MONEY MASTER

Today I've read an article from The Star and I do share the same sentiment with the writer that not all debt is bad especially this quote " Smart money management is not about avoiding debt; rather it is about choosing the right debt and making it work harder for you." The article also mentioned slightly on how to utilize the credit card to free up more cash flow which in the end can be use to generate more passive income. The article is as follows:- SINCE the US subprime mortgage crisis of 2007–2008, we have had an influx of credit and debt related news such as the European sovereign debt crisis (often referred to as the eurozone crisis), the European Central Bank’s quantitative easing (QE) programme and, closer home, 1MDB. It all sounds pretty daunting to the average ears and lends credence to the public’s general fear of debt. But what is debt? The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines it as “an amount of money that you owe to a person, bank, company, etc” whil...

The term "middle class" was a word that signifies progress, and it also mean stability. The "middle class" used to mean a family with a nice place call Home, drives a Volvo or vehicle of that class, goes on yearly vacation and send their kids to college.  But those were the days. Because the middle class today varies so much in comparison to 10 years ago. In Malaysia, the "middle class" group generally includes people who earn RM3,000 above. Between RM3,000 to RM4,999 a month, it's normally the lower middle income while the upper income earns RM5,000 above. In our country, our government data in 2012 shows that 27.8% household income was at the lower middle income while 33.6% household earn RM5,000 and above.  Even though there is a stead increase in income in the country, the increase barely offset the country's soaring inflation rate....the rising living cost.  Here are some of the significant items that one should compare between ...

Credit card can be friend as well as foe, as mentioned previously in Credit Card - Friend or Foe (Part 1) , Credit Card - Friend or Foe (Part 2) , Credit Card - Friend or Foe (Part 3) and Credit Card - Friend or Foe (Part 4) and while a credit card comes with numerous benefits and flexibility to one provided that the user uses it well; can be rewarding to him or her as well. Having said so, there are several costly mistakes that one should avoid at all cost - as those mistakes will eventually lead one deeper into the debt pit. 1. Avoid Paying Only the Minimum Payment Typically on a credit card statement, one will see two type of balance due; total balance due or some known as the statement balance as well as minimum payment due. The minimum payment due is usually RM50 or 5% of the outstanding balance. Imagine only paying 5%, with 95% of the outstanding will be charged a hefty interest rate. Piling up debt in this way shows the incapable to repay the debt thus hurting the credi...

As we all might have know by now that the Ron95 petrol price up by 20c beginning 2nd October 2014, 12.00 a.m as part of the subsidy rationalization move by the government. In fact, after the announcement of the petrol hike, the petrol stations are jammed with the citizen rushing out to fill up the tank in order to save some money. While the effort might save a few ringgit and it is a one time effort, still a lot of Malaysians are doing so, knowing that every penny saved count. This is why for the past few years, cash rebate credit cards are gaining popularity in Malaysia - especially those credit cards that offer the cash rebate for petrol like the Maybank 2 card, Citibank Cash Back card, UOB One card and Hong Leong Bank Wise card. Before this OCBC Titanium is popular due to its 5% on petrol and dining and capped at RM50 cash back per month, however the offer ended and it is now offering 1% unlimited cash back. The attached is the comparison of the 4 most attractive cash rebate...

Recently I have learned that a lot of my colleagues, who are few years my junior bought their 1st property right after they start to work and it seems that it is slightly contradict with the article "The young find it difficult to afford a home" from The Star - which brings me to think that it could be the mindset between people from the northern region with the people living in the central region of the peninsula. I see that the people from the northern region, especially the Chinese tend to believe that property is a good investment and one should always get the first property at very young age. Although I personally don't agree on buying property right after getting the first job, I agree that purchasing property must be at young age - and we should not aim for the high-end property but rather the kind of property that we can afford at that time. I personally agree with Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA) president Siva Shanker that the Gen-Y definitely n...

Have you ever wonder if you could ever got yourself a place you could call your own...a place call home? If you have this dream of owning a home and finding it difficult to believe you can achieve it, you're absolutely normal, given the current economy in our country. But like many, it's possible to save for your home downpayment. Some of you may opt to withdraw from your Employees Provident Fund (EPF) account number 2 to fund your house downpayment, but EPF is your retirement savings and you should really consider the possibility of it not being enough. For example, a property selling at RM400,000 with 90% loan comes with a down payment of RM40,000 (10%) and an additional of about RM20,000 in fees and charges. This would approximately come up to an initial payment of RM60,000 in cash. It may seem overwhelming to save up that much, but by drawing a strict and realistic savings plan for this purpose , you will be able to afford your first home in no time. ...

A lot of us think that financial planning is difficult, and thus relying on financial planners to plan on our behalf, but financial planning is something that is different from one individual to another individual depending on age, risk tolerance, plans and many more; thus relying on financial planners who usually have certain templates of financial plans for financial planning is one of the costliest financial planning mistakes that one should avoid - although getting the advice from financial planners as reference is strongly advisable. The next costly financial planning that one should avoid is to treat retirement fund like EPF in Malaysia or CPF in Singapore as savings. I come across many who told me that they do have savings and give the example like EPF which is a financial planning blunder. Retirement fund should be treated as the fund for retirement (as the name already suggested), and one should somehow allocate a portion of the income as savings for rainy days. IF thi...

Have you ever wonder if you could ever retire?  Most people find it difficult to go through the month with their current earnings....so what do you expect to happen when you retire? Is retirement possible? While Malaysia set a minimum savings at age 55 to be RM196,800, meaning that you will have about RM820 a month for 20 years. Quite a small amount but if you have already got your healthcare taken care of, mortgage settled and children's education done, you should be quite safe.  Now, if you think RM196,800 is a small sum and insufficient, then it's better that you be prepared. If you want a comfortable income to sustain you and your family after you retire, you have to start planning now. Not tomorrow, not in the future.  Here are some ways that you can mess up your retirement plan and ended retiring poor. 1) NOT ENOUGH SAVINGS If your monthly income is good enough to cover your expenses only, maybe it should be an indicator that you ar...

Starting a family is always a beautiful story and a new adventure. Recently I've been to a few of my friends' wedding. It was great to see this newly wed couple planning ahead together, about having baby and getting a home etc.  The question remains...how easy is it to have a baby? Oops. I don't mean the process...of course that's easy. but how affordable are you to have a baby?  Ready to have a baby? Married couple....this is for you! Well, at least, it's based on my reading and also from the information obtained from my friends who are with babies (P.S: I'm not married and don't plan to do so any time soon...please do not misunderstood it from this post) Having a baby is expensive...consider it from all of these: food, clothing, education, hobbies, healthcare, entertainment and caretaker costs...all of that will cost you more than just love, fresh air and water. (I know some people are deceived by the easy doing it from Korean drama...

The other day while I was talking with my brother, I realized that in life, most of the time, it has to do with Lifestyle Inflation, and not inflation alone that cause the struggle for Malaysians to live in our time today. How many of you remembered how you spent when you were still in your university days? As I studied in local university, I have the option of staying in the university residential for an amount of RM300 (inclusive of food, broadband and utility). We would still go for movie, Starbucks and also entertainment, but most of the time, we would take the public transport. (save on parking). After graduation, some of us would opt for RM300 a month room rental...I remembered some of my friends would even shared a room but fast forward a few years, we would take room that cost us RM700. The old apartment might be in good condition, great location, nice neighbours and a lot of good food....but the new ones are in exclusive neighbourhood....it is not because there is a nee...

“RM5 for a bowl of curry noodles? In my day, it was 50 sen!” Sounds familiar? No doubt you hear your parents and grandparents griping about today’s prices more often than not. This phenomena does not happen miraculously only in Malaysia, but rather throughout the whole world. The reason for the price differences is simple and straightforward: inflation . We won’t go into the mechanics of inflation and its causes here; all we need to know in this context is that it devalues a currency over time by increasing the prices of goods and services. Many of us were taught that when it comes to housing loans - paying them off whenever you have spare cash and the more the better because you will be done with them earlier; and you "save" a lot of interest. But is this true? It is only true if and only if inflation is at 0%, which we all know not possible. With inflation, the opposite could ring true simply because RM10 thirty years ago has higher value than a RM10 today simply be...

It's that time of the year again....people knew it, expected it...but for some reasons, it's in the blood for us to procrastinate whatever that may not seem urgent to us regardless of the importance.  TIME TO FILE YOUR INCOME TAX Well, if you are like the many Malaysians out there, I'm pretty sure you have not completed your e-filing for your income tax . DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TAX AVOIDANCE and TAX EVASION There are a lot of people who are confuse about tax avoidance and tax evasion. Most people assume that tax evasion is illegal, but let's not be ignorant...tax avoidance is also illegal although it carries a lighter punishment. Tax avoidance means failure to file for income tax without a reasonable excuse. It carries a lighter punishment of about RM200 to RM2,000 fine and/or imprisonment. WHEN YOU MISS THE DEADLINE? I know you are probably very confident of meeting the deadline. That's good news but just in case if you really do miss the de...

Before I buy a property, I thought it was always about looking at the property price, prepared the 10% downpayment, get a bank loan and job's done....but what happened over the last 3 months plus has given me a new understanding on what it really takes to buy a property. OWNING A HOME? First of all, knowledge is important, and one really need to check the details to ensure that they are financially ready to buy a property. It can be an ultimate dream to own a home, but with escalating real estate prices and the burden of lengthy loan repayment periods of about 30 to 35 years, buying and financing a property is not just about "I love it!". Here are some of the things that I believe is important for us to consider whether we are financially ready to buy a property. UPFRONT COSTS...CAN YOU BEAR IT? In Malaysia, most of the banks are going to offer up to 90% of the property's price for your first two residential properties. If you are taking 90%, make s...

It has become a norm for people of this generation to use credit cards. There are those who are very weak in managing their expenses that they blame the credit card as the culprit for their overspending habits. Everyone know that making a purchase that one cannot pay at the end of the month simply spell trouble in the long run. But what if you could take this card, and make it your best friend by spreading your repayments over the next few months of years, at 0% interest. This isn't a myth. Such a plan, which could be very common for this generation, the 0% Easy Payment Plan. Here is one of brochure that I found in SenQ. 0% IPP for 36 months If you are planning to buy the Apple iPhone 5S, please consider this option. Instead of putting in RM3149 at once to buy 64GB Apple iPhone 5S, you only have to pay RM87.47 on a monthly basis for 36 months. If you plan to put the RM2000 into FD first, you would have an additional RM60 assuming 3% interest.  There are a lot of pe...

To a lot of people, debt is a scary thing...but yet at the same time, it is a beautiful thing. Without debt, it would be very difficult for the middle class to consider earning property, vehicles and some other expenses.  In our world today, with the credit card, there are so many ways for consumers, like you and I to manipulate future money in order to enjoy some of the luxurious goods.  DEBT CAN BE YOUR BEST FRIEND I have known people who disdain debt to a point that they would pay as much as they could as downpayment for a property even though most of the time, it only requires 10% of the property price. I have also known people who had piles of debts that it is impossible to settle it, and thus BANKRUPTCY.  There is a simple rule of managing debt...DON'T SPEND MORE THAN YOU EARN, but it really isn't that simple, especially when you want to leverage on some of the low interest environment loan. If you only spend less than you earn, there is also a...