Just realised my blog has crossed the 1,000 readership mark in a little less than a month after my first post Inaugural Post.
Although it's not a big achievement to speak, I'm still happy that my posts are being read by people and hopefully be of help too.
There's no comment to my posts so far, but whoever you are, thank you for your time in reading.
Quick update on the market:
Dow Jones has finally broke the 20,000 mark. This should bodes well for the STI which has enjoyed a bull run so far into the new year.
Looks like Trump putting his words into actions is generating a positive feeling in the market. As the saying goes - people are fearful of the unknown. The feeling should be gone now judging from the breakthrough in DJIA.
On a personal note:
CapitaLand proved to be a good buy so far. However M1 suffered from panic selling yesterday due to the release of their latest results. I expect the share price of M1 to rebalance after this and rebound.
Hopefully the tangible benefits of their collaboration with Starhub will come sooner.
I have also added a few more counters into my watch list recently.
Moving forward will continue to look out for suitable buys to add to my long term portfolio and experiment with some short term tradings to slowly build up my warchest again.
Musings of my daily life and chronicles of my financial journey towards making money work for me instead of working for money.
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Thursday, 26 January 2017
Tuesday, 24 January 2017
Growing My Savings
As part of my journey towards financial freedom, I have been tracking my income and expenses via spreadsheets.
One of the spreadsheets created is something like a budget sheet which I created years ago and updated periodically due to changes in my income and expenses.
The table helps me to visualise my expenses and savings better (men are visual creatures indeed) so I decided to share it here in the hope that it can help others as well.
There are generally two ways for me to grow my savings - increase my income or reduce my expenses. Better yet, do both concurrently!
Since increasing my fixed income is not always in my control, I can try to reduce my expenses.
As seen on the table, I am saving portions of my monthly fixed income in three savings accounts. Total percentage of my savings against income is 37.63%.
I am trying to push this to 40% as the immediate target.
As a side note, I have another spreadsheet which shows that I need 23 years based on some prudent conditions* before I achieve my first million in cash!
* 3% increment every 2 years, 1 month bonus per year, 40% savings of net income and 3% annual returns with yearly compounding.
In order to achieve the 40% I can try to reduce the expenses in the table. Easier said than done! After looking through several times I still haven't done anything yet.
Will continue to see what adjustments I can do to my lifestyle to achieve the said target. Perhaps in three years time when my COE runs out, I can free up (S$360 - transportation) and add to my savings.
Disclaimer: Some figures in the table have been adjusted to protect privacy.
One of the spreadsheets created is something like a budget sheet which I created years ago and updated periodically due to changes in my income and expenses.
The table helps me to visualise my expenses and savings better (men are visual creatures indeed) so I decided to share it here in the hope that it can help others as well.
There are generally two ways for me to grow my savings - increase my income or reduce my expenses. Better yet, do both concurrently!
Since increasing my fixed income is not always in my control, I can try to reduce my expenses.
|
Description
|
Amount
(SGD)
|
|
Bills (Wifi, SP Services, Town Council)
|
$150
|
|
Carpark
|
$110
|
|
Credit Card / Groceries
|
$600
|
|
Road Tax / Insurance
|
$150
|
|
Insurances
|
$300
|
|
Savings (OCBC)
|
$2,250
|
|
Petrol
|
$300
|
|
Transport (Bus / Train)
|
$50
|
|
Income Tax / Property Tax
|
$250
|
|
Investment
|
$400
|
|
Holiday
|
$200
|
|
Car Repair / Tyres
|
$100
|
|
Savings (UOB)
|
$100
|
|
Donations / Insurance
|
$50
|
|
Cashcard
|
$50
|
|
Savings (POSB)
|
$100
|
|
Transport (Cab)
|
$50
|
|
Food / Entertainment
|
$400
|
|
Parents
|
$900
|
|
Description
|
Amount
(SGD)
|
%
of Net Income
|
|
Fixed Monthly Expenditure
|
$4,060
|
62.37%
|
|
Total Monthly Savings
|
$2,450
|
37.63%
|
I am trying to push this to 40% as the immediate target.
As a side note, I have another spreadsheet which shows that I need 23 years based on some prudent conditions* before I achieve my first million in cash!
* 3% increment every 2 years, 1 month bonus per year, 40% savings of net income and 3% annual returns with yearly compounding.
In order to achieve the 40% I can try to reduce the expenses in the table. Easier said than done! After looking through several times I still haven't done anything yet.
Will continue to see what adjustments I can do to my lifestyle to achieve the said target. Perhaps in three years time when my COE runs out, I can free up (S$360 - transportation) and add to my savings.
Disclaimer: Some figures in the table have been adjusted to protect privacy.
Sunday, 15 January 2017
Nice Start to the Year
$320 in the pocket!
Well, not exactly in the pocket but in my bank account.
So busy with work recently that I have not much time to do anything else.
I knew Singtel's dividend is coming in this month. But I forgot about it until I logged in to my account yesterday.
Had a pleasant surprise of $320 credited in. Thanks Singtel! One of my favourite counters..
On top of that also saw the various bonuses from OCBC 360 and some small income from one of my other stream.
Nice!
Well, not exactly in the pocket but in my bank account.
So busy with work recently that I have not much time to do anything else.
I knew Singtel's dividend is coming in this month. But I forgot about it until I logged in to my account yesterday.
Had a pleasant surprise of $320 credited in. Thanks Singtel! One of my favourite counters..
On top of that also saw the various bonuses from OCBC 360 and some small income from one of my other stream.
Nice!
Tuesday, 10 January 2017
STI Break Through 3,000 Finally
Today is a happy day for many. Finally STI broke through 3,000 points. The last time it happened is 14 months ago which seem like a long time amidst the turmoils last year.
Good news for me is that most of my counters including new ones like CapitaLand which I purchased at $2.98 are in the green zone.
Even those in the red like M1, are sustaining less damage because of the bull.
Bad news is I haven't got the chance to do some trading because of work. I am heavily involved in a project now which is scheduled for completion before CNY.
Will this bull continues to charge forward? Or will it slows down shortly and hibernate like a bear?
Honestly I'm in two thoughts. If it continues and hit my TP for some of my counters I will probably sell to realise the profits.
If the market retracts it will not affect me too much either as my investments are mostly on a longer term horizon. In fact I will take the chance to continue sourcing for good buys to add to my portfolio.
Either way I will make money. Opps, touch wood and cheers!
Good news for me is that most of my counters including new ones like CapitaLand which I purchased at $2.98 are in the green zone.
Even those in the red like M1, are sustaining less damage because of the bull.
Bad news is I haven't got the chance to do some trading because of work. I am heavily involved in a project now which is scheduled for completion before CNY.
Will this bull continues to charge forward? Or will it slows down shortly and hibernate like a bear?
Honestly I'm in two thoughts. If it continues and hit my TP for some of my counters I will probably sell to realise the profits.
If the market retracts it will not affect me too much either as my investments are mostly on a longer term horizon. In fact I will take the chance to continue sourcing for good buys to add to my portfolio.
Either way I will make money. Opps, touch wood and cheers!
Friday, 6 January 2017
Retirement Sum Top Up Scheme
A new year, a new IR8A coming soon!
When it comes to personal income tax in Singapore, there are several ways which one can use in order to reduce the taxable income.
Important especially if you are hitting or have hit the next tax bracket which is 'Siong' by the way.
The Retirement Sum Top Up (RSTU) scheme from CPF board is one avenue which can be used to get some tax relief for yourself.
Basically it involves topping up of cash to your, your parents', parents' in law, grandparents', grandparents' in law, spouse's* or sibling's* CPF account.
* Do note your spouse's or sibling's annual income in the preceding year cannot exceed S$4k unless they are handicapped.
You can enjoy up to S$7k of tax relief per calender year if you top up for yourself and up to another S$7k of relief if you top up for your loved ones stated above.
Sounds good eh?
However one important point to take note is that the recipient would not be getting the full amount you topped up at one go.
A case study to highlight this point:
Assuming your dad is 70 years old and he has nearly exhausted the funds in his CPF retirement account (RA).
From next month onwards you intend to top up S$1k to his RA every month. However he will only be getting about S$500 next month from the S$1k that you topped up for him.
The balance S$500 can only be disbursed to him the following month. Nevertheless this balanced amount if left untouched, will earn an interest of 4 - 6% per annum.
So before you decided to do the cash top up for your loved ones, think carefully whether it's better to give them the money directly or better to earn additional interest for them while getting some tax relief for yourself.
For more information, you can refer to the link below.
https://www.cpf.gov.sg/Members/FAQ/schemes/retirement/retirement-sum-scheme
When it comes to personal income tax in Singapore, there are several ways which one can use in order to reduce the taxable income.
Important especially if you are hitting or have hit the next tax bracket which is 'Siong' by the way.
The Retirement Sum Top Up (RSTU) scheme from CPF board is one avenue which can be used to get some tax relief for yourself.
Basically it involves topping up of cash to your, your parents', parents' in law, grandparents', grandparents' in law, spouse's* or sibling's* CPF account.
* Do note your spouse's or sibling's annual income in the preceding year cannot exceed S$4k unless they are handicapped.
You can enjoy up to S$7k of tax relief per calender year if you top up for yourself and up to another S$7k of relief if you top up for your loved ones stated above.
Sounds good eh?
However one important point to take note is that the recipient would not be getting the full amount you topped up at one go.
A case study to highlight this point:
Assuming your dad is 70 years old and he has nearly exhausted the funds in his CPF retirement account (RA).
From next month onwards you intend to top up S$1k to his RA every month. However he will only be getting about S$500 next month from the S$1k that you topped up for him.
The balance S$500 can only be disbursed to him the following month. Nevertheless this balanced amount if left untouched, will earn an interest of 4 - 6% per annum.
So before you decided to do the cash top up for your loved ones, think carefully whether it's better to give them the money directly or better to earn additional interest for them while getting some tax relief for yourself.
For more information, you can refer to the link below.
https://www.cpf.gov.sg/Members/FAQ/schemes/retirement/retirement-sum-scheme
Thursday, 5 January 2017
Healthy Living
So I did a stock count today on the mileage I achieved with my runs last year.
As a disclaimer, running after the bus, runs to the toilet and running from the rain are excluded from the following statistics.
Based on my running app 'mapmyrun' which I used with my runs most of the times, I ran a total of 214 km last year.
This is a far cry from my target of 1,152 km which is based on 3 runs of 8 km per week. Obviously I have not run as much as I would like to.
The following workout regime was what I devised for myself last year and I tried to keep to the regime as consistently as I can.
Monday / Wednesday / Friday:
a) 2-min plank
b) 219 reps of crunches
c) 219 reps of shoulder
d) Run
Tuesday / Thursday / Saturday:
a) 2-min plank
b) 219 reps of crunches
c) 219 reps of chest
d) 219 reps of arms
e) 219 reps of squats
Sunday:
Rest day
On top of that, I also adopted a no / low carbo dinner on weekday nights.
For the record my height is 1.8 m and I tipped the scale at 72 kg.
As far as I am concerned, I can attest that the above regime cum dietary change did have an effect on my body shape.
My height and weight remained the same. However I swear I can see my chest getting bigger, love handles getting smaller and deltoids getting larger.
I don't rule out that's an imagination from an exhausted person though.
Coming to 2017, I am going to continue with the above albeit with some slight tweaks.
Instead of running I am going to swim more.
This is because swimming is better for men if you know what I mean. There's a reason why a certain body part of ours are hanging outside of the body. They have to remain cool in order to function properly.
Running produces heat. Swimming cools the body. There you go..
2017 here I come.
Healthier living, healthier body
As a disclaimer, running after the bus, runs to the toilet and running from the rain are excluded from the following statistics.
Based on my running app 'mapmyrun' which I used with my runs most of the times, I ran a total of 214 km last year.
This is a far cry from my target of 1,152 km which is based on 3 runs of 8 km per week. Obviously I have not run as much as I would like to.
The following workout regime was what I devised for myself last year and I tried to keep to the regime as consistently as I can.
Monday / Wednesday / Friday:
a) 2-min plank
b) 219 reps of crunches
c) 219 reps of shoulder
d) Run
Tuesday / Thursday / Saturday:
a) 2-min plank
b) 219 reps of crunches
c) 219 reps of chest
d) 219 reps of arms
e) 219 reps of squats
Sunday:
Rest day
On top of that, I also adopted a no / low carbo dinner on weekday nights.
For the record my height is 1.8 m and I tipped the scale at 72 kg.
As far as I am concerned, I can attest that the above regime cum dietary change did have an effect on my body shape.
My height and weight remained the same. However I swear I can see my chest getting bigger, love handles getting smaller and deltoids getting larger.
I don't rule out that's an imagination from an exhausted person though.
Coming to 2017, I am going to continue with the above albeit with some slight tweaks.
Instead of running I am going to swim more.
This is because swimming is better for men if you know what I mean. There's a reason why a certain body part of ours are hanging outside of the body. They have to remain cool in order to function properly.
Running produces heat. Swimming cools the body. There you go..
2017 here I come.
Healthier living, healthier body
Wednesday, 4 January 2017
'Monthly' Effect of the Stock Market
Apparently one can link different months in a year to different effects on the stock market.
We often hear the adage 'Sell in May Buy in November' where people believe it's best to avoid the market turmoil in the period between May and Nov.
http://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/sell-in-may-and-go-away.asp
We also often see the annual year end window dressing period in December leading to the nicely named 'Santa Claus Rally'.
I recently read about the January effect on the stock market for the rest of the year as well.
Basically analysts believe the first week of trading in January has a profound significance in predicting how the market moves for the rest of the year.
https://tradingsim.com/blog/january-effect/
So if you believe in these 'monthly' theories, your trading / investing strategy will be very much simplified.
Forget about the chart readings.
1) Just observe the market movement in the first week of January and long / short the market accordingly.
2) Clear your portfolio in May and restart in November.
3) Lastly sell in the last week of December.
Have you tested this simple theoretical strategy before?
Feel free to share your thoughts about it 🙂
We often hear the adage 'Sell in May Buy in November' where people believe it's best to avoid the market turmoil in the period between May and Nov.
http://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/sell-in-may-and-go-away.asp
We also often see the annual year end window dressing period in December leading to the nicely named 'Santa Claus Rally'.
I recently read about the January effect on the stock market for the rest of the year as well.
Basically analysts believe the first week of trading in January has a profound significance in predicting how the market moves for the rest of the year.
https://tradingsim.com/blog/january-effect/
So if you believe in these 'monthly' theories, your trading / investing strategy will be very much simplified.
Forget about the chart readings.
1) Just observe the market movement in the first week of January and long / short the market accordingly.
2) Clear your portfolio in May and restart in November.
3) Lastly sell in the last week of December.
Have you tested this simple theoretical strategy before?
Feel free to share your thoughts about it 🙂
Sunday, 1 January 2017
Summary of Current Portfolio
In the last two weeks I added 4,000 shares of M1 @ $1.92 and 2,000 shares of CapitaLand @ $2.98 to my existing holdings.
For the former, I took advantage of the low price to average down as I felt M1's share price has neared it's bottom. Basically market has over reacted to the 4th Telco news. Time will tell whether I have made the right decision.
For CapitaLand, I felt it's a good price to enter. I have bought some at the same price previously also.
The reason for buying into this counter is because I'm confident that their venture in China would be the catalyst for their next phase of growth.
Summary
Total Current Value: S$66,480
For the former, I took advantage of the low price to average down as I felt M1's share price has neared it's bottom. Basically market has over reacted to the 4th Telco news. Time will tell whether I have made the right decision.
For CapitaLand, I felt it's a good price to enter. I have bought some at the same price previously also.
The reason for buying into this counter is because I'm confident that their venture in China would be the catalyst for their next phase of growth.
Summary
|
S/N
|
Counter
|
No. of
Shares
|
Price at
30/12/2016
|
Value at
30/12/2016
|
|
1
|
Ezra
|
50,000
|
$0.049
|
$2,450
|
|
2
|
M1
|
10,000
|
$1.96
|
$19,600
|
|
3
|
CapitaLand
|
4,000
|
$3.02
|
$12,080
|
|
4
|
CapitaCom Trust
|
3,000
|
$1.48
|
$4,440
|
|
5
|
Keppel Reit
|
3,000
|
$1.02
|
$3,060
|
|
6
|
Suntec Reit
|
4,000
|
$1.65
|
$6,600
|
|
7
|
Singtel
|
5,000
|
$3.65
|
$18,250
|