Thursday 29 December 2022

Hungry Eat; Tired Rest

 

Long life, no health also meaningless...


This everyone knows.


Got money, tomorrow never comes also "lan lan"...


Balance.


Of course planning for tomorrow nothing wrong! 


Just as long we don't use retirement planning or "delayed gratification" as excuses to avoid living in the here and now.


Don't save sex for old age!


You laugh.


Try spotting the decisions you've made this year that's financially "prudent", but essentially is like saving sex for old age!?


What's makes you happy this year?


Hitting your financial goals?


Or hungry eat; tired rest?






Monday 26 December 2022

No Relationship, No Lobang

 

I was working on Christmas yesterday. It's a weekend remember?


I thought it was going to an "easy" and "relaxing" day. I mean its busy BEFORE Christmas, but who buys on Christmas day?


You think why we have boxing day sales or post CNY sales? 



Boy, was I surprised!


Worked my ass off yesterday. Tiring, but fun. 



I'm sure readers will be screaming at me, "Its 1% GST increase lah!"


LOL!


And you are right!



It's amazing how 1% can manipulate influence consumer behaviour in some people!?


To save 1%, these customers are willing to pay in full today, and have delivery of their purchases 6-7 months later next year, when they finally get their keys or have their apartments renovated...


Laggards.



What if I tell you most consumer brands have INCREASED their prices by 3-6% between March and June of this year?


No, it's not profiteering.


Remember inflation higher than CPF? 


Or how about higher supply chain costs due to disruptions in China due to Wuhan virus lockdowns or war in Ukraine? 


You can verify it yourself if you have bought any major home appliances or home electronics beginning of this year (or last year) versus current prices.


Feels good when your entry is better than others right?



OK, some of it is pure dumb luck.


I mean if your fridge broke down beginning of the year, you have to buy, you buy.


But if you have a relationship with the retailer or sales promoter, we would have contacted our "best customers" BEFORE the prices increases mid-year. Wink.


No, it's not "lobang" for anyone and everyone,

 


Moral of the story?


People = relationships.


Online = database


Relationships take time to cultivate.


Butterflies who jump from one online retailer to another to get the good, better, best deals; you are merely a statistic.



You think why property speculators surround themselves with the most competent property agents they can find?


Why high net worth investors have private bankers and brokers feeding them market insights not available to anyone and everyone?











Thursday 22 December 2022

What's The Best Way To Earn More Money?

 


Selling.


Duh!







Monday 19 December 2022

Are HDB Flats Affordable? (Dec 2022)

 

I read with interest what CW had to say on this topic:


Ho Ching: Buying an HDB flat akin to paying same rent without inflation in advance for decades



Then I remembered we had discussed it 10 years ago:


Are HDB Flats Affordable?



I'm labelling this post with (Dec 2022).


Let's see 10 years later, will we still be discussing on the same topic again!?



It goes to show in every generation, there will be a new batch of bei kambings coming to the fore.


In every transaction, there will be a buyer and a SELLER.


Bei kambings just look from the buying side. You know, the dog in the manger mentality - if they can't make money, others should not make either!


Youths, who have bigger engine capacity between the ears, will be looking from the selling side, "How do I join those who are selling their HDB flats for more than a million dollars!?"








Saturday 17 December 2022

Euphemisms

 

Got retrenched or fired? 


Career stuck going nowhere...


Got diagnosed you got critical illness and can't work anymore... 


Prefer to be a stay-at-home dad and let wifey work and pay the bills?


Want to be a business owner to grab a piece of the adult financial education pie?


Hate your current job...


Don't believe in religion yet still want to "believe" in something?


You have a hole-in-your-heart...



I can go on... But you get the idea,


What's the flavour of the decade euphemism people in our community like to use?


Just take minimalism. (For those who want to read my poke on it) 


It got "hijacked" into mainstream use and in our community some years back. Now? Less popular right? 


Believe me you. FIRE will suffer the same fate in the next decade. 


Why?


After 10 to 20 years if you still can't retire "early", you got to find a new euphemism!


That's what euphemisms are for.


To own self, lie to own self.








Monday 12 December 2022

Never Lie To Yourself






 






Saturday 10 December 2022

When to Talk-Up or Talk Down Your Vested Interest?

 

If I looking to buy a resale or BTO flat in Queenstown, I would not go round telling everyone and anyone Queenstown is good, better, best! 

"Tio bo"?

Only after I got my dream flat would I sing praises about Queenstown day-in, day-out. Wink.


Similarly, if I wanted to offload my Queenstown flat at a good price to move to an even better location in Singapore, when people asked about my experience living in Queenstown, what would you expect me to say?

Share with them I've found an even better location? 

Or I've grown jaded with Queenstown?


Same for equities.

If you are patiently waiting at the buy queue to enter a stock at an excellent entry price, would you big mouth your "lobang" to others and invite "competitive" bids from others?

You only do so after your buy order got filled right?

Then if others join you and "inadvertently" push the price up, you don't mind!


If you are one of the crypto shrills influencers out there, the moment you discovered something is wrong, you would sell your stakes first!

Next you would quietly inform your best friends forever and those in your inner circle - people that matter. 

And your paid subscribers.

Allow them time to get out themselves.

Only then would you go "public" to those freeloading anyone and everyone readers. 

No?


Things get awkward if you "jio" others to join in competitive auction bids for an asset class you haven't already own.


Then again, some readers may take the recent auctions of that asset class as "inspiration"!?

Especially if they are looking to bid competitively for COE at lower prices.

Go to car forums and/or start blog posts exalting the virtues of Singapore's, good, better, best public transport systems!

You know, how efficient and cost savings public transports are - compared to "eat oil heavy, heavy" car ownership...

Stress the hidden costs of having your "2nd wife"!

Frighten away your potential competitors for the next COE auction?

Shh...




 



Tuesday 6 December 2022

Go East, Go West - Meet Same Place

 

Like US sitcom spin-offs, the paragraph I wrote at the end of my last week's post, I believe, is good enough to have a proper blog post of its own:



Maximum Pain Vs Maximum Sheepishness




"Another interesting observation I would like to share with readers.


This Tarzan and me are going in opposite direction - he adding to CPF; while I taking as much out as possible - but we both have the same destination in mind. Wink.


The 8 immortals' analogy probably flew over your head if you're not Chinese, or Chinese banana...


OK, this New York analogy clearer.


To get to New York from Singapore, we can fly to London, and then New York.


Or from Singapore to San Francisco, then New York.


Earth is round.


Ding!"




You can verify what I say with your own anecdotal life experiences.


1.  Two young female fresh graduates - one decides to marry young and be a stay-at-home mom; the other embarks on her corporate career dreams.

30 years later, both now are living in landed properties. 

(This is adapted from a Straits Times article decades ago where it featured a tai tai making more money from moving private property 3 times than her peer who got promoted to CEO.)  


2.  During my time in the 80s, those who aspire to university would choose the Junior College route. Those who want to work asap would take the polytechnic route.

Seemingly different paths. Yet years later, everyone is also a university graduate! 

Polytechnic graduates can go overseas to continue their university studies, study part-time, or work for a few years, save enough, then own self give "scholarship" to own self!


3.  Two young boys living at those 1.5 room HDB flats at Mei Ling Street. One studied hard, got bursaries and scholarships, became a doctor (or lawyer if you prefer).

The other dropped out of school, joined a gang, got involved with illegal betting, loan shark activities; etc.

In their late 30s, both ended up in Changi Prison.  

(Got read in the papers doctors/dentists cheating big daddy with CHAS claims? Or molesting their patients? How about lawyers absconding with clients' money? Its FTX on a much smaller scale.)


4.  Two management trainees started their careers at a local hotel chain. One decides that rolling stone gathers no moss. First job is also last job. Stayed in the same hotel for 30 years. Play the local born and bred card.

The other decides to follow the ang-moh expats, every few years jump to different hotels all over the world. International career is good, better, best! No?

In their early 50s, both got retrenched due to the stupid Wuhan virus epidemic.

(Does it not look a bit like Buy-and-Hold versus Trading?) 


5.  Panda Portfolio Hits All Time High

Read the comments amongst 3 old fogeys.

CW and I are strolling down the mountain, while mysecretinvestment has 4 more years to go before calling it quits. (I believe he is likely to move the goal posts if his landowner offers him a "minister mentor" shepherd position. Wink.)

Both of them are planners and goal setters. Must be an education thing...

I less formal education. I do first, then beg for forgiveness! 





Some see differences; I see similarities. 









Friday 2 December 2022

My First Rainbow at Dawson

 







Pictures taken from my balcony.


First time seeing such a long-lasting rainbow! 


Discover it at 5:50pm. Now 6:30pm the rainbow still there!?


Those of you travelling after work, and reading my blog post, look up!










Maximum Pain versus Maximum Sheepishness

 

Those of us on the Earn More path, we'll discover soon enough that the sole purpose of Markets is to extract MAXIMUM PAIN from all its participants!


True right?


Just ask those who have chopped fingers and swear off "investing" forever. 


For survivors, we've become "philosophical". 


Have to. 


If not how to explain the insanity of doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results?




The good news is that if we switched to the Save More path, there is no MAXIMUM PAIN, just MAXIMUM SHEEPISHNESS.


How so?


Remember the electricity liberalisation move by big daddy? 


How not to love -20% discounts on our electricity bills!?


Then some discovered choosing the wholesale electricity plan "saves" even more than -20%!

(Conveniently forgetting "wholesale" meant it's for big consumers of electricity who are expected to do the electricity price hedging themselves)


Yup, imagine the sheepishness to find you are paying more than those "stupid" households who remained with PUB ....



How about HDB bank loans?


Who so stupid to choose HDB concession loan at 2.6% interest when we can easily get much lower housing loan interest rates from our nation building banks!?


Well, now some have discovered what maximum sheepishness felt like....



Remember CPF?


One could be forgiven to believe 1M65 never existed, judging by the queues at our banks and the topic of the month in our community!


First it was Singapore Savings Bonds, then Singapore Treasuries, then it didn't take long before someone shared bank fixed deposits give out more lah!


Ink haven't dry, WAIT! 


That bank over there got savings promotion that gives much more than fixed deposits!!!

Just as long we're willing to jump a few hoops like spend X minimum sum per month with the bank's credit cards; and transfer our salary deposit there. 


Fetch. Rollover. Kneel. Woof, woof! Good boy/girl!


Not maximum sheepishness, but it's the awkwardness you feel when you find what you thought was good, better, best has become 2nd best in a month or two....



In the gacha gaming community, we call it MIN/MAX. 


It works until the game developer power creeps your best built hero with a NEW must pull character! 



I'm a cat person. But I do notice dog people do become more cat like as they mature.


I mean we are both probably a bit bemused with young puppies - see hoop must jump, see ball must fetch...


We have this old fogey Tarzan at this watering-hole. 


I'll poke him like Swiss cheese if he now tells me he is diverting his planned CPF voluntary contributions to better yielding savings vehicles! LOL!


Nah, he won't!


What's the point of long-term planning if we can get derailed just with 1 or 2% extra interests?


And I thought I'm the man-whore!



Another interesting observation I would like to share with readers. 


This Tarzan and me are going in opposite direction - he adding to CPF; while I taking as much out as possible - but we both have the same destination in mind. Wink.


The 8 immortals' analogy probably flew over your head if you're not Chinese, or Chinese banana...


OK, this New York analogy clearer. 


To get to New York from Singapore, we can fly to London, and then New York.


Or from Singapore to San Francisco, then New York.


Earth is round.


Ding!






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