There comes a time in every Singaporean’s life when they must face the juggernaut that is local housing prices. But Ms Chen Min has overcome this challenge and purchased her a condo in Serangoon at just 23 years old.
Her secret? Working multiple jobs — including her own business — saving religiously, and spending frugally.
She stated that she earned all the money by herself with no financial aid.
Through years of carefulness and hard work, she has accomplished something many young adults in Singapore can only dream of.
On 29 July, Ms Chen shared a TikTok video documenting her first property purchase which required an upfront payment of S$200,000.
@minxchen_ When I was 21, I made a goal to get my first property before I turn 24. Many times in between I doubted myself but I still stayed determine because I TRULYY believe in property investing. The biggest accomplishment from this is I didn’t need to borrow a single cent from anyone to live my dream. I worked hard and had the power to control my life. In the process, I met sooo many set backs applying for my house loan but my super hardworking agent David Goh from #propnex worked tirelessly (I havent met anyone as dedicated as him) to help me find the best bank to loan with and he found Ashley Tan from #uobprivilegebanking who truly made my experience a smooth sailing one. They are literally extraordinary 😭🙏🏻 Honestly so grateful for this experience – all of these wouldn’t have happened without them. To all self employed in SG, CPF contribution is sooo important to give us a head start 🏦 Lets keep working on becoming better than yesterday and be the best version of yourself!! #property #propertyinvesting #sgtiktok #smallbusinessowner #hustle ♬ Home – Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros
While it’s easy to assume that well-off parents are the ‘secret’ to such inspiring stories, this certainly wasn’t the case with Ms Chen.
Speaking to MS News, Ms Chen shared that she came from an average family. Her father was the sole breadwinner and thus was unable to give her any financial support.
At the tender age of 17, she started her own pastry home business while still a polytechnic student.
Source: @pastriets on Instagram
Ms Chen explained that the state of being financially independent and having little money forced her to save and spend wisely.
Providing some examples, Ms Chen said she’d choose walking over taking public transportation and will even avoid snacking and buying tidbits during school breaks.
Even though the savings from each of these practices might seem insignificant, they add up over time:
$1 a day spent = $7 a week, $28 a month, $336 a year
However, as Ms Chen prioritised her business and savings, she also didn’t have much of a social life.
Initially, Ms Chen had no goals for her savings other than just for “rainy days”.
Things changed in 2021 when her grandmother moved into her family’s home and rented out her own house. Ms Chen became inspired to do the same as she believed property investing was a good source of passive income due to rising property prices.
As such, Ms Chen set a monumental goal for herself — own her first property before she turned 24.
Ms Chen decided to maximise her savings and time by taking up multiple part-time jobs while running her pastry business.
“I never wasted an hour of my life and while I’m still young and strong, I work as hard as I [possibly] can because I always value doing something meaningful”, she explained to MS News.
Nowadays, when thinking of making money quickly, most thoughts fly towards the idea of crypto investments or buying and selling shares in the stock market.
Ms Chen, however, is more “old school” and “safe” in this aspect. She explained that she never touched online investments or cryptocurrencies, preferring to only invest in things she could “see and touch”.
Source: @minxchen_ on TikTok
As such, all her savings came entirely from her pastry business and the part-time jobs she took up.
As for the apartment she purchased, Ms Chen said it was the only unit she viewed as she found that it had the best potential yield among all the properties that she considered.
Ms Chen added that she minimised risk prior to the purchase by looking for units with “existing good tenants as well as desirable rental payments”.
Source: @minxchen_ on TikTok
The condo she bought was a 1+1 unit, which includes a master bedroom and a living room.
Ms Chen shared in the video that she immediately rented the condominium unit out and will continue staying with her family at their home.
This isn’t the first time Ms Chen has gone viral for her TikTok content.
Last year, she bought her mother a Louis Vuitton bag that the latter had eyes on for more than 10 years.
Having secretly obtained her driving licence, she also surprised her parents by pretending to be their private-hire driver.
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Featured image adapted from @minxchen_ on TikTok.
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