Just graduated and starting your career
Figure out fixed expenses and variable expenses – difficult during the first time, but easier thereafter!
Figure out fixed expenses and variable expenses – difficult during the first time, but easier thereafter!
Review your various payments and categorize them into fixed and variable expenses.
Recurring costs that remain relatively constant each month. Examples include phone bills, insurance premiums, subscriptions etc.
Expenses that fluctuate based on usage or activity levels. These can include shopping, entertainment, and transportation.
To gain a clearer understanding of your spending habits, track your expenses for a month or two. While it may be challenging the first time you do this, it’s largely a one-time effort.
Pay down the debt with the highest interest rate.
Pay down the debt with the highest interest rate.
Rank your debts based on their interest rates. This will help you decide which ones to focus on paying down first.
Whenever possible, use extra money, like from an allowance or a part-time job, to pay down the debt with the highest interest rate. Click here to read our OwlRubrics: Strategy to Reduce Debt.
Knowing common money mistakes helps you avoid financial setbacks
Knowing common money mistakes helps you avoid financial setbacks
Learn about common money mistakes to avoid those pitfalls. Be more aware of the long-term consequences of poor financial habits so you can make more informed decisions such as budgeting, saving for emergencies, and investing with caution.
Click below to learn about the 5 common money mistakes that 20-year-olds make.
Build financial health by prioritizing savings and debt repayment before spending.
Build financial health by prioritizing savings and debt repayment before spending.
Set a savings, investment, or debt repayment target. If you have a job, saving 15% of gross salary (in addition to CPF contributions) is recommended.
Review your current spending to identify non-essential expenses, like streaming services or dining out, that you can reduce. This approach helps you live within your means and prioritize your future financial goals.
Click here to read our OwlRubrics: Pay Myself First, and More Each Year.
Understanding the insurance you already have helps you avoid paying for coverage you don’t need and shows you what gaps you might need to fill in the future.
Understanding the insurance you already have helps you avoid paying for coverage you don’t need and shows you what gaps you might need to fill in the future.
Find out from your parents what insurance coverage you already have and get a list of the policies so you know what’s covered.
Before buying any insurance, take the time to learn about it and figure out what you really need. It’s important to understand your options first rather than rushing into decisions.
Start as soon as you can, in low-cost investments suitable for your time horizon and risk appetite
Start as soon as you can, in low-cost investments suitable for your time horizon and risk appetite
Start by learning the basics of investing.
Learn continuously:
Click below to visit our investment page, where you can explore our investment solutions and use our risk profiling tool for personalized portfolio recommendations.
Understanding this will help you see how CPF affects your take-home pay, how funds in each account can be used, and how the contributions build your savings over time.
Understanding this will help you see how CPF affects your take-home pay, how funds in each account can be used, and how the contributions build your savings over time.
Understand the basics
Begin by reading up on what CPF is and how it works. You can visit the ‘Educational Resources’ section on the CPF website to learn about CPF, financial planning, and more through their articles, videos, and podcasts.
Explore the uses of each account:
Find out how much of your salary goes into CPF and how it’s allocated among the three accounts. Understanding this will help you see how CPF affects your take-home pay and builds your savings over time.
Learn about CPF for retirement:
Explore how CPF supports your retirement with payouts from CPF LIFE, and how you can grow your retirement savings by topping up your Special Account or using other schemes
Click below and get directed to CPF site to learn about the basics of CPF.
Financial literacy is the foundation of good financial health.
Financial literacy is the foundation of good financial health.
Here are some effective ways to enhance your financial literacy and make informed decisions about your finances:
Click here to find out more about MoneyOwl’s upcoming webinars and events.
Already in workforce or mid-career
Figure out fixed expenses and variable expenses – difficult first time, but easier thereafter!
Figure out fixed expenses and variable expenses – difficult first time, but easier thereafter!
Review your various payments and categorize them into fixed and variable expenses.
Recurring costs that remain relatively constant each month. Examples include phone bills, insurance premiums, subscriptions etc.
Expenses that fluctuate based on usage or activity levels. These can include shopping, entertainment, and transportation.
To gain a clearer understanding of your spending habits, track your expenses for a month or two. While it may be challenging the first time you do this, it’s largely a one-time effort.
Be financially healthy without too much bad debt, so you can run the financial security marathon
Be financially healthy without too much bad debt, so you can run the financial security marathon
Check your Total Debt Servicing Ratio and Non-Mortgage Debt Servicing Ratio
Measures how much of your income goes toward paying off debts.
To calculate your TDSR, add up all your monthly debt payments (like loans and credit cards), divide by your gross monthly income, and multiply by 100 to get a percentage.
For example, if your total monthly debt repayment is $2,000 and your gross income is $5,000, your TDSR would be ($2,000 ÷ $5,000) × 100 = 40%. A TDSR of 55% or lower is generally considered healthy.
Measures the percentage of your gross monthly income used to pay non-mortgage debts like personal loans and credit card bills.
To calculate your NMDSR, add up all your monthly non-mortgage debt payments, divide by your gross monthly income, and multiply by 100 to get a percentage.
For example, if your monthly debts total $1,000 and your income is $5,000, your NMDSR would be ($1,000 ÷ $5,000) × 100 = 20%. It’s advisable to keep your NMDSR below 20% to ensure your debt is manageable and to maintain financial health.
Click below to read more about clearing your debts.
Have at least 6 months’ worth of expenses/loan payments in cash
Have at least 6 months’ worth of expenses/loan payments in cash
Build up 6 months of expenses as your emergency fund, in case of job loss.
You can also build the mortgage part of the buffer in your CPF Ordinary Account.
Click here to read our OwlRubrics: Building your Emergency Fund.
Saving/investing or reducing debt only from what’s leftover from spending can lead to overspending
Saving/investing or reducing debt only from what’s leftover from spending can lead to overspending
Automate your finances, start with whatever you can
Automate your finances, start with whatever you can
Implement the Budget and “Pay Yourself First” using the 3- Account system. This includes automating the transfers through a monthly standing instruction.
Click here to read our OwlRubrics: Implementing Personal Budget.
Fail-proof your financial plan: protect against loss of income and high medical bills.
Fail-proof your financial plan: protect against loss of income and high medical bills.
Insurance does not have to be expensive. You need to get the most essential insurance (to protect against loss of income and high medical bills) as early as possible while you are healthy, and when premiums are cheap.
Consider the following essential insurance types:
Click below to explore our curated Insurance Solutions, featuring packages tailored for various age groups and budgets.
Start as soon as you can, in low-cost investments suitable for your time horizon and risk appetite
Start as soon as you can, in low-cost investments suitable for your time horizon and risk appetite
Click below to visit our investment page, where you can explore our investment solutions and use our risk profiling tool for personalised portfolio recommendations.
CPF Special Account is a risk-free way of saving at a high interest rate, for greater financial security.
CPF Special Account is a risk-free way of saving at a high interest rate, for greater financial security.
Top up your CPF Special Account (SA) early to the Full Retirement Sum (FRS). The interest rate is attractive and it is virtually risk-free. The power of compounding means you can have a good retirement nest-egg.
You can also enjoy up to S$8,000 in tax relief annually by topping up your CPF SA using cash, up to the prevailing SRS (under 55 years old). If you are 55 years old or older, you can top up your Retirement Account.
If you are just starting out, consider topping up Special Account by 5% of your gross income (on top of normal CPF contributions), and increase it every year towards 10%. If you can’t do 5%, start with what you are comfortable with.
Alternatively, invest this amount (5% -> 10% of gross income) in a portfolio suited to your risk appetite, for retirement.
*You can also top up your MediSave Account to the Basic Healthcare Sum (BHS) but this is more for tax relief. Caution: All top-ups to CPF are a one-way street. You cannot reverse or withdraw top-ups!
Click below to learn more about topping up your CPF.
You – and your ability to earn income – are your most important financial asset
You – and your ability to earn income – are your most important financial asset
Your ability to generate income is one of your most valuable financial assets, as it directly impacts your financial stability. This means investing in yourself through education, skill development, and professional growth is essential.
Consider using your SkillsFuture credits to upgrade your skillsets or learn new skills.
Myskillsfuture.gov.sg
For NTUC members, you may consider stacking your UTAP credits with SkillsFuture credits to further lower the cost.
Union Training Assistance Programme (UTAP) (ntuc.org.sg)
Flexible and gig work
Keeping your finances separate allows you to better manage your personal budget and savings
Keeping your finances separate allows you to better manage your personal budget and savings
With a clear estimate, you can plan your budget, manage expenses, and set both short-term and long-term financial goals
With a clear estimate, you can plan your budget, manage expenses, and set both short-term and long-term financial goals
Calculate your annual income:
Estimating your average monthly income helps you manage your finances better, especially if your income fluctuates. It allows you to allocate funds for essential expenses, savings, and future investments, ensuring you stay on track even during months when income is lower than expected.
Figure out fixed expenses and variable expenses – difficult first time, but easier thereafter!
Figure out fixed expenses and variable expenses – difficult first time, but easier thereafter!
Look up the various payments you need to make and separate them into fixed and variable.
Track your expenses for a month or two to get a clearer picture of where your money is going. It’s difficult the first time you do this, but the effort is mainly one-off.
Click below to download budgeting spreadsheet
Repeat this once a year or when there is a major change in your finances.
Be financially healthy without too much bad debt so you can run the financial security marathon
Be financially healthy without too much bad debt so you can run the financial security marathon
Your total debt payments should not exceed 30-35% of your monthly income. This includes loans, credit card balances, or other debts.
By maintaining a healthy debt-to-income ratio, you ensure that you’re not overburdened by debt and still have room to save, invest, and cover other expenses comfortably.
Click here to read our OwlRubrics Debt Ratios.
Have at least 12 months’ worth of expenses/loan payments in cash
Have at least 12 months’ worth of expenses/loan payments in cash
Make sure you have an emergency fund in place to cover unexpected expenses, like medical bills or lull periods. Aim to build up savings that can cover at least 12 months of your living expenses.
Having this amount on hand allows you to handle any unforeseen events without turning to debt.
Click here to read our OwlRubrics Building your Emergency Fund.
Saving/investing or reducing debt only from what’s leftover from spending can lead to overspending
Saving/investing or reducing debt only from what’s leftover from spending can lead to overspending
Click here to read our OwlRubrics: Pay Myself First, and More Each Year.
Automate your finances, start with whatever you can
Automate your finances, start with whatever you can
Implement the Budget and “Pay Yourself First” using the 3- Account system. This includes automating the transfers through a monthly standing instruction.
Click here to read our OwlRubrics: Implementing Personal Budget.
Fail-proof your financial plan: Protect against high medical bills and loss of income.
Fail-proof your financial plan: Protect against high medical bills and loss of income.
Protection for large medical expenses
a. Integrated Shield Plan (IP): Consider a Public Hospital ‘B1’ ward IP on top of MediShield Life to cover a significant portion of hospitalisation expenses incurred before, during and post-hospitalisation.
Protection from loss of income
b. Occupational Disability Insurance: This insurance is vital for freelancers in high-risk jobs, as it provides income protection if you’re unable to work due to illness or injury. It covers a wide range of situations where you can’t perform your usual job duties.
c. Personal Accident Plan: A personal accident plan is essential if you work in a high-risk job, as it provides financial protection against accidents. Since no work means no income for self-employed individuals, this plan helps you manage the financial burden that comes with injuries, allowing you to focus on recovery without worrying about lost earnings.
Click below to read more about the importance of reviewing your insurance annually.
Maximise the compounding effect of CPF’s higher interest rates by contributing early.
Maximise the compounding effect of CPF’s higher interest rates by contributing early.
Why Start Early?
Example: 30-year-old freelancer earning $4,000/month
Typically, employees receive 37% of their salary in their CPF accounts.
Besides your mandatory MediSave contributions as a self-employed, you could top up another $240 each month to your SA. Small regular contributions can build up to a substantial retirement fund over time due to risk-free compounding interest rate of up to 5% p.a..
Click below to learn more about topping up your CPF.
If you are a platform worker born on 1 January 1995 or later, your platform operator will help you make monthly contributions into your Ordinary, Special and MediSave Accounts to help you build up savings for housing and retirement. The contribution rate will increase gradually to eventually align with employees. This also means your total earnings will increase due to additional contributions from your platform operator.
If you are a platform worker born before 1 January 1995, you can also opt in for increased CPF contributions to grow your Ordinary and Special Account savings. (Can consider whether to redraw the attached infographic from CPF website as example).
To help you cope with the drop in take-home pay due, the Platform Workers CPF Transition Support scheme provides monthly cash support to lower-income platform workers to offset part of the year-on-year increase in the platform worker’s share of CPF contributions.
Click here to learn more about CPF contributions for platform workers
Maximise Your CPF Contributions Before Exploring Market Investments
Maximise Your CPF Contributions Before Exploring Market Investments
Prioritise contributing to your CPF account
As earnings can be unpredictable and vary month by month, finding ways to boost your income can help to build financial stability.
As earnings can be unpredictable and vary month by month, finding ways to boost your income can help to build financial stability.
Learn new skills or take up side hustles to diversify your income sources.
Incorporate your business
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