9 tips for saving in Singapore! [Part 2]

We hope you have enjoyed Part 1 of our series for savings tips. We, TripleHuat, will once again bring you Part 2 of the series in this post!

Shopping

1) Utilising SAF Credits. If you are still an active NSF or NSmen, you will have SAF e-mart credits. Instead of letting the credits idle until the next In-Camp-Training or until its expiry, why not use them to buy some sports equipment for yourself? If you are working in the corporate world, do consider getting their black shoes & socks. You can purchase a pair of sports shoes for your girlfriend too!

2) Earning Online Cashback. The e-commerce world is getting more and more prevalent. You don't have to step out the comfort of your home to do your shopping. Go online and make your purchases! Make full use of ShopBack or/and credit cards to earn cashback. 

3) Be A Savvy Shopper. For shopping at international brands, always compare prices between online vs. local physical stores. For example, because of online sales, some items on the Victoria’s Secret US website are being sold for less than 50% of the price in local SG stores! Even before the sale, it can be about 20-30% cheaper online. Remember to check delivery options though! Besides cashbacks, making payments using credit cards that give you extra points/miles for online payments, such as UOB’s Preferred Platinum Visa card, will also ensure that you’re stretching every dollar. 

4) Leveraging on Sales. For new couples, you can explore buying items at Great Singapore Sales or warehouse sales which are occasionally held at SG Expo, Sia Huat or online platforms such as Taobao, Qoo10 or simply finding second-hand items on Carousell. Make sure you do your due diligence to check on vendors' reputation & items' condition! This would save you a huge sum which you can use for other purposes such as traveling. 

5) Buying Household Items from Chinatown. Little known to many, there is a corner in chinatown at New Market Road with shops that sell household items at cheaper price than many heartland shops. The first floor is made up of hawker stalls while the shops occupy the second floor onwards. You can buy household items or even items for chinese wedding there. Some of the more well-known shops are Swanston and 海洋.

Couple Time

6) Dating. Going out dating with your partner can cost a lot in a day. Instead of spending money and time to eat, watch movie, shopping, why not go out exercise to keep fit together, take a stroll at our UNESCO site - Picnic at Botanic Gardens, bask in the sun at East Coast Park, go on a hike at Coney Island, take a day trip to Kusu island or go for cycling in Pulau Ubin. There are many inexpensive activities you and your partner can do. It's the company and quality time that matters!

7) Visiting Malaysia. We heard that scores of people have went over to Malaysia to purchase many useful, bargain-hunting and affordable items to take advantage of the favourable SGD-Ringgit currency. But do be mindful of the borer restrictions and various taxes! For couples, you can consider a less expensive staycation in Johor Bahru or take a coach from Lakin to various parts of Malaysia. Hotel in a good location is likely to cost less than SGD100 per night during non-peak seasons.

8) Console Games. If you and your significant other are into console games, buy a good RPG game that can keep the both of you engaged for at least a month or two - save on eating out and dates! You can sell the game once you're done to recoup some of the initial outlay. The common option is to do this on Carousell, but there are some shops out there that let you sell back the games that you bought from them once you're done - one example is Qisahn. 

Personal Skills Development

9) SkillsFuture Credit. Every Singapore Citizen aged 25 and above will receive $500 worth of credits where we could use it for skills-related courses. If you want to stay relevant in this ever-changing world, it's time to take charge of your self-development and career progression. So go forth to plan your learning journey with your SkillsFuture Credit!

We hope you enjoy Part 2 of our saving tips! Keep a look out for more tips from us soon!

Huat ah! Happy Labour Day in advance!

Cheers, TripleHuat

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7 tips for saving in Singapore! [Part 1]

It's common to hear people lamenting that Singapore is such an expensive city to live in. The prices will only go up and not down. Aiyoh... money not enough leh. If you are willing to spend the time and effort to search for good bargains, there are still many ways to save a couple of dollars and cents which will add up to be a lot of money over time!

In this post, we the 3 Huats - EzHuat, GoHuat, YoloHuat - will share tips on how we can save money. We have compiled a list of items that will be useful for minimising the daily expenses in our lifestyle and through this post, we hope to share what we know. If you have other tips, we would be keen to find out more from you too!

Food & Drinks 

1) Coffee. Are you a coffee addict? If you are, it's time to do a caffeine check. One cup of Starbucks coffee can easily cost $6 or more. If you need a cup everyday, you would spend $42 a week, $168 a month, $2,016 a year! Imagine what you can do with $2,016! Maybe it's time to search for cheaper source of caffeine fix. How about kopitiam coffee? It probably cost below $2. Or you can buy the coffee powder and make your own beverage!

2) Eating at Hawker Centre. Instead of eating at restaurants, why not eat at hawker centres which cost lesser and the food can be as yummy too! A meal at Hawker Centre should cost between $3-$8 while a meal in restaurants will likely cost at least twice or even more than that. So go for value-for-money meals at hawker centres and you get to support our hawker heritage too! 

3) Cooking at Home. If you are sick and tired of eating out, you can consider cooking at home. Home-cooked food always taste better than outside food because it's cooked with love. It is also a good and healthy bonding session for couples or families to come up with new recipes together! All we need to do is plan your menu and buy the groceries at nearby supermarket. 

Transport 

4) Don't buy a Car. We live in a consumerism world. To own a car in Singapore is definitely not going to be cheap - with a significant amount going to the Certificate Of Entitlement (COE). Instead of spending a 5-digit sum for that piece of paper, why not take public transportation or use Grab/Uber? Besides, we can also make full use of Grab or Uber promo code. It's definitely cheaper than owning a car which you would have to pay for road tax, car insurance, petrol, parking, maintenance, ERP, etc. 

5) Free MRT rides. If you are an early bird at work, you can wake up earlier to take the free train rides if you tap out of the 18 designated stations before 7:45am on weekdays. The scheme has been extended to 30 June 2017. Not only do you get to avoid the crazy peak hour crowd, you also get a free ride! You can check out the 18 designated stations at this link.

6) Grabbing a Bicycle. Instead of driving cars or taking public transport, why not explore using bicycle to travel within a short distance. You can consider to buy second-hand bicycles or take up bike-sharing initiatives from companies such as Zaibike, ofo, Obike. Alternatively, you can explore purchasing a personal mobility device too. Save the planet!

7) Tapping on Travel Websites. Ever wonder whether you could enjoy a vacation while saving a bit more? Well it is possible if you are aware of all the available flight options and choose the less costly ones. Websites such as Skyscanner or Kiwi are useful platforms for us to tap on to quickly find out these info. Do sign up for budget airlines' mailing list too! Sometimes they do offer good promotions at different seasons or occasions. Essentially you can still travel but spend lesser at more affordable prices!

That's all for Part 1 saving tips. Keep a look out for Part 2!

Huat ah!

Cheers, TripleHuat

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The case for cash + Some thoughts on Warren Buffett's letter

As many of you know by now, the DJIA topped 21,000 for the first time ever with Trump’s latest speech to the Congress resonating strongly with the market. The speech offered slogans, few detail, yet the market keeps charging ahead. Strange world, isn’t it? Naysayers have stayed on the sidelines waiting for a correction to come, yet they are getting left behind in the dust.

Source: Google images

There’s a theory going around that there’s just too much cash lying around waiting to be deployed, so people are just looking for reasons to buy. True or not, such mentality effectively pushes investors towards owning assets at virtually any price, which is surely nonsensical. 

What’s wrong with cash anyway? True, it generally has a zero expected real return. But at least there is a near certainty around that expected return, which sometimes is more attractive than the highly uncertain expected real returns on offer when alternatives are overvalued. It is beginning to feel like one of those times.

There are some pointers that I wish to share from Warren Buffett’s latest shareholder letter, which I finished reading a couple of days ago. There are many valid points that he made, but let's take a look at the top three for me:

(Admittedly, this is the first of his shareholder letters that I’ve read in detail. As I look to improve my knowledge as an investor, I plan to read all of the rest soon because it is truly as insightful as it has been said to be.)

1. “Of course, a business with terrific economics can be a bad investment if it is bought at too high a price.”

Reiterates what I just mentioned above. I know there is a lot of literature on this. Everyone wants to buy low and sell high, but it’s easier said than done. I’ve had my fair share of pitfalls too. Two things that I learnt I should have: (1) Discipline - stop that itchy finger! (2) Cash. Lots of it. Cash has one important endowment which is too frequently unrecognised: a hidden optionality derived from its relative stability. In other words, the holder of cash has an effective option to purchase more volatile assets if and when they become cheap. 

Speaking of cash, OCBC 360 is facing new changes (again) effective 1 April. Seems like the bank wants to further increase the deposit base and shift more into the revenue-generating products. Read Ezhuat's post about it here.

2. “Too many managements – and the number seems to grow every year – are looking for any means to report, and indeed feature, “adjusted earnings” that are higher than their company’s GAAP earnings.”

Eeeks, I really do hate it when I see the word “adjusted”. Because then I have to find out what has been adjusted, why they were adjusted, and more often than not there is not enough information (especially for private companies). Coincidentally, I had been reading through the prospectus of an F&B company earlier in the week and was quite disturbed (more like irritated) when I realised that the section on financials is littered with the word “adjusted”.

Look at this:

Whut? Had a headache immediately.

“Two of their favorites are the omission of “restructuring costs” and “stock-based compensation” as expenses.”

Hear, hear! Look at these adjustments to EBITDA of the same company:

Ok to be fair, the company had just made an acquisition, hence the acquisition costs and restructuring and integration costs etc. BUT that’s precisely the company’s entire business strategy. For growth, it acquires underperforming units from its competitors and refurbishes, converts, and integrates them into its own brands. They have such costs constantly, every single year, so obviously earnings should fully reflect them. The same goes for every acquisitive company, including Berkshire:

“Berkshire, I would say, has been restructuring from the first day we took over in 1965. Owning only a northern textile business then gave us no other choice. And today a fair amount of restructuring occurs every year at Berkshire... We have never, however, singled out restructuring charges and told you to ignore them in estimating our normal earning power. If there were to be some truly major expenses in a single year, I would, of course, mention it in my commentary... But, to tell owners year after year, “Don’t count this,” when management is simply making business adjustments that are necessary, is misleading. And too many analysts and journalists fall for this baloney."

3. “At Berkshire, we never count on synergies when we acquire companies.”

This comment appears to be made in passing as Warren Buffett talked about one of his favourite businesses. It struck a chord with me, because I have a case in point regarding promised synergies.

There is this food retail company in some part of the world which, a few years ago, acquired a food retail company in a neighbouring country, touting massive synergies from cost rationalisations and whatnots. Investors lapped it up, provided generous financing, and patiently waited for the magic to happen. Fast forward to now, the touted synergies still have not been realised, business is deteriorating at the acquired company because of intense competition, the acquirer is spending more than ever on the acquired in order to compete, debt load is massive with upcoming maturities, and worst of all the management has problematic communication which leaves investors second-guessing.

The market, of course, has gotten impatient and the company is now being punished. Bond prices came down probably about 30 points or so within a month.

Would love to write more, perhaps on how Warren Buffett humbly admits his misjudgments, how he gives his stamp of approval for low cost index funds, or how there seem to be subtle allusions to Trump (maybe I read too much into it), but I shall leave you with this:

“Moreover, the years ahead will occasionally deliver major market declines – even panics – that will affect virtually all stocks. No one can tell you when these traumas will occur – not me, not Charlie, not economists, not the media. Meg McConnell of the New York Fed aptly described the reality of panics: “We spend a lot of time looking for systemic risk; in truth, however, it tends to find us.” 

Good luck in the markets!

Cheers

Yolohuat

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Will you continue to be loyal to the revised OCBC 360 Account?

When I was in the midst of work today, I received an SMS from OCBC informing that there will be changes to the OCBC 360 Account effective on 1 April 2017. I took a quick glance and was kind of disappointed with the so-called 'enhancements'.

In one of my posts, I blogged about the OCBC360 on What’s Next After Savings? This was the account which helped to kickstart my investment journey. With the upcoming revised changes to the interest rates, is it still worthy to put your funds in this account? Let’s delve deeper.

With effect from 1 April 2017, OCBC will be making five changes to the OCBC 360 Account.

Table 1: Comparison on upcoming change to OCBC 360 Account w.e.f. 1 April 2017
	Current	New
Balance cap to earn bonus interest under OCBC 360 Account	$60,000	$70,000
Salary bonus - Credit a minimum monthly salary of S$2,000 through GIRO	1.2%	No change
Payment bonus - Pay at least 3 unique bills with your OCBC 360 Account	0.5%	0.3% (To qualify, pay at least 3 bills totalling at least S$150)
Spend bonus - Spend a minimum of S$500 across your OCBC Credit Card(s)	0.5%	0.3%
Save bonus	Earn 1% per year on your incremental balance	Earn 1% per year on the first S$70,000 if account balance is ≥S$200,000
Wealth bonus	1%	Up to 1.2%
Base interest	0.05%	0.05%

With the above changes, how will it impact my current funds sitting in the account?

In my situation, all the changes will impact me except Weath Bonus as it is not applicable to me because I did not purchase their insurance product.

Let’s do a comparison assuming I have S$70,000 sitting in OCBC 360 Account under the revised scheme and fulfilled the salary, payment, spend and save bonuses.

Table 2: Comparison of Interest Earned
	NEW	CURRENT
	Interest Earned p.a. for $70,000	Interest Earned p.a. for $60,000
1.2% Salary Bonus	$840	$720
0.5% Payment Bonus		$300
0.3% Payment Bonus (revised)	$210
0.5% Spend Bonus		$300
0.3% Spend Bonus (revised)	$210
1% Save Bonus (revised)	N.A.	Assuming there is no increment
0.05% Base Interest	$35	$30
TOTAL (indicative)	$1,295	$1,350

In the table above, it is clear that I will earn $55 less under the revised changes. Moreover, I would have earned more interest under the existing Save Bonus if there are any incremental balances from the previous month’s balance contributed by my monthly salary which I did not reflect in the table.

For the Payment Bonus, you need to ensure your 3 bills total up to at least $150. There is no cap currently. However, I believe this should be easily achieved for most working adults.

If I continue to keep my funds in the revised OCBC 360 Account in Table 2, I will only get to earn 1.85% interest per year, down from 2.25% currently. On the other hand, I am sure there are many other better fixed deposit accounts which you can earn more than 1% with $200,000 rather than park it under OCBC 360 Account for 1% on the first $70,000. That means the balance $130,000 will be idling in the account and only accrue a miserable 0.05% base interest.

While OCBC calls it an ‘enhancement’, I seem to interpret that they telling us that the good O’ days of OCBC 360 Account is going to be over soon :(

Maybe it’s time to search for other better savings account now.

Will you continue to pledge your loyalty to OCBC 360 Account? Feel free to share your views as different people have different savings strategies :)

Cheers, EzHuat

Related posts:

What’s Next After Savings?

Update to OCBC 360 Account

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What’s Next after Saving?

It is widely known that banks in Singapore give very meagre interest rates for fixed deposit and savings accounts. Especially for fixed deposit accounts, most of them require a minimum placement with considerable tenures ranging from 12 months to 36 months or more. That means that if you ever withdraw any amount before the maturity period in the event of emergency, you will lose the privilege to accrue the bonus interest. 

Instead of dumping my spare cash in fixed deposits (I used to put my money in POSB savings account), there are many other better savings accounts available in the market to help increase your savings.

In my second post, I will share what I’ve done to accrue more interest without being tied down by the fixed deposit tenures. 

Pardon if my post might be a bit outdated since many financial bloggers would have already shared about the various savings accounts. For the benefit of my readers who are not aware of OCBC 360 account, this post is for you J

I applied for the OCBC 360 account to take advantage of the higher interest rates. If you’re keen to find out more, do check out this website: https://www.ocbc.com/personal-banking/accounts/360-account.html.

OVERVIEW OF OCBC 360 ACCOUNT

When I signed up in May 2014, the package was more attractive as I managed to accrue at least 3.05% interest per year. It lasted for about a year before it was revamped. My hunch is probably due to the overwhelming popularity so there wasn’t much impetus for them to offer such good benefits. Nonetheless, the make-over still rank them as one of the best in the market presently with a couple of enhanced features.

Based on the table above, I stand to gain 1.2% as along as my employer diligently credits the monthly salary into the account. With a base interest of 0.05% per year on my entire account balance, I would have pocketed at least 1.25%. This interest rate already triumphs many other fixed deposits.

It was easy for me to fulfil the second criteria to pay any 3 bills with the account. That’s another 0.5%. Together with the first criteria, I have earned at least 1.75% interest per year.

The credit card which I signed up was OCBC Frank Card together with the opening of OCBC 360. Most of the time, I managed to clock just above $500.

As I am already sufficiently insured, I did not purchase any OCBC financial products.

The last criterion is based on any incremental account balances from the previous month’s balance. Since I am gainfully employed, I’d received monthly salary which progressively increases my account balance. In addition, this bonus interest will be paid on incremental account balance of up to S$1,000,000!

With the first three and last criteria met, I would have reaped more than 2.25% interest per year effectively!

You can use the interest calculator available on the website to calculate the potential interest you can get. If you have a balance of $60,000 for a period of 12 months (less the purchase of financial products), you can potentially earn an indicative amount of $1,375.56 for a year! This is as good as investing in the stock market so long as you satisfy the criterions adequately.

And if you purchase any eligible OCBC financial product, you can earn an indicative amount of $1,986.96 a year!

If you are building up/already have up to $60,000, you can consider applying for OCBC 360. It surely beats any fixed deposits out in the market!

UPSIDE

1. As cashflow is important to me, I like the fact that I can move my money as and when I want without fretting that I might lose out on the bonus interest of a fixed deposit as long as I don’t withdraw a huge sum.
2. Good for those earning more than $2,000 per month and need to pay off at least 3 bills. I presume most of the working adults can easily satisfy these two.
3. The Frank credit card served me well as they offer an attractive rebate of up to 6% for online purchases. This largely benefitted me for my travel expenses, movie tickets, and occasional purchases via online platforms such as Groupon. If you are keen to find out more about Frank credit card, you may visit the website at http://www.frankbyocbc.com/products/cards/credit-card/ (do take note of the fine prints!)
4. My account balance grows faster based on an effective interest rate of 2.25%.
5. I can withdraw money freely without worrying that I might lose out on the bonus interest, albeit I will accrue lesser interest if the account balance is lower at the end of the month.
6. The interest is paid on a monthly basis. Better than the typical quarterly or half-yearly dividends you receive in stock market!

DOWNSIDE

1. The bonus interest is only valid for the first $60,000 of the account balance.
2. I need to spend at least $500 monthly to be eligible for the 0.5% bonus interest. There are instances where I did not meet this criterion simply because it is not practical to spend money intentionally just to accrue the 0.5% interest. On the months which I do less of the transactions, I just earn less bonus interest. 

To me, it is pretty clear that the upside outweighs the downside. Due to the popularity of OCBC 360, I reckon it caught the attention of other banks that subsequently rolled out relatively similar products such as the following:

• UOB One Account (get up to 3.33% interest per year - http://www.uob.com.sg/personal/deposits/chequeing/one_account.html)
• Standard Chartered Bonus $aver Account (get up to 3.38% interest per year - https://www.sc.com/sg/save/current-bonussaver.html)
• DBS Multiplier Programme (get up to 2.68% interest per year - http://www.dbs.com.sg/personal/landing/dbs-multiplier/index.html)

If you’re a disciplined saver and your stash of cash is still roosting in a fixed deposit nest hoping it can lay more ‘golden eggs’, think again. 

It’s time for you to take advantage by leveraging on any of the above savings accounts.

With all being said, it is pertinent that you always do your own due diligence to assess your own financial needs. Once you make the first move, you will surely be rewarded at the end of the day! Feel free to share if you have other recommendations.

As always, it can be easy to huat!

Good luck! :D

Cheers,

EzHuat

[UPDATE: Please refer to blog post http://triplehuat.blogspot.sg/2017/03/will-you-continue-to-be-loyal-to.html for revision to OCBC 360 Account w.e.f. 1 April 2017]

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YoloHuat's Journey with Money

I learnt the importance of money through the hard way, having grown up without much. Money isn't everything but money gives you choices and freedom. I truly understood, after earning my own keep, that money does buy happiness because once you have money, you don't worry about money anymore. 

Money can also buy you opportunities to make fond memories with your loved ones - a great example is travelling overseas to discover new places, food, and culture. Last year, I spent over a week in Croatia with my husband, and earlier this year, I chased Northern Lights in secluded areas of Sweden with my best friend (because they said 2016 is the last year when you can catch Northern Lights easily). I’m already dreaming about where my wanderlust will take me to next year. :)

Of course, the first thing I actually did back then when I had some extra money in my pocket was to pay off my student debt, which was accruing interest at a hefty rate of 4.75% - hey I think of myself as a triple-A credit (PLUS my latest credit report also says so)! :p I would rather pay myself than pay the bank. So I spent my first year out of college paying off the loan as quickly as I could. Only when I cleared about 90% of the outstanding balance did I start thinking about investing, because even if I lost money in the market it would not affect my ability to repay the rest of the loan, nor will it affect my daily life. (Please do read GoHuat’s post on how important spare cash is.) 

So how did I start investing? Very simple. From the very start, I knew I did not want to worry about money. I did not want to get myself lost in the rat race for a good 40 years of my life, because you only live once. Somehow I stumbled into a job in the financial sector, and from there I started picking up some knowledge about investing and using money to grow money. The rest was history. My first stock buys in late 2013 were Nikko AM STI ETF and SGREIT. I remember thinking to myself then that I want to 'own properties along the Orchard Road stretch because Orchard Road will always be around', so I went and bought OUEHT as well. Hahaha. These days, my investment strategy is a little more refined (as I would like to convince myself). I primarily invest for income, although I do take a punt sometimes when I think there's some opportunity. The punting has not been always successful, but let’s leave this for another time. ;) 

Back to talking about money per se, I can’t emphasise enough how important money management is. You could very well be earning six figures but have less than a grand in your savings account. I use an app to record my expenses and stay on track on my budget, and I find that not indulging in food or transport, my biggest daily needs, help a lot in saving money. So, like my friends here, I did not change my basic lifestyle. In fact, I like taking public transport because it lets me daydream, read, email, whatsapp, and Facebook when I’m on the go. I do complain about the crowd and the MRT breakdowns, but really, do I want to ride a car in comfort when I am young and healthy in my 20s, 30s, or even 40s, but find myself having no choice but to ride the bus and MRT when I am old and fragile in my 60s and 70s? The mid to late 20s is definitely the best time in your life to be saving as much as you can. I know that this stage of one’s life is also when you are tempted by materialism. Believe me, I’ve been through that as well. But I’m thankful that I realised early that it is a vicious cycle - the satisfaction is only fleeting and you end up wanting more and more.

I adopted the moniker YoloHuat - why? Because I strongly believe that because you only live once, you gotta live on your terms and never be a slave to money or work or material goods. 

This is my definition of yolo, thanks for reading and feel free to share your thoughts and experiences. Huat ah!

Cheers,

YoloHuat

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