There are so many types of investments like:

- a business
- shares
- property
- unit trusts
- gold

The most important is your risk profile and how familiar you are with that particular investment. I personally invest in my business, property and blue chip shares because these are the investments that I am the most familiar with. With familiarity, risk is lessened. My advice would be to get educated on the investments you are interested in while building your investment fund.

hi thanks for your reply..
for Astro i know i can survive without it but working as store keeper in hospital really cost me physically and mentally..so Astro d only entertainment i can have here in sabah..
my car is use for go to work 120km perday.sharing it with my gf.i will drive 20 km to my working place and she will continue drive anothet 40km to her work place..to avoid jam we wake up 5.30 am every day and go to work 6.30.and by 6.30pm will arrive home..so it is very2 tired to cook for work..

so what i think i can do is just hold on like this until we both transfer back to peninsular...

I got another option to reduce my debts fast as currently my EPF account 2 have 27K balance. Is it advisable i withdraw this as monthly installment scheme for my housing loan & use the amount for housing loan repayment to pay my credit card debts?

I would advise against this as you are withdrawing from your retirement fund. I always believe that you should not touch your EPF and not consider that money as a saving that you can withdraw. Did you know that even if you are a bankrupt, the OA cannot touch your EPF money?

Don't worry and be patient about repayment...you did not acquire the debts overnight and definitely should not expect it to disappear overnight. Do you think you can be discipline enough to make sure that the house installment will be paid towards the credit card? You might be tempted to use it. Look at your spending history and be honest with yourself.

The system I outline will help you to rein in your spending and help you develop more responsible spending and saving habits. Another way to help you would be to get the bank to automatically deduct the car, house and credit card payment from your bank account every month. Then at the end you know that you only have RM1.4K to spend and am not tempted to use the money for other purposes.

Another thing...you should also try to transfer the balance of your credit card debt to one with 0% for 12 months to reduce your interest (I think MBB has that offer now) but remember cut up the old card and no using the new ones.

This post has been edited by cynthusc: Jan 6 2011, 11:39 AM

if ur debt interest is higher than EPF then u should use EPF money to pay ur debt.

Hi, I would really need your advice:

Income: RM6000
Hseloan: RM1152
Carloan: RM800
Personal loan: RM547
Credit card: RM1200/month (1year to go)
Personal use: RM1000

every end of month, I only manage to save RM1300 (max).. However, due to some reason I need to maximise my saving as much as possible within this year. I need that money on 2012. Thus, I wish to reduce clear off my credit card at soonest. Appreciate if there is any way to do it?

Just to ask although it sounds not smart, if I temporarily hold my Hse/Car payments for 1~2months, in order to divert the money to creditcard. is it advisable?

Please advise.

some housing loan interest will revert to BLR+?% once you default the loan payment. i am not sure about your housing loan but i saw it in my HLB mortgage plus.

your CCRIS record will also have "0 0 0 0 0 1 2" record.

and the car loan, normally they will tarik your car if you dont pay for 2 mths.

convert your credit card outstanding balance to personal loan is better option.

This post has been edited by alfred liew: Jan 7 2011, 04:42 PM

Hmm, you can try to talk to your banker to refinance/remortgage your car and/or house to have a longer term loan, or if your house appreciated, you can increase the loan amount. This will either lower your monthly payment or you can draw extra cash from your property.

For example if you bought the house at 200k with 90% financing, now the house appreciated to 250k, then you can withdraw additional money by increasing your house financing amount but still within the 90%. Or if you negotiate to have 20 year loan convert to 30 year, similarly your monthly payment will be less.

Use the extra money to settle your credit card debt, then your personal loan, and hopefully when you are debt free only then you consider saving for your needs by 2012. Don't try to save when you have a lot of high interest debts, you will end up losing more money.

This post has been edited by gark: Jan 8 2011, 04:20 PM

Hi I am foreign studet

Income Fixed

RM600
RM 200-300 part time job
Expenses 450-650

So i have around 100-200 in my savings, what would You advise to me. I want to get fixed extra income, so I am not interested in Mutual Funds and Shares. If not FD, then wht would ur advice be, but with low risk.
I also dont think that I am able to cut my expenses, due to some reasons.
thank you

This post has been edited by ismokenov: Jan 11 2011, 06:46 AM

Simple: Just keep your money in the bank - look for highest FD rate. Reason: Keep you money safe - to me, that's main priority for a student.

When you are earning and saving more in the future, you can start to invest. But please EDUCATE yourself on investments before you start to invest your hard-earned money.

PLEASE, please - do not "invest" into products that promise higher returns than FD but yet low risk. To me, only the special M'sian Govt Bonds which offers 5% p.a. or ASB have such profile in M'sia.

Oh, ok I see. Which bank has highest FD rate, sorry for this question I am noob here. And another thing is that foreigner can buy Bonds???

Yea, I know, i am studying some subjects about economics and investments now, but still got long way to go.
Thanks

This is solid advice. I couldn't have done better.

1) I am not too sure which bank currently offers the highest rate. Maybe there is a thread in LYN on it? You can find the banks' promotions in their respective websites. Generally, FD less than 1 year offering around 2.7% p.a. and 1 year is around 3% p.a. Occasionally, there are special rates for a promotion period (pls note a number of them are tied to unit trusts or other sales gimmick - pls read the FINE PRINT or asterisks...). If the placement amount is not very big, just go for any bank (generally, Msia banks' rates are quite similar) that is most convenient - not worth the hassle or effort to travel far away for banking.

2) Foreigners can buy bonds BUT the minimum amount of a corporate bond in M'sia is prohibitive (too large) for most retail investors. An alternative exposure to bonds is via bonds funds - you have to incur entry + management fees. Too much hassle for a student. Just keep it simple, put the money in savings or FD (for the funds that you do not need for near future). But do learn how to invest young, when you are READY with money in the future (be prepared to pay some "school fees" )

This post has been edited by chabalang: Jan 13 2011, 08:09 PM

thnx @chabalng

hi guys, i am new here and and i hope im not too late to be posting this to seek advices.
Below is my personal income and expenses breakdown for one month. (Currently im staying with my parents)

Age: 23
Net income: RM 2,400

Expenses

Parents - RM 250
Foods - RM 400
Entertainment - RM 200
Petrol - RM 100
Bills - RM 150

FD: RM 2,000 only
Current debt: RM 24,500 (PTPTN)

3 years planning: a) RM 20,000 for maried
b) RM 10,000 for deposit to buy new car

Q1) Hows my expense guys?
Q2) Any idea how to settle the PTPTN? pay RM 100 per month can?
Q3) Is my 3 years planning ok? hopefully in 3 years i can achieve it
Q4) For investment, im thinking to go on ASB, is it fine?
Q5) Invest, saving or settle debt first?

Kindly advice me please

greetings,

first of all,im new in money management(yes,100% new).as im STPM leaver,and waiting for result.
before this,i dont really care about money since what i know is my work as student,study and study for an ace.
all the money,expenses is being taken care of my parents. they always said,my job is to grind myself for studying.
i agree with that part as the higher my qualifications,the higher the pay in future.

but this year,suddenly pop in my head.am i study for their satisfaction?

what if i blindly continue to depends on them,as i continue my study?

everytime i talk about career,'doctors' pop from their mouths.so,study,become doctor.gain money,end.

i dont think gaining money is simple as this.and i dont think i need to wait to become a doctor to gain money.

today,with my spm result,i start a job--my parents feel some kind of shock about this(at Watson,with only starting pay 700 p/month--i know its small)--im going to work there till sept 2011(since degree intake is in this month)


---well,thats the story.

can you please suggest?i need help on how to maximise the 700 i earned.

as how my expenses per month,i dont really have one since im under my parents' expenses.

--right now,i not yet open any bank account and neither i have any asb.what i know,my parents keep a bank book,
which i plan not to ask for(better let it be like that so if emergency happens,i can use it).
im happy if you can guide me.

thanks.

This post has been edited by kuihbahulu: Jan 15 2011, 01:16 AM

Q1) You still have 50% from your nett income to be saved which is good.
Q2) To be honest, a lot of people like to delay this but it's better to settle this as soon as possible. PTPTN interests and admin costs are high. With this settled, you will have less to worry about and more disposable income to save.
Q3) RM20k get married? Depends if you're doing Chinese dinner, kenduri, buffet etc. I'd rather raise cash to settle PTPTN loan first. But it all depends on how much you plan to spend. A simple wedding can be cheap. Don't ever ever take loan to get married.
Q4) Yes, ASB is the safest, high interest and recurring income vehicle for Bumi. You should always start with this.
Q5) Reduce debt to save more on interest to invest further.

If you start taking a car loan, you will then have 2 loans to settle. Bank and PTPTN. By then your expenses will increase by at least RM500 to 1k for the car which will limit your payment to PTPTN. Which means you will be stuck until you get a pay rise. Your goal should be to be independent of debt and should start early to prevent yourself from getting trapped. Since you took loan to study, you should think about settling that loan first instead of ignoring it which will haunt you later. You can read up on all the other horror stories of ignoring PTPTN loans and the difficulties of settiling it once the lawyer letters comes to your post box.

Your FD savings should be transfered to an ASB account.

---

Added on January 15, 2011, 5:10 amRegarding your studies, only you and your parents can decide what you want to pursue as your career. Use your time in Watsons to think about what you want to do in life, not just how to earn money. Earning money is just to live the life you want to. You're not living to earn money but earning enough to live. If your parents think being a doctor is a good option, then think about it as a doctor what you can do with your life, not how much you can earn with it. Anyone can earn money, but what value can they bring into society by just earning money?

Save up your RM700 every month and keep in your ASB if you're a Bumi. Learn and read financial management books when you have free time in Watsons. Financial managements unfortunately is not taught in schools, so you will have to catch up on this. Once you're equiped with some knowledge on financial management, then you can start thinking about maximising returns on your accumulated savings.

This post has been edited by Skidd Chung: Jan 15 2011, 05:12 AM

Very well said skiddchung.

To kuihbahulu, knowledge and time are the greatest assets. You are young, you still have plenty of time. Equip yourself with more knowledge (skills, financial management etc), study hard, once you are well equipped with all these things, money will come to you.

Good luck.

find another new job with higher pays...even a entry clerk can earn more than that..You can't save any money if u have monthly Rm700 salary...

but decisions on ur hands

Since you just finished your STPM, maybe this is the time for you go to explore some Education Fair, consult the experts on details of each course, consult the
people who are studying in public universities/graduated from public universities (I just graduated ) as I assume you plan to further your studies in IPTA. At the mean time while you are waiting for the intake, find some jobs that you think you can learn something. I don't know what's your position in Watson, think what can you learn in your position. I believe sales job will be a good choice as it sharpens your communication skills etc. I am not asking you to go in direct
sales/MLM, go do sales promoter or something similiar, I believe it helps.