Retirement in Singapore isn’t something that’s on the minds of most people in their 20s, but it’s actually something that you need to start paying attention to — now.
Blog
Financial Alliance > Investment Planning
17
Feb
Feb
Outlook 2020: Shutdown risk a major concern
Contributed by Sani Hamid, Wealth Management Director, Financial Alliance Pte Ltd
(The contributor can be contacted at sanihamid@fa.sg) This article is a concise version of a report released Feb 7
At the start of the year, there was growing evidence that 2020 could start off on a positive note economically relative to the experience of 2019. Signs were emerging of what seemed to be better times ahead as some global macroeconomic data were actually showing signs of stabilization after months of deterioration. For example, in late 2019 and early 2020, we were seeing headlines such as “Singapore manufacturing back in expansion mode after 7-month slump”1 and “Signs of a global recovery in manufacturing are starting to show”2. Even the IMF’s January 9, 2020 World Economic Outlook publication was titled “Tentative Stabilization, Sluggish Recovery?”.3
23
Sep
Sep
Recession-proof Your Portfolio in 5 Steps
Contributed by Sani Hamid,Wealth Management Director, Financial Alliance Pte Ltd
(The contributor can be contacted at sanihamid@fa.sg)
In recent months, talk of a recession has been gradually increasing on the back of deteriorating global macroeconomic data. While many countries have not officially entered a recession (which is defined as two consecutive quarters of negative quarter-on-quarter growth), the signs are ominous that it would – sooner rather than later. Given this, what should investors do and how should they position their portfolios? Below, we outline 5 things an investor should take note of as we potentially head into a recession.
28
May
May
4 Pains of Investing in REITs, and How to Get Rid of Them
Contributed by Kenny Loh, Senior Consultant & REITs Specialist, Financial Alliance Pte Ltd
(The contributor can be contacted at kennyloh@fapl.sg)
A real estate investment trust (“REIT”) is a popular asset class among income seeking investors due to its regular dividend payouts. However, there are pains unknown to most investors that are seldom shared by speakers in public seminars.
The following 4 pains are the common issues constantly faced by REITs investors throughout their whole REIT investing journey.
22
Jun
Jun
What is a Financial Adviser Representative and What Financial Consulting Services Do They Provide?
Any money-savvy individual would appreciate a good professional opinion when it comes to their finances. Obtaining advice from a financial advisory professional can be extremely helpful to those looking to grow one’s wealth, make wise investment choices and save for one’s future. In these cases, engaging a financial adviser representative who offer a wide suite of financial consulting services for you can be the best option.
08
Jun
Jun
3 Dividend Traps that Make Investors Lose Money in their Retirement Portfolio
Contributed by Kenny Loh
Senior Consultant, Financial Alliance Pte Ltd
(The contributor can be contacted at kennyloh@fapl.sg)
To learn more about him and read his articles, visit his blog
There is nothing wrong with investing in dividend stocks to generate passive income for your retirement planning. However, it will cause a huge dent in your retirement portfolio if you are investing wrongly. The following are the 3 dividend traps that you have to avoid.
11
May
May
8 Personal Financial Ratios to Check Before You Invest
Contributed by Kenny Loh
Senior Consultant, Financial Alliance Pte Ltd
(The contributor can be contacted at kennyloh@fapl.sg)
To learn more about him and read his articles, visit his blog
Like the physiotherapist who has to check the physical health of the professional soccer players before declaring them to be fully fit to play in a 90-minute competitive game, we as retail investors need to understand our own personal financial ratios so that we prioritise allocating our limited resources to the more pressing areas in our personal financial plans.
In short, don’t jump straight into investments if we are not sure of our financial “fitness level.” So how do we know what our fitness levels are?
There are 8 basic personal financial ratios we need to check.
Read More
20
Apr
Apr
3 Pitfalls Investors Must Know Before Investing in REITs
Contributed by Kenny Loh
Senior Consultant, Financial Alliance Pte Ltd
(The contributor can be contacted at kennyloh@fapl.sg)
To learn more about him and read his articles, visit his blog
Most investors are attracted by the high yield and passive income REITs offer. However, there are 3 important points to take note of when investing in REITs.
Read More
13
Apr
Apr
5 Reasons Why You Should Include REITs in Your Retirement Portfolio
Contributed by Kenny Loh
Senior Consultant, Financial Alliance Pte Ltd
(The contributor can be contacted at kennyloh@fapl.sg)
To learn more about him and read his articles, visit his blog
One of the most common questions I am asked in my seminars is, “What types of asset classes are suitable in our retirement portfolios? Endowment, annuity, universal life, bonds, equities, physical properties, land banking, hedge funds, etc?”
Physical properties are one of the most sought-after asset classes when it comes to investing in Singapore. However, there are some disadvantages relating to investing in physical properties when we are approaching our retirement age. We could instead consider investing in REITs.
REIT stands for Real Estate Investment Trust, and can serve as an alternative to investing in physical properties. I will share 5 reasons to include REITs as alternatives to physical real estate in your retirement portfolio.
23
Mar
Mar
Are you SABOing your Investment for Retirement?
Contributed by Kenny Loh
Senior Consultant, Financial Alliance Pte Ltd
(The contributor can be contacted at kennyloh@fapl.sg)
To learn more about him and read his articles, visit his blog
It was a very unfortunate event that investors lost their hard-earned money and retirement funds with Six Capital (Read the story here: Angry investors file police reports against FinTech firm Six Capital).
I am rather concerned with this statement in the Straits Times article on Six Capital: A few retirees indicated that they had poured in significant retirement sums. One lady was the age of my mother. She said that she was going to the temple to pray.
What can we learn – as retail investors – from this incident?
Let’s use the SABO model to analyse this incident. By the way, this SABO is NOT the Singlish word for “sabotage”.
09
Mar
Mar
Why most people cannot achieve their investment goals?
Contributed by Kenny Loh
Senior Consultant, Financial Alliance Pte Ltd
(The contributor can be contacted at kennyloh@fapl.sg)
To learn more about him and read his articles, visit his blog
For many years, I have been wondering why most people are not able to invest properly after attending expensive courses and many seminars. I have seen many smart people and professionals like lawyers, doctors, CFOs, Managing Directors, accountants, engineers, scientists, etc, still struggling with their own investment. I have finally found an answer after going through one-on-one private portfolio reviews and consultation sessions with more than a hundred students and seminar participants. In summary, it boils down to the misalignment of Want, Passion & Commitment.
09
Feb
Feb
Financial Planning: Get MAPPED
Contributed by: Estelle Heng
Intern from Gerontological Management Studies, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Temasek Polytechnic.
‘I’m too young to think about this’ is probably the most common excuse not to start financial planning in Singapore. However, if we think twice, we’re never too young. Parents buy insurance for their babies as soon as they are born, some before they even take their first breaths. What’s so important about insurance that it is this urgent? The reality is that unexpected things happen. And when they do, you can’t afford to give up your future because of piled-up debts from hospitals or leaving your dependents to pay them off. So really, insurance is more than just protecting yourself, it includes supporting your loved ones as well.
- 1
- 2