about $200 to $300 in my wallet all the time.
Q: What financial planning have you done?
I have about five term-life policies and I do not buy any life insurance products that have investment elements. I prefer to invest my own money.
My portfolio is divided into two pots. About 70 per cent is in property-based assets, and the remaining 30 per cent is in "callable assets", such as equity, funds and gold, which means that I can liquidate them relatively easily.
Half of my callable assets is in gold-related investments. I have gold bars, gold equities and even a gold trading account.
I am in the business, so I try to have a bit of everything, and I watch the market.
Q: Moneywise, what were your growing-up years like?
I was very thrifty in my growing-up years.
I come from a large family but we were not wealthy. I still remember my days of growing up in Hong Kong, sharing one Californian orange with my five siblings, sleeping on the floor of a one-room government flat.
However, I have never felt poor in my life as I always adjust my expectations based on what stage of life I am at and the circumstances I am in.
Q: How did you get interested in investing?
My first investment was actually a property in Hong Kong.
But after I joined the Royal Canadian Mint and joined the industry, I became more interested in investing, and the development of the gold industry in the region.
Q: What property do you own?
I have a 1,700 sq ft condominium apartment in the Holland area, which I bought for about $600 per sq ft in 2001. It has since doubled in value.
Three years ago, I sold my investment property, another condominium in Bukit Timah. I bought it at the height of its price in 1998 for about $1.9 million and sold it for a slight profit at $2 million.
At its worst, the value of the apartment was only about 60 per cent of the purchase price, and I was getting worried.
Luckily I could still continue with the mortgage payments as I (still had) a job.
Q: What's the most extravagant thing you have bought?
A new Volkswagen EOS sunroof convertible sports car that I bought this year for about $200,000.
I bought it as a reward for myself. I'm not a flashy person, so I won't consider a Porsche.
Actually, I was deciding between a Mini Cooper and a Volkswagen, but the former was too small, and my daughters wouldn't be able to sit comfortably at the back.
Q: What's your retirement plan?
I plan to travel to places that I have previously visited on business, but this time with my wife and without my BlackBerry and e-mail.
My company has purchased a pension fund, but I haven't really checked what the value is. There should be a few hundred thousand, combined with the savings and investments that I have, and the money in CPF.
I think I should definitely have enough to retire, as long as I don't lead an extravagant life.
Q: Home is now...
My condominium in Holland Road, where I live with my wife and children, aged 27 and 23.
Q: I drive a...
Sometimes my BMW 5 Series, but I usually drive my Volkswagen sports car.
songyuan@sph.com.sg
WORST AND BEST BETS
Q: What has been your worst investment?
It would be the first apartment that I bought in Hong Kong in 1980. While the apartment was 395 sq ft, the usable area was only 250 sq ft. It was tiny. I made a loss of HK$50,000 when I sold it, and the money was actually borrowed from my brother-in-law. Luckily, it was an interest-free loan.
Q: And your best?
It was the next property that I bought, also in Hong Kong, in about 1988. I bought the apartment in Tai Koo Shing for about HK$800,000, and sold it two years after I came to Singapore, in 1995. It fetched about HK$4 million.
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