Me & My Money Series (Sunday Times)

[Ben]

There is nothing interesting about having lots of money, but ending in a divorce with broken family. It is better to be contented with enough money (neither rich nor poor) for one's livelihood and having a loving family than be rich but with a broken family having permanently broken relationships.

I personally do not admire nor envy this particular family facing very likely permanently broken relationships scarred for life.

It is also true that many marriages failed because of money issue, and usually is due to the lack of it. Money is cited as one of the main reasons causing marriage breakdown.

[Big Toe]

Forgive me for being blunt but in Singapore, there are opportunities for all, the chicken rice seller can make good if he/she strives to make the best chicken rice and works hard. Over time he will earn enough for a reasonable standard of living. There will be adequate money for essential items plus a little bit more. There is no lack of money, it is a lack of will. A lack of will to make sufficient money and a lack of will to keep the marriage alive.

[jeremyow]

There is nothing interesting about having lots of money, but ending in a divorce with broken family. It is better to be contented with enough money (neither rich nor poor) for one's livelihood and having a loving family than be rich but with a broken family having permanently broken relationships.

I personally do not admire nor envy this particular family facing very likely permanently broken relationships scarred for life.

you are assuming money is the culprit for the broken marriage, which may or may not be true.

since on this topic,
of "nothing interesting about having lots of money, but ending in a divorce with broken family.", would be even worst with no money and a broken family.

Money by itself is not the problem. In the quoted example of the couple seeking divorce, it may be a wrong focus and pursuit in life that leads to the marriage on rocks. This is a warning to one that a wrong focus or pursuit in life will lead to broken relationships. It maybe an obsessive focus on accumulating wealth, career advancement or personal time on a hobby that drains away a large part of one's time leaving little time to build relationships within the family and outside of family.

I am not saying that one should live in a cave with one's family and be free of the worldy cares and distractions. It is a careful consideration that sometimes certain things or goals in life which one is focusing on pursuing may seem subtle (without one's awareness) and already be draining away our time to spend on building good family relationships and ties.

Thus, I was saying in my previous post that it is better to have a loving family than be rich. Having a loving family comes before being rich. What matters is the former rather than the latter. One may have a differing priority in life and may not see it the same way as me. I am sharing my sincere thoughts on this matter as we do see divorces worldwide on the rise.

[kazukirai]

Money by itself is not the problem. In the quoted example of the couple seeking divorce, it may be a wrong focus and pursuit in life that leads to the marriage on rocks. This is a warning to one that a wrong focus or pursuit in life will lead to broken relationships. It maybe an obsessive focus on accumulating wealth, career advancement or personal time on a hobby that drains away a large part of one's time leaving little time to build relationships within the family and outside of family.

Jeremy-san may be on to something here.

Looking at divorce stats (here), we can see that there is a marked increased in the divorce rates for those in the age group 30-34, 35-39, suggesting that what Jeremy-san has suggested may be true.

However, I like to also point out that divorce rates for those in the lower age groups (20-24, 25-29) remain the highest. So, in my opinion, if we consider the divorce rates a problem, the bigger problem is how to prevent younger people from jumping into a marriage that they'd regret.

[Musicwhiz]

Feb 20, 2011
Never too old to start new businesses
Entrepreneur founded three firms, the latest when he was aged 81
By Lorna Tan, Senior Correspondent

A successful entrepreneur, Mr William Yong lives the adage that one is never too old to venture into new territory.

His main business had been office supplies, but three years ago, when he was a ripe 81 years old, he set up a business in the health supplement sector.

Called ODC Healthcare, it distributes health supplements like Le Beau Sheep Placenta capsules and Royal Black Garlic capsules, which Mr Yong religiously takes himself. The average turnover of the firm is $1 million.

His other business, ODC Technology, which supplies office equipment such as barcode printers, sees an average annual turnover of $2.5 million.

He also owns ODC Investments, which is a holding firm for his property purchases.

The fifth child in a family with 13 children, he had to leave school after Secondary 1 because the family needed him to earn an income. He helped out in his father's tailoring business for four years before joining Ford Motor as an accounts clerk earning $110 a month.

He later joined the accounts departments of Nestle and then United States cigarette firm Muller & Philips, rising up the ranks to become chief accounts clerk.

In 1958, he set up his own firm Office Development Corp, which supplied office equipment such as staples, carbon paper and ballpoint pens. Its paid-up capital was $5,000.

He operated out of his father's tailor shop, before moving to a 2,000 sq ft unit at Bras Basah Complex in 1980.

He moved to his current 12,000 sq ft office-cum-factory premises in Kallang Pudding Road in 1994. Now he has 30 staff members, including his wife and two children who are the firm's directors.

In 1977, Mr Yong renamed Office Development Corp as ODC Technology.

By 2007, he had increased the company's paid-up capital to $6 million. ODC Investments was started in 2000.

He started investing in shares when he was 50. His stock portfolio is now worth about $500,000.

So far, his best investments are in commodities and properties, he said.

His wife Jenny Koh, 77, is ODC Technology's production director. Son Arnold, 54, is the company's managing director, and daughter Jennifer, 42, is the accounts director of the company.

Q: Are you a spender or saver?

I am largely a saver. I could save 60 per cent of my pay when I was saving very hard to start my business. Branded goods do not appeal to me. While I do eat at restaurants occasionally, especially when entertaining business guests, I am equally comfortable with hawker food and home-cooked meals.

Q: How much do you charge to your credit cards every month?

I charge about $3,000 monthly to my three credit cards and my cash withdrawal is about $2,500 monthly.

Q: What financial planning have you done for yourself?

My investments are in shares, commodities and properties. I have invested $500,000 in shares, $1.2 million in commodities (gold and silver), and my office properties are worth about $4.8 million.

For stock picks, I read broker reports and talk to my remisier friends from DBS Vickers. I monitor about seven counters regularly and will sell the counter if the share price rises more than 20 per cent. The shares include OCBC Bank, Ezra, SembMarine and Swiber.

In 2006, I read from the newspapers that gold is a good investment. I bought gold and silver certificates at United Overseas Bank for $450,000. Now they are worth about $1.2 million. I plan to keep them for the long term.

Q: Moneywise, what were your growing-up years like?

My parents were Chinese Hakka immigrants who came to Singapore in the 1920s. I had a dozen siblings and I was the fifth child. We lived in a rented three-storey shophouse in Cross Street in the Chinatown area. My father was a tailor and my mother, a housewife.

Times were hard during those days, and I had to quit school after Secondary 1 to start working. My father became depressed and drank heavily after the Japanese Occupation because his shop was looted and he lost everything he had worked for. He died at the age of 56 in 1946.

Those early growing-up years taught me to appreciate the value of money and to be frugal. Back then, our meals were mainly porridge with tapioca and sweet potato. My siblings and I shared books and clothes.

Q: What property do you own?

I own a residential property and an office-cum-factory.

I bought a freehold 2,000 sq ft condominium in Lower Delta Road in 1985 for $520,000 and it is now worth about $2.8 million.

My 12,000 sq ft freehold office-cum-factory premises at Tong Lee Building in Kallang Pudding Road, which comprises four units, was bought in 1990 for $1.8 million. It is now worth about $4.8 million. Of the four units, I am using two and renting out the other two at an annual yield of 8 per cent. At one time, I owned 10 office-cum-factory units in the building, but have since sold six of them.

Q: What's the most extravagant thing you have bought?

In the 1980s, I bought four Rolex gold- and diamond-studded watches for about $25,000 each, and one Vacheron Constantin diamond watch for $40,000 from Great Eastern Watch in Singapore. The watches are now worth about $50,000 each. They are good investments. I change watches daily during the work week.

Q: What's your retirement plan?

I have no retirement plans. I am still strong and fit, and intend to continue working for as long as I can. It is not so much for financial reasons as I have sufficient assets and cash. But working keeps me going, both mentally and physically. I contribute to the National Kidney Foundation and the Children's Society on an ad hoc basis and will continue to do so.

Q: Home is now...

My condo in Lower Delta Road. I live with my wife and daughter.

Q: I drive...

A blue Mercedes model S350 bought two years ago for $280,000.

lorna@sph.com.sg

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WORST AND BEST BETS

Q: What has been your worst investmenttodate?

I incurred a loss of $2 million in 2003 when a customer did not pay for office supplies (mainly fax ribbons), which were sold and delivered to him. He had given me good business in the previous two years and paid regularly in hard cash till he got busted for fraud. I even invested in additional manpower and materials to fulfil that customer's orders. He was involved in a major legal tussle here and in the United States, selling imitation goods there using our products.

He was made bankrupt, so I didn't take legal action after consulting our lawyer.

I wrote off the loss.

Q: And your best investment?

My commodity investments. I bought about $450,000 worth of gold and silver shares in 2006 and they are worth about $1.2 million now.

[pianist]

'In the 1980s, I bought four Rolex gold- and diamond-studded watches for about $25,000 each, and one Vacheron Constantin diamond watch for $40,000 from Great Eastern Watch in Singapore. The watches are now worth about $50,000 each. They are good investments. I change watches daily during the work week.'
buying watch seems like buying gold..so the bigger-proportioned of the current assets from hourglass from their inventory should be quite safe bet

[Musicwhiz]

Feb 27, 2011
me & my money
His actuarial calling - at age 16
HSBC Insurance chief has worked towards that goal since then
By Lorna Tan, Senior Correspondent

Like most kids, South African-born Walter de Oude did not know what he wanted to be when he grew up. But a visit to a professional career guidance counsellor when he was 16 helped make up his mind.

The results of the career assessment profiling test suggested three careers that would best suit him. They were: architect, accountant or actuary. Once he worked out what an actuary was, Mr de Oude decided to pursue an actuarial career and applied to a number of insurance firms for a university scholarship at 17. An actuary evaluates the likelihood of events in order to minimise losses in trading.

He won a scholarship from reinsurance firm Swiss Re and graduated with a bachelor's degree in economic science from the University of Witwatersrand, South Africa, in 1994. Six years later, he qualified as an actuary.

He worked at Swiss Re in Johannesburg from 1995 till 2005. During that period, he did short stints in Singapore, Japan and India. In 2005, he joined Watson Wyatt in Singapore, before he was appointed an actuary at HSBC Insurance (Singapore) in 2007. Last June, he became the chief executive of HSBC Insurance.

Mr de Oude, 37, is married to South African homemaker Cindy Botha, 37, and they have two sons, Luke, four, and James, two. Both he and his wife are Singapore permanent residents.

Q: Are you a spender or saver?

I am a very disciplined saver at heart, but I do love to spend.

My approach has been to plan and invest very carefully for the amount of income that my family and I need to survive on once I retire, and make sure that is met before I allow myself to spend on things I like. My savings are always in excess of 20 per cent of income.

Q: How much do you charge to your credit cards every month?

I spend only on my HSBC Premier MasterCard. I find I get the best points and air miles there, and great discounts.

I watch my spending closely, and don't like using more than one credit card, since it then becomes difficult to track how much I'm spending each month. As a family, we spend around $4,000 per month on the credit card, and sometimes more when we go on holiday.

Q: What financial planning have you done for yourself?

I break down my financial planning needs into two boxes - making sure my family has enough money in case I die or get ill, and ensuring that I am saving enough for my retirement.

In the first box, I have a mortgage life insurance plan so my wife does not need to worry about mortgage repayments if I die, a term life and critical illness plan that provides life cover until I am 65, and an investment-linked insurance plan (ILP) that combines protection and investments. My combined life cover is about $1.5 million and I spend about $12,000 a year on insurance premiums.

In the second box (long-term savings), I have the ILP, and a number of properties in South Africa and one in Singapore, which are my 'safe' money investments that should provide for my retirement. I also invest directly in shares with the balance of my savings.

I am still young and so am happy to take the risk of doing so.

Any leftover income I have after my savings, I spend on things I like. For stocks, I'm holding on to Singapore, Hong Kong and US stocks and they cover mainly banks, commodities and technology sectors. My ILP is invested in four funds and I'm about 80 per cent focused in Asia, with the balance in global bonds and equities.

Q: Moneywise, what were your growing-up years like?

I come from a family of three sons and I am the middle child. My father worked at IBM as a systems engineer while my mother was an industrial psychologist and worked mostly part-time.

I grew up in a middle-class, four-bedroom suburban house in Johannesburg. I was fortunate in that my family encouraged me to understand the value of money.

I had my first real job at age 13, working on Saturdays as a salesman in a computer store. My parents gave me some pocket money from age 13 - the equivalent of $10 a month - and I had to manage that to buy my clothes too.

Q: How did you get interested in investing?

When I went to university in Johannesburg, my sponsor Swiss Re gave me money for accommodation, but since I was sharing a house with my brother and some friends, I invested the balance of about 2,000 rand (S$360) in a unit trust.

That was my first real investment. I lost some money, sold it a year later, and bought a drum kit with the balance.

Q: What property do you own?

My wife and I own a 2,000 sq ft apartment in Pasir Panjang, which is rented out. It was bought early last year for more than $1 million and has gone up in value by about 10 per cent.

I also own a few residential properties in Johannesburg, which were bought between 1995 and 2007.

All have mortgages, but I hope that one day these will supplement our retirement income.

Except for one, all of my properties in Johannesburg are rented out at an average rental yield of 5 to 6 per cent per annum (pa). Their prices have appreciated roughly 10 per cent pa on average, while inflation in South Africa is 7 to 9 per cent pa. I'm looking for a tenant for my vacant property.

Q: What's the most extravagant thing you have bought?

I really like buying watches, and have more than I could possibly wear. That's extravagant because of the quantity - not the quality.

I have 15 watches and the average price ranges from $100 to $400. I buy about two or three watches a year. This hobby started about 10 years ago.

Q: What's your retirement plan?

I'll retire when I get bored of working. That could be in five years or 25 years, who knows? For now, I love my job and the people that I work with, and retirement seems a long way away.

When I do retire, I think I could lead a much more simple life than I do now, and live on much less. The goal is to have around $6,000 a month for my wife and I when I do retire.

Q: Home is now....

A rented four-bedroom condo in the Mount Sinai area.

Q: I drive....

An old Audi A4 Cabriolet.

lorna@sph.com.sg

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WORST AND BEST BETS

Q: My worst investment to date...

In 2002, when I was working in Japan, I got a call from an international broker who suggested I could make a lot of money buying a call option on heating oil. I got a bit greedy and went for it, since I had some of my 'risk' savings to spare. I lost the whole US$3,000.

Q: My best investment to date...

I invested in property from a very young age and bought my first apartment in Johannesburg at the age of 21 in 1995. The 690 sq ft, one-bedroom apartment cost me the equivalent of $50,000 and I still have it. It pays me a rental income of about $600 a month. That's a great return.

My tip to retail investors is to figure out how much you need to retire on, your risk profile and to keep investing to get there. And do not spend extravagantly unless your savings are ahead of that plan.

[Musicwhiz]

Mar 6, 2011
me & my money
Making fitness her business
After just a year, entrepreneur's gym franchise business is already able to cover operational costs
By Lorna Tan, Senior Correspondent

After working for a decade as a human resource practitioner in various industries, Ms Annabel Tan decided it was time to start something on her own.

That was in 2009. She was already a member of women-only fitness centre Contours Express at Choa Chu Kang for two years, and got excited when she found out it was a franchise.

'I like the centre's business concept and have personally benefited from the programme. I saw how it grew... I was convinced to venture into this new challenge to be a franchisee of the centre,' said Ms Tan.

In October 2009, she set up a 1,000 sq ft Contours Express centre at Block 106, Clementi Street 12, with an initial investment of $110,000. Last December, she expanded the centre to 2,000 sq ft at a cost of $20,000 when the neighbouring unit became available.

So far, it has attracted 200 members who have signed up for two-year membership. She has two full-time and one part-time staff. Having completed a fitness instructor course last November, Ms Tan, 34, is also a trainer at the centre. After a year of operation, her business is able to cover operational expenses. It is targeting an annual profit margin of 28 per cent.

An electronics engineering diploma graduate from Singapore Polytechnic, Ms Tan also holds a bachelor's degree in management and marketing from Monash University. She studied for the degree part-time when she was working in recruitment firm Adecco Personnel, and finished her studies in 2001. Her husband Dennis Ng, 35, is a sales and marketing executive at her father's company, paint maker Brightex. They have a four-year-old daughter, Tara.

Q Are you a spender or saver?

I am balanced between the two. I used to spend a lot more on myself when I was working in office jobs, but now I no longer need power suits or high heels when I go to my gym. I am willing to spend on good education and enrichment programmes for my girl, as well as quality family holidays. I save 20 per cent of my monthly income, which includes forced savings via insurance plans and fixed deposits. Any surplus is used to pay off the mortgage on my current property.

Q How much do you charge to your credit cards every month?

I use two credit cards out of the four that I have and I pay up the bills in full every month. My total bill ranges from $300 to $1,000 monthly. I normally pay for my shopping in cash to avoid overspending. I withdraw $200 from the ATM every week.

Q What financial planning have you done for yourself?

My husband and I engaged a financial planner in 2005. Together, we review our portfolio on a quarterly basis. It comprises medium- to high-risk funds like Acorns of Asia, Greater China Equity and other regional equity funds. Our annual target returns for the portfolio range between 7 per cent and 10 per cent.

I bought my first insurance plan when I started working. I have a life cover of about $700,000. I own one term, two whole life and two endowment plans. I'm considering more health and medical policies for my family.

Q Moneywise, what were your growing-up years like?

I have three sisters and I am the youngest. My father runs his own paint manufacturing business, Brightex Paints, in Tuas. It grew from a 1,000 sq ft workshop to the present 30,000 sq ft factory. My father worked very hard in his early days, as the sole breadwinner of the family.

When I was growing up, we upgraded twice: from a three-room HDB flat to a four-room private apartment in the East Coast, and then to a two-storey house in Tanah Merah. My mum was a housewife. Both my parents were savers and they did not indulge in expensive gifts or holidays for themselves or for us. My allowance was just enough to cover my bus fare, and I often took sandwiches from home to eat during recess. I had to work and save up during the school holidays, at my father's office.

Q How did you get interested in investing?

My earlier investments were mainly fixed deposits and insurance policies which yielded modest long- term returns. I have recently further invested in my gym business, by taking over the next-door unit and doubling my centre capacity.

Q What property do you own?

In 2003, I bought a four-room HDB flat in Choa Chu Kang for $230,000. It was sold for $300,000 in 2009. In mid-2009, I bought a 915 sq ft condo at West Coast for $718,000. It is now valued at more than $900,000.

Q What's the most extravagant thing you have bought?

Nothing extravagant so far, except for one or two brand-name bags. One is a Chanel Coco Cocoon reversible medium tote bag which I asked my sister to buy for me when she visited Paris last year. It cost more than $3,000. I'm eyeing a Miu Miu bag which costs about $2,000.

Q What's your retirement plan?

I have not set a specific time to retire. I see Contours Express as part of my long-term investment leading to my retirement. My hubby and I will need $4,000 monthly when we do retire.

Q Home is now...

My condo at West Coast.

Q I drive...

Our family car - a white 1.6-litre Kia Cerato.

lorna@sph.com.sg

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WORST AND BEST BETS

Q My worst investment to date...

In 2002, I parked $30,000 of my Central Provident Fund Ordinary Account savings in two funds that invested in resources and global equities via an insurance policy. The value of the investment dropped 30 per cent when I surrendered the policy in mid-2009. At its worst, it was down 50 per cent early that year.

Q My best investment to date...

The West Coast condominium. I bought it for $718,000. It is valued at more than $900,000 now.

Money aside, my best investment is my time and effort spent on my daughter, Tara. In my last job at Neptune Marine Oil & Gas, where I worked from 2007 to 2009, I had to put in long hours and even had to work on weekends.

[Behappyalways]

Funny this was the article that attracted me yesterday. That life is so unpredictable

In a 1991 interview, Singapore's favourite football icon, Fandi Ahmad, told The New Paper, 'I have enough money. Lots of money. In two years' time, I would have made enough to last the rest of my lifetime.'




Fandi Ahmad is looking for HDB flat

In a 1991 interview, Singapore's favourite football icon, Fandi Ahmad, told The New Paper, 'I have enough money. Lots of money. In two years' time, I would have made enough to last the rest of my lifetime.'

He was the country's first millionaire sportsman when he turned 30 in 1993.

Now, however, life has dealt him a cruel twist after a decade of setbacks and he is looking for a Housing Board flat in the Yishun vicinity, near his mother's.

The 48-year-old used to share a terrace house with his wife, Wendy Jacobs, and his five children.

Fandi informed The Sunday Times that his wife is still recovering from a fall in the couple's Jakarta home two years ago.

She had suffered temporary memory loss and was bedridden for almost a month.

Although she still suffers the occasional mild seizure, she is improving, said Fandi.

He told The Straits Times: 'She's getting a lot of rest at home and is much better than before, so we're all happy.'

The ex-Lion, however, is on his guard when quizzed about other problems that he has faced recently.

'What's past is past, I can't do anything about it,' he stressed, adding that the constant query on these subjects is 'sickening'.

A few failed businesses in the past had left him in so much debt that two parties sued in June 2006 to recover $230,000 in 'friendly loans', which were allegedly taken when Fandi started a used-car dealership in 1999.

Fandi then pulled out of the partnership two years later but was still saddled with the debt of his business partners, who had been declared bankrupt. He was their guarantor.

Developing young talent

His focus has now turned towards helping develop young talent through his academy, which he will launch on Saturday.

He is also watching over the growing maturity of his two sons in football - Irfan, 14, and Ikhsan, 12.

Despite impressing major European clubs such as AC Milan and Chelsea in trials and making plans for a training stint with Italian Serie B side Vicenza earlier this year, visa issues had forced the family to put that idea on hold.

Fandi is also aware that the public will be expecting his sons to fill in the shoes that he has vacated.

'It's not easy for them,' he noted. 'People will expect a lot and scrutinise them. That's why I don't put too much pressure on them.

'I'll just let them enjoy the game while they can and, if they can play good football, that would be good.'

He does, however, harbour the hope that at least one of his sons will become a Lion.

'My father (Ahmad Wartam) and uncle (the late Abu Sujak) both played for Singapore. It would be good if they could carry on that tradition,' he said.

Good friend and former national teammate Rafi Ali pointed out: 'During his time, everything he touched turned to gold. Everybody made money because of him - people paid to watch him play, for his endorsement, the association also used him for advertisements.

'Still, he's as cheerful as ever. He's not the kind of person who will talk about what is happening in his life.

'It's really very sad that a legend is going through this.'

http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNe...66781.html

[wj888]

Funny this was the article that attracted me yesterday. That life is so unpredictable

In a 1991 interview, Singapore's favourite football icon, Fandi Ahmad, told The New Paper, 'I have enough money. Lots of money. In two years' time, I would have made enough to last the rest of my lifetime.'

Fandi Ahmad is looking for HDB flat

In a 1991 interview, Singapore's favourite football icon, Fandi Ahmad, told The New Paper, 'I have enough money. Lots of money. In two years' time, I would have made enough to last the rest of my lifetime.'

He was the country's first millionaire sportsman when he turned 30 in 1993.

Actually a million dollar in 1993 is really enough to last a lifetime.
He could have gotten 2 CBD FreeHold Condo and rent out and just take the income there.

What happened to him?