Lowyat.NET: Latest topics by Davos Seaworth

last minute hotel booking at night, how?

Davos Seaworth — Thu, 16 Feb 2023 22:11:32 +0800

hi, sorry this is a little funny + awkward but i am somewhere in KL now and i need to book a place to overnight, preferably a 3 or 4 star hotel. i can't book on booking.com etc. now. do you think i can try my luck walking in to hotel to get a room? anyone have experience how walk in booking is like? thank you

False promises by ECOWORLD (ECO MAJESTIC)

Davos Seaworth — Sat, 18 Jun 2022 00:28:06 +0800

Hi, I am one of the EM owners who feel cheated by developer.

THE DEVELOPER IS ECO MAJESTIC (ECOWORLD BHD)

Bought mellowood last phase back lane @ nearly RM1mil that is supposed to be facing concrete perimeter fencing, but developer ended up giving cheap fencing instead... our group has been trying to reach out to as many media companies to make our grievances known, would sincerely appreciate if any one from media can help us out on this, and if anyone can give advice on what can be done.

So far they are denying any responsibilities and implying that their marketing materials do not represent the end product, my blood was boiling

[FB]https://fb.watch/dIp9vgmUFa/[/FB]

https://www.facebook.com/nopagar/videos/966462337361458/

https://worldofbuzz.com/developer-accused-o...2D9Idve3wVJr868

Advice on used luxury cars

Davos Seaworth — Mon, 10 May 2021 01:01:15 +0800

Hi, would like to seek for advice on purchasing a used luxury car. Before I proceed, I would like to clarify that:

1) I earn about 20k/month and can actually afford buying a new 3 series
2) Can set aside 20k/year on maintenance

Reason for me not wanting to buy the car new is because it is extremely difficult to justify the high price tag. Sure, with my income a new 330i is roughly equal to my annual gross income, but i still don't feel comfortable spending that much. I bought my myvi first hand back in 2018, I can't help but to feel that I paid too much for it at new price warranty was never made used of as well despite hitting 120k mileage.

I can realistically set a budget of 130~160k on the car. I have test driven the new BMW 2 series, G20 330i, 330e, X1, Merc W205 C200, C300, E250, GLC200

I drive on highways a lot, prefer to have adaptive cruise control and non-black leather interior. I wonder if 2018/19 F30 330e is a good buy @ 130k? I don't know about BMW's PHEV system, but all my friends who drive hybrid Toyotas and Lexus from 2012 until now have been mostly problem-free, aside from the nosediving depreciation.

I thank you for your time and will seriously consider any suggestions that you may offer.

Shopee starting new bullshit with sellers again

Davos Seaworth — Wed, 07 Apr 2021 15:14:07 +0800

Shopee just announced an hour ago due to MCO that they're going to start charging extra 2% (plus 6% SST on top) commission for PREFERRED and PREFERRED+ sellers, non-preferred sellers extra 1% (plus 6%)

So now if you see product RM100 and the seller is preferred with RM15 free shipping & coin cashback, the amount Shopee takes is

RM100 minus 2.12% payment fee minus 6.12% programme fee minus 2.12% new COMISSION fee

Cost of selling RM100 product = RM10.36, seller only get RM89.

Typical margin for selling RM100 product without factoring in packaging + overhead cost is only 15%. After factoring in running costs, sell RM100 product u untung RM5 also consider lucky already.

So for what cock seller want to maintain prices and their preferred title? spit at shopee seriously

Key takeaway - IF SELLER DO GOOD SERVICE GOOD CONDUCT, SELLER WILL GET PREFERRED SELLER, BUT PREFERRED SELLER MEANS NEED TO PAY MORE COMMISSION TO SHOPEE. THE MESSAGE SHOPEE IS TELLING SELLERS IS THAT IF YOU DO GOOD SERVICE, WE WILL CHARGE YOU MORE!

Silent partner ROI

Davos Seaworth — Sun, 05 Jul 2020 22:41:19 +0800

Hi, I have aquestion that I'm not clear of in regards to silent investors for business.

1) let's say the capital required is 1mil, if a silent partner invests 490k, does this mean STRICTLY that the partner gets 49% of the company's profits? Or can be lower since it'll be the general partner that will be doing 90% of the work. Or in order to better reflect the earnings, the general partner will get 51% of the profits after less a fixed sum of monthly salary drawn?

I Will have more questions.. Will post here when it crosses my mind.. Appreciate your time in this, thanks!

Finding ways to use credit card for business

Davos Seaworth — Mon, 06 May 2019 00:09:31 +0800

Hi, just got a credit card approved.. I'm really really keen on raking up rewards points but i can't think of much to spend on other than utilities groceries petrol and the occasional tech purchases.

I run a business and purchase stock from a Sdn bhd, they only accept bank transfers from sole prop account

Already asked them if they can accept cc, they can't.

It's usually about 40k per month, quite wasted if they're not converted to points.. Any ideas on what I could do? Thank you

Need advice on purchasing property

Davos Seaworth — Mon, 17 Dec 2018 12:19:45 +0800

Hi, quick facts about me

> own a single story house in KL, transaction price for houses in my area for it is RM360k~380k
> advertised at 349k since two months ago, barely anyone come to see the house despite strong advertisement

> intention is to use the money from house sale to fund for next house (for live in not investment) costing around 600k

> market rate for the house i want to buy is actually 660k, subsale new township, a lot of owners letting go at below SNP price due to slow market

My question: I am worried that prices won't stay below SNP for so long, as this is not a high rise high density type of condo, but a landed house by a very popular developer, worry prices will start going up as more and more people are moving in already to this new township

should I throw price of my old house, sell at 300k to get the money faster and quickly buy my next house before subsale market in new township uptick?

basically selling my house RM40k+ cheaper, to faster buy a house that is below SNP pricing (e.g. owners bought house for 660k 4 years ago now priced at 575k) before it appreciates (due to many developments and higher move in rate nowadays)

Do you think it's wise? Or super stupid?

Edit: also, as subsale market is so slow right now, I seriously doubt my current house price can go any higher, if anything it's likely to drop in future.

What is the best way to pay 1688.com ?

Davos Seaworth — Thu, 02 Aug 2018 14:50:51 +0800

Hi guys, I want to skip using taobao agent as I now have access to a shipping forwarder in Guangzhou.

I intend to order a large qty of raw materials etc. from 1688.com via sea shipping.

I can arrange almost anything, just that I am unsure on how to pay without getting charged 1.5% and 3% payment service fee.

can anyone advice? thanks!

Question on financing first property

Davos Seaworth — Tue, 10 Jul 2018 18:03:23 +0800

Hi.

I am a moderately successful e-commerce business runner (no staff, no shop rental brick and mortar), monthly income minimum around 6k, on good months up to 7, 8k. Plus also have some other form of passive income, just managing under 10k, which i guess i should be grateful.

I am 25 this year, and about 100k in savings, roughly 350k to come in soon from house sale (parents house, we live together, now renting)

so total I guess I have around 400+ k cash on hand.

current commitment monthly around RM750 car loan (4 more years, local car so maintenance not too much), PTPTN another 13 years RM300 monthly.

I'll be honest, I think I am quite young and I am aiming for a next house which is better and higher standard, although location not that great (currently renting also around same area, so this location would not make my business worse or anything).

My interest is mostly in EcoWorld only, been surveying many places, end of the day I still think I prefer living in landed strata property.

So anyway, EcoWorld now has this help to own scheme, whereby for example the house price is 900k, there will be a 5% discount, so the balance 95% is the house price.

5% is downpayment (45k).
70% is bank loan with Maybank flexi loan (interest 4.x%)
20% is loan with EcoWorld itself for 0% interest, pay for 5 years after getting house key.

I am very blur on whether I should be dumping the 400k cash on hand that I have for the downpayment or not and minimize the loan, but the developer telling me if i do this then I am not eligible for the 0% interest loan.

He advice I should just keep the cash on hand, get the 70% bank loan, 20% EcoWorld loan and pay the downpayment (5%). SPA legal fee of 25k (+/-) is borne by developer.

Now I am confused, after getting the 70% loan, should I dump it into flexi loan or put in fixed deposit (i.e. fixed deposit 4.1% per annum)? which would be better?

My main question is: Should I take advantage of the 0% interest rate scheme by EcoWorld over conventional 90% loan?

Not sure of what other points I should be asking... very very confused am I playing around with financial suicide? But my friends relatives are all saying where I intend to buy has a lot of potential since it is an EcoWorld property..

thank you!

Need advice on buying a house (ecoworld prop)

Davos Seaworth — Tue, 10 Jul 2018 18:02:32 +0800

Selling my 340k property - law fee question

Davos Seaworth — Tue, 26 Jun 2018 11:37:00 +0800

hi, found a buyer for my 330k landed single storey house. Low cost house, free hold.

My buyer told me to just use her lawyer so that I can save cost and ease of transaction, but I worry if I don't get my own lawyer, I will be at risk, is this worry justifiable? Or should I just use her lawyer?

My agent went to a few law firms and we got quoted 5k for legal fees, roughly around there, feels a bit too much for me, almost the cost of agent's commission alone hence would like to seek advice here..

should I look for cheaper lawyers?

or the lawyer fee is reasonable?

or do I just use buyer's lawyer?

any comment would be greatly appreciated

to add: got freehold title with me already

Budget 120k, buy new Hybrid Ioniq or 2014 BMW 320d

Davos Seaworth — Sat, 07 Oct 2017 17:50:18 +0800

Repost from Fast and Furious to get more advice..

Hi, a little background first:

1) I do sales, I usually drive about 250~300km/day on highway (90%) around KL Shah Alam area from Nilai
2) Income around 5.5k before commissions
3) No other commitments (except PTPTN loan repayment of RM300/month)
4) I spend around RM900/month driving my 12 year old Myvi with 12.5km/l fuel consumption. So I am looking for something that doesn't drink so much fuel.
5) I don't care about topspeed, I only want best NVH performance and good pickup

Recently got loan approved for a Hyundai Ioniq AVN (RM116k OTR incl. insurance) (Test drove the City Hybrid too, do not like it, especially since it looks 50k cheaper than the Ioniq interior wise and NVH tolerance is nowhere near as good)

Some friends of mine who are Ford/Sime Darby car owners telling me to think properly before proceeding because of:

1) Hybrid maintenance (and this being Hyundai's first gen hybrid) especially after warranty period (some ppl are scaring me saying hybrid battery is the cheapest part to replace, things like AC compressor is more expensive than the 10k battery blah3)
2) Can only refer back to 4 service centers in KL (for now) and no option to servis luar
3) Resale value (if I intend to change car in 5 years, people predicting by then can't even fetch 50% of the purchase price) it is a hybrid, after all.
4) Sime Darby not being the best in after sales
5) SHITTY China-made Ioniq head unit/player, when I think about it also I geram

Anyway, some folks are suggesting me to go diesel, tried the Mazda 2, too small, horrible legroom and can't fit much of my goods inside.

Also got recommended to take F30 320d since with 60 liter full tank it can go more than 1000km distance on highways.. and the word going around is that the 320d is less problematic than the 320i (which is not really that problematic to begin with).

Surveyed a couple of 320d at used car dealerships, generally costing between RM120k~125k OTR (year made 2014), of course no more warranty, mileage around 75k. I haven't test drive yet as I did not want to waste salesman's time, I probably will after getting your feedbacks...

What I found:

Pros:
1) Interior is really nice and classy, better quality than the Ioniq (which itself has quite a good interior quality, except the backseat fake leather)
2) BMW iDrive is so much more useful than Ioniq's head unit
3) Feels very premium and makes me feel excited
4) soundproofing from engine sound is excellent (can't hear the diesel's taktaktak sound after closing door)
5) got service records
6) RM240k car with the price of RM120k, first owner already took the hit from depreciation, if I want to sell it in 5 year's time I'm sure it can at least fetch 50k+, better RV prediction than Ioniq or any hybrid for that matter
7) Good fc and torque (haven't test, but everyone's saying that so okay I'll listen)
8) Malaysia is not going the B10 biodiesel pathway yet, so the Euro 5 available fits well.
9) I am expecting it to be a gazillion times more comfortable driving feel than in a Myvi (sometimes I just feel driving my myvi it's gonna turtle or get blown away by the wind while on highway)

What's bothering me:

1) Worried about maintenance, if the car is going to cost me more than RM30k to maintain over the next 5 years, I think I should forget it? Is it going to cost me more than 30k? I am aware that this is based more on luck.. but everyone's saying that BMW parts are not much more expensive than Japanese parts, it's around the same level with Korean parts and there are many skilled workshops around that have cheaper labour and parts costs compared to AB, Ingress, etc. Also I've been seeing around lowyat many 320d owners (although not all F30, mostly E90 older gen) saying that they have driven for X years over 200k, hardly any problems.

YES, I KNOW, THESE TWO ARE VERY DIFFERENT CARS.

My main concern is only to have good FC, I can afford the fuel but I just feel so fking annoyed having to visit the petrol station so often and seeing a large part of car expenses going to fuel instead of the car's purchase and maintenance price.

And of course, ada gaya mah, I'm a 25 year old guy who looks up to Beemers, why shouldn't I consider it if the pricing for a used, modern-looking one is within my budget?

Should I get it? 2014 BMW 320d F30 diesel

Davos Seaworth — Thu, 05 Oct 2017 23:35:12 +0800

Hi, a little background first:

1) I do sales, I usually drive about 250~300km/day on highway (90%) around KL Shah Alam area from Nilai
2) Income around 5.5k before commissions
3) No other commitments (except PTPTN loan repayment of RM300/month)
4) I spend around RM900/month driving my 12 year old Myvi with 12.5km/l fuel consumption. So I am looking for something that doesn't drink so much fuel.
5) I don't care about topspeed, I only want best NVH performance and good pickup

Recently got loan approved for a Hyundai Ioniq AVN (RM116k OTR incl. insurance) (Test drove the City Hybrid too, do not like it, especially since it looks 50k cheaper than the Ioniq interior wise and NVH tolerance is nowhere near as good)

Some friends of mine who are Ford/Sime Darby car owners telling me to think properly before proceeding because of:

1) Hybrid maintenance (and this being Hyundai's first gen hybrid) especially after warranty period (some ppl are scaring me saying hybrid battery is the cheapest part to replace, things like AC compressor is more expensive than the 10k battery blah3)
2) Can only refer back to 4 service centers in KL (for now) and no option to servis luar
3) Resale value (if I intend to change car in 5 years, people predicting by then can't even fetch 50% of the purchase price) it is a hybrid, after all.
4) Sime Darby not being the best in after sales
5) SHITTY China-made Ioniq head unit/player, when I think about it also I geram

Anyway, some folks are suggesting me to go diesel, tried the Mazda 2, too small, horrible legroom and can't fit much of my goods inside.

Also got recommended to take F30 320d since with 60 liter full tank it can go more than 1000km distance on highways.. and the word going around is that the 320d is less problematic than the 320i (which is not really that problematic to begin with).

Surveyed a couple of 320d at used car dealerships, generally costing between RM120k~125k OTR (year made 2014), of course no more warranty, mileage around 75k. I haven't test drive yet as I did not want to waste salesman's time, I probably will after getting your feedbacks...

What I found:

Pros:
1) Interior is really nice and classy, better quality than the Ioniq (which itself has quite a good interior quality, except the backseat fake leather)
2) BMW iDrive is so much more useful than Ioniq's head unit
3) Feels very premium and makes me feel excited
4) soundproofing from engine sound is excellent (can't hear the diesel's taktaktak sound after closing door)
5) got service records
6) RM240k car with the price of RM120k, first owner already took the hit from depreciation, if I want to sell it in 5 year's time I'm sure it can at least fetch 50k+, better RV prediction than Ioniq or any hybrid for that matter
7) Good fc and torque (haven't test, but everyone's saying that so okay I'll listen)
8) Malaysia is not going the B10 biodiesel pathway yet, so the Euro 5 available fits well.
9) I am expecting it to be a gazillion times more comfortable driving feel than in a Myvi (sometimes I just feel driving my myvi it's gonna turtle or get blown away by the wind while on highway)

What's bothering me:

1) Worried about maintenance, if the car is going to cost me more than RM30k to maintain over the next 5 years, I think I should forget it? Is it going to cost me more than 30k? I am aware that this is based more on luck.. but everyone's saying that BMW parts are not much more expensive than Japanese parts, it's around the same level with Korean parts and there are many skilled workshops around that have cheaper labour and parts costs compared to AB, Ingress, etc. Also I've been seeing around lowyat many 320d owners (although not all F30, mostly E90 older gen) saying that they have driven for X years over 200k, hardly any problems.

YES, I KNOW, THESE TWO ARE VERY DIFFERENT CARS.

My main concern is only to have good FC, I can afford the fuel but I just feel so fking annoyed having to visit the petrol station so often and seeing a large part of car expenses going to fuel instead of the car's purchase and maintenance price.

And of course, ada gaya mah, I'm a 25 year old guy who looks up to Beemers, why shouldn't I consider it if the pricing for a used, modern-looking one is within my budget?

Question on tax borang B for sole prop

Davos Seaworth — Fri, 02 Jun 2017 00:56:00 +0800

hi, I only register with SSM last February 2017, but I have been working free lance since early 2016.

I intend to declare tax this month, do I declare my income from the time I haven't register SSM yet? and if yes, should i declare tax as personal or sole prop enterprise? thx

First time registering my online business

Davos Seaworth — Sun, 12 Feb 2017 01:55:00 +0800

Hi, I am intending to register a sole proprietorship (with trade name, e.g. XXX Enterprise)

I've done my research however some info I've managed to get have been from pre-GST implementation so I am quite confused..

A little context:

1) Have been selling stuff online since 4 months ago (carousell) and it has been good
2) Total transactions (total sale amount) in 4 months has been RM100k (if extrapolate to 12 months it is RM300k)
3) Profit per month (average since second month) around RM3k/month

Questions:

1) I understand that I will need to declare all my income to the IRB, however I am confused if I will be needed to pay income tax. My income now is 3k, IF I am earning more than RM10k (I know, don't dream, but just in case).

a) taxable income - tax incentives + reliefs, in order to qualify I will need to keep all the receipts, such as petrol, rental, courier bills etc. and submit to IRB each year?

2) SSM/CCM dictates in their rules that businesses MUST be registered within 30 days after business commencement, I have been doing this for four months now, will I be penalised? Or should I simply declare that I'm only starting business from the month of registration?

3) Registration fee is RM60 for trade name, so I will need to pay RM60 every year?

4) With my projected total sale amount to be RM300k (and profit of 36k), do I need to register for GST? and will I need to charge my customers the 6%?

a) Also, the 300k is the sale amount, and I expect I will be spending RM250k for purchasing stock (product + shipping costs from Thailand), this totals to RM550k on transactions, does this mean I will come under the RM500k requirement for GST?

5) Customers usually transfer bank in into my personal bank account, is it really required for me to create a bank account under my business trade name?

I will add in more questions if I can think of any more, I am sorry if the questions are too basic, I've spent hours and perhaps I've been searching for the answers the wrong way, hence why I am still confused.

Advice on financing a used car

Davos Seaworth — Mon, 05 Dec 2016 04:04:41 +0800

Hi.

My info:

Basically I am a 24 year old degree student (long way to go before I join the workforce, taking things at my own pace)

My mum and I have been using a Myvi Auto from 2005 - mileage about 140k km (trade in value at the dealer - RM10k - unsure if I should attempt selling it myself, which is obviously going to be a tough feat)

My mum is a retiree (used to be a clerk) - she doesn't have much, only 40k odd in her EPF.
I myself although being only a student, have some amount of funds (in USD, but once converted to ringgit it is totaling to around 22k from part time work - stable monthly income and low risk of stopping) and the rest are PTPTN reserves which I will not touch to finance the car.

No other commitments except basic necessities, house is fully paid off.

We will be consulting the bank staff about this, on whether it is possible to apply and get approval for hire purchase of a car (OTR pricing, used, around 65k +/-)

We do not think our car has much life left in it, unless a considerable sum of money is spent on repairs (probably around 5k as quoted by the family mechanic to make it almost as good as new, internally)

Hence, rather than trying to milk it further, we want to sell it off (either trade in to a used car dealer, which is more likely or try selling it off privately)

Which leaves the question, we do not have salary slips, we have bank statements to show consistent money trickling into account, but I reckon it would be easier to get loan approval if we were to borrow less?

Usual down payment requirement for a car is 10% of its non-OTR pricing, (in this case, RM6k +/- and total interest +/- RM11.8k)

so if we were to take the 90% loan method, assuming 4% interest rate, 5 years, total paid would be about 71 + 6k = 77~78k.

Q: We are unsure if we should put in more down payment (perhaps 30k? smaller part from mum's EPF, then 10k from car trade in, 15~20k from my account) to decrease the loan interest, or not.

Q: Have the intention of putting the car under my name, can the guarantor be my mum?

It's actually our first time dealing with a loan other than my PTPTN, my myvi is handled by my dad but we'd rather not get him into this. Would appreciate any advice.

I am sorry if there is a dedicated thread for this, I have spent lots of time reading this topic and there aren't many cases which exactly fit into my scenario.

EDIT: Oh, if it matters, non-bumi non-Muslim here.