Daily Briefing: Diamond Bullion listed; Rent demand's too weak to boost market

And here are six reasons why property prices won't double yet by 2030.

From Bloomberg Finance via Yahoo!:

When it comes to havens, investors usually think of gold or Treasuries. Now an exchange in Singapore is starting to trade a credit card-sized package of diamonds for those seeking a shelter from global risks.

While bullion trades in standard weights and purities, diamonds vary according to cut, clarity, color and carat, making them generally harder to buy and sell as an investment. To overcome this, the Singapore Diamond Investment Exchange is listing a product called Diamond Bullion, or sets of investment-grade polished gems, in denominations of about $100,000 and $200,000 each.

“Until now, there was no way people could invest in diamonds in the form which is equivalent to investing in gold,” said Alain Vandenborre, executive chairman and founder of the exchange. “A diamond has absolutely zero correlation with any other asset class, whether it’s commodities, bonds, equities. It’s a store of wealth, it’s a hedge against volatility and you need that in your portfolio.”

Read more here.

From DollarsAndSense.sg via Yahoo!:

If you are thinking of investing in a private property to generate rental income, it’s worth pointing out that the rental market is still relatively weak. Hence, expecting attractive yields from your properties is something that you shouldn’t be count too much on. The weak rental market is another main factor behind the large spike in mortgagee sale in 2017.

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From Propwise.sg via Yahoo!:

Does a 10% income growth mean that a household will be able to afford to buy homes that cost 10% more? Housing affordability for renters could increase in tandem with income growth, that is, if wages increased by 10% a tenant could increase his rental budget by 10% to rent a bigger home or a home in a better location. But for home ownership, the correlation is debatable.

While each working household may achieve a consistent 4% per annum income growth, they still need to deal with inflationary pressures of 1.5–2.0% per annum and may not be able to afford homes which are getting pricier by 4% every year.

Read more here.