No High 5 to start 2010 new year
Number “5″ is such a bad number to start the new year 2010!
First, you have to pay RM50 service tax on each of your credit card, then 5% of on any gain from selling your property under the Real Propety Gain tax (RPGT), and you have to start paying close attention to your car’s maintainance and its road worthiness under the revised National Automotive Policy (NAP)
The RM50 service tax on credit care
The RM50 service tax is now a hotly discussed topic where understandably, no one likes it! If you owned multiple cards and carry any outstanding, it is wise to consolidate the debt to a single card via balance transfer. While you do that, remember not to use that card anymore because all your payment will first goes to the ‘old debt’ and then only any leftover goes to your ‘new debt’. If there is no payment goes to the new debt, it will sit there and happily collecting 18% interest rate.
If you have multiple cards and with not outstanding balance, stop chasing points, cut them down to one.
To be sure, the implementation details are still sketchy at this moment but it is unlikely that the government will reverse its decision nor the banks will directly absorb the RM50 for the card holders.
The unfair property gain tax
For most folks, RM50 tax is nothing comparing with the newly announced 5% Real Property Gain Tax (RPGT) applicable to all properties’ transaction. Exemption is only given to transaction that involves direct family members or first time sellers. Nothing we can do about that, sad!
The disappointed revised National Automative Policy (NAP)
Many consumers are disappointed with the just announced revised NAP. The desperate hope of lower car prices is once again crashed and not only that, maintaining a car is going to be more expensive. Starting 2010, 2nd hand part parts no longer can be imported - expect to pay higher price for parts, if not, buy the most popular car that parts are easily available i.e national cars. But that is more, with the gradual implementation of Vehicle End of Life policy - vehicles older than 15 years must proven to be road worthiness, government wants you to buy new car.
What next?
In the not too distant future, it is likely that Goods and Services Tax (GST) will be implemented to reduce prolonged budget deficit. Guess what, another 5%.