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Showing posts from 2011

Singapore Inflation Rises 5.5%, Bank Deposits Interest Rates Drops

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Singaporeans are experiencing a 'double whammy' recently. Firstly, Yahoo! News reported that Singapore’s inflation have risen by 5.5 per cent over one-year period. Read the whole article here:  http://bit.ly/oZyZus Secondly, a major local bank has decreased the interest rates for savings and fixed deposit accounts. Savings Deposit Rates Fixed Deposit Rates If majority of one's long-term money (money which is not needed in the short term and used for purposes such as retirement or children's education) are in such accounts, they are subject to rapidly losing their real value .  A double whammy of lower interest earnings (therefore higher opportunity costs should one be able to invest elsewhere) and higher inflation (the 'purchasing power' of money shrinking). Compounded over years, one's savings will shed half, or even more of its value. If one day you wake up and find that your bank balance has halved, would you be concerned? Definitely! So

No Marriage, No House, No Money

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Young couples intending to buy a HDB flat, beware! It might be worth considering timing your marriage and house purchase properly. According to a Yahoo! News report, John broke up with his fiancee after applying for a flat, and got slapped with a 20% penalty amounting to $132,000 (And no, he don't get to keep his house as he's not married and thus not qualified to buy a DBSS unit). Read more here:  Yahoo! News - Wedding’s off, now here’s your $132k bill

5 Problems With Not Having a Will

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You probably already know by now that when a person dies without a valid Will (intestate), his assets (estate) will be distributed in accordance to a law known as the Intestate Succession Act. But do you know that writing a Will is not only to decide where and to whom your estate go to? Having a properly drafted Will can help in ensuring that your family are not inconvenienced by your death, and minimize any potential in- fighting, lawsuits, and other factors that may break up a family or sink them into financial difficulties. Let's take a look at some little-known implications of intestacy.

10 Books You Must Read to Improve Your Financial IQ

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Your greatest asset is your mind. So invest in it by reading books that increases your financial IQ! Here's my top 10 recommended books that everyone who is serious about their financial freedom must read. If you wish to purchase any of the books, simply click on the images. It will bring you to the Amazon website whereby I will receive a small commission on every purchase. Happy reading! Number 10 - The Wealthy Barber Author: David Chilton Financial lessons that can help you get rich... slowly. Told in a form of an entertaining story, with the help of a fictional barber.

CPF Changes 2011

Here's an update on the upcoming changes to the CPF system, effective 1 July 2011. CPF Minimum Sum From 1 July 2011, the prevailing MS will be revised to $131,000, up from $123,000. Members who can set aside the MS fully in cash can apply to commence their monthly payouts of $1,170 when they reach their draw down age. Medisave Minimum Sum The Medisave Minimum Sum (MMS) will be raised to $36,000 from $34,500. Members will be able to withdraw their Medisave savings in excess of the MMS at or after age 55.

Singapore April CPI rises 4.5 percent year-on-year

From Yahoo! Finance, By Elena Torrijos ,  On Monday 23 May 2011, 14:17 SGT Singapore's consumer prices in April rose by 4.5 percent from a year ago, the first time this year that inflation has fallen under 5 percent, as a strengthening currency cut the costs of imported goods.

The Pitfalls of Starting Your Savings Late

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This post is written to help some of my clients who is in a dilemma of whether they should start their savings as soon as they can, or to wait till they are married and settled down before starting. The answer is obviously to start early. We have heard it so many times but why is starting early so important, and what are the pitfalls if we start late? TIME VALUE OF MONEY (TVM) A dollar today is not worth the same dollar in 10 years' time. This is because of opportunity cost lost through the interest that was not earned, and time is really money. Let's use a story to illustrate the point of 'Time Value of Money'. Mary and John are both 25 years old and are unmarried, and they intend to save and invest $500 per month and to use the savings for to fulfill their financial goals (pay for their children's tertiary education, fund their retirement, start a business, etc) in 30 years' time. Mary starts saving from now , and saves for 15 years, and stops saving

How to pay virtually nothing for your medical expenses

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Recently I had a few calls coming in enquiring about medical expenses. As such I thought it would be useful to share this information with my readers. To start off, I'm sure you have seen someone who was hospitalised for a seemingly minor treatment, which still required a few thousand bucks? Or someone who had gone through a major surgery which set him back tens of thousands of dollars? 'Bill shocks' are common when it comes to medical bills as one would not know how much they would incur. And as one of my client said, you really do not know when you'll be making a visit to the hospital, as these things can hit you overnight. Fret not. With a well structured medical expenses protection plan, you can leave your bills to be paid by the insurer and not to worry yourself with unnecessary financial burden.

MPs question adequacy of CPF savings for old age

MEMBERS of Parliament yesterday pressed Manpower Minister Gan Kim Yong in Parliament on the adequacy of the Central Provident Fund (CPF) for old age.

Why The Poor Gets Poorer

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Source: Wallstraits.com There is an old saying:  The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. It's true, and there's a logical explanation why it holds true in every capitalist society. Put simply: the rich understand the difference  between an asset and a liability, and the poor never quite get it. The rich work for investment capital, while the poor work for disposable income. The rich buy appreciating assets and allow returns to compound, while the poor buy depreciating assets and live paycheck to paycheck. The rich live a bit below their means until their compounding investment returns supply enough passive income to support a lavish lifestyle, while the poor live just at their means throughout their lives. I was reminded of the stark distinction between the haves and the have-nots when the Straits Times newspaper carried a cover story about the new Singapore Shares and featured a large color photo of a long line of poor and elderly waiting to cash in

The 5 Essential Types of Insurance (That Everyone Must Have)

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There are so many types of insurance plans and riders in the market. So how do you determine which types are the ones that are most important to your financial protection? Here are 5 of the most essential coverages that one must possess: Death Insurance If you have started your own family, you will definitely know the importance of this. Upon one’s demise, it is important to leave sufficient money behind to ensure that the surviving family members continue to enjoy the same standard of living, to have the future that they were supposed to have, and not to be laden with debts left by the deceased. You can be financially protected against death by purchasing a life insurance policy, and supplementing it with a term insurance policy. One’s assets (cash, investments, CPF funds) will also contribute to the deceased’s estate, which will help in alleviating the family’s financial needs.