10 Things to Do with Your CPF

I originally had in mind to title this post: "TEN CRAZY THINGS TO DO WITH YOUR CPF!"

But then I decided against it and thought that the things I were going to pen down were not so crazy afterall.

Singaporeans and Singapore PRs seem to have a love-hate relationship with CPF - the nation wide compulsory savings scheme that is supposed to meet their retirement needs and medical bill needs.

Of course, the number of CPF accounts have increased over the years and the things we can use them for has also increased significantly.

Nevertheless, we are a nation of complainers and we JUST LOVE to COMPLAIN. The key trait when you meet a Singaporean is to find him complaining about something. He is never satisfied. If the government were to abolish CPF this very day, I am sure huge sections of the population will also begin to complain: "Why no CPF???"


Is CPF Good Or Evil?


Almost everyone I seem to know thinks that CPF is evil. They find that their money is stuck and that they can't put full use to it. They feel that they are able to generate better returns compared to the guaranteed returns that CPF provides. Some of them feel that the paltry interest rates provided by CPF is not able to beat inflation rates. (This same people complain about the paltry interest rates provided by the banks).


On the other hand, there must be a reason why CPF was introduced. There surely must be some good to it. It has provided a means whereby Singaporeans and PRs are able to enjoy affordable housing. It forces people to set aside money for their retirement and medical needs. The best brains in the government obviously feel that CPF is a scheme that is both necessary and good for the entire society.


How can CPF possibly be good and evil at the same time? Clearly there must be something good about CPF that some people see in it. Or is CPF really bad and should be abolished altogether?


I LOVE CPF


The above debate is not for me. I love CPF and enjoy the benefits that I get. To me, it is another bank account for me. The only thing is that I cannot touch the money for sometime. Yes, the rules change here and there, but overall, it is still MY MONEY.

I know I am supposed to list 10 things You can do with your CPF...

Okay, here is my no.1 thing you can do with your CPF:

YOU CAN USE IT TO PAY FOR YOUR HOUSING!!

I have never used a single cent to pay for my HDB flat thus far. My CPF settles every single cent of it. That is one amazing thing you can do with your CPF. Use it to pay for your housing!

If I did not have CPF, I am not so sure that I would have been so disciplined to set aside that sum of money. I might very well have spent it all on a trip to Europe, bought a bigger car, or God knows what...

I also enjoy low mortgage interest rates at 2.6% which is the HDB housing loan rate.

Over the course of the next few days, I hope to continue to share on some of the things you can do with your CPF.

CPF Interest Rates Are High

It seems to me that CPF interest rates for the SMRA is very high. Currently, it stands at potentially up to 5% because of the additional 1% interest that the CPF Board is giving.

Checking my CPF statement lately, I realised that I received closed to $900 in interest for my Medisave Account alone!

That got me thinking into whether I should voluntarily top up my CPF account as this would give me a guaranteed 5% returns (at least till end of this year I hope).

The downside is that I would not be able to draw out the money should I top it up.

What do you think?

This Blog Reaches 1,500 Unique Visitors per Month

I am glad of the progress I have made with my blogging efforts. Since starting in May 2008, I am glad that I have gotten to know a few of the bloggers and commenters better over the years.

I am also glad that this blog serves 1,500 people a month!

That is alot of people that I am reaching out to which I would never have been able to done with a normal job! Unless I am a pastor of a mega church or something....

To reach out to so many people, to be communicating with them and to be able to at least share with them my lessons and experiences is indeed a HUMBLING thought.

If you are one of these 1,500 people out there who is reading my blog each month, I would like to say a big THANK YOU for supporting me throughout my journey towards financial freedom.

This has been a very difficult period in my life. Unemployement, job search woes, rejections from potential employers.... If I could feel any more depressed, it is NOW.

Yet, it is also the BEST time of my life. I have never been so free in my entire life. I can spend the day thinking about what I would like to share with my readers. I can observe things moving by slowly. I also cannot explain the joy that I get when strangers come and leave encouraging words to me. Thank you.. Thank you..for all the kind words, encouragement, and even recommendations on the way forward. I guess I can never thank each one of you enough =)

Afterall, each of you do have your unique experience to share with me and I must say that I am a lot WISER today because of your sharing. If this blog was just a private journal that I wrote and kept somewhere at home, I would not have grown so much as a person.

So my job search carries on....

With each job rejection comes more pain but I guess I have to keep on fighting to move ahead. Failures are part and parcel of life. I also have to trust in my God that He knows what is best for me and my family.

A Jobless Millionaire and the Rich Bloggers

So I was thinking that the difference between a millionaire who is jobless and a thousandnaire who is jobless is quite profound. A millionaire who is jobless will never be called a bum.

Anyway, I have never really considered myself jobless. At the very least, I am a blogger! And people do make a living out of their blogs. It is just that I can't make a living out of my blog but that doesn't stop me from being jobless or stuff. I have a good readership and a wonderful community of supporters out here.

So to say that I am out of a job, the correct phrase should be "I am seeking paid employment". My job at this blog is paid peanuts but it gives me great joy. I am the CEO, marketing executive, editor, journalist, corporate comms person all rolled into one.

Talking about blogs, some bloggers are really able to enjoy a good life because of the quality of their blogs and the followership that they have. I would just term it as the Rich blogger and Poor blogger divide that I am trying to cross over to. Rich bloggers are also jobless like me...except that they are earning money from their blogs.

That was lunch for today. I ate only at 3 pm as I wasn't too hungry. Char Mee (instant noodles) home-cooked style. I know it looks real plain but it was super delicious.

Lessons I Learnt From My Job Interview

Disastrous in some words. My job interview that is...

Well, the worst thing that can happen is that I do not learn from this experience. As such, I am writing down some of my experiences.

1. I need to research more about the company and job position that I am applying for.

2. I need to be able to communicate my transferable skills that I have obtained from other jobs into the position that is being offered.

3. I need to be able to give a very clear reason why I left my previous job.

4. I need to be able to explain how I have skills that can be useful to the organisation.

I suck at interviews. Hopefully, I won't be attending so many interviews that a book is published here. The four points listed above are just some of the learning points from today's interview.

Job Application and the Waiting Game

So the waiting game is here.... just waiting for replies from potential employers and waiting for interview results.

Such a passive waiting game which I can't really stand. I wish there was a more active stance I could take.

Tick, tock, tick, tock..

How should I bide my time as I wait for the results?

Time to go off for a short trip and to escape the low self-esteem syndrome that comes along with rejections?

Sakuraya - Best Jap Food in Singapore?

I like Japanese food. Perhaps its due to the fact that I did not eat much Japanese food when I was young.

But with my budget tightening, I have cut down on my Jap food intake quite a lot as I tend to be pretty fussy about Jap food and only like to eat them at restaurants.

The one place that I like is Sushi tei. I find that their food is fresh and yummy. Consistency is however sometimes a problem as I went to the one at west coast when it just opened and I found it to be disappointing and not up to standard.

However, I went to Sakuraya yesterday (@ Anchorpoint Level 1 Beside 7-11) and I must say that their sashimi and sushi are of a superb standard too.

The reason why we went there was because we had already collected 20 stamps and this entitled us to a $50 discount voucher that we could redeem.

The wife ordered a sashimi set while I ordered a saba set. We also ordered maguro, salmon and tamago sushi. The bill added up to $51.79 and with the discount voucher, we only had to foot $1.80 for the bill!

It was a wonderful meal. The sashimi and sushi looked so fresh and tasted so good. What's more, it only cost me $1.80 for an unbelievable good meal. I have come to realised that Sakuraya has perhaps better Jap food than Sushi Tei. After being a loyal supporter of Sushi Tei for more than 4 years, I must say that Sakuraya has won my heart yesterday and now takes over the No.1 spot in my heart when it comes to Jap food.

Too bad I don't have any pictures taken from yesterday...

If you had a free $50 voucher to eat at any place you would like, where would it be?

P.S. Answering the above question won't win you a free $50 voucher