SG Wealth Builder

CPF: 3 ways to avoid spending your golden years in “survival mode”

January 27, 2016 sgwealthbuilder 873 Views 0 Comments

In recent years, there have been many articles of old folks in Singapore living in poverty. This prompted Dr Alexandre Kalache, former head of ageing issues at the World Health Organization (WHO) to voice concerns that Singapore still has much room for improvement in terms of helping elderly to age with dignity. Whilst I do not have the data to illustrate the profile and root causes leading to the plight of these people, at the back of my mind, I wonder to myself what it is like to spend my golden years in survival mode. Can CPF savings be your ticket to retirement?

Perhaps one of the most controversial topics among Singaporeans would be – Do you really need your CPF to retire? Is the CPF scheme still effective in addressing the retirement needs of Singaporeans? To tackle these questions, one needs to trace the history of CPF and its original intent.

Implemented in 1955, CPF is a compulsory savings scheme that requires all employers and employees to contribute a portion of the employee’s monthly gross salary to their CPF fund. In those days, most workers depend solely on their personal savings when they retire and most employers did not provide any form of retirement benefits to their employers.

Stocks

OCBC Bank stock price crashed to six year low

January 25, 2016 sgwealthbuilder 981 Views 0 Comments

One of the largest local banks in Singapore, OCBC stock price closed at $7.77, a six-year low. The last time OCBC shares traded below $5.00 was during the Great Financial Recession, recording a low of $4.14 on 6 March 2009.

OCBC will be releasing its full year financial results on 17 February 2016. However, based on its 3Q results in October last year, the Net Asset Value for each OCBC stock price was $7.78, slightly above today’s closing price. It is still premature to assess whether OCBC stock price is undervalued because the latest data has not been released. But given the current weak market sentiments, OCBC stock price is expected to slide further.

The non-performing assets (NPAs) were S$1.93 billion as at 30 September 2015, up 41% from S$1.37 billion a year ago. The year-on-year increase in NPAs was largely attributed to [This is a premium article. The rest of the content is blocked and can be accessible by SG Wealth Builder Members only. To read the full content, please sign up as member.]

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Stocks

SGX plunged from $15.90 in 2007 to $6.82 in 2016

January 23, 2016 sgwealthbuilder 754 Views 0 Comments

Many investment bloggers can quote Warren Buffett’s famous saying “Price is what you pay, value is what you get”. But how many of them can actually truly understand what he means?

One of the greatest cardinal sins made by investors is to fall in love with the stocks they have invested in. In doing so, they suffer from investment blind spots and subsequently sustain heavy losses when market turns sour. It is as though they go to sit in for an examination without studying for the subject and then expecting to obtain an ace for it.

Many investors don’t determine the value of the stocks and don’t set entry/exit levels. Most of them buy stocks based on prices. The key reason for this folly is because most investors cannot differentiate between price and value.

A classic example would be Singapore Exchange Limited (SGX), Singapore’s stock market operator. The counter surged to a high of $15.90 in 2007 and then dropped to today’s $6.82. Die-hard fans who bought the counter in 2007 at such price would be staring at massive losses now.

Even though the company has been consistently paying good dividends, the amount of losses would have wiped off the dividend gains accumulated throughout the years.

Stocks

How to make money from stock market crashes

January 21, 2016 sgwealthbuilder 991 Views 0 Comments

There are many financial analysts or economists out there who like to brag their abilities in predicting bear market trends or stock market crashes. If you know any of them, avoid them at all cost because the matter of fact is that nobody can predict the future accurately. Timing the market is like trying to predict the winning lottery numbers, which is not possible. Notwithstanding this, it is still possible to make money from stock market crashes.

Many years ago, when I started investing in stocks, one of my ex-colleagues shared with me an invaluable wisdom on the stock market dynamics. Whether you like it or not, the big boys, so called “the whales” dominate the market. You have to avoid or ride with them at all cost because the whales are typically players with deep pockets or institutional investors who can influence the market direction. If retail investors are not careful, they can be swallowed up by the whales easily and lose monies.

As a wealth builder, I always believe that everyone deserves a second chance in building wealth during stock market crashes. It does not matter whether you are a newbie or experienced trader. To be a successful investor, you must have the commitment to learn and not to give up on yourself.

Parenting

My family’s wealth journey

January 19, 2016 sgwealthbuilder 822 Views 0 Comments

After blogging for more than 5 years, I suddenly realized that I have written very few articles on my experiences as a young Daddy. On looking back, one of the motivations of starting this blog was to document my thoughts and insights so that my children can benefit from my wealth journey.

I guess 20 years down the road, it will be interesting for my children to know what I have been through and how they have played a part in shaping the person I am. So starting from today, I will make it a point to blog about my parenting experiences.

2015 has been an incredible year for me as my boy, Jovan, was born. We were very excited about his arrival because my wife and I had always wanted another child so that my daughter, Jovita, will have a playmate at home. Our plan was also to stop at two kids, so having a boy is perfect!

We did not, however, take the decision to have the second kid lightly. Prior to his arrival, my wife and I were worried whether we can cope without domestic helper’s aid. In the end, we chose to give it a go and decided not to hire a maid given the recent spate of maid abuse cases and horror stories of maid mistreating babies.

Investments

Three fatal mistakes commonly made by investors during bear market

January 16, 2016 sgwealthbuilder 710 Views 0 Comments

For many young investors, the current market corrections may seem like a fascinating experience. Some of them may view the volatile swings in the market as opportunities to make money from the stock market. This is not a flawed thinking but to mitigate the possibility of incurring heavy losses, it is important to avoid making three fatal mistakes commonly made by investors during bear market. Below are three lessons that I learned from the 1997’s Asia Financial Crisis and the 2008’s Great Financial Crisis.

Adopting the wrong strategy

Whilst it is true that when stock markets plunge, fear prevail and depress stock prices, thus presenting opportunities for bargain buys. But under such circumstances, I have learned that adopting a buy-and-hold strategy can be dangerous because you never know whether the stock counter can survive the storm. Instead, investors should be flexible and change strategy to momentum investing to exploit the fear sentiment in the market. This is where “contra” (buying and selling of stocks without forking out cash).

For example, during the crisis in 2008, I bought 100 lots of Mercator Lines and subsequently sold off my investments within two days, making about S$3500 of profits. It was not exactly a spectacular profit but then again, I made this amount of money within two days of trading and it was more than my monthly salary (back then I just started working for only a few years).

Self improvement

The Peril of Marrying the Wrong Husband

January 15, 2016 sgwealthbuilder 808 Views 0 Comments

There is an old Chinese saying that goes “A man’s greatest fear is establishing a career in the wrong industry while a woman’s greatest fear is choosing the wrong husband to entrust her life with”. This age old saying certainly still holds true in today’s modern society. In a recent UFM 100.3 radio programme, one of the interesting topics was the proliferation of dating agencies in Singapore due to the rising singles above 40 years old.

Inevitably, we will all grow old and die one day, but nobody will relish the prospect of dying alone. It is terrible to imagine that in your final days, you have no one to take care of you and provide the emotional support. Your friends, siblings and parents will not be together with you for the rest of your life journey. Only your partner and children will. So the important goal in our lives should be to find the right partner to grow old with. Given that life is a long journey, wouldn’t it be better to share the joy. bitter and sad moments with someone?

In the radio programme, one of the female Singapore listeners claimed that she would give herself until 50 year old to find a mate and set up a family.

Gold; silver

BullionStar versus UOB

January 14, 2016 sgwealthbuilder 3379 Views 0 Comments

Many years ago, I wrote several articles on UOB’s Gold Savings Account (GSA) and Silver Savings Account (SSA) in this blog. I had made some monies from GSA and had shared with readers my first experience with gold. But that was the time before BullionStar was established in Singapore and since then, my understanding of gold and silver has improved. The regulatory landscape for bullion trading has also changed as Singapore aims to be a precious metal hub by first removing GST for investment grade bullion. Subsequently, Singapore FreePort was established to cater to gold storage facilities.

UOB’s GSA and SSA

UOB is one of the largest local banks and is the only Singapore bank that sells physical bullion. It is also the only bank that has Gold Savings Account (GSA) and Silver Savings Account (SSA). The biggest advantage of opening a precious metal savings account with UOB is the convenience of transacting online via UOB Personal Internet Banking or UOB Mobile. You can also use your CPF funds to buy gold or silver through GSA or SSA.

However, investors should take note that UOB’s GSA and SSA are not backed by physical bullion, and thus you cannot convert your account balances and take physical delivery of gold and silver or certificates.

Stocks

Riding the storm with Osim

January 12, 2016 sgwealthbuilder 754 Views 0 Comments

The current stock market mayhem may represent a perfect opportunity for investors to enter the market but then again, it is important to refrain from timing the market. You never know whether the correction is the start of a long term bear trend or just a short term flip. In this regard, Osim is riding the storm finely.

Regardless the situation, it is important to set an entry or exit point in your stock investments. Apart from this, wealth builders must understand the importance of allocating wealth across different asset classes like gold bullion.

One of my favourite stocks that I have been monitoring is Osim, a Singapore-based company with substantial overseas market reach, especially in China. The current China’s slowdown is expected to have significant impact on Osim but under the leadership of its founder, the company is likely to ride the storm.

Osim was founded by local entrepreneur, Ron Sim Chye Hock. The company is well known for its luxury massage armchair and over the years, Ron Sim has transformed Osim to a powerhouse lifestyle company with more than 1,100 outlets in over 360 cities across 28 countries. What is more impressive is that Ron has single-handedly established a strong Singapore brand name, similar to successes enjoyed by global companies like Starbucks and Apple.

Insurance coverage; medical shield; financial planning; personal finance

Insurance: Blood in urine

January 10, 2016 sgwealthbuilder 1135 Views 0 Comments

It was supposed to be one of his daily routine toilet trips in the night but to his utmost horror, there was a lot of blood in his urine. With much fear and worry, he could not sleep that night and the next morning, he went to see his family doctor. To his shock, he was diagnosed with kidney cancer and had to remove one of his kidneys.

That was 30 years ago and my insurance agent lived to tell the tale. I bought my first insurance from him when I was an eighteen year old army boy. Throughout the years, whenever I bought new life insurance policies from him, he often relate this incident to me. I guess he tried to reinforce in me that life can be very unpredictable. Using himself as an example, he don’t smoke or drink and live a perfectly healthy lifestyle. So until this day, he also don’t know why he suffered from kidney cancer. However, I was in my twenties and in the prime time of my life. So like many people, the possibility of death and critical illnesses seem so remote to me.

Now that I am in my mid-thirties, things are very different.

Self improvement

The deadliest mistake made by most investors

January 9, 2016 sgwealthbuilder 995 Views 0 Comments

The recent stock market routs must have caught many small time investors by surprise. The Dow Jones had the worst five day trading performance in history, wiping off trillion of dollars from the market. Both the oil decline and China’s stock market 7 percent drop combined to send Wall Street plunging down the cliff. In the midst of the chaos, many investors must be pondering whether to enter or exit the market.

Taking control

Most people know that investing is all about emotions – greed and fear. These two emotions often over rule our rational thinking and affect our decision making in investments. To be a successful investor, it certainly take more than knowledge to make money from stocks. You need to take positive action. To take the emotions out of investing, you must set stop-gain or stop-loss level for every stock that you invested in. In doing so, there will be less chances of you looking back in regrets for selling a surging stock too early or live in fear for not selling away your stock investments during market sell-off. You will also have clarity when to enter the market and buy a certain stock.

Truly dividend or long term investors?

Gold; silver

Safe haven in the midst of stock market chaos

January 7, 2016 sgwealthbuilder 760 Views 0 Comments

U.S stock market plunged 252 points on 6 January 2016 as falling oil prices and North Korea nuclear tests combined to send the Dow Jones to below the support level of 17,000. This marked a terrible start to the year 2016 as investors are spooked by global issues affecting economic growth and looking for safe haven in the midst of stock market chaos.

U.S stock market

The bright spot is that U.S data continue to support the notion that U.S job market is improving and that the U.S economy should be able to withstand these headwinds. However, investors should be cautious and heed the warning from the stock market. Dow Jones had reached an incredible record level of 18,200 in 2015 and is showing signs of peaking. As there will always be cycles of ups and downs in the stock market, existing investors with substantial stock holdings may want to take profits or cut losses on their stock investments now. After all, if the major correction did arrive this year, the opportunity to offload shares will be a premium given the widespread panic selling.

Chinese stock market

Over at the other side of the Pacific Ocean, the China stock market presents a scarier situation.

Stocks

How to avoid making losses in SGX stocks

January 4, 2016 sgwealthbuilder 897 Views 0 Comments

According to a report, the Strait Times Index (STI) fared the worst in South East Asia last year, declining 14.3% of its value. As a result, many Singapore investors and investment bloggers suffered heavy losses in their stock investments. Although not technically a bear market, investors should be aware of the risks in stock investing and equip themselves the knowledge on how to value a stock before surrendering their hard-earned money to the market. Fundamentally at the point of buying the stock, the investor must not be making losses. Easier said than done, but it can be achieved. In this article, lets delve into how to avoid making losses in SGX stocks.

Generally there are two ways to measure the value of a stock. The first is using the Price/Earning (P/E) method, which actually divides the price per stock by the earning of the company in that year. Essentially, this simple metric uses the earning performance of a stock to determine if a stock is over or under value. So if the earning, which is a denominator, decreases, the P/E will increase. Personally I find this method highly inaccurate as past performances would not guarantee future performances and furthermore, prices can be very subjective to everyone.

Stocks

4 Myths To Debunk About Singapore F&B Stocks

January 2, 2016 sgwealthbuilder 1363 Views 2 Comments

One of the largest Warren Buffett’s investments to date is Coca-Cola, which is one of the world’s largest F&B companies. Buffett’s affinity to Coca-Cola dated way back to his childhood when he started his entrepreneurship journey selling cokes. Years later, he would become a major shareholder of Coca-Cola. It is a well-known fact that what attracted Warren Buffett to Coca-Cola was its simple and understandable business model – selling soft drinks to consumers, supermarkets and restaurants. This trait of Coca-Cola turned out to be one of its investment moats.

Even though Warren Buffett has built his fortune from his investments in Coca-Cola, does it means that the Food & Beverage (F&B) industry should be in your investment menu? Let’s delve into some of the common myths and check out whether it’s worthwhile to invest in Singapore F&B stocks.

Myth 1: F&B stocks are simple and easy to understand

While Warren Buffett may have struck gold with Coca-Cola, it would be a sweeping statement to say that investing in an F&B stock is straightforward and simple. This is because no two F&B companies are created alike.

For example, an F&B brand that does well in Singapore may not be palatable at the global stage.

Gold; silver

Silver’s Price at a 5-year Low

December 30, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 844 Views 0 Comments

Silver bullion has always been a favorite of many investors because it’s relatively low price as compared to gold allows investors to buy silver at a fraction of the cost of gold bullion. Today, silver’s price has reached a 5-year low of USD14. In fact, this is the lowest price level last seen since the Great Financial crisis in 2009, thus representing a good window of opportunity to buy silver bullion in Singapore.

Is it a good time for wealth builders to buy silver bullion? If so, should wealth builders buy gold or silver bullion? My perspective is that even though prices of gold and silver are expected to continue to slide moderately in 2016 due to the surging strength of the US dollars and improving US economy, precious metals still offer a form of asset allocation for individual investor’s portfolio.

In my previous article on investing in silver, I had touched on the risks involved. One of the key reasons why silver bullion is not featured in many professional investors’ portfolios is because silver can be very volatile. It can surge more than 5 percent in one day and therefore, not many people can stomach this kind of volatility.

Stocks

How to be a better investor in 2016

December 28, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 747 Views 0 Comments

During this festive season, I have thought deeply on my investment style and track records so far in 2015. While I did not make any major investment moves for the past three years, my personal finance is certainly in a better shape now as compared to 2010, the year I started this blog. Along the way, there were several intriguing investment ideas, new philosophies and key lessons that I have picked up from the various people that I have met. In view of this, I thought it is important to pen down my thoughts for more clarity.

Have you wondered why some people just keep winning in their stock investments while others lost huge sum of monies in stocks or fallen prey to silly gold scams which they never should have in the first place? Is it true that “the rich will become richer and the poor will become poorer”? I have come to realize that those who keep making money from the stock market are those who know how to read the game. In other words, they have the available tools and data that enable them to make informed decisions, thus allowing them to get ahead from the rest of the people.

Self improvement

Three important skills to succeed in life

December 24, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 740 Views 3 Comments

As a young parent, I always believe in giving the best for my children. In this regard, my wife and I have been sending my daughter for enrichment classes with the view of developing her thinking, speaking and writing skills. These are the three skills one should possess in order to succeed in life, so we hope to give her a good start.

Contrary to what many people thought, being academically good does not mean you are well-equipped to achieve great things when you enter the workforce. I have seen many scholars who can think and write well but cannot speak confidently in public. Like-wise I have many ‘A’ list friends who can think fast and speak confidently but lack substance in their writing. Henceforth, my view is that it is important to lay a strong foundation for these three skills, starting from a young age. At the end of the day, even if my children did not achieve great things, at least I hope to mold resilient characters in them so that they can overcome obstacles in life.

Thinking Skill

I have been sending my daughter to attend lessons at Clay Works Singapore in East Point Shopping Mall. The idea is to encourage her to think creatively and also to let her experience the fun of learning.

Stocks

How much have you lost investing in Tiger Airways IPO?

December 21, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 718 Views 0 Comments

In November 2015, Singapore Airlines (SIA) made an offer to acquire the remaining 44.23% stake in Tiger Airways for SGD450 million. The takeover, if materialized, would mark a sorry end to the listed company, which has seen its stock price plummeted from $1.50 at initial public offering (IPO) in 2010 to a low of $0.245. SIA is offering to buy out the remaining shares at $0.41.

Investors who remain faithful with Tiger Airways since its initial listing must have lost a lot of money. Suffice to say, the offer by SIA is definitely not attractive enough but then again, the offer of $0.41 represents a premium to the price range it was trading ($0.29 to $0.40) prior to SIA’s offer. So investors who bought during the IPO high of $1.50 need to ask themselves whether is it realistic for Tiger Airways to turn around its fortune and increase its stock price.

Being a budget airline, Tiger Airways has been battling stiff competition within the region against formidable rivals like Jetstar Asia and Air Asia. In 2008-09, the company lost almost $50 million but things got better after it got listed in SGX, with the company clocking in profits of $28 million in 2010 and $40 million in 2011.

Retirement

Growing your CPF Retirement Fund (Part 2)

December 18, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 1048 Views 1 Comment

As a wealth builder, it is important to start compounding your CPF savings as early as possible when you are in your prime. This is because if you start early, the compound interests can work wonders for your retirement sum. When you reach 55 years old, your Special and/or Ordinary Accounts savings will be transferred to your Retirement Account to form your retirement sum. Your retirement sum can be used to join CPF LIFE or the Retirement Sum Scheme which provides you with a monthly payout of about 20 years.

After setting aside both the Full Retirement Sum or Basic Retirement Sum with sufficient property charge/pledge and the current MMS of $43,500, you can choose to withdraw the remaining cash balances in your Ordinary and Special Accounts, or continue to keep your savings in CPF to earn attractive interest.

For myself, I would be placed on the CPF LIFE scheme but when I saw the monthly payout for the Basic Retirement Sum (BRS), I almost fell off the chair. I mean what can you do with $700 per month? Thirty years down the road, with the onset of inflation, the diminishing purchasing power of money would mean that $700 would be equivalent to today’s $200.

Retirement

Growing your CPF Retirement Fund (Part 1)

December 16, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 889 Views 0 Comments

A few weeks ago, I was pleasantly surprised to receive a letter from MINDEF informing me that I was eligible for the 3^rd milestone of the NS HOME Awards and that they would credit $5000 into my CPF accounts ($3000 into my Ordinary account and $2000 into my Medisave account). Even more surprising was that due to the award, I have reached the Medisave Contribution Ceiling (MCC), which is currently $48,500. This caused the excess of the MCC to be transferred to my Special Account.

Many Singaporeans, including my wife, are clueless on what will happen to their Medisave accounts when the ceiling is reached. Many people also cannot appreciate the difference between the Medisave Minimum Sum (MMS) and MCC. Ignorance is certainly not blissful when it comes to managing your CPF retirement fund because if you are not given the right information, you may be misled by bloggers trying to stir up negative sentiments.

Before proceeding further, I think it is important to highlight the CPF schemes, especially for those who just started working. Every month, you and your employer will contribute to your CPF accounts which consist of Ordinary Account, Special Account and Medisave Account.

The current contribution rate totals 37%, with 20% deducted from your gross salary and 17% from your employer.

Gold; silver

BullionStar’s Bullion Savings Program

December 15, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 1710 Views 0 Comments

SG Wealth Builder is pleased to catch up with Luke Chua, Chief Operating Officer of BullionStar on their latest product offering – Bullion Savings Program.

1) What are the key features of Bullion Savings Program? You can actually convert the grams in BSP to physical metals?

The key features of the BSP are that it allows customers to save and/or trade in precious metals. With the BSP, customers can buy BSP Grams of Gold, Silver or Platinum that is fully backed up by physical precious metals in BullionStar’s stock inventory. Grams in the Bullion Savings Program (BSP) are fully allocated physical precious metals. Our BSP Grams are available in Gold, Silver and Platinum for a low price premium and a low spread. This provides customers with a cost-efficient way to start saving in precious metals.

BSP Gold Grams can be converted in increments of 100 grams to 100 gram PAMP Gold Cast Bars. BSP Silver Grams can be converted in increments of 15,000 grams to 15 kg Heraeus Silver Bars. BSP Platinum Grams can be converted in increments of 1,000 grams to 1 kg Heraeus Platinum Bars. BSP Grams can be converted to physical bullion bars at any time or sold back to BullionStar at any time.

Gold; silver

Silver Market Review for 2015

December 9, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 808 Views 0 Comments

Festive season is fast approaching and now is the time to buy gold or silver bullion as gifts for your loved ones! Before making a move, let’s take a look at the global market trend for bullion.

According to a report by Thomas Reuters, 2015 has been an intriguing year for silver as total supply is forecasted to fall by 3% from the previous year. This represented the weakest performance since 2002, when mine production fell by 2%.

There are a lot of head winds for the silver mine production and on top of this, scrap supply is expected to fall for the fourth consecutive year. Because of this, silver will face a physical shortfall for the third consecutive year. Nonetheless, this shortfall is mitigated by outflows from the ETFs and derivative exchange, thus softening the impact of supply shortage from the mine productions.

Interestingly, the deficit in the supply may not cause a spike in prices. This theory is vindicated by the performance of silver prices this year, which saw silver prices averaged US$15.91 per ounce, which was 18.3% lower than in the same period in 2014. Wealth builders have seized this window of opportunity to snap up silver on the cheap and this led silver bullion coin sales to reach record level in the third quarter of this year.

Stocks

K1 Ventures announced capital reduction

December 7, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 764 Views 0 Comments

Perhaps one of the most overlooked dividend stocks by wealth builders in Singapore, K1 Ventures announced capital distribution of 1.5 cents per share in October 2015 to reward shareholders. The objective of the proposed capital reduction is the maximisation of value, through the distribution of surplus cash to shareholders because the company will not be making any new investments and instead will focus on managing current portfolio. This is the second capital reduction for K1 Ventures since Dec 2007 and for each of the past 10 years, the company had announced dividends.

In announcing the capital distribution, K1 Ventures also released a fantastic 1Q 2016, which saw a net profit of $87 million. Revenue was $89.3 million for the first quarter ended 30 September 2015 compared to $2.9 million in the prior year period driven by an increase in investment income from KUH, attributable to the receipt of a cash distribution of approximately $85.6 million. The balance sheet is also in great shape because net current assets is $144 million and there is no outstanding borrowing. After the disposal of Helm, K1 Ventures had finally become more “asset-lite” and not burden by the heavy borrowings. Cash-flow is also good, with the operating activities at $84 million and cash and equivalents at $135 million.

Money management; personal finance

Choosing the best mortgage loan

December 3, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 690 Views 0 Comments

The soaring SIBOR rates have created much havoc for many home owners as banks started to adjust upward their mortgage interest rates. I am one of those affected as my bank increased the interest by $200 per annual. More carnage is expected for the market as the Federal Reserve is expected to hike interest rates in a couple of weeks. Thankfully, my loan amount is not too big, so the impact of the upcoming Federal Reserve interest rate hike will be minimal. For many home owners, it is prudent to choose the best mortgage loan.

Incidentally, the lock-in period for my mortgage loan will end next month, so I am looking at refinancing or repricing my outstanding mortgage loan. Lets take a look at the important factors when choosing the best mortgage loan packages in the market. You won’t want to get ripped off by the banks.

My first consideration for a mortgage loan is actually the lock-in period. I am looking at 2-3 years of lock-in period because I aim to pay off my housing debt by then using my CPF savings. For the uninitiated, the term “lock-in” is a clause which restricts you from switching to another loan package.

Gold; currency

Rising US Dollar and Its Impact on Gold

December 2, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 751 Views 0 Comments

Gold is often denominated and traded in US dollars, so a weak dollar will cause gold to be less expensive to buy. In addition, when US dollars devalue, investors will seek an alternative safe haven, such as gold, to store value. Loosely speaking, gold’s value is often correlated to the strength of the dollar. However, with the introduction of quantitative easing by the US government since 2008, I have always been puzzled that global inflation has not shot through the roof and purchasing power of the US dollar has not been diminished a single bit. In BullionStar’s website, I found my answer.

BullionStar explained that 80% of the global trade is still conducted in US dollars as businessmen still trust the stability of US government. In my opinion, a lot of credit must go to President Obama, who took over from his predecessor, George Bush, during the Great Financial Recession in 2009. Under Obama’s leadership, he helped to steer United States out of economic recession and in 2015, his hard work finally paid off. United States’ economy is finally showing sign of recovery and unemployment rate decreases substantially since last year. As a result. the value of US dollar rise for the past few months.

Money management; personal finance

What does being an accredited investor mean in Singapore

December 1, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 1196 Views 3 Comments

In the course of my blog adventure, I am privileged to meet people who shared with me their financial insights unselfishly. From them, I gleaned some knowledge on Singapore’s finance sector from the perspective of a retail investor. One of the important lessons I learned is what does being an accredited investor really means in Singapore.

Before you skip this article, take note that being an accredited investor is NOT about taking financial courses to qualify for investing in risky products. It’s about how much money you have in your bank and your earning income bracket.

Under Securities and Futures Act Paragraph 4A, an accredited investor means[This is a premium article. The rest of the content is blocked and can be accessible by SG Wealth Builder Members only. To read the full content, please sign up as member.]

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Stocks

Stock Investing: Is Tat Hong a fallen angel?

November 29, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 1026 Views 1 Comment

It has been sometimes since I reviewed the performance of Tat Hong and I was shocked to find out that the stock had plummeted to almost a five year low. The stock is currently trading at $0.52, barely above the $0.49 recorded in September 2015.

For a company that prides itself as the largest crane company in Asia Pacific and seventh worldwide, its recent stock price indicates that all is not well for Tat Hong.

In the 2015 annual report, the revenue declined 11% to S$608.6 million whilst operating profit (excluding impairment charges) remained flat at S$35.7 million comparable to the net profit achieved in FY2014. Profit after tax and minority interests (PATMI) dipped 85% to S$4.9 million due to non-cash goodwill and asset impairment charges of S$30.8 million taken by the Group’s Australian subsidiaries. One reason for Tat Hong’s terrible performance could be that its business is too concentrated in Australia and Singapore markets, which together accounted for 60% of the Group’s business. Thus, any headwind in these markets can spell big trouble for the company.

Perhaps another tell-tale signs that a company is not doing well is that it is selling its assets. In 2015, Tat Hong disposed its properties in Australia, equipment as well as selling off several “non-core subsidiaries”, Hup Hin Transport and Tat Hong Flo-Line, and an associate, Kian Ho Bearings.

Self improvement

The mystery of life

November 25, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 990 Views 0 Comments

It’s that time of the year for self reflections again. Since 2013, year end reflections took on a whole new dimension for me with the passing on of Dad. It is strange that when he was alive, I never realized my love for him and that he was so important to me.

Dad had been an influential figure in my life and his abrupt death in early 2013 had a profound impact on me. Perhaps the mystery of life is that you would only cherish something after you lost it. Human beings tend to take things for granted, especially when it comes to interpersonal relationships.

On looking back, one of Dad’s important words of advice to me was to manage and improve my temper. When I was young, I didn’t enjoy a good relationship with my mother and often argued with her over trivial matters. Because of this, Dad always chastened me over my foul temper. Indeed, since young, emotion management had always been a challenge for me. Sometimes when I see red, I would lose my head, much to my regrets later. Apparently, this Achilles Heel has spilled over to my job and thus affected my progression.

This year, I achieved quite a lot in my job and had collected a few awards along the way.

Insurance coverage; medical shield; financial planning; personal finance

Shortchanging your health insurance may cost your life in Singapore

November 20, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 1142 Views 2 Comments

Two weeks ago, I upgraded my whole family’s health insurances to Integrated Shield Plan (Private Hospital) to provide maximum coverage for medical expenses. As I also opted for the rider to cover the deductible and co-insurance portions, the amount of cash forked out was about $1,100 per annum after Medisave deduction.

The decision to upgrade our health insurances came about after a health scare that occurred to my colleague and my brother’s daughter who suffered a broken leg a couple of months ago. These incidents certainly really drove home the importance of buying health insurances when in the pink of health. With the kick-in of Medishield Life with effect 1 November 2015, you are still eligible for Medishield Life even if you have pre-existing illnesses or health problems at the point of applying for Medishield Life. However, do note that if your pre-existing conditions are very serious, you may need to pay additional premiums.

Personally, I am glad that the government has finally decided to provide coverage to Singaporeans born with pre-existing illnesses. This is the right thing to do, especially for new-born babies born with defects or chronic health problems. The Medishield Life will also offer protection for life to Singaporeans and Permanent Residents, so we need not worry about not having medical expenses coverage when we are old.

Gold

The strong demand for gold

November 19, 2015 sgwealthbuilder 1035 Views 0 Comments

As the year end festive season approaches, gold demand from China and India consumers pick up as expected. This is because the Chinese and Indian consumers are traditionally known to buying gold jewelleries and bullion during festive seasons. In the latest report from World Gold Council, the Indian demand was up by 15% to 211 tonnes, while China’s demand increased by 4% to 188 tonnes in Q3 2015. The bullish outlook for gold underlies the strength of the demand of gold bars and coins.

To be a successful wealth builder, one must always adopt a contrarian approach and buy on price dips. This is applicable regardless of any form of financial instruments. For gold and silver bullion, this is no different. In Q3 2015, the outflow of ETF led to a price dip for gold, thus resulting in increased consumer demand. This is because global investors saw the gap and capitalized on buying opportunity. The investment demand saw a spike in this quarter, up 27% to 230 tonnes. In particular, the Western market saw a surge of estimated 33%. The increased in demand was probably triggered by the Greek debt crisis and uncertainties in Europe arising from the standoff between Ukraine and Russia.

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