If it wasn't in the floor plan when you signed and handed over the cheque, yes. If it was in the floor plan from the beginning... then no.

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Added on July 15, 2012, 11:47 pmOf course. Everyone pushes something. It's up to you to tell the chaff from the wheat and make the decision what's best for you, no? They either push you in the direction of what's good for you or what's good for them. All people do. Let's not be naive. They are trying to broker a loan and make a living. Not provide free market research and educate the masses.

Their value lies in the fact that they've done all the groundwork for you.

This post has been edited by seantang: Jul 15 2012, 11:48 PM

Interesting comparison table from The Star. The public has always made such comparisons (hence the migration, working overseas etc) although the govt still insists that RM3000 per month salary is "high income" and that the fat lady bought a million dollar diamond ring using her "savings".

Although Singapore is not listed, my feeling is that the ratio to average salary shouldn't look very different from Malaysia actually.



This post has been edited by seantang: Jul 17 2012, 10:42 AM

On the contrary, we should compare with Australia. It is after all one of the most accessible developed countries to Malaysians. It remains an entirely viable option for people like us.

Don't compare to places where we have very little possibility of migrating to eg. Scandinavian countries, Eastern Europe, Africa, Indian subcontinent, 4th world countries etc.

This post has been edited by seantang: Jul 18 2012, 08:36 AM

What 'sia' means?

First couple of years, spend a bit more to live comfortably so that you don't get increasingly pissed off having to "sacrifice" your lifestyle in order to work in Singapore. Treat yourself better, live better and you'll work better.

If you do well at work, you will get larger jobs, get promoted and draw higher and higher salaries. That's why you're here in Singapore in the first place.

So, in the first couple of years, don't concentrate on saving a big % of your salary. Just ensure whatever you spend on is worth it and contributes towards making you better than your peers/competitors. Concentrate instead on making your salary bigger. My starting salary was 1300 when I graduated. That's crazy low, ok. But the next year, it was 2500 with a promotion. Third year 4500 when I qualified professionally and promptly changed jobs. Since then... expenses (reasonable expenses) have not really been an issue anymore. Get ahead of the curve... and things will work out.

This post has been edited by seantang: Jul 20 2012, 11:33 PM

Stop trolling this thread.

Fair enough.

But the fact is that if you earn 2500,.. saving 50% (1250) and saving 20% (500) will make at most a minor difference to whatever nest egg / safety funds / rainy day stash you're trying to accumulate. But spending that extra 750 each month will make a HUGE difference to your quality of life (and of food) in the beginning... and by extension (if you spend on the right expenses), will make a correspondingly large difference to the quality of your work.

When I say 'right' expenses, I mean transportation expenses, for instance. If you want to save money by taking public transport, that's absolutely fine. But if you're sleepy, sweaty or a follower of flexible time... then it's a good move to spend on taxi fare when you have morning meetings or have to work in such close proximity with your colleagues that they can smell you. Otherwise, get up an hour earlier and enroll in a nearby gym to use their showers mid day. All it takes is being the last one to come into a meeting and interrupt the big boss while he's presenting. That is what we call a CLM (Career Limiting Move). For your personal life, you save time, move around more comfortably and generally feel less annoyed that you had to leave your dad's car behind in KL to move to Singapore. Same goes for food, getting comfy & convenient accommodation, self grooming etc.

And the theoretical 750 savings deficit you incur in the first 2-3 years... you will more than make it up when you save 20% of your 5000 salary in the next few years. And most people's expenses (living expenses, not buying stuff, travel etc!) will top out at 3000-4000 or so per month unless they really do a lot of restaurants, pay for the gf/bf etc. So by the time you earn 10000 or 15000, you'd be easily saving 5000-10000 a month.

I acknowledge the power of compounding... but it far better to get more salary earlier. Never compound savings at the expense of slowing your salary growth. Saving more doesn't make you rich. It just determines how long you stay rich. But you have to become rich first by increasing your income. Only then will you have something subtantial to save.

This post has been edited by seantang: Jul 22 2012, 11:50 AM

If you're the new guy who's late, who arrives all sweaty and smells the rest of the day, the guy who's always complaining about how little he can afford or the guy who's anti social (eg avoids having lunch with his colleagues if they are not going to a food court or after work drinks)... you're not doing yourself any favours. You're well positioned to be the first one on the list.

So save if possible, but not at the expense of giving yourself a negative stigma/reputation at work.

In my first job, I brought packed lunch to work every day. That's because I've been doing it every day since I was std 1, and I saw no reason to stop that ritual just because I'm working. It was only a year later, when I was dating a colleague, did she tell me that by bringing my own lunch and never going with the rest of the gang to the makan stalls for lunch,.. I had built a reputation of being 'thrifty'. That's what they called me when they were polite. When they weren't polite, I was anything from a 'tight wallet' to a 'miser' (that's what my gf's 'sisters/chee mui' called me to discourage her from going out with me).

I had absolutely no idea they thought that way. And professionally... my colleague said that during management meetings, a few managers did question my rapport with my colleagues and doubt my ability to lead/manage them if I was promoted.

Since then, I do the complete checklist... buy tidbits for the pantry when I travel, contribute "managerial amounts" to baby showers, marriages, funerals, kids birthdays, retirement etc, pay for lunch ever so often, buy birthday cakes, have several lunch gangs/partners, never miss family days/annual dinners, go to every company function to stand around, shake hands, small talk, group dinners etc.

You're probably right. I never had much desire to form my own business. I'm lucky enough to be in a job that doesn't have the stress of shouldering your own business or always having to stay ahead of interest rates, but yet pay a decent enough wage that I don't envy business owners or property owners.

Why next year? What is special or specific about next year?

Why do you say it is "out of control"?

Starting salaries at global Fortune list MNCs have been mid to high S$3K since last year or so. Much more at the international banks if you're willing to sell your life and waking hours to them.

You can get up to 0.8% for a current account and 1.1% for FD at CIMB.

You should check out the 3 telcos websites and then post the info here.

I think its 500 per month.

I'm also using Singtel 3G. Works everywhere including underground in MRT. Also using their BBOM at home. Took the 3.6mbps package and I can actually torrent at that speed if well seeded. Used to be on Starhub. Not bad also.

Actually my entire company's mobile phones uses Singtel. Sellers losing deals would complain, no? And Singtel has the largest customer base of all the 3 telcos, especially business users.

The fact is that Singapore is a high density environment with closely packed highrise buildings. There will always be areas where a blind spot is created for a certain telco's relay. If you happen to be unlucky enough to be in one of those places, then too bad. Upside is that you have less radio wave energy causing cancer to your body.

How do you intend to borrow that money?

Only residential housing loans offer that kind of interest rate. And banks do not disburse cash to the borrower. They disburse it to the developer or seller's lawyer. Same for commercial and other property loans.

Car loans are 4% iinm. They also disburse direct to the seller.

Personal loans, overdrafts and credit card advances are all that's left to you. The rates on those loans are way more than any savings/FD interest rate you could get elsewhere. And for SGD personal loans, I think you'll find that banks will not accept MYR assets as full collateral due to the exchange rate risk. And by doing this, you are essentially taking a position against the sgd. So it's not risk free. In fact in today's environment, the sgd is the last currency I would bet against.

In short, the arbitrage opportunities have been all thought out and neutralized/penalized.

This post has been edited by seantang: Jul 30 2012, 06:12 PM

I think that's only available for balance transfer and trader purchases, rather than cash advance.

1. The 1.5% you see bring bandied about is SIBOR+. It's just that SIBOR is currently very low at 0.4%. Fixed rate home loans are like 3-4% or something similar or slightly lower compared to car loans.

2. Property loans in SG are not like normal loans. The long tenure doesn't matter or factor into the risk in the sense that there's virtually no risk to the lender as the value of the underlying property/collateral will more than offset any unpaid loan balance in the event of default by the borrower. In short, the longer tenure does not increase the risk. This is possible in places like SG, HK, Monaco etc where appreciation is practically assured due to impossibility of further expansion of the "prime" zone over time.