SOR fell to 0.31%, presumably the all time low. This is probably a result of the revaluation of SGD against USD from 1.39 to below 1.38, which makes it cheaper to repay loans denominated in US dollar. The Fed reiterated their plans to keep interest rates low for a long time, while Malaysia, India and Australia, among others, have raised rates. In the longer term, rates are expected to surge, so do watch out.
Update 16 Apr 2010: new all time low 0.31%
Update 23 Aug 2010: new all time low 0.258%
Update 11 Aug 2011: new all time low -0.7%
Thanks! ;)
Dear Yen Kai, I am a peasant when it comes to interest rates as such - SOR or SIBOR. But it is really enlightening & heartwarming to know there are kind people like yourself who is contributing this blog to help the simple layman like myself. Thanks!
William Chang
Submitted by Anonymous
on Mon, 05/24/2010 - 15:36
Ya I agree...Thanks
Hi Yen Kai, I recently came across your blog and glad that you are the only person in Singapore who care to share about SOR and SIBOR... even MAS don't even publish the rate openly..or I am too stupid that I am not able to search for them :p
Happy that you have enjoyed your new job, property and your honeymoon across so many continents...I'm thinking of doing the same with my wife sometime, but still hesitate to let go off my paycheck for now.
Thanks for you good sharing.
Submitted by Anonymous
on Thu, 06/17/2010 - 09:52
Glad that this is useful
Just wanted to thank everyone who left an encouraging note here. Glad that the info here is useful and hopefully i can continue to find time to keep things up-to-date..
Submitted by yenkai
on Tue, 06/29/2010 - 09:44
Home Rate
Hi yenkai
What is the best home rate to go?
Bank A gave me 0.75%+SOR, thereafter 1%+SOR
Bank B gave me 0.75%+SIBOR
Which one is better?
Submitted by Anonymous
on Mon, 09/13/2010 - 00:13
Depends
Sorry, haven't been monitoring the incoming comments.
If you were to go by the absolute figure, then obviously 0.75%+SOR would be lower (since SOR is lower at present). However, SOR fluctuates daily literally speaking, whereas SIBOR moves only every few months typically, so there appears to be some safety in SIBOR in case rates are generally on the rise. Anyway, if you were to go with a 3 month SIBOR loan, the repricing will happen every 3 months, so the "safety" in the apparent stability of SIBOR may not help that much. While i was looking for a home loan 2 months ago, i noticed that the final rates (i.e. including bank margin) for either SIBOR or SOR-pegged home loans worked out to be about the same, so i would say overall, there isn't too much difference between the two.
I guess if you don't mind a bit of risk in exchange for chances to "catch" sudden dips in interest rates, then go for SOR, otherwise if you like some "stability", then go for SIBOR. Hope you have already chosen the right home loan package.
Submitted by yenkai
on Sun, 10/10/2010 - 20:24
What makes SOR?
Man, the SOR is heading up even though the USD-SG exchange rate is going the other way. What else is factored into the cost of lending in USD? Hmmm....
Submitted by Anonymous
on Wed, 09/22/2010 - 09:50
Good observation
I was going to write a post on this apparent decoupling between SOR and the USD-SG exchange rate, but i thought, lets wait a while and see what happens. And now, the coupling seems to be back in force. In any case, it is a cause for worry if there in deed is something else besides the exchange rate and US lending rates that affect SOR. To be honest, i am skeptical that SOR will fall in line with the exchange rate indefinitely. I hazard to say that there may be some "human factor" involved, since the SOR fixing is determined by "a panel of contributor banks". This is just my personal opinion.
Submitted by yenkai
on Sun, 10/10/2010 - 20:46
SOR went lower?
Hi YenKai,
Your post here is indeed helpful for layman like me to understand and decide which loan package to go for.
Seems like SOR dropped below 0.258% already.
By the way where is the source to obtain the SOR and SIBOR?
TongCL
Submitted by Anonymous
on Thu, 03/31/2011 - 03:43
Fluctuates
Hi CL, sorry, haven't been checking the comments for some time. I think SOR is fluctuating quite a bit these days. We hear about governments getting concerned about inflation, so they're going to increase interest rates. On the other hand, USD/SGD seems to follow the predicted trend of going lower. So we're likely to see these two opposing forces make SOR go see-saw.
If you go into the google spreadsheet for SOR and SIBOR, you will see the sources for the data displayed there.
Submitted by yenkai
on Wed, 04/20/2011 - 13:55
Thank you!
Hi Yen Kai,
I just wanna thank you for your posts in this blog.
Very useful and insightful thoughts, especially like the one about exit strategy for sor/sibor packages...
Good thinking!
Ng
Submitted by Anonymous
on Mon, 04/04/2011 - 10:22
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