When we were asked what we look forward to in the new year, all of us (NSFs) in the unit replied in unison, "ORD!".
The first month is coming to an end soon. It's been also a year since I started this blog and tracked my finances. In that process, one observation was clear.
Your career is the single most important source of building wealth
We are told by our parents to study hard and get a degree. Nobody says getting a degree guarantees will give you high income, but nobody is going to deny the fact that working for $1000 isn't a lot and not going to bring you much savings, let alone to do investments.
While I have been saving diligently from the NS allowance I'm getting now, it does feel painfully slow relying on just one, small stream of income. My friend crafted leather goods, puts it up for sale and it is now another stream of income other than the NS allowance. That will boost his savings and give him more money for investments, provided he does not inflate his lifestyle.
I am going to try my luck in applying for SIT this year. If it fails, I will head to work and take my career seriously. Then take a part-time degree.
POSB Invest-Saver
Since the start of the year, the STI registered good growth. Nikko has also just paid out its dividends, of which I received $30.50 for 505 shares. With capital gains, total return is about $100, 4.22% CAGR.
With US President Donald Trump's inauguration speech and Singapore's economy not expected to do much better this year, it could go both ways I believe. Since I'm investing in this for the long run and $100 isn't exactly anything to get excited about, I will pay less attention to the stock price. Warren Buffett's quote on whether you are the beef producer or consumer eating hamburgers will help to keep me on track. That said, I will still keep myself updated on global affairs.
REITS
Bought some CDL Hospitality Trust shares this month at $1.40, making it my 2nd REIT. I wanted to buy at $1.34 in December but was comparing it to M1 at that time. Now M1 has slightly rebounded as well, damn. It's alright, considering I never even opened M1's annual reports or try to understand the telco sector. Am I buying M1 for dividend or growth? Still trying to think about it.
Time to wait for the earnings report on 26 Jan to see how it fared. I will write how I rationalise my decision in another post.
Time to farm the angpaos and good luck.
Happy early Chinese New Year!
Gong xi fa cai!
Hi! I will be going to NS in early April this year.
ReplyDeleteI am considering getting Nikko STI ETF through POSB invest saver, would u recommend I get it at this timing?
Thanks!
Hi!
DeleteI would say it really depends on what you're saving for. If you're heading to university after NS and don't want to take risks with that pool of money, then POSB Save As You Serve account offers 2% per year for 2 years. A fixed deposit monthly. When I first enlisted, there isn't such an account unfortunately.
If you are saving for university already, and it's just some spare allowance then I think you can start the Invest-Saver alongside the POSB Save As You Serve. As for timing, I can't recommend when you should start because I don't know as well. I was fortunate to start dollar cost averaging at 2600-3000 points and with the dividend yield and recent run-up, the returns is not bad on paper. This Invest-Saver is a long-term investment for me.
Do read up more and decide on the risks taken vs the return. Also make sure your cashflow isn't affected too much with too many commitments.