Why set up a Recurring Single Premium (RSP)?

Written in conjunction with MoneySmart.
Singlife, a fintech life insurer, has been rolling out insurance plans since 2017 that include its term life and critical illness plans; as well as the Singlife Account that can be easily accessed via the Singlife App.
Speaking of which, Singlife Account policyowners can now gain access to apply for Singlife’s latest product — Grow on the Singlife App.
*Note that the Singlife Account will go on waitlist from 15 December 2020. If you would like to sign up, you can still submit your Singlife Account application prior to 14 Dec, 23:59. Those who have not submitted their Singlife Account application by 23:59 on 14 December 2020 can put their names on the waiting list in the app to be notified of when the Singlife Account reopens.
Grow is an Investment-Linked Policy (ILP). We know that ILPs haven’t enjoyed the best reputation, but bear with us! For starters, you can buy Grow directly online and there’s no lock-in period and no withdrawal charges. And for those who are always busy and on-the-go, being able to access Singlife’s Grow via the Singlife App is a major convenience on its own.
More on Singlife’s Grow as well as ways to use it to broaden one’s investment options below!
<h1>Recap: What are ILPs and who are they for?</h1>
Those who already have some investment experience, may or may not have purchased an ILP before. Very quickly, here’s a quick primer on ILPs and who may consider it as an investment option:
What is an ILP? 
● Generally speaking, ILPs are policies that have both a life insurance coverage and an investment component 
● Premiums go towards paying for units in one or more sub-funds of the policyowner’s choice — some units purchased are then sold to pay for insurance and other charges, while the rest remain invested 
● ILPs provide coverage for death, and if included, for total and permanent disability (TPD) 
● As the value of an ILP depends on how the sub-funds perform, returns are not guaranteed
Who can consider ILPs as an investment option? 
● ILPs are known to be complex as they have 2 components: Investment and insurance 
● As such, ILPs are classified under Specified Investment Products that aren’t listed on an exchange (unlisted SIPs), and as per <a href="https://www.mas.gov.sg/-/media/MAS/resource/publications/Safeguards-When-Purchasing-Specified-Investment-Products.pdf">MAS guidelines</a> you’ll need to pass the Customer Knowledge Assessment (CKA) should you wish to buy an ILP
<img class="w-100 wp-image-24721 alignleft" src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133519/CKa.png" srcset="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133519/CKa.png 3757w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133519/CKa-300x179.png 300w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133519/CKa-768x459.png 768w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133519/CKa-1024x612.png 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 3757px) 100vw, 3757px" />
<h1>How is Singlife’s Grow different from traditional ILPs?</h1>
A lot of ILPs have many underlying charges that are higher than expected. Here are some ways Singlife’s Grow differs from traditional ILPs:
<img class="w-100 wp-image-24722 alignleft" src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133559/comparison.png" srcset="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133559/comparison.png 3757w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133559/comparison-197x300.png 197w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133559/comparison-768x1168.png 768w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133559/comparison-674x1024.png 674w" sizes="(max-width: 3757px) 100vw, 3757px" />
Note: As with all investment vehicles, returns are not guaranteed; do still exercise good investment principles when purchasing Singlife’s Grow
<h1>What else can Singlife’s Grow do?</h1>
<ul>
<li> Alleviate your “busy-ness” — Easily monitor Singlife’s Grow via the handy Singlife App, which is available 24/7 so you won’t need to keep texting your agent at 4.30am in the morning (some of us have moments where we suddenly wake from sleep worrying about random things such as investments). Especially for those who already know what they want and prefer not seeking advice, application is easily done via an online interface so there’s no need to carve out time to meet an agent, talk it through and do up reams of paperwork… 
</li>
<li> Multiply your Grow — An individual can have many goals with differing time horizons and risk appetites. So, Grow allows customers to apply for multiple Grow policies with different risk-rated portfolios depending on their financial goals. For example, if one of your investment objectives is a shorter-term goal of say, marriage, the goal of your “marriage portfolio” might be primarily capital preservation. As you may have a shorter time horizon, and thus less time to wait out the market fluctuations, you may wish to take less risk in your “marriage portfolio” selection. However, the same logic might not apply for your ”retirement portfolio”, as you have a longer time horizon for building up towards this goal. It is important to select a portfolio that is commensurate with your financial goal, time horizon and risk appetite.</li>
<li>Good synergy with the Singlife Account — All Singlife’s Grow customers are Singlife Account policyowners (you’ll need to have a Singlife Account to be eligible to apply for a Grow policy). The crediting rate for the Singlife Account , so for anything beyond that, it may be worthwhile putting into Grow to attract more potential returns. You can even use the Singlife Account to fund your Grow policy.</li>
<li> Insurance coverage — While Singlife’s Grow is more to meet your investment goals than a protection need (complements your existing life coverage), there are still some insurance benefits: 
<img class="alignnone w-100 wp-image-24723" src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133644/death-benefit.png" srcset="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133644/death-benefit.png 3757w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133644/death-benefit-300x93.png 300w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133644/death-benefit-768x237.png 768w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133644/death-benefit-1024x316.png 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 3757px) 100vw, 3757px" />*Refers to single premium plus recurring single premium and ad-hoc premium paid to date less partial withdrawals</li>
<li> Premiums &amp; payment schedule/subscription — Make a one-off payment (single premium), opt for a monthly recurring single premium (RSP), or put in ad-hoc premium payments as and when your bonus or extra money comes in.<img class="w-100 wp-image-24724 alignleft" src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133726/premium.png" srcset="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133726/premium.png 3757w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133726/premium-300x73.png 300w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133726/premium-768x187.png 768w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/14133726/premium-1024x250.png 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 3757px) 100vw, 3757px" /></li>
</ul>
<h1>How one can use Singlife’s Grow to broaden their investment options</h1>
Here are some scenarios in which the product can help to broaden their investment options:
 Scenario 1: Individuals with busy lifestyles
Tony is always on the go, go go. As someone who is always zipping to and fro work/social appointments, his schedule is always packed. He finds it a breeze to sign up for Grow via the Singlife App while he’s in a taxi to his next meeting — without the need to set up an appointment with an agent. He is also a Singlife Account policyowner, so this makes it easier for him to sign up for Grow via the Singlife App, after passing the CKA. 
In his Singlife Account, he is already earning 2.0% p.a.^ on his first S$10,000. As Singlife’s Grow is managed by Aberdeen Standard Investments (ASI), he decides to park his next tranche of funds there, making ad-hoc premium top-ups as he pleases.
Scenario 2: Working adults who are looking to invest their extras
Jill has been working for almost a decade in the banking sector, and has already built up a nice nest egg in her savings account, but doesn’t know what to do with this cash as it’s just sitting there but not really attracting great interest.
She decides to sign up for Grow (after signing up for a Singlife Account and passing the CKA). In addition to putting funds in the Singlife Account, she parks her additional funds in Grow.
Jill is not worried about putting a portion of her additional funds into Grow for investment purposes as she aims to leave the money in Grow for as long as possible, to hedge against inflation while growing her money, and she’s able to make a withdrawal of what she needs (if that should happen) as there is no lock-in period or withdrawal charge.
Scenario 3: Young digital natives who have yet to accumulate much wealth
Zane has just graduated with a finance-related degree and doesn’t have much savings. The money he has, was earned through internships and part-time gigs. As he doesn’t have any commitments yet (other than the 12-month instalment for his new electric guitar), he is looking to put a portion of his savings and future salary into an investment each month.
A digital native, he prefers to do everything online, be it ordering food to banking. Naturally, Singlife’s insurance plans appeal to him. He applies for a Grow after signing up for a Singlife Account and passing the CKA. After putting in S$5,000 in his Singlife Account, he also puts in an initial premium of S$1,000 and opts for a recurring single premium of S$500 every month for Grow to earn more potential returns.
<h1>Grow your wealth with Singlife’s Grow</h1>
To sum up, SingIife’s Grow is an ILP product with an investment focus. The management fee is a competitive 0.25% per quarter of the account value. There’s also no lock-in period and no withdrawal fee.
You’ll need a <a href="https://singlife.com/manage/">Singlife Account</a>— plus pass the Customer Knowledge Assessment to get started. Managed by Aberdeen Standard Investments, choose from 3 risk-rated portfolios to suit your needs — conservative, balanced, or dynamic.
The minimum investment is a S$1,000 single premium payment, but you can opt to make recurring single premium payments (from S$100/month) and ad-hoc premium payments as well.
Find out more about Singlife’s Grow <a href="https://singlife.com/grow/">here</a>.
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^2% p.a. on first S$10,000 | 1% p.a. on amounts above S$10,000. | There are no returns for amounts above S$100,000. | Returns are not guaranteed.
The information is meant for your general knowledge and does not regard any specific investment objectives, financial situations or particular needs any person might have and should not be relied upon as the provision of financial advice. 
Singlife’s Grow are Investment-Linked Policy (ILP) which invest in the respective ILP sub-funds within your chosen portfolio. Investment products are subject to investment risks including the possible loss of the principal amount invested. The portfolio performance is not guaranteed and the value of the units and the income accruing to the units (if any) may fall or rise. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future performance. A product summary, terms and conditions and fact sheet relating to Singlife’s Grow are available. You should read the product summary, terms and conditions and fact sheet before making a commitment to purchase.
These policies are protected under the Policy Owners’ Protection Scheme which is administered by the Singapore Deposit Insurance Corporation (SDIC). Coverage for your policy is automatic and no further action is required from you. For more information on the types of benefits that are covered under the scheme as well as the limits of coverage, where applicable, please contact Singlife or visit the LIA or SDIC web-sites (<a href="http://www.lia.org.sg/">www.lia.org.sg</a> or <a href="http://www.sdic.org.sg/">www.sdic.org.sg</a>). 
This advertisement has not been reviewed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. 
Information is correct as of 5 Dec 2020.
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Singlife’s Grow — How is it Different from a Traditional ILP &#038; How Does it Help One Broaden Their Investment Portfolio? (In Collaboration With MoneySmart)

You can now invest &#038; be insured directly from your mobile!

All about Dollar Cost Averaging (DCA)

Written in conjunction with Moneysmart
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If you’re reading this article, you’re probably thinking about buying term life insurance, or even wondering what in the world it is (no, really, what is it?).
Term life insurance is a way to protect those nearest and dearest to us, especially when we hit key milestones in life — such as buying a property, getting married (and starting a family), and when we start providing for our parents.
Why does one need to think of term life insurance during milestones that people consider to be ‘happy’?
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Well, that’s because these milestones also signify that we have become responsible for something precious to us — whether that be a house or a family. More emphatically, these precious people or things now depend on our future income in some way or another.
Like its name suggests, term life insurance provides coverage for a specific duration. For example, it could cover the years that we are paying off the mortgage on our property, cover the years that our children depend on us financially before they start working, or cover the period where we estimate the resources that we need to take care of our elderly parents after they retire.
Let’s take a closer look at these milestones and how term life insurance can help:
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<h2>Milestone 1: Buying a property</h2>
One of the major milestones of #adulting is getting our own home. Property prices in Singapore are usually in the 6- to 7-figure range, and monthly mortgage repayments — whether from our CPF savings, in cash or a mix of the two — can go on for as long as 25 years (HDB flat) and 30 years (private property).
In short, getting our own home is a long-term commitment, and we are responsible for paying for it. By the same token, we need to make sure we can fully pay the loan or mortgage we take out. Other considerations to be had are if we have co-owners or co-occupants – We also need to make sure that we are adequately covered during the mortgage repayment period in case (touch wood) something unfortunate happens — because we don’t want our co-owners or co-occupants to be saddled with our debt.
But isn’t there already the Home Protection Scheme or mortgage insurance?
Ah yes, when we use CPF savings to pay for our HDB flat’s monthly mortgage instalment, we are usually covered by the <a href="https://www.cpf.gov.sg/members/schemes/schemes/housing/home-protection-scheme">Home Protection Scheme (HPS)</a>. The HPS is a mortgage-reducing insurance that covers our outstanding home loan in the event of death, terminal illness or total permanent disability. The HPS covers up to age 65 or until the housing loan is paid up, whichever is earlier; and the premium term is 90% of the HPS cover period.
Similarly, if we want other options, some of us may choose to buy mortgage insurance, aka Mortgage Reducing Term Assurance or MRTA from a private insurer.
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What’s the difference between HPS/mortgage insurance and term life insurance?
The thing about HPS and mortgage insurance is that the sum assured decreases as you pay off your home loan and the premiums usually remain the same. Some opt for HPS/mortgage insurance as it is often cheaper than term life insurance at the same starting sum assured amount.
Why do some others opt for term life insurance, then? For term life insurance, your sum assured remains the same throughout the policy term — and if this sum assured is enough to cover your mortgage, you can also apply for an exemption from HPS.
<a href="https://singlife.com/protect/term-life-insurance/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=website%20term&amp;utm_campaign=moneysmartTLS3_WL">Term life insurance</a> is also more flexible. Unlike HPS and mortgage insurance, the payout from the term life insurance will be disbursed to your named beneficiary(ies) instead of directly to the bank/HDB. Additionally, your beneficiaries have the flexibility to use the payout according to their immediate needs. This means it can be used to meet other family’s needs, and not just for the repayment of mortgage.
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<img class="alignnone wp-image-21094" style="width: 561px; height: 107px;" src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16121220/Article-Quote-1.png" srcset="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16121220/Article-Quote-1.png 1174w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16121220/Article-Quote-1-300x57.png 300w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16121220/Article-Quote-1-768x147.png 768w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16121220/Article-Quote-1-1024x195.png 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 1174px) 100vw, 1174px" />
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<h2>Milestone 2: Starting a family</h2>
Getting married and starting a family of our own is yet another common milestone of our adult life. As responsible parents, we aim to support our children as long as we can, or at least until they are financially independent. For many, that’s at least 20-25 years of ensuring that a child is well-protected from birth till they start their first job. 
How much does it cost? <a href="https://www.todayonline.com/business/prepare-cost-raising-child-0">Some have estimated that it costs a middle-range average of S$360,000 to raise a child in Singapore.</a> While this figure is debatable, the amount is still sizeable nonetheless, and prospective parents need to prepare for that.
Part of this planning process is for a parent to also consider and prepare for the unfortunate event if they, as a breadwinner, pass away prematurely.
In the case of an untimely death of a parent, a term life plan can bridge the financial gap. This means that your child’s well-being and future goals aren’t hampered even if you are no longer around.
In short, term life insurance ensures that there is at least some nest egg or income replacement for your little ones in the event of your passing… at least to last them until they are old enough to graduate from university and start their career.
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<h2>Milestone 3: Ageing parents</h2>
Time is never kind, and as we grow older and have our own lives, our parents, too, will age. When they retire, it’s only right that we provide for them in their old age — as they did for us when we were young.
Even if you don’t plan to buy a house, see no need to get married, or don’t want to procreate, it’s important to have filial piety to the ones who raised you to adulthood. Some of us may also have siblings or relatives who rely on us financially. What will happen to these loved ones if we are no longer around?
According to a study, the current <a href="https://www.singstat.gov.sg/-/media/files/visualising_data/infographics/population/life-expectancy.pdf">life expectancy</a> (as of 2019) of a Singaporean is about 83.6  years. By 2040, the average lifespan of a person here is projected to <a href="https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/average-singaporean-live-third-longest-world-till-854-years-2040-study">increase</a> to 85.4 years. 
A parent never wants to bury their child, but should that happen, you’ll want to ensure that there’s something for them to depend on as your last act of love.
<h2><img class="alignnone wp-image-21093" style="width: 527px; height: 234px;" src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16121158/Article-Quote-2.png" srcset="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16121158/Article-Quote-2.png 1174w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16121158/Article-Quote-2-300x133.png 300w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16121158/Article-Quote-2-768x341.png 768w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16121158/Article-Quote-2-1024x454.png 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 1174px) 100vw, 1174px" /></h2>
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<h2>Singlife’s term life insurance</h2>
Singlife has 2 base plans for you to choose from, DIRECT-Term and Term Life Series 3. Here’s what they entail:
<img class="alignnone wp-image-21096" style="width: 552px; height: 951px;" src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16124131/When-Why-Table-1.png" srcset="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16124131/When-Why-Table-1.png 1005w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16124131/When-Why-Table-1-174x300.png 174w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16124131/When-Why-Table-1-768x1321.png 768w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/16124131/When-Why-Table-1-595x1024.png 595w" sizes="(max-width: 1005px) 100vw, 1005px" />
* <a href="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/23142849/DIRECT-Term-Series-1.2-General-Terms-Conditions-v1.0-July-2020-merged.pdf">Terms and Conditions</a> for DIRECT-Term Series 1.2
** <a href="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/23143124/1-Term-Life-Series-3-General-Terms-Conditions-v1.0-July-2020-merged.pdf">Terms and Conditions</a> for Term Life Series 3
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Find out more about <a href="https://singlife.com/protect/term-life-insurance/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=website%20term&amp;utm_campaign=moneysmartTLS3_WL">Singlife’s term life insurance</a>.
Singlife has a seamless application process that’s completely done online and takes just a few minutes. No papers are required. It’s even quicker if you sign up via MyInfo. Also, did you know that starting the application journey via MyInfo will win you S$20 worth of GrabFood voucher? <a href="https://singlife.com/promotions/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=website%20promotion&amp;utm_campaign=moneysmartTLS3_WL">Find out more here.</a>
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If you’ve decided to get term life insurance — here’s how to start your journey with Singlife:
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<li>Click on <a href="https://journeys.singlife.com/term-master-d/en-US/Singapore/Customer?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=website%20journey&amp;utm_campaign=moneysmartTLS3_WL">[Get A Quote]</a></li>
<li>Select how much cover you need (from S$50,000 to S$2,000,000)*</li>
<li>Click on [Start Application] and input basic details such as gender, date of birth, smoking status and email address</li>
<li>If needed, add on optional riders</li>
<li>Indicate how long you’d like to be covered for and how you’d like to pay your premiums (monthly/annually)</li>
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*General rule of thumb: 
[Average coverage amount required in the event of death] 
= 
[Approx 9-10x your annual income^] 
^According to <a href="https://www.lia.org.sg/media/1523/lia_pgs_2017_press_release_180426.pdf">Life Insurance Association Singapore Media Release</a> It is important to note that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ or fixed formula to meet different individuals’ protection needs. As such, you are encouraged to use the <a href="https://www.lia.org.sg/tools-and-resources/insurance-calculator-intro/">LIA Insurance Calculator</a> or <a href="https://www.cpf.gov.sg/eSvc/Web/Schemes/InsuranceEstimator/InsuranceEstimator">CPF Insurance Estimator</a> to help you decide on the amount of insurance coverage you need. 
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Start your term life insurance journey now. Find out more about Singlife’s term life plans <a href="https://singlife.com/protect/term-life-insurance/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=website%20term&amp;utm_campaign=moneysmartTLS3_WL">here</a> and get a quote from Singlife <a href="https://journeys.singlife.com/term-master-d/en-US/Singapore/Customer?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=website%20journey&amp;utm_campaign=moneysmartTLS3_WL">here</a>.
Save 20% on your Term Life plan + riders for cover above S$400k. 
For a limited time only. 
Promo code will be automatically embedded.
Terms apply. Head over to <a href="https://singlife.com/promotions/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=website%20promotion&amp;utm_campaign=moneysmartTLS3_WL" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://singlife.com/promotions/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1602588626741000&amp;usg=AFQjCNH6tgrIiaTjjnAIm_QTtwzB2_YfoA">singlife.com/promotions</a> for more information. 
This premium discount is not applicable to any loadings imposed due to underwriting. Singlife reserves the right to amend the terms &amp; conditions of this campaign at its sole discretion at any time without prior notice.
The information is meant for your general knowledge and does not regard any specific investment objectives, financial situations or particular needs any person might have and should not be relied upon as the provision of financial advice. 
Singlife’s term life plans are protected under the Policy Owners’ Protection Scheme which is administered by the Singapore Deposit Insurance Corporation (SDIC). Coverage for your policy is automatic and no further action is required from you. For more information on the types of benefits that are covered under the scheme as well as the limits of coverage, where applicable, please contact Singlife or visit the LIA or SDIC web-sites (<a href="http://www.lia.org.sg/">www.lia.org.sg</a> or <a href="http://www.sdic.org.sg/">www.sdic.org.sg</a>). 
This advertisement has not been reviewed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. 
Information updated on 16 October 2020.

When &#038; Why Do People Think About Buying Term Life Insurance Anyway?

For a young person who’s just starting out to work, life insurance may not immediately sound like the first thing you’d spend on with your first paycheck. Since you’re still young (in your early to late-twenties), is life insurance really necessary? Should money you earn in your first job be better spent on hobbies and outings with your friends? 
But everyone you meet will tell you getting life insurance when young is important. Why?
The general misconception from getting one is that you’re young and therefore don’t need life insurance coverage. You’re less at risk of being afflicted with a fatal disease. You did a health check and everything’s tip-top fine. The standards of medical care here is top-notch. No one at your age falls sick and dies. It can’t possibly happen to you. The list goes on and on.
Time to reconsider.
Even for Singaporeans, the threat of critical illness cannot be escaped. <a href="https://www.healthxchange.sg/cancer/colorectal-cancer/colorectal-cancer-young-adults">With rise in colorectal cancer amongst young adults</a> and <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-sg/money/topstories/25percent-of-cancers-diagnosed-in-singapore-are-rare-cancers-%E2%80%93-and-young-people-are-more-likely-to-have-them/ar-BBYVACX">certain rare cancers more prevalent amongst the young</a>, the young are certainly not infallible to illness. In fact, certain cancers are <a href="https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/breast-prostate-cancers-rising-sharply-in-spore">often diagnosed in advanced stages</a>, compared to older patients, due to the misunderstanding that some cancers are rare amongst younger patients—bringing the concern of terminal illness into the realm of young adults.
According to <a href="https://www.lia.org.sg/media/2160/mu5819-part-2-of-4-_lia-ci-framework-2019_lia-definitions-for-37-cis.pdf">definitions from the Life Insurance Association Singapore (LIA)</a>, terminal illness refers to the conclusive diagnosis of an illness that is expected to result in the death within 12 months. 
Today, while COVID-19 has a <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/investigations-discovery/hospitalization-death-by-age.html">comparatively lower fatality rate for young adults</a>, there is no guarantee that further health complications will not appear down the road, even after recovery. In fact, some studies show that <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-05-12/covid-19-s-health-effects-can-last-long-after-virus-is-gone">survivors of COVID-19 still struggle with proper functioning of their lungs, heart and liver</a>. It’s too early to fully understand the lasting consequences the virus has on our bodies.
So yes, perhaps the popular acronym #YOLO is taking on a crucial, new meaning in these disturbing times—-hence we should thoroughly consider getting covered as soon as possible before anything worse befalls.
If you’re young and considering life insurance, here are some details to look out for, using <a href="https://singlife.com/protect/term-life-insurance/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=website%20term&amp;utm_campaign=rice2">Singlife’s Term Life insurance</a> as an example: Singlife provides two base plans for different coverage needs—DIRECT-Term Series 1.2 is a simple and affordable plan, while Term Life Series 3 is a flexible and customisable plan.
 
<h2>1. Policy Term</h2>
 Term life insurance is a type of life insurance that provides insurance coverage for a fixed term of your choice. Unlike whole life insurance, premiums for term life insurance are usually cheaper too—that’s because it only lasts for a fixed term and has no cash value (meaning that should you decide to give up your coverage, you will not receive cash in return).
Singlife’s DIRECT-Term Series 1.2 offers terms for 5-year, 20-year and up till age 65. Term Life Series 3 lets you customise coverage period (from 1 year to terms up to age 99).
 
<h2>2. Sum Assured</h2>
In Singlife’s case, the sum assured varies from a minimum of S$50,000 to a maximum of S$400,000 for DIRECT-Term Series 1.2 and S$410,000 to S$2m for Term Life Series 3. Note that your premium varies based on the sum assured, as well as on your policy terms, your existing health condition and age.
 
<h2>3. Lump-Sum Payout Conditions</h2>
The payouts of term life insurance usually occur upon death or terminal illness. For DIRECT-Term Series 1.2, this includes total and permanent disability. 
It is important for you to know the scope of coverage, as well as what the payout conditions entail. For instance, in order to claim under the terminal illness benefit, the diagnosis of this condition must be supported by a specialist and confirmed by the Company’s appointed doctor.
 
<h2>4. Riders</h2>
Riders are additional benefits attached to the base plan. It usually comes at an extra cost. 
You would usually take a rider you want to enhance your coverage to have better peace of mind. 
For example, you want to be able to claim a portion of your sum assured if you are diagnosed with critical illness. Do this only if you can afford it. Otherwise, you can always stack it on later, subject to terms and conditions, when you are financially ready. 
For both of Singlife’s term life plans, they do offer their own optional riders: DIRECT-Term Series 1.2 has the DIRECT-Critical Illness Series 1.1 (covers 30 critical illnesses), while Term Life Series 3 has two riders: Critical Illness Advance Rider Series 3 (covers 36 critical illnesses) and Disability Advance Rider Series 3 (covers total and permanent disability).
 
<h2>5. Flexibility to Increase Sum Assured</h2>
Most insurance plans do allow for upgrades where you pay additional premiums to broaden and increase coverage amount (subject to underwriting). With Term Life Series-3, you have the flexibility of increasing sum assured without any medical underwriting upon certain specified life events. This is helpful if you get married, have a child or you’ve recently bought a house; especially if you do not want to take on additional policies elsewhere and you feel the additional sum assured to your existing coverage should suffice.
Life insurance is critical no matter what age you’re at. If your parents have bought life insurance for you since you’re young, then you’ll understand why they did so in the first place. It is also important that you review any existing policies you have and their coverage terms.
Did you also know that the earlier you get term life insurance (before 30), the lower the cost? Furthermore, with Singlife’s term life insurance, your insurance premium will stay level throughout the renewed policy term. This also means that should you purchase a term life plan for a 20-year term, you get to enjoy the same affordable cost of premiums for the next 20-year term. No doubt your future self will thank you for making these considerations now!
Ultimately, unforeseen events do happen and you’ll need to protect and support yourself and your loved ones no matter what. You only live young once (#YOLYO), so don’t throw it all away and live the rest of your life unprepared.
 Beyond <a href="https://singlife.com/protect/term-life-insurance/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=website%20term&amp;utm_campaign=rice2">Term Life Insurance</a>, Singlife also offers <a href="https://singlife.com/protect/term-life-insurance/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=website%20ci&amp;utm_campaign=rice2">Critical Illness Insurance</a> and <a href="https://singlife.com/protect/term-life-insurance/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=website%20cancer&amp;utm_campaign=rice2">Cancer Insurance</a>. 
It is also offering a limited-time 25% off its base plan for the Standalone Critical Insurance Plan and 15% off riders for Critical Illness Insurance up till 30 November 2020.
 
The information is meant for your general knowledge and does not regard any specific investment objectives, financial situations or particular needs any person might have and should not be relied upon as the provision of financial advice. 
  
All Singlife’s policies are protected under the Policy Owners’ Protection Scheme which is administered by the Singapore Deposit Insurance Corporation (SDIC). Coverage for your policy is automatic and no further action is required from you. For more information on the types of benefits that are covered under the scheme as well as the limits of coverage, where applicable, please contact Singlife or visit the LIA or SDIC web-sites (<a href="https://www.lia.org.sg/">www.lia.org.sg</a> or <a href="https://www.sdic.org.sg/">www.sdic.org.sg</a>).  
  
This advertisement has not been reviewed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. 
  
Information is correct as of xx xxx 2020.

Why You Need Life Insurance Even If You Are Young and Independent

Combining Singlife’s highly engaging mobile technology with Aviva’s deeper products and financial advice is good for all Singaporeans.
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Singapore, 11 September 2020 — Singapore Life Pte. Ltd. (Singlife), a homegrown insurer, offering mobile savings and protection solutions, today announced it has entered into a transaction with a view to combine with Aviva Singapore. Valuing the combined Singlife and Aviva Singapore entities at S$3.2 billion, the deal marks one of the largest in the insurance sector in Southeast Asia and the largest in Singapore. 
Besides its insurance business, Aviva Singapore also owns a unit trust platform, Navigator, as well as two of the largest financial advisory firms in Singapore, Aviva Financial Advisers (AFA) and Professional Investment Advisory Services (PIAS).
Combining the best of Singlife’s digital capabilities with Aviva Singapore’s product history and trusted advisory services, the merger aims to raise the bar in how customers can interact with insurers – by combining superior financial products, professional financial advice and mobile-first customer engagement. The deal intends to bring Singlife’s mobile-first savings and protection solutions to Aviva’s 1.5 million strong customer base, while being able to offer existing Singlife customers a significantly deeper product range and advisory capabilities.
Subject to regulatory approval, current Singlife Chairman Ray Ferguson will continue as the Chairman of the new group. Singlife Group CEO Walter de Oude will be appointed as Deputy Chairman, while current Aviva Singapore CEO Nishit Majmudar will be appointed CEO of the combined entity’s Singapore licensed insurance business. 
The new combined business will initially be named Aviva Singlife. Aviva plc will retain a 25% equity shareholding in this new, combined business. Singlife’s existing shareholder, Sumitomo Life Insurance Company will hold 20% of the group equity, while Aflac Ventures LLC, Aberdeen Asset Management PLC, IPGL Limited and minorities will collectively hold 20% of the group equity. TPG, a global alternative asset firm, will hold 35% of the group equity. TPG has been investing in a range of industries such as financial services, healthcare, retail, media and technology. In the financial services space, companies TPG has invested in include Korea First Bank, Shenzhen Development Bank, PT BFI Finance, BTPN, American Beacon, Du Xiaoman Financial, CD Finance, Ariel Re, ProSight, and Warranty Group.
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Walter de Oude, Group CEO and Founder, Singlife said, “We are building something truly inspirational harnessing the best of financial services for the benefit of Singaporeans and the region.”
Ray Ferguson, Singlife Chairman said, “Singlife was created with the ambition to reshape finance and help unlock the potential of money for everyone.  COVID-19 and changing consumer demands have changed the way people think about financial services, and more than ever before want to engage in a mobile-first way for their ordinary savings and protection needs, and still get the financial advice they need, when they need it.  By joining forces with Aviva Singapore, we are creating a homegrown regional brand that will go far beyond insurance and deliver on these ambitions by creating innovative financial products with intuitive technology and independent advice.”
Nishit Majmudar, CEO of Aviva Singapore and Chairman of Navigator, AFA and PIAS said, “Aviva Singapore has always focused on delivering great customer outcomes. This is reflected in our positive results as we are in our fourth consecutive year of double-digit growth. Joining forces with Singlife, who is known for their mobile-first approach, will further enhance what we deliver – a comprehensive set of solutions with a superior customer experience.”
&nbsp;
The combined post-merger business will initially trade using both the Singlife and Aviva brands as Aviva Singlife demonstrating the combination of the two businesses.
The transaction is subject to closing conditions, including regulatory approval, and is expected to complete by January 2021. Thereafter, the Singlife and Aviva Singapore legal entities will merge subject to approval by the Singapore courts targeting 1H 2021. Singlife and Aviva Singapore will continue to operate independently until the merger is complete.
Singlife is the first independent homegrown company to be fully licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) since 1970 as a life insurance company. The partnership marks Singlife’s most significant milestone to-date, following its acquisition of Zurich Life Singapore in 2018. The company is backed by Sumitomo Life Insurance Company, Aberdeen Standard Investments, Aflac Incorporated, and IPGL, joining the ranks of other regional tech companies as one of the top-funded homegrown fintech companies in Singapore. Singlife manages almost S$7.0 billion in life insurance coverage.
In March 2020, Singlife launched Singapore’s first mobile insurance-savings plan, the Singlife Account, with an accompanying Visa Debit Card. The Singlife Account hit 100,000 downloads within the first three months of launch, with customers entrusting almost S$500 million through the product to date, signifying a collective demand for better ways to manage, grow, and protect money. As part of the firm’s regional expansion, Singlife received its licence and began operations in the Philippines in February 2020.
Aviva Singapore currently insures about 1.5 million customers and manages S$11.8 billion of assets. They are an approved provider to offer Integrated Shield Plans and ElderShield Supplements, which are top-ups to the national MediShield Life and ElderShield schemes. Aviva Singapore is also the appointed insurer for the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Home Affairs and the Public Officers Group Insurance Scheme.
Apart from insurance and savings solutions, their offering also includes unit trust platform brands, Navigator and dollarDEX. They also own Aviva Financial Advisers and Professional Investment Advisory Services (PIAS), two of the largest financial advisory firms in Singapore. Navigator, dollarDEX and these two financial advisory firms are included in this transaction.
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Standard Chartered Bank, Moelis &amp; Company and JPMorgan acted as financial advisers through the transaction, while Norton Rose Fullbright, Latham &amp; Watkins, Slaughter &amp; May and TSMP provided legal advice to the parties.
 
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Who is Aviva Group and Aviva Singapore? 
Headquartered in London, Aviva Group is a respected global brand, offering composite insurance as well as savings and investments plans. 
Aviva Singapore is a MAS licensed composite insurer, insuring about 1.5 million customers and managing roughly S$11.8bn assets. Its insurance solutions cover protection &amp; health, general insurance, savings &amp; investments and group insurance.
2. Why are you merging?  
Aviva Singapore and Singlife both share a common goal to offer customers a comprehensive range of solutions at competitive prices, with a hassle-free service experience. With Aviva Singapore’s established product expertise, and Singlife’s innovative and digitally focused capabilities, customers will enjoy an enhanced experience and a broader range of products.
3. If I am a customer, what happens to the Insurance Savings plans, Term Life, Critical Illness and Cancer plans I have with Singlife? 
All your plans with Singlife will remain unchanged. There will not be, as a result of this merger, any change in your coverage, policy terms and premiums, or investment account terms and fees.
4. If I also have policies with Aviva Singapore, will I be able to manage Singlife and Aviva Singapore policies together in the same place? 
Your policies and investment accounts with Aviva Ltd and Singlife remain unchanged. For now, please continue to log in to MyAviva (<a href="https://myaviva.aviva.com.sg/">aviva.com.sg/myaviva</a>) to manage your Aviva policies, and log in at <a href="https://singlife.com/">singlife.com</a> or the Singlife Account Mobile App to manage your Singlife policies.
5. Will I continue to be protected by the Policyholder Protection Fund (“PPF”) administered by the SDIC? 
In Singapore, the Policy Owners’ Protection Scheme (PPF Scheme) exists to protect policy owners in the unlikely event that a life or general insurer fails. The PPF Scheme provides protection for the guaranteed benefits on your life insurance policies, as well as coverage for certain types of general insurance, subject to caps where applicable. The caps on the compensation is calculated per life assured per insurer. As Aviva Ltd and Singlife are now merging into one company, this cap is important to note if you have policies with both insurers. You can find out more about the PPF Scheme at <a href="https://www.sdic.org.sg/faq/pp_faq">www.sdic.org.sg/faq/pp_faq.</a>
6. What will be the name of the merged company? 
Singlife and Aviva will continue to operate independently until the Singapore Court approves the scheme of transfer which is expected to take place in early 2021. Thereafter we will go through a transition period where the merged entity will trade as Aviva-Singlife.
7. Who is TPG? 
TPG is a global private equity investor that invests in a range of industries such as financial services, healthcare, retail, media and technology. The companies they have equity in includes Burger King, Lenovo, McAfee, PropertyGuru.com, Spotify, and hundreds of others. In the financial services space, the companies they have invested in include Korean First Bank, Shenzhen Development Bank, Saxo Bank, PT BFI Finance Indonesia, American Beacon Advisors and Prosight Speciality Insurance, amongst others.
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About Singapore Life Pte. Ltd (“Singlife”)
Singlife is a Singapore-based mobile savings and protection company that aims to unlock the potential of money by making financial services more convenient, transparent, accessible and affordable. Licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore in 2017, Singlife has since been innovating its solutions to meet the evolving needs of customers and to provide a full suite of connected financial service offerings, reshaping Singapore’s financial services industry. Its most recent product innovation is the Singlife Account, providing up to 2.5% returns and no fees or lock-ins, with the ability to withdraw instantly via FAST or your personal Singlife VISA card. For more information please visit<a href="https://singlife.com/"> singlife.com</a>
 
About Aviva Ltd. (“Aviva Singapore”)
<ul>
<li>Aviva is one of the leading insurers in Singapore, serving 1.5 million customers.</li>
<li>Aviva is a provider of Medisave-approved Integrated Shield plans as well as supplementary plans for the national ElderShield scheme. They are also one of the biggest providers of employee benefits and healthcare, insuring one in four employees in Singapore. This includes protecting Singapore Armed Forces servicemen since 1983, as well as being the appointed provider for the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Public Officers Group Insurance Scheme (POGIS).</li>
<li>Aviva prides itself on their people and their dedication to customers. Putting our customers first and caring passionately about their needs, striving to challenge the status quo and putting things right; to ensure that Aviva will be there for our customers and for communities today, tomorrow and for many years to come.</li>
<li>For more information please visit <a href="https://www.aviva.com.sg/en/">aviva.com.sg</a>.</li>
</ul>
About TPG
TPG is a leading global alternative asset firm founded in 1992 with approximately $83 billion of assets under management and offices in Austin, Beijing, Fort Worth, Hong Kong, Houston, London, Luxembourg, Melbourne, Moscow, Mumbai, New York, San Francisco, Seoul, Singapore, and Washington, DC. TPG’s investment platforms are across a wide range of asset classes, including private equity, growth equity, real estate, and public equity. TPG aims to build dynamic products and options for its investors while also instituting discipline and operational excellence across the investment strategy and performance of its portfolio. For more information, visit <a>www.tpg.com</a>
 
Media Contact for Singlife
<a href="mailto:singlife@wachsman.com">singlife@wachsman.com</a>
Media Contact for Aviva Singapore
<a href="mailto:andrew.reid@aviva.com">andrew.reid@aviva.com</a>, <a href="mailto:yvonne_yeo@aviva-asia.com">yvonne_yeo@aviva-asia.com</a>

Singlife to Merge with Aviva Singapore In Singapore’s Largest Insurance Deal, with Combined Business Valued at S$3.2 billion

ASI highlights three courses of action for investors to navigate portfolios through the second half of 2020.
<a href="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/21175645/ASI-Flexibility-Needed.pdf">Click here to read more</a>

Flexibility Needed To Counter COVID-19 Impact

Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, the ASI team considers the relative prospects for China’s economic recovery and stock market resurgence.
<a href="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/21175640/ASI-5-Key-China.pdf">Click here to read the full post</a>

5 Key Investment Questions On China Answered

<a href="https://singlife.com/blog/global-outlook-july/">Read full article here</a>

Do Negative Yields Really Matter?

Grow’s 1% Bonus Return Campaign (By Invite-Only)

Have you ever wondered whether you’re saving enough, and how much those around you save?
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Most of us want to save just the right amount—not too little or too much. 
You probably know the perils of saving too little, like suffering should a “rainy day” occur—whether that means losing your job or facing an expensive medical emergency. We can never be too cautious.
On the other end of the spectrum, if you save “too much” (some of you might be wondering if there’s actually such a thing; indeed there is), rather than choose to divert some money into investing, you might miss out on potential extra earnings.
So… what is the “sweet spot”?
Look, we understand everyone’s priorities are different, and we should not be assuming everyone’s ‘sweet spot’ is the same. So, for better insight, we will look at 3 working millennials and how they allocate their monthly salary. Hopefully, one of their stories will resonate with your own priorities, and you can glean some insight from their thought processes.
<h1 style="line-height: 150%; font-size: 28px;">#1. Charles, 31, Married<o:p></o:p></h1>
<img src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/28152222/charles-pie-chart.png" alt="" class="mw-100 size-full" />
Charles has been working for almost 5 years, and has just set the audacious goal of saving $100,000 over the coming years. (Imagine what he could do with that?!)
 Impossible? Well, he&#8217;s almost halfway there.
<h2>Goal: Save $100,000 in the next 5 to 6 years</h2>
Inspired by the popular advice out there on saving at least $100,000 before you hit 30, Charles takes it upon himself to do so in the next 5 to 6 years. “I’ve already crossed the 30-year-old mark, but I think it’s never too late to start doing something beneficial for my finances,” says Charles. 
Once he’s reached that goal, Charles intends to use his savings to partially fund the purchase of a Build-To-Order (BTO) unit with his wife. 
There’s also a pretty philosophical element to his planning. Charles believes in the process of diligent saving as a form of character-building.
<h2>How much does he save?</h2>
About a quarter of Charles’ salary goes into his personal savings. Charles uses this savings pool fund to keep extra cash handy in case of any emergencies, occasionally channeling some of it into an investment portfolio.  
“In the current low interest rate environment, I’m looking out for something that offers better returns and still remains flexible so that when I need money I don’t have to worry about withdrawal penalties”, says Charles.  
Charles scouts around and finds the Singlife Account, an everyday insurance savings plan which provides up to 2.5% p.a.^ returns. With this, he feels that it is a great plan for him to grow his savings. The Singlife Account plan has no lock-in period; he can make withdrawals anytime without incurring any fees. Moreover, he can also get life insurance coverage of up to 105% of his account value. Knowing that the Singlife Account only needs a minimum initial premium of $500, Charles is not worried about having insufficient money to start this insurance savings plan.  
Find out more about the Singlife Account plan <a href="https://singlife.com/manage/?utm_source=blog&#038;utm_medium=website&#038;utm_campaign=oats5">here</a>. 
<h2>What happens to the rest?</h2>
About 30% of Charles’ salary goes into food and transport. He also contributes $500 to his parents. 
Charles then allocates about 9% of his salary to utility bills. 
The rest goes into things like activities with friends and personal purchases. 
<h1 style="line-height: 150%; font-size: 28px;">#2. Anne, 26, Engaged<o:p></o:p></h1>
<img src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/28152450/anne-pie-chart.png" alt="" class="mw-100 size-full" />
Currently an Art Director, Anne has been working for almost 6 years.
<h2>Goal: Save for the wedding and additional $50,000 before age 30</h2>
Anne plans to save up $20,000 to $30,000 for her wedding happening in 1 to 2 years, which she intends to be of a relatively smaller scale. She also aims to save at least another $50,000 before turning —keeping all that money as an emergency fund. 
Something she firmly believes in is clearing her debts as soon as possible. “I had student debt previously and wasn’t earning much. Because of that, I had to cut down expenses to pay off my debt ASAP,” Anne says. 
Why? “You’re not actually saving money if you have debt. Once you’ve cleared them, you then can start saving money such as for rainy days; even a little bit is good,” Anne advises.
<h2>How much does she save?</h2>
Anne saves almost a quarter of her take home salary, and is looking at increasing this proportion to a third.
<h2>What happens to the rest?</h2>
Anne budgets about 7% of her salary to insurance premiums. Another 10% goes to her parents, with a similar amount going to church and charitable causes. 
 The rest of her salary is spent on areas like beauty regimes, food, transport, and gifts.
 Anne dishes out some advice on tracking expenditure: “I think a good way to track your expenses is by using an app; it makes you more aware of where you’re actually spending your money. Most importantly, spend within your means!”  
 The Singlife app, for example, is a one-stop mobile solution to manage your money in the Singlife Account, the insurance savings plan. If you also order the complementary Singlife Visa Debit Card, you will get instant notifications on your transactions when you spend. You can also manage your money with spend categories. All your savings, spending and returns earned are shown neatly on the interface, helping you to get the clearest understanding of your finances, anytime.
 
You can download the Singlife app from either <a href="https://singlife.com/manage/?_branch_match_id=794449155686153443">Apple iOS Store or Google Play Store</a>. 
 
<h1 style="font-size: 28px;">#3. Mike, 26, Attached</h1>
<img src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/02171212/Pie-chart1.png" alt="" class="mw-100 size-full" />
Getting married and moving into a new home aren’t just big life milestones, they’re big-ticket expenses too! Mike is a millennial who’s worked for 7 years and is preparing for all that.
<h2 style="line-height: 28px;">Goal: Save enough for the big day and to settle into a new home </h2>
By the next 5 years, Mike aims to accumulate up to $50,000 for wedding expenses. He wants to save at least another $35,000 for the renovation of his new flat.
<h2>How much does he save?</h2>
Mike puts aside about $700 a month, which goes into his own personal savings. He also channels $500 into a joint account shared with his girlfriend.
<h2>What happens to the rest?</h2>
Mike budgets about $200 for insurance premiums.  “Before purchasing insurance, I prefer to browse through websites that offer me a clear idea of what the plan is like. This helps me to understand products quickly and easily, especially when I’m constantly on the go.” Mike says.  
 At Singlife, we use smart technologies to make insurance totally digital and convenient. <a href="https://singlife.com/?utm_source=blog&#038;utm_medium=website&#038;utm_campaign=oats5">Head over to Singlife’s website for a clear idea of our plans and benefits and to get a quote.</a> 
Mike currently contributes a total of $300 to his parents. “I plan to increase this allowance when I earn better pay,” he says. 
The rest of Mike’s salary goes into transport expenses and monthly subscriptions like media streaming services. 
For his music streaming subscription, Mike purchased a family bundle so he could split the costs with friends and save money.
 
Does your budget planning pale in comparison to these three millennials? After reading this, some of you might feel like: Can I really do this savings thing?
<h1 style="line-height: 28px; font-size: 28px;">But like Charles said, it’s never too late to start. How much should you save every month, then?</h1>
<img src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/28152810/happy-young-asia.png" alt="" class="mw-100 size-full" />
Here are some well-corroborated savings approaches that you can consider putting into practice.
<h2>The 50-30-20 rule1</h2>
The rule is simply this: Allocate 50% to needs, 30% to wants, and 20% to savings. 
 Needs are “must-haves” such as food, transport, mortgage payments, and healthcare. On the other hand, wants are things that aren’t entirely essential—from another new handbag to video streaming subscriptions.
 The 20% portion should go into savings, including allocating some to an emergency fund. But what’s an emergency fund, and how much should you have in it? 
<h2>The emergency fund</h2>
An emergency fund is money set aside for emergencies such as accidents or unexpected loss of income. 
This emergency fund should be enough to pay 6 months worth of your expenses, whether it’s for food, transport, or your home loan.
You can determine how much your emergency fund should have by calculating your expenses in a single month. Then, multiply this amount by 6. If your expenses are $2,000 a month, you should have $12,000 stashed away as an emergency fund.
It is important for us to ensure that we have a safety net during our rainy days. Aside from having an emergency fund, we can also protect ourselves and our family with life insurance.
 <a href="https://singlife.com/protect/?utm_source=blog&#038;utm_medium=website&#038;utm_campaign=oats5">Singlife offers affordable life insurance, which provides financial protection in case of unfortunate events in life. Get protected in just 10 minutes</a>!
TLDR: 
 

Let’s all tackle this adulting thing together. 
 

[1] Warren, E., &amp; Tyagi, A. Warren, 2005, &#8220;All Your Worth: The Ultimate Lifetime Money Plan&#8221;, page 26 &amp; <a href="https://www.thebalance.com/the-50-30-20-rule-of-thumb-453922">https://www.thebalance.com/the-50-30-20-rule-of-thumb-453922</a>
^2.5% p.a. returns on first S$10,000 | 1% p.a. on amounts above S$10,000. | There are no returns for amounts above S$100,000. | Crediting rates (returns) are not guaranteed.
The information is meant for your general knowledge and does not regard any specific investment objectives, financial situations or particular needs any person might have and should not be relied upon as the provision of financial advice. 
All Singlife policies are protected under the Policy Owners’ Protection Scheme which is administered by the Singapore Deposit Insurance Corporation (SDIC). Coverage for your policy is automatic and no further action is required from you. For more information on the types of benefits that are covered under the scheme as well as the limits of coverage, where applicable, please contact Singlife or visit the LIA or SDIC web-sites (<a href="https://www.lia.org.sg/"> www.lia.org.sg</a> or <a href="https://www.sdic.org.sg/">www.sdic.org.sg</a>).
This advertisement has not been reviewed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
Information is correct as at 28 August 2020.

Here’s How Much These 3 Working Millennials in Singapore Save Every Month

As a young adult in her 20s, Sandra Lim has never had to worry about financial planning.
But after planning for the year-end graduation trip with her friends, she started realising that a lot of them are financially prepared for life’s big milestones. She recognises that she had missed out on opportunities to grow her money, and instead of berating herself for her previous lack of action, she decides to step up and start now.
<h1>How it all started</h1>
Like most of us, Sandra holds a savings account for kids opened with the bank when she was young. Her mum had been managing the account for her, including printing the balance with a bank book.
As a sheltered girl, she never really handled her finances, and most of her angpow money was deposited into the account by her mum.
<img src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/26122332/bank-book-print.jpg" alt="" class="mw-100 size-full" />
This year is the start of Sandra’s final year in university. She is preparing for her graduation trip to Bangkok with her friends once the COVID-19 crisis comes to an end.
Even though Sandra grew up together with her best friend Monica, Monica seems so much more adult than her when it comes to monetary matters.
Monica has investments and savings plans, and knows a lot about managing finances— she is well equipped for post-graduation independence. Sandra, however, is clueless about all sorts of money matters.
<img src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/26122418/working-on-essay.jpg" alt="" class="mw-100 size-full" />
<h1>Taking baby steps towards adulting &#8211; no more FOMO</h1>
Not wanting to feel “left behind”, Sandra searches on ways to save up and would prefer some low-risk options that allow her to start small and slowly earn returns. Sandra knew from her friends talking about insurance that most insurance plans with a savings or an investment element have lock-in periods, with certain penalties to incur if you terminate them early.
As she has little disposable income, she knows she needs to find a plan that does not lock her savings in.
Given all these conditions: to save for her graduation trip, her low risk appetite, and her need to have access to her money anytime, she then surmises that the Singlife Account plan may be a suitable one for her.
<h1>Worthwhile and flexible</h1>
Knowing that the Singlife Account plan offers up to 2.5% p.a.^ returns on the first S$10,000 and will be capital guaranteed, Sandra finds that it is a great plan for her to grow her savings.
Although Singlife Account is an insurance savings plan, it has no lock-in period. She can easily transfer money in and out via Fast and Secure Transfer (“FAST”) without any fees. It only requires a minimum initial premium of S$500 to apply for a Singlife Account plan, and a minimum of S$100 to continue earning returns.
<h1>Enjoy a multitude of benefits</h1>
Other features of the Singlife Account plan include insurance benefits such as death coverage of up to 105% of the account value and retrenchment coverage of up to S$10,000 over 3 months* , as well as an optional and complimentary Singlife Visa Debit Card (“Singlife Card”) which can be used to make purchases and as a card for public transport.
Though she is not much of an online shopper, the perk of having zero FX fees for overseas purchases is useful when she’ll be in Bangkok! That would mean she can shop and pay with the Singlife Card in foreign currency, and enjoy no FX charges!
Sandra wishes that she had been more financially-savvy earlier in her life. She could probably have saved more and even enjoyed more trips during her university life.
*Terms and conditions apply. 
<h1>It’s never too late to start</h1>
Since there’s no lock-in, and Sandra has S$500 to kick start, she promptly signs up for the Singlife Account plan. There’s nothing to lose anyway—she can easily make a withdrawal or even terminate her Singlife Account policy without incurring any charges if she wants to.
<img src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/26122533/200819-Singlife-CTABanner-1600x400.png" alt="" class="mw-100 size-full" />
&nbsp;
<h1>Day 1: Onboarding</h1>
<a href="https://apps.apple.com/sg/app/singlife-account-card/id1485702405">Sandra downloads the Singlife app</a>, goes through the quick onboarding process and puts in S$500 via FAST transfer from her bank account—all within 10 minutes!
Her Singlife Account policy is ready with the account value reflected on her app, and she proceeds to request for the optional Singlife Card to be sent to her registered address.
<h1>Day 2: Returns earned!</h1>
<img src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/26122613/IMG_8088.jpg" alt="" style="width: 400px;" class="mw-100 size-full" />
Excited to see her money grow, she opens up the app and sees her daily return earned. As Sandra is still new to Singlife, she is taking things slow and decides to keep the account value at S$500 for a start.
<h1>Day 9 &#8211; 12: Receiving her Singlife Card in the mail!</h1>
<img src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/26122651/IMG_8087-2.jpg" alt="" style="width: 400px;" class="mw-100 size-full" />
Sandra receives her Singlife Card and activates it with her Singlife app. She loves that she can easily manage the Singlife Card on the app. If she loses the card, she can lock it and re-order a new one with a few touches of a button.
<img src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/26122740/IMG_8090.png" alt="" style="width: 400px;" class="mw-100 size-full" />
<h1>Growing with Singlife Account</h1>
After a few weeks of using the Singlife Card for her shopping and meal expenses, she gains greater confidence with her Singlife Account policy. The Singlife Card has added more convenience to her spending, as she is able to use the Singlife app to effortlessly keep track of her transactions. A month after starting with the Singlife Account plan, she sees her monthly returns credited into her Singlife Account policy. With this, she is able to steadily grow her savings over time.
She transfers another S$8,000, accumulated from her many years of angpows, into her Singlife Account policy and steadily monitors it.
She’s excited to see her money grow and using the earned returns to fund her graduation trip to Bangkok!
<a href="https://singlife.com/manage/?utm_source=blog&#038;utm_medium=website&#038;utm_campaign=oats6">Be like Sandra—kickstart your savings journey and get ready to earn up to 2.5% p.a.^ returns with the Singlife Account plan today!</a>
^ 2.5% p.a. returns on first S$10,000 | 1% p.a. returns on amounts above S$10,000 | There are no returns for amounts above S$100,000. | Crediting rates (returns) are not guaranteed. 
The information is meant for your general knowledge and does not regard any specific investment objectives, financial situations or particular needs any person might have and should not be relied upon as provision of financial advice.
Singlife Account is protected under the Policy Owners’ Protection Scheme which is administered by the Singapore Deposit Insurance Corporation (SDIC). Coverage for your policy is automatic and no further action is required from you. For more information on the types of benefits that are covered under the scheme as well as the limits of coverage, where applicable, please contact Singlife or visit the LIA or SDIC web-sites (<a href="https://www.lia.org.sg/"> www.lia.org.sg</a> or <a href="https://www.sdic.org.sg/">www.sdic.org.sg</a>).
This advertisement has not been reviewed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
Information is correct as at 24 August 2020.

Making your money work for you: How to grow your money with an insurance savings plan

Written in conjunction with MoneySmart.
My parents made sure to buy insurance for me and get me insured, before I even learnt how to speak.
Insurance has always been a norm in my life, so imagine my surprise when some of my friends mentioned they were scolded by their parents for “wasting money” on insurance.
<h1>“Wasting money”?</h1>
We are living longer amid growing rates of critical illnesses and higher survival rates due to advances in medicine, and that’s where critical illness coverage comes in.
Quick statistics on critical illnesses:
<ul>
<li>Cancer is one of the leading causes of death in Singapore (<a href="https://www.moh.gov.sg/resources-statistics/singapore-health-facts/principal-causes-of-death">source</a>)</li>
<li>1 in every 4 to 5 people in Singapore may develop cancer in their lifetime (sources:<a href="https://www.singaporecancersociety.org.sg/learn-about-cancer/cancer-basics/common-types-of-cancer-in-singapore.html"> SCS</a>/<a href="https://www.nccs.com.sg/patient-care/cancer-types/cancer-statistics"> NCCS</a>)</li>
<li>1 in 10 stroke patients in Singapore are under the age of 50 (<a href="https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/1-in-10-stroke-patients-here-aged-under-50">source</a>)</li>
</ul>
We can also glean key information from the <a href="https://www.lia.org.sg/media/1332/protection-gap-study-report-2017.pdf">2017 Life Insurance Association Singapore Protection Gap Study</a>:
<ul>
<li>Critical illness recovery period assumed to be 5 years</li>
<li>Average critical illness coverage required for a working adult is about 3.9x of annual income</li>
<li>Singaporeans have only met 20% of their critical illness protection needs with a significant 80% gap unaccounted for</li>
</ul>
Statistics show that Singaporeans are not adequately covered.
<h1>Why buy a CI plan in your 20s, when you’re still healthy?</h1>
Critical illness can happen to anybody at any time. Moreover, when one is young and physically healthy, premiums are cheaper as they are classified as low-risk for critical illnesses such as cancer and heart disease. As one grows older, the risk and hence premiums increase. 
Waiting till one is older to purchase critical illness insurance may be more expensive, especially as there is also higher possibility of developing conditions such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes which can lead to higher premiums, exclusions, or even declined insurance applications.
<img class="mw-100 size-full" src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/21143242/SCI-Table-1.png" />
*Based on a Female, Non-Smoker, buying Singlife’s Critical Illness Plan with policy term up to age 65 and sum assured of S$200k, before any premium discount.
Here’s a look at Why A Critical Illness Plan is Much Cheaper When You’re Below 30:
<iframe title="Here’s Why a Critical Illness Plan is Cheaper When One Is Young &amp; Healthy" width="525" height="295" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-gU2-KUhQCU?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<h2></h2>
<h1>When you start working</h1>
In the event of critical illness (touch wood), most people stop working and experience a loss of income. Regardless of whether or not you have dependents (young children, elderly parents), you need to first ensure you have money to tahan through this difficult period of time. Especially since the medical cost of critical illness is already a hefty burden. The payout from the CI plan will help, a lot.
<h1>What kind of insurance plan covers critical illness?</h1>
There are many types of insurance plans to choose from to get yourself covered against critical illness. Many of us may have an existing life insurance plan and might decide to add a critical illness (henceforth CI) rider to the base plan, rather than buying a standalone CI plan. Some may wonder what the uses of a CI plan is if one already has a hospitalisation plan.
Here are some key differences between 1) a standalone CI plan, 2) a CI rider, 3) a hospitalisation plan:
<img class="mw-100 size-full" src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/21170043/SCI-Table-2.png" />
While hospitalisation plan takes care of hospitalisation and perhaps outpatient treatment, there are many costs that hospitalisation plan will not be able to cover, such as regular bills and daily expenses, employing a maid, mobility aids and so on. CI plan provides a sum of money that can be used to take care of all other financial needs while one is recovering and cannot work.
<h1>Spotlight on early critical illness coverage</h1>
If you already own a critical illness policy for many years now, it is likely to be a late-stage critical illness plan.  
However, for those who wish to take the extra precaution, there is an option to get yourself covered for early-stage critical illness too. The question that one might have is: If one already has a late-stage critical illness base plan, is it overly kiasi to get an early critical illness (ECI) rider? 
With only a late-stage CI plan, a claim can only be made when the critical illness is late-stage. A CI plan with an ECI rider provides coverage for all stages of critical illnesses, claim can be made before the conditions get worse.
 Oh, and did I mention? An ECI rider is also relatively affordable when young.
Here’s a quick comparison:
<img class="mw-100 size-full" src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/21170132/SCI-Table-3.png" />

It’s counterintuitive to hold off treatment when diagnosed early; to just wait for the condition to worsen before filing a claim! Moreover, with today’s medical advancements, there is good evidence that treatment of critical illnesses at early stages can improve the chances of recovery.
<h1>What about multi-claim CI plan? What is that?</h1>
Maybe it’s best to first explain why multi-claim CI plans exist.
Firstly, the survival rates of critical illnesses such as cancer are going up.
According to a report in <a href="https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/more-in-singapore-getting-cancer-but-survival-rates-also-up">The Straits Times</a>, the proportion of men who survive a cancer diagnosis by at least 5 years has gone up from 13.2% in 1973-1977, to 48.5% in 2008-2012. For the same period, women survivors more than doubled from 28% to 57.1%.
And with <a href="https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/singaporeans-living-longer-spending-greater-proportion-time-ill-health-study">Singaporeans living longer but spending more time in ill health</a>, there is a chance for someone who has suffered and recovered from a critical illness to develop another later in life — that’s where the usefulness of a multi-claim CI plan with an early critical illness rider comes in. 
With a multi-claim CI plan, claims can be made multiple times. For instance, with Singlife’s Multi-claim Critical Illness Plan, for the first claim, the sum assured will be paid out and reduced to zero. After the “reset period” (consecutive 12 claim-free months) from the diagnosis date of the previous claim, the sum assured will revert to 100% of the original amount and claims can be made again.
<h1>Singlife’s standalone critical illness plans</h1>
Singlife has 2 base critical illness plans, and each plan can be further enhanced with a rider for early critical illness (ECI) protection.
Singlife CI policyholders can also benefit from the next day critical illness claim benefit, with payouts made within 24 hours of claim submissions.
<img class="mw-100 size-full" src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/21170342/SCI-Table-4.png" />

Singlife’s Critical Illness Plan offers standard coverage and once there’s a payout, the policy will cease. Singlife’s Multi-claim Critical Illness Plan allows for multiple claims up to a total of 300% of the sum assured during the policy period. For each claim, the sum assured will be paid out and reduced to zero. After the “reset period” (consecutive 12 claim-free months) from the diagnosis date of the previous claim, the sum assured will revert to 100% of the original amount and claims can be made again.
Find out more about Singlife&#8217;s critical illness plans <a href="https://singlife.com/protect/critical-illness/?utm_source=singlife%2520blog&amp;utm_medium=website&amp;utm_campaign=scisinglifeblog">here</a>. If you would like to get a quote, click <a href="https://journeys.singlife.com/sci-d2k/en-US/Singapore/Customer/?utm_source=singlife%20blog&amp;utm_medium=website&amp;utm_campaign=scisinglifeblog">here</a>. 
<a><img class="alignnone wp-image-71123 size-full" data-src="https://blog-cdn.moneysmart.sg/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/BlogBanner-inLine-B.png" /></a> 
 
The information is meant for your general knowledge and does not regard any specific investment objectives, financial situations or particular needs any person might have and should not be relied upon as the provision of financial advice. Protected up to specified limits by SDIC. This advertisement has not been reviewed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Information is correct as 4 June 2020.

Why Standalone Critical Illness (CI) Plans Are Cheaper In Your 20s (In Collaboration With MoneySmart)

<a href="https://www.lia.org.sg/media/1523/lia_pgs_2017_press_release_180426.pdf">2017 Life Insurance Association (LIA) Singapore Protection Gap Study</a> revealed these findings: 
<ul>
<li>Singaporeans and permanent residents were covered only for 80% of their mortality protection needs, and 20% of their critical illness (CI) protection needs.</li>
<li>In total, the mortality and CI protection gap for working adults in Singapore added up to S$893 <a></a><a>!</a> </li>
<li>The rule of thumb is that working adults in Singapore should have mortality protection coverage of about 9 to 10 times their annual income, and CI protection coverage of about 3.9 times their annual income.</li>
</ul>
If you’re a working adult in Singapore reading this, are you sufficiently insured? The good news is that even if you aren’t, it’s never too late to get yourself covered with the right type and right amount of insurance suited for your needs. 
In this handy article, we will share four types of insurance every working Singaporean should consider: Term Life Insurance, Whole Life Insurance, Critical Illness Insurance and Cancer Insurance.
<h1>1. Term Life Insurance </h1>
If you’ve just started your first job, it’s best to start getting protected early with life insurance. Facing budget constraints? A term life plan would be a relatively affordable option.
For instance, Rachel is a busy working mum of two. She doesn’t want to leave her loved ones in serious financial difficulty should she pass on early or be unable to work due to a permanent disability. <a>Financial commitments like the home mortgage and medical bills need to be paid</a>—with one less parent taking home a salary, Rachel’s family could potentially wind up in heavy debt.  
That is why early in her career, Rachel got herself covered with term life plan—a type of life insurance. Life as we know it, is full of unexpected circumstances. If Rachel passes on unexpectedly, life insurance payout will cover her family’s day-to-day living and her outstanding financial obligations.
A term life plan provides insurance coverage for a fixed period of time and it gives you flexibility to decide how long you wish to be covered. Some offer guaranteed renewability upon the end of the term, so you may not need to worry about your insurability even as you age. Since a term life plan provides purely insurance protection without a savings or investment component, premiums are usually more affordable. 
Rachel finds a term life plan ideal, as she only intends to protect herself and her kids with life insurance until they graduate from university or are financially self-reliant.
<h2>How much should you be covered for?</h2>
The rule of thumb for working adults in Singapore is to <a href="https://www.lia.org.sg/media/1523/lia_pgs_2017_press_release_180426.pdf">have mortality protection coverage of about 9 to 10 times their annual income.</a> 
Here’s a table illustrating the coverage amounts you’ll need depending on how much you earn.
<img src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/21104238/4-types-Table-1-1.png" alt="" class="mw-100 size-full" />
It is important to note that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ or fixed formula to meet different individuals’ protection needs.
This table is for your reference only as it reflects the average protection needs of working adults in Singapore, and does not take into consideration your specific financial needs and situation.
As such, you are encouraged to use the <a href="https://www.cpf.gov.sg/eSvc/Web/Schemes/InsuranceEstimator/InsuranceEstimator">Insurance Estimator</a> to help you decide on the amount of insurance coverage you need.
<a href="https://singlife.com/protect/term-life-insurance/">Singlife’s term life insurance</a> provides coverage for up to S$2,000,000 and up to age 99 – it gives you the flexibility to customise your plan to your needs. Furthermore, you can also increase your protection on special life stage events without further underwriting.
<h1>2. Whole Life Insurance</h1>
An alternative to term life insurance is whole life insurance. As the name suggests, a whole life plan provides life insurance coverage that spans your entire lifetime.
On top of offering insurance protection, a whole life plan has a savings element in which your policy will build up a cash value over time. This means that the benefit associated with your policy could be higher than the sum assured, leaving even more behind for your loved ones after your death.
Let’s look at the key differences between a term life and a whole life insurance plan. 
<img src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/21104754/4-types-Table-2-1.png" alt="" class="mw-100 size-full" />
 <img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-18389" />
<h1>3. Critical Illness Insurance  </h1>
Being critically ill can be debilitating not just physically, but also financially.  
While health insurance can cover the costs associated with medical treatment and hospitalisation due to a critical illness, it may not be enough as it may subject to the specified limits or caps. And that’s where critical illness insurance can come in. 
With a critical illness plan, you receive a lump sum payout if you suffer from one of the covered critical illnesses. The payout from a critical illness plan can be used to cover any financial gaps related to your treatment and other non-medical expenses. It can also be used to make up for any loss of income and provide you with funds for daily living during your recovery period.
<h1>Types of critical illness insurance</h1>
<a href="https://www.lia.org.sg/media/2160/mu5819-part-2-of-4-_lia-ci-framework-2019_lia-definitions-for-37-cis.pdf">The Life Insurance Association (LIA) Singapore has standard definitions for 37 severe-stage critical Illnesses</a>, such as cancer, heart attack, stroke, kidney failure etc. However, critical illness plans offered by the various insurers may vary in the number and type of critical illnesses covered.  
For a standalone critical illness plan, there are several types on the market and the basic type usually provides coverage for late-stage critical illnesses.
Other variations in the market include:
<ul>
<li>Coverage for early and/or intermediate stages of critical illnesses (ideal for situations when you detect the critical illness early).</li>
<li>Multiple claim options wherein your policy remains in-forced even after you’ve made a claim on it. They provide coverage for recurring critical illnesses or future incidences of another critical illness.</li>
</ul>
<h1>How much should you be covered for?</h1>
If you’re a working adult in Singapore, the rule of thumb is to <a href="https://www.lia.org.sg/media/1523/lia_pgs_2017_press_release_180426.pdf">have CI protection coverage of about 3.9 times your annual income.</a> 
Here are the coverage amounts you’ll need depending on how much you earn.
<img src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/21104918/4-types-Table-3-1.png" alt="" class="mw-100 size-full" />
It is important to note that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ or fixed formula to meet different individuals’ protection needs.
This table is for your reference only as it reflects the average protection needs of working adults in Singapore, and does not take into consideration your specific financial needs and situation.
As such, you are encouraged to use the <a href ="https://www.cpf.gov.sg/eSvc/Web/Schemes/InsuranceEstimator/InsuranceEstimator">Insurance Estimator</a> to help you decide on the amount of insurance coverage you need.
 
<a href="https://singlife.com/protect/critical-illness/">Singlife critical illness insurance</a> provides coverage for late-stage critical illnesses. There are two base plans for different needs, and each plan can be further enhanced with a rider for early and intermediate stages critical illnesses protection.
Singlife’s Multi-Claim Critical Illness Plan multiple claims up to a total of 300% of the sum assured during the policy period. For each claim, the sum assured will be paid out and reduced to zero. After the “reset period” (consecutive 12 claim-free months) from the diagnosis date of the previous claim, the sum assured will revert to 100% of the original amount and claims can be again. 
Singlife’s Critical Illness Plan offers standard coverage and once there is a payout, the policy will cease.
 
Want to enhance your coverage? You also get to add optional early care riders for the two base plans. In addition, Singlife is the first insurer that lets you to purchase a CI plan directly online.
<h1>4.  Cancer Insurance</h1>
If you want to protect yourself and your loved ones from the high financial costs of cancer, you can consider cancer insurance
<a href="https://singlife.com/protect/cancer-insurance/">Here at Singlife, we offer two cancer plans: Cancer Plus Plan and Cancer Plan</a>.
The Cancer Plan provides basic coverage for late-stage cancer, and you can start as low as S$7.10 a month for a S$60,000 cover1. If you want more protection, the Cancer Plus Plan provides comprehensive coverage for all stages of cancer, and you can be covered for S$60,000 from only S$8.24 a month2. What’s more, the recurrence benefit of Cancer Plus Plan allows multiple claims. 
1 based on a 30 year old male, non-smoker, buying Singlife’s Cancer Plan with 10 year policy term  
2 based on a 30 year old male, non-smoker, buying Singlife’s Cancer Plus Plan with 10 year policy term  
 
Protect yourself and loved ones from the heavy financial costs of cancer today.
 
<h1 style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 28px;">Did you know that all Singaporeans are covered under a compulsory government health insurance scheme?</h1>
If you or a loved one had been ill and needed to be hospitalised, you might already know that medical costs can pile up very quickly. Thanks to <a href="https://www.moh.gov.sg/cost-financing/healthcare-schemes-subsidies/medishield-life">MediShield Life</a>, this compulsory government health insurance scheme pays for basic public hospital treatments.
If you want a better type ward or private hospital, you may want to consider an <a href="https://www.moh.gov.sg/cost-financing/healthcare-schemes-subsidies/medishield-life/about-integrated-shield-plans">Integrated Shield Plan</a> from a private insurer. This ensures that some extra costs will be covered by your insurance, and you have the flexibility of choosing from more hospital or ward types.
<h1>Buy what you need </h1>
While these four types of insurance are crucial for working adults, there is no one correct formula for the kind of coverage that you should have.  
The type and amount of coverage you need will be different from what other people need. Before you commit to any insurance plan, do your research, seek professional help, and assess if the plan you’re considering will be beneficial to your financial security in the long run. 
 
The information is meant for your general knowledge and does not regard any specific investment objectives, financial situations or particular needs any person might have and should not be relied upon as the provision of financial advice. Singlife’s insurance plans are protected under the Policy Owners’ Protection Scheme which is administered by the Singapore Deposit Insurance Corporation (SDIC). Coverage for your policy is automatic and no further action is required from you. For more information on the types of benefits that are covered under the scheme as well as the limits of coverage, where applicable, please contact Singlife or visit the LIA or SDIC web-sites (www.lia.org.sg or www.sdic.org.sg). This advertisement has not been reviewed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Information is correct as of 21 August 2020.

4 Types of Insurance All Working Singaporean Should Consider

The Singlife app serves as a one-stop mobile solution to manage your money through the financial product offered — Singlife Account, an insurance savings plan, that allows you to grow your savings with up to 2.5% p.a.^ returns while providing life insurance benefits in case of unfortunate events in life.
Finance apps are aplenty in mobile app stores. Yet, not all of them are easy and intuitive to use. Some may feel clunky and bogged down by features they don’t need.
A good app should not only bring joy in its design, but also make your interaction with the financial products offered on the app easier and delightful.
Taking a leaf out of Singlife’s book, here are 5 essential features we believe a millennial-on-the-move needs, which can be found in the Singlife app:
<h2>1. Easy Set Up Process</h2>
In the days of old, establishing a business relationship and purchasing a financial product of any kind required the mandatory trek to the financial institution, followed by reams of paperwork — and this is after you finally get assigned to a staff to serve you (possibly after clenching a queue number with your sweaty palms for over an hour).
Time is a precious resource for the busy millennial — especially in this age of “microwave” attention spans that are prone to distraction and frustration at processes that take longer than expected.
Given this, it’s no wonder that Fintechs and their apps today aim to reduce the hassle and lower the friction in the sign-up process. Singlife, one of the leading Insurtechs in the country, definitely seeks to do the same with its easy sign-up process for the Singlife Account on the Singlife app.
<div class="text-center mb-3"><img class="size-full mw-100 mr-2 mb-4 mb-md-0" /><img class="size-full mw-100 mb-4 mb-md-0" /></div>
You can download the Singlife app from either <a>Apple iOS Store</a> or <a> Google Play Store</a>.
To apply for a Singlife Account policy via the Singlife app is seamless and fuss-free. A few minutes is all it takes.
Once the app is downloaded, create your Singlife ID. It’s even faster and convenient if you use MyInfo. Once your Singlife ID is created, you can move on to complete and submit your Singlife Account application. You can also order your complimentary Singlife Visa Debit Card which allows you to spend worldwide with no FX fees.
For a step-by-step look at the download and application process, click <a href="https://singlife.com/manage/sign-up-process/?utm_source=blog&#038;utm_medium=website%20manage%20process&#038;utm_campaign=rice1">here</a>.
<h2>2. Clean User Interface and Easy to Understand</h2>
Some finance apps these days try to inundate you with a plethora of information, be it charts, indices, rates and projections. These clutter up the screen, may not even be useful or worse, confuse you to the point of helplessness.
<div class="text-center mb-3"><img class="size-full mw-100" /></div>
For the Singlife app, the first thing you’ll see upon signing up and accessing it is its clean interface. At a glance, it clearly shows you how much you currently have in your Singlife Account policy and how much returns you’ve accrued this month.
As millennials can attest, an intuitive interface is absolutely critical especially when managing the money.
<h2>3. Shows Real-time Transactions</h2>
Today, people have an expectation that finance apps show transactions in real-time.
With the Singlife app, you can check your transactions on the go. You can track your returns, spending and transfer money in and out from your Singlife Account almost instantly via FAST.
Whether you are transferring S$500 or S$8,000 to your Singlife Account policy, the app reflects your transaction almost instantaneously. Similarly, you can also make a withdrawal from your Singlife Account policy anytime via the app. Furthermore, you can view a history of your most recent activity time-stamped and dated.
<div class="text-center mb-3"><img class="size-full mw-100 mb-4" /> 
<img class="size-full mw-100" /></div>
<h2>4. No Hidden Fees or Charges</h2>
The Singlife app is free! The app connects you to your Singlife Account policy, tracking the activities to give you better control over your money. You can manage your Singlife Account policy with no hidden fees or charges.
<h2>5. Instant Access to Various Features</h2>
A good finance app should give you instant access to various features at a tap or a swipe.
For Singlife app, just a simple swipe brings up the list of features you can access with ease. 
̵ Need more information on the Singlife Account plan? Just tap on “Account”. 
̵ Misplaced your Singlife Visa Debit Card and want to immediately lock it and request for a replacement? Sure! Tap on “Card Settings”. 
̵ Prefer to access the app with Face ID? Sure! Tap on “App Settings”. 
̵ Stumped and want to get helpdesk support? Tap on “Get Support”. 
̵ Want to share your experience with your family and friends? No problem. Tap “Invite” and share the link.
There are many more you can do with the Singlife app.
<div class="text-center mb-3"><img class="size-full mw-100" /></div>
So there you have it, five features that a millennial needs, found in the Singlife app.
Download the Singlife app from either <a>Apple iOS Store</a> or <a> Google Play Store</a>.
Find out more about the Singlife Account <a href="https://singlife.com/manage/?utm_source=blog&#038;utm_medium=website%20manage&#038;utm_campaign=rice1">here</a>.
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Singlife is a financial institution that you can trust. Singlife is a direct life insurer licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). All Singlife’s policies (including the Singlife Account) are protected up to specified limits by the Singapore Deposit Insurance Corporation (SDIC). 
^2.5% p.a. returns on first S$10,000 | 1% p.a. on amounts above S$10,000. | There are no returns for amounts above S$100,000. | Crediting rates (returns) are not guaranteed.
The information is meant for your general knowledge and does not regard any specific investment objectives, financial situations or particular needs any person might have and should not be relied upon as the provision of financial advice.
Singlife Account is protected under the Policy Owners’ Protection Scheme which is administered by the Singapore Deposit Insurance Corporation (SDIC). Coverage for your policy is automatic and no further action is required from you. For more information on the types of benefits that are covered under the scheme as well as the limits of coverage, where applicable, please contact Singlife or visit the LIA or SDIC web-sites (www.lia.org.sg or www.sdic.org.sg).
This advertisement has not been reviewed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
Information is correct as at 27 July 2020.

5 Features Every Millennial Needs, Found in Singlife App

Singapore — January 7, 2019 — <a href="https://singlife.com/">Singlife</a>, Singapore’s challenger insurer today announced that digital financial services veteran, Samantha Ghiotti, will join as its Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO), effective immediately. The appointment comes as Founder and CEO, Walter de Oude strengthens Singlife’s leadership team and prepares for expansion across key markets in Southeast Asia.
With more than 20 years of international experience as executive, investor and entrepreneur, Samantha will be taking on responsibility for the growth of the business in Singapore in its effort to reshape finance and unlock the potential of money for Singaporeans.
Newly appointed Singlife Singapore DCEO, Samantha Ghiotti, said: “Singapore is well recognised as an innovative global financial hub, yet many Singaporeans are still looking for smarter ways to make their money work harder. A next generation financial institution is what it takes to address this need and introduce transformative, innovative financial services that help them manage, grow and protect their money in a smarter, connected way.
Samantha’s appointment bolsters the leadership team at Singlife as the company extends its product offering to challenge the broader financial services industry and help its customers better manage their money. Fresh from its rebrand, Singlife has launched its flagship product, the Singlife Account, and accompanying mobile app and Visa debit card, which has been rolling out gradually to its waitlist over the past weeks. The Singlife Account gives up to 2.5% returns with no lock-ins, fee-free foreign currency transactions, and embedded life insurance.
Singlife Founder and CEO, Walter de Oude, said of the appointment: “With Singlife’s ambitions for rapid regional expansion across Southeast Asia, requiring more of my time, Samantha’s leadership and experience brings a new strength and bandwidth to the firm in allowing us to realise these ambitions while successfully delivering on our Singapore opportunity.”
Prior to joining Singlife, Samantha was a Partner at Anthemis Group, a leading fintech venture investor and held several senior commercial and digital roles in some of the world’s largest financial institutions including American Express, First Data, and the Royal Bank of Scotland.

Singlife Prepares for SEA Expansion with Appointment of Samantha Ghiotti as Deputy CEO

BT PHOTO: YEN MENG JIIN
Thank you Business Times for featuring Singlife&#8217;s upcoming launch of the Singlife Account! <a href="https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/insurtech-offering-life-insurance-investment-returns-and-layoff-benefit-rolled" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Read the full article by The Business Times.</a>

Media Spotlight: Insurtech offering life insurance, investment returns and layoff benefit rolled into one

Now that you know how <a href="https://singlife.com/critical-illness/">critical illness insurance</a> can add to your financial security, it’s time to shop around and see what options are available.
Insurance plans can seem confusing if you don’t know what you’re looking for. So here are three questions to ask yourself when searching for the critical illness plan that’s right for you.
<h4>1. What type of critical illness cover do I want and need?</h4>
When buying insurance, it’s essential to know exactly what you are buying. This is doubly true when it comes to a critical illness plan.
There are several types of critical illness plans in the market, and they provide different kinds of coverage so be sure that you’re buying what you want and need.
A basic critical illness plan that covers the most common 36 critical illnesses can be easily found, and this is the type of plan that is often bought by individuals.
However, what most people don’t know is that such plans typically only protect you for the late-end stage of a critical illnesses. They then become disappointed with their purchase when they realize that they are unable to claim the payout for an early or intermediate stage of a critical illness.
With medical advancements making it easier to detect certain critical illness at an early stage, you may find that a critical illness plan that covers the early and intermediate stages of a critical illness may be more beneficial for you.
If you’re knowledgeable and savvy about insurance, you probably already know that most critical illness plans are “single serving” plans; that is, the insurance cover is terminated upon a claim. That means that you would be unprotected against a recurrence of the illness, or even an occurrence of a different critical illness.
To address this gap, a plan that provides multiple payouts for critical illnesses may be what you’re looking for.
Critical illness insurance can be complex and confusing, given the mechanics of how some of these policies work. Because of this, a great starting point is knowing what type of critical cover is most important for you and your loved ones.
Once you’ve figured that out, we suggest that you learn about how the different types of policies work in order to find one that best matches your requirements.
If you have a financial adviser, they can provide you with sound advice on which type of critical illness insurance is most suitable for you, based on your needs.
<h4>2. How much coverage should I have?</h4>
Like life insurance, the question of how much critical illness cover an individual should have is a common concern.
You may be worried about having to pay high premiums for critical illness cover. If so, don’t forget that it’s better to have some level of critical illness insurance instead of having none at all. You can start with a small sum assured, and build it up later when you have more money to put into insurance
For the budget-conscious, a step-up critical illness plan could be a good idea. It allows you to start with a lower sum assured and premium, and both amounts “step up” by a specified percentage for the first 10 years of your policy.
This is beneficial for younger adults who can lock in their insurability at an early age and enjoy higher protection for the remaining term of their critical illness plan.
If you have more leeway in your budget, the sum assured for your critical illness insurance should cover the projected loss of income from being unable to work, and be enough to offset your financial obligations, pay for your living expenses, and financially care for any dependents you may have during your period of recovery.The loss of income due to a critical illness can be devastating for a family that is unprepared to deal with unexpected financial burdens, so if you are the breadwinner of your family, critical illness cover should be a priority.
The sum assured should also include any additional medical support services you think you may need during your recovery period. Such support services or aids may not be covered under your hospitalisation plan, and these costs should be accounted for in your critical illness plan.
Given all of these factors, it’s not surprising that an individual will need quite a high amount of critical illness coverage.
According to the Life Insurance Association Singapore, Singaporeans are under-insured by 80% when it comes to critical illness, having an average of only $60,000 in coverage1.
<h4>3. Can I afford the premiums?</h4>
With critical illness insurance, the difficulty for most people is striking the balance between budget and coverage. In an ideal world, of course you would want to be fully covered — but that may not be possible as the premiums may be outside of your budget.
Before you purchase a critical illness plan, remember that it’s a long-term financial commitment. A critical illness is only in force as long as you’re able to keep with the premium payment. Missing a payment could lead to lowered benefits or even a lapse of your policy that would render you not covered by insurance.
So, ask yourself if you can afford to pay the premiums throughout the term of the policy. If it’s too high, you may have to reconsider certain elements of your policy. Is the policy term too long? Is the sum assured too high? Which riders are necessary for financial protection, and which are “nice to have”?
If it’s all too much for you to work around, consider <a href="https://singlife.com/5-questions-to-ask-your-financial-advisor-every-quarter/">seeking professional help from a financial adviser</a>. They can help you find the right mix of costs and coverage that works best for your personal situation.
<h4 aria-level="2">Customise Your Critical Illness Coverage at Singlife</h4>
At Singlife, we recognize that everyone has different needs when it comes to critical illness coverage needs. Thus, we’ve provided you the freedom to build a plan that best suits you.
To begin, you can choose from one of three base plans:
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="●" data-font="Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif" data-listid="3" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">Critical Illness Plan covers 36 common critical illnesses and includes a $8,000 death benefit.</li>
<li data-leveltext="●" data-font="Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif" data-listid="3" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1">Multi-Claim Critical Illness Plan offers coverage for 36 common critical illness, a $8,000 death benefit, plus the ability to make multiple claims on the policy with a total payout of up to 300% of the sum assured.</li>
<li data-leveltext="●" data-font="Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif" data-listid="3" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1">Step-Up Critical Illness Plan provides the ability to “step up” the sum assured and premiums by 5% each year for the first 10 years.</li>
</ul>
As the base plans only pay out upon late-stage diagnosis of the critical illness, you can opt for accelerated benefits that pay out for early and intermediate stage diagnosis:
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="●" data-font="Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif" data-listid="2" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">Early Care Rider pays out the sum assured for early and intermediate stages of 35 critical illnesses.</li>
<li data-leveltext="●" data-font="Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif" data-listid="2" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1">Multi-Claim Early Care Rider has similar terms as the Early Care Rider but also provides the option of multiple claims of up to 300% of the sum assured.</li>
<li data-leveltext="●" data-font="Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif" data-listid="2" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1">Step-Up Early Care Rider is the same as the Early Care Rider, except that your sum assured and premiums rise by 5% each year for the first 10 years.</li>
</ul>
Want complete peace of mind? For even more comprehensive coverage, you can boost your plan with your choice of rider(s):
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="●" data-font="Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif" data-listid="4" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">With the Cancer Care Rider, you will receive an additional benefit if you contract a major cancer. This additional benefit is up to 250% of the basic sum assured of the plan.</li>
<li data-leveltext="●" data-font="Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif" data-listid="4" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1">If you are stricken with heart attack, stroke, or kidney failure and require critical care, the Critical Care Rider provides an additional payout of up to 250% of the basic sum assured.</li>
<li data-leveltext="●" data-font="Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif" data-listid="4" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1">The Special Benefit Rider enhances your coverage by providing protection for 13 other illnesses and conditions. Plus, it can be paid out a maximum of 6 times.</li>
</ul>
With the options outlined above, you can customise the type of coverage in your plan.
For instance, if you’re looking for the most comprehensive coverage and budget is not an issue, this combination is ideal:
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="●" data-font="Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif" data-listid="1" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">Multi-Claim Critical Illness Plan</li>
<li data-leveltext="●" data-font="Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif" data-listid="1" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1">Multi-Claim Early Care Rider fo</li>
<li data-leveltext="●" data-font="Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif" data-listid="1" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1">Cancer Care Rider</li>
<li data-leveltext="●" data-font="Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif" data-listid="1" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1">Critical Care Rider</li>
<li data-leveltext="●" data-font="Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif" data-listid="1" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1">Special Benefit</li>
</ul>
You can also select the sum assured as well as a policy term of up to age 99. Singlife’s critical illness plans also come with a $8,000 death benefit.
This flexibility and range of choices means that you can get the coverage that you want and need, instead of paying for a standard plan that doesn’t quite suit you.
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Singlife believes in offering good value insurance that you actually need. Learn more about our critical illness plans here.
If you need financial advice, let us put you in touch with one of <a href="https://singlife.com/contact-us/">our third party financial advisers for assistance</a> on selecting the right critical illness plan for you.
1 <a href="https://www.lia.org.sg/media/1700/slides-on-key-findings.pdf">LIA Study: BRIDGING THE PROTECTION GAP IN SINGAPORE (dated 26 April 2018) https://www.lia.org.sg/media/1700/slides-on-key-findings.pdf</a>
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This article has not been reviewed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

What Critical Illness Plan is Right For Me?

Most Singaporeans have at least heard of life insurance… and have experience on how best to avoid insurance advisers at roadshows. 
Insurance (and insurance advisers) often unfairly get a bad reputation, due to one or two bad personal experiences or anecdotal stories. 
Here, we debunk seven common myths Singaporeans have about life insurance and reveal how life insurance can be an important element of your financial life.
 
<h4 aria-level="2">Myth 1: I’m already covered by MediShield Life for hospitalisation; I don’t need life insurance </h4>
Many Singaporeans have great faith that the government is there to care for our basic needs. In past years, the Singapore government has instituted many schemes committed to the welfare of its citizens, including a few insurance schemes as such the CPF Dependents’ Protection Scheme and MediShield Life. 
While MediShield Life does indeed provide you with a basic level of coverage for in-patient treatment, hospital stays, and a range of out-patient care, life insurance plays a completely different role. 
Life insurance aims to provide your beneficiaries with a lump sum payout in the event of your death or total permanent disability. In this way, your loved ones will not have to worry about their finances if you, a breadwinner for the family, is unable to provide any financial contribution to the family.  
Whether it’s your spouse, children or ageing parents, you can provide them with financial security should you suffer from an untimely death. 
Life insurance addresses a different type of financial gap and should be part of your insurance portfolio along with health insurance.
 
<h4 aria-level="2">Myth 2: I don’t have dependents, so I don’t need life insurance coverage </h4>
Young, single, and free — and not in need of life insurance, right? That’s not true. 
While life insurance certainly plays a vital role for individuals with dependents to care for, a person without dependents can also get great benefits from being insured. 
Have you ever considered who would take care of funeral expenses or any of your outstanding personal debts after your death? The death benefit from a life insurance plan can go towards such expenses. You could also designate a portion of the death benefit as part of your estate to be distributed to your named beneficiaries or to charitable organisations. 
And while most young people may think of children when the word “dependent” comes into mind, it actually refers to any person who is financially dependent on you. 
So, if you’re supporting your ageing parents during their golden years, then they are technically your dependents. As such, any financial planning you do should take into account their future financial needs in case you’re unable or not around to take care of them. 
If you’re keen on getting a financial head start as you move through life, getting insured is one of the <a href="https://singlife.com/10-smart-money-moves-all-young-professionals-should-make-now/">smart financial moves</a> you should make in your 20s.
 
<h4 aria-level="2">Myth 3: I’m still young; I’ll wait until I’m older before I buy life insurance </h4>
In your youth, the idea of ill health, disability or death seems improbable or a possibility far off into the future. But life is unpredictable, and you never know what could happen — which is why life insurance is important. 
One common grouse with life insurance is that when the time comes that you need it, it’s often too late. Eliminate this regret by getting covered while you’re still young and healthy. 
Young people can benefit from buying life insurance early in life. Buying a life insurance policy while you are young can ensure that you enjoy full coverage for your lifetime, even if you develop health conditions later on in life. 
In general, life insurance premiums for the young tend to be cheaper than those who are older. And if you purchase a whole life plan, you get more years of coverage and your policy has a longer time frame to accumulate higher cash value.
 
<h4 aria-level="2">Myth 4: Life insurance is too expensive </h4>
Another common misconception is that it costs too much to be insured. This myth comes about due to two possible reasons: people don’t actually know how much it costs to have life insurance and they’re not convinced of the value of being insured. 
Interestingly, it’s those who think they can’t afford life insurance that really do need it the most. After all, if you are unable to allocate at least 10% of your monthly income to life insurance, imagine how financially devastating it could be on you and your family if you were to unexpectedly die or become permanently incapacitated? 
In terms of actual costs of premiums, not all life insurance is expensive. Term life, as a pure protection-focused product, is able to provide you with high cover for death and total permanent disability at an affordable premium. 
As an example, a healthy 30 year-old non-smoking male can purchase a 5-year Direct Purchase Insurance (DPI) Term plan with a S$200,000 sum assured for under S$10 per month. 
Before dismissing life insurance as a high and unnecessary cost, you should learn about how it can enhance your financial security and find out exactly how much it would cost for you to get sufficient coverage. 
You can use online tools such as quote generators to estimate premium costs, or you could speak to a financial adviser for guidance. 
 
<h4 aria-level="2">Myth 5: It’s hard to figure out how much life insurance I should have </h4>
Some of us know that life insurance is important, but the idea of trying to figure it all out is too challenging, and so we put it off. Don’t let the fear of the unknown stop you from protecting your family’s financial future. 
You may want to seek professional advice from a financial adviser who can take you through the basics of insurance, the different types of plans available, and how they work. A financial adviser can assess your financial situation and recommend how much life insurance you should have. 
But even without the guidance of a financial adviser, here’s a simple way to calculate your life insurance needs. Calculate all your assets, tally up your liabilities, and the gap is what your life insurance should cover. To learn more, check out <a href="https://singlife.com/a-simple-formula-for-calculating-how-much-life-insurance-you-need/">this guide</a>.
 
<h4 aria-level="2">Myth 6: I bought life insurance years ago, so I don’t have to think about it anymore </h4>
It’s great that you’re already insured! But when was the last time you reviewed your policies? 
If you’re someone who bought life insurance and then proceeded to just put aside the policy documents in a safe place, it’s time to dust them off. While it is best to do a financial review every quarter, you should at least reassess your insurance coverage on a yearly basis. 
Why? The ideal amount of life insurance coverage for you is not a static amount. As time passes, our life circumstances, responsibilities, and priorities change which necessitates a review of our financial standing. 
For example, if you had purchased life insurance when you entered the workforce, the amount and type of coverage you have may not be enough now that you’re in your 30s and have more financial obligations and loved ones depending on your income. 
It’s also important to review policies you’ve bought in the past to assess the type of coverage they offer. As the insurance market becomes more sophisticated and innovative, new products enter the market — and sometimes, they offer better coverage than older plans. 
A regular review will enable you to see how well your life insurance policies are serving your needs, and if any new financial gaps have risen since you purchased your policy or if there are new products that better fit your protection priorities. 
How do you do a personal finance review? We’ve got you covered in our guide on <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/why-you-should-review-your-finances-every-quarter">how to do a quarterly financial review </a>. 
 
<h4 aria-level="2">Myth 7: I need an insurance adviser before I can buy life insurance </h4>
While advice from an insurance adviser is recommended for certain types of life insurance, there are some types of policies that you can purchase on a Do-It-Yourself basis. 
For instance, a term life policy may be bought by oneself online, without the need for any financial advice. This is ideal for individuals who already know what type of coverage they need and the sum assured. An example of such a policy is a <a href="https://www.lia.org.sg/consumers/choosing-right/direct-purchase-insurance-dpi/">Direct Purchase Insurance</a> (DPI) plan that allows you to purchase without financial advice, directly from the insurer.   
In most cases, you can simply get an online quote by filling in your personal details and a preference of your coverage amount and policy duration. Once you’ve received the quote, you can make a payment online right away , and within minutes you’re insured. 
Here at SingLife, we offer this service for our term life as well as our endowment policies. 
Are you considering buying your first life insurance policy? 
Check out our tips for <a href="https://singlife.com/7-things-you-need-to-know-before-buying-your-first-life-insurance-policy/">first-time life insurance buyers</a>.

7 Myths Singaporeans Have About Life Insurance

When it comes to critical illness, the dreaded “c” word comes to mind for most of us — cancer. The sad reality is that most of us know someone, whether family, friend, neighbour or colleague, who’s been afflicted with cancer.  
According to the <a href="https://www.nccs.com.sg/patient-care/cancer-types/cancer-statistics">National Cancer Centre Singapore</a>, the incidence of cancer among Singaporeans is rising. In 2015 alone, there were almost 15,000 cancer cases recorded in Singapore.
 
<h6><img class="size-full wp-image-4820 aligncenter" src="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/23131025/Cancer-Stats_National-Cancer-Centre-Singapore.png" sizes="(max-width: 618px) 100vw, 618px" srcset="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/23131025/Cancer-Stats_National-Cancer-Centre-Singapore.png 618w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/23131025/Cancer-Stats_National-Cancer-Centre-Singapore-300x113.png 300w" alt="Cancer-Stats_National-Cancer-Centre-Singapore" width="618" height="232" /></h6>
<h6></h6>
<h6>(Source: National Cancer Centre Singapore) </h6>
For women, breast cancer is the most common type of cancer whereas men mostly suffer from colorectal cancer. What’s more, data from the <a href="https://www.moh.gov.sg/resources-statistics/singapore-health-facts/principal-causes-of-death">Ministry of Health</a> reveals that cancer is the top cause of death in Singapore. 
Cancer doesn’t just have a physical and emotional toll on the patient; there’s also a large price tag associated with fighting cancer.  
While data on cancer treatment costs in Singapore aren’t readily available, a <a href="https://blog.seedly.sg/true-cost-cancer-treatment-singapore/">recent article by Seedly.sg</a> found that the monthly cost of treatment for late stage cancer can range from S$8,400 to S$16,700. 
What’s worrying is that the median salary in Singapore is only $3,800 which means most Singaporeans are financially unequipped if they or a loved one are suddenly diagnosed with cancer.
 
<h4 aria-level="2">How insurance can help when you’re diagnosed with a critical illness like cancer </h4>
So how can Singaporeans cope with the costs of treating cancer, should they suffer from it? 
The first line of defense is health insurance. Thanks to MediShield Life, Singaporeans and Permanent Residents are covered with a basic level of health insurance that covers hospitalisation stays up to B2/C wards.  
Aside from inpatient and day surgery coverage (subject to limits), <a href="https://www.moh.gov.sg/medishield-life/what-is-medishield-life/what-medishield-life-benefits">MediShield Life</a> also offers some coverage for cancer-related outpatient treatment. Chemotherapy for cancer is covered for up to S$3,000 per year and some types of radiotherapy are also covered, subject to individual limits.  
If you desire high coverage for large medical bills, you can choose to enhance your health insurance by purchasing an Integrated Shield Plan. This plan works as an add-on to MediShield Life, and provides you with higher coverage limits and a wider range of cover as well. While the cover by insurers offering Integrated Shield Plan for inpatient hospitalisation costs are generally the same, critical illnesses benefit is not provided by all. 
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Health insurance will help pay for medical bills if you suffer from cancer, whereas critical illness insurance can further ease the financial burden associated with such a serious illness and provide lump sum monetary support for your financial situation. 
Health insurance and <a href="https://singlife.com/top-7-myths-singaporeans-believe-about-critical-illness-insurance/">critical illness insurance</a> offer two completely different types of coverage.  
A health insurance plan is intended to only reimburse you for medical costs; whatever you’ve been billed will be covered by the insurer, subject to the amount of cover you have signed up for as per your your policy.  
On the other hand, a critical illness plan will pay out a sum of money, as spelled out in the policy, when your diagnosis meets the terms of the payout. This lump sum amount is yours to use as you wish. You could use it to pay for medical costs not covered under your health insurance, utilise it for any other costs associated with your illness, or even for daily expenses for you and your family while you’re not working.
 
Thus, a critical illness plan provides an additional financial cushion during the tough time of fighting a serious illness like cancer.
 
<h4>Cancer and critical illness policies  </h4>
As major cancers are typically included as one the 37 common critical illnesses covered in critical illness insurance, you can be assured that having a critical illness plan will cover cancer.  
What’s important to note about a critical illness policy is when it will pay out the sum assured. Most older critical illness plans or those which provide a basic level of critical illness cover will only pay out during the advance stage of an illness.  
Often, when it comes to cancer, this means that the payout will only occur when it reaches a terminal stage wherein recovery is not probable. While this type of coverage still has its benefits, it may not be exactly what you want or need.  
Thus, to address the different needs of consumers, insurers have introduced another type of critical illness insurance that covers the early and intermediate stages of an illness.  
Early stage critical illness coverage means that you can claim from your policy even if you receive an early diagnosis. This can be especially helpful when it comes to cancer as medical advancements and regular screening have made it easier for doctors to detect cancer in its early stages.  
With a critical illness plan that covers the early stages, the payout can be helpful in defraying treatment costs, loss of income during your treatment and recovery periods, and other supplementary costs during your recovery. 
Another type of critical illness coverage that can protect you against the costs of having cancer is a plan that provides multiple payouts.  
A typical critical illness plan provides a “single serving” coverage; that is, the policy is terminated once you’ve claimed from it. This means that you are no longer covered should the illness recur or should you suffer from a different critical illness in the future.  
A multi-claim critical illness plan can be very beneficial when it comes to providing coverage for cancer, as cancer could recur even after a period of remission. In this way, you would be covered for any future incidences of cancer or an occurrence of another critical illness, even after your first claim on the policy. 
 
<h4 aria-level="2">What about cancer-specific insurance policies? </h4>
If you have a family history of cancer, you may be particularly concerned about having enough financial protection against cancer. Thus, a cancer-specific insurance policy may be of interest to you. 
While a critical illness plan provides broad coverage for the most common critical illnesses such as heart attack and kidney failure, a cancer-specific plan is targeted just to alleviate the financial burdens associated with cancer treatment.  
A typical cancer insurance policy will cover all types and stages of cancer. Most plans will provide a percentage of the sum assured when you receive an early diagnosis of cancer, and often this payout that will not affect your sum assured. Thus, if your condition worsens into an advanced stage, you will still receive the full sum assured from your policy.  
This structure of payout can be beneficial in helping you manage the costs of fighting cancer as well as reduce anxiety and stress. The initial smaller payout for an early diagnosis can help defray medical costs, and you don’t have to worry about finances should the treatment fail and your condition gets worse. 
Some cancer-focused plans aim to offer more holistic coverage for cancer, providing reimbursement for after-treatment costs such as home care nursing, post-treatment medication, reconstructive surgery, and more.  
Cancer-focused policies differ in benefits from insurer to insurer so you may want to compare plans before you purchase one. 
 
<h4 aria-level="2">What type of plan should I get? </h4>
Depending on <a href="https://singlife.com/your-decade-by-decade-guide-to-financial-wellness/">which stage of life you’re in</a>, your health, and your family medical history, you will have different needs and priorities when it comes to protection against critical illness. While a basic critical illness policy should be a part of everyone’s financial plan, you may also want to consider other types of critical illness plans to supplement your coverage.  
If you already own life insurance, you may be able to add on critical illness and/or cancer coverage by adding a rider to your plan instead of buying a new policy. Check with your financial adviser or insurer to find out more.  
One thing to note is that you can have both a critical illness plan and a cancer-specific plan. Unlike health insurance which works on a reimbursement basis (that is, you can’t claim for something that hasn’t been billed), you can claim from both these plans if you own them.  
Let’s say that you own a basic critical illness policy and a cancer-specific plan. In the event that you get an early diagnosis of cancer, you could claim from your cancer-specific plan and receive a partial benefit from it.  
If you recover, that’s great — and both your plans will remain active. You remain covered should the cancer recur or if you contract a different critical illness at a later age.  
On the other hand, should your cancer progress into an advanced stage, you can then claim from both policies. 
Thus, a critical illness plan and a cancer-focused plan are complementary. If you have the budget to service both types of plans, they can provide you and your family with more comprehensive financial protection.  
You can learn more about Singlife’s latest Critical Illness plans <a href="https://singlife.com/protect/critical-illness/">here</a>.

Will a Critical Illness Plan Cover Cancer? Here’s What You Need To Know

In the blink of an eye, the first few months of 2019 have passed us by. The start of the new year was likely an impetus for you to review your finances and set some goals for 2019. 
The question is: how are you doing financially today? 
As we roll into the second quarter of the year, it’s the best time to carve out an hour or two in your schedule in order to review your finances. After all, all businesses conduct a quarterly review of their accounts so why shouldn’t you adopt this practice for your personal finances as well? 
Here are three good reasons why a quarterly financial review is beneficial for you. 
<h4>It will help you spot patterns in your finances</h4>
Most of us view our finances in terms of a monthly cycle. We get paid every month, we pay bills every month, and so we often structure our budget as a monthly one as well.
Naturally, having a monthly overview of your finances is very helpful and it should be a part of everyone’s financial plan. 
What a quarterly review will bring is a broader overview that can reveal patterns in your spending and saving. 
After all, as much as we try to stabilise our monthly expenses, there are instances where we might have a more expensive month. A quarterly view will provide a more holistic picture of your finances. 
<h4>It lets you see if you’re on track to reach your financial goals</h4>
With data from three months of finances, it’s easier for you to assess your progress towards your financial goals. 
Let’s say that this year, you have a goal of putting $10,000 towards your savings. With the first quarter of the year gone, have you managed to put aside $2,500 so far? If yes, that’s awesome! 
And if not, what can you do better in the next few months to get yourself back on track? Perhaps your expenses in February were higher than expected, and you can look at ways to <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/curb-your-overspending-with-these-4-tips">reduce your spending</a> so that you can ramp up your savings and make up the difference. 
Whatever your personal financial goals, a regular review lets you know how you’re doing — what you’ve achieved, what you can do better, and what action you need to take to get to that end goal. 
<h4>It allows you to reevaluate your money goals</h4>
A quarterly review is not just a chance to reflect on the last three months; it’s also a good time to look towards the future. 
Are the <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/9-financial-resolutions-every-singaporean-should-have-for-2019">financial goals you set at the beginning of the year</a> still relevant? Should they be adjusted in any way? Do you have any new financial priorities or concerns that you should account for? 
Ask yourself if your financial plan for the next three months needs to be adjusted. Can you save more? Should you increase your life insurance coverage? Are there any big expenses that you should factor into your budget? 
Applying a little foresight and planning for the next quarter will ensure that you stay on track to reach your yearly financial goals. 
<h4>What Should You Review?</h4>
Now that you know the importance of a quarterly financial review, you’re probably thinking what exactly it entails. 
Here are six must-review items to include in a basic quarterly financial review. 
<h4>1. Your Monthly Expenses</h4>
Is your spending under control? Take a moment to analyse your monthly expenses. What are your fixed expenses and what are the variable ones? 
You may think that your fixed expenses are exactly that: fixed. But that may not be strictly true. 
Take for instance your electricity and water bill. Consider if you’re consuming those resources too carelessly. Are there any electricity and water-saving habits you could adopt? A small change like putting your air-conditioning on a timer at night can help cut down electricity costs. 
What about your variable expenses? There’s likely to be some room for savings there. 
Perhaps you can eat out less and do more home cooking. Or maybe you can cancel your cable television subscription and just stick with Netflix for entertainment. 
Look at the breakdown of your monthly expenses to get a clear idea of how exactly you’re spending your money. 
<h4>2. Your Insurance Coverage</h4>
Do you know what insurance policies you have and how much you’re paying for them? Every quarter is a good time to review your policies. 
You should first review your life insurance coverage. If you have a financial advisor, it’s a good idea to conduct the <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/5-questions-to-ask-your-financial-advisor-every-quarter">review with your advisor</a> — Afterall, you should leverage their professional advice and experience. 
If you’re doing it on your own, there are two simple things to do. 
First, check that you’re sufficiently covered. Has anything changed in the past quarter that necessitates increased life insurance coverage? 
Second, check how much you’re paying for your policies. Have your premium payments gone through and are your existing policies still in force and active? Do you want to save some money and pay for your policies on an annual basis instead of monthly? 
You should also review all your other insurance plans. If you’re a homeowner, check that your home insurance is still active. For frequent travelers, you may want to consider switching to an annual travel plan instead of single trip policies. Is your health insurance still in force? 
Reviewing your insurance coverage ensures that your financial future is protected. 
<h4>3. Your Savings</h4>
Ideally, you should have set a savings goal at the beginning of the year. The quarterly mark is the time to check if you’re on your way to meeting that goal. 
At the end of the first quarter, you should have 25% of your savings goals already accumulated. 
What if you’re not on track? Look back at the last three months and find out why. And then also figure out if you can catch up by saving more in the next quarter. 
If that’s not possible, then it may be time to revise your yearly savings goal to something that is attainable. 
<h4>4. Your Investments</h4>
Any savvy investor will tell you that it’s smart to keep an eye on your investments. Every quarter is a timely milestone to check on how your investments are doing, and if any action is needed. 
Is it time to liquidate your investments if you’ve met your targets? Or should you allocate more money into investing if your current portfolio is generating good returns? 
If your investments are not doing as well as you expected, it may be time to consider rebalancing your portfolio. Are your investments diversified enough? 
You should also look into the fees that you’re paying for your investments. Fees can eat into your returns, and this can be magnified when the market isn’t doing well. 
A quarterly review of your investments is a time to reassess and make decisions that can affect both your short and long-term investments. 
That said, do remember that investments are usually intended for the long term so don’t make any hasty decisions based on the market performance in one quarter. If you have a long-time horizon for your investments, you can ride the waves of the market and still come out on top at the end of it. 
<h4>5. Your Credit/Debt</h4>
Another important item to review is how you’re managing credit and debt. Look back at your credit card statements and assess if you’re spending too much on credit. Have you been paying your bills in full each month? 
Give yourself a pat on the back if you’ve been managing your credit card spending well and paying off all your balances every month. 
If you are experiencing some financial strain and finding it difficult to clear your monthly credit balance, it’s time to take stock of your debt and find solutions to manage it. Based on your current budget, how soon can you completely clear your debts? Is it possible to increase your monthly debt repayment amount? 
Reviewing your credit and debt every quarter will give you a better handle on debt management and you can be more proactive and effective about paying down your debt. 
<h4>6. Your Yearly Financial Goals</h4>
Lastly, end your review by referring back to the goals you set at the beginning of 2019. Check in and see how much you’ve progressed with each of them. Does anything need to be changed or adjusted now that you’ve gone through the first three months? 
If you’re doing well, are you able to cross off any short-term goals that you’ve already met? How about adding new goals to challenge yourself? 
And don’t forget to reward yourself for doing so well in Q1! 
If you haven’t done a quarterly review before, now’s the time to start. The tips above will help you get an overview of your finances for 2019 so far and keep you on the road to achieving your financial goals, no matter how big or small.

Why You Should Review Your Finances Every Quarter

For most people, <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/growing-your-wealth-5-lessons-you-can-learn-from-multi-millionaires-2">growing their wealth</a> is their main financial goal. We want to have more money so that we can care for our loved ones, provide for their needs and desires, and give them the financial resources to live their best lives. 
But while you’re focusing on growth, do you already have protection measures in place to preserve your financial standing? Arguably, being prepared for the unpredictable is just as important as having a growth approach to your money.
Here are five things you can do today to protect your family’s financial future.
<h2>Grow your emergency fund</h2>
Your first line of defense when it comes to your family’s financial future is your emergency fund.
What if something unexpected were to happen tomorrow which required a major financial injection? Would you and your family struggle? Or are you prepared to handle any unforeseen large expenses?
Having enough emergency savings means not having to scramble for money or go into debt, should something unpredictable happen to you or your loved ones.
Firstly, your emergency fund should be liquid and easily accessible in times of need. This usually means that it should be in the form of savings in an accessible bank account instead of locked up in investments or other illiquid financial instruments.
Secondly, you must have enough of it. What that means will vary from person to person and family to family. Three to six months of your monthly salary is considered a healthy amount, but you may want to have an even bigger cushion of six months to one year of your income.
At the end of the day, you are the best person to make the call on what amount of emergency savings is required for you and your loved ones.
Thirdly, your emergency fund should ideally be separate from your other short-term and long-term savings. As the name suggests, your emergency fund is intended for emergencies and unforeseen incidents whereas your savings should be for your other financial goals.
It may sound overwhelming to have to build such a sizeable emergency fund, especially if you already have many expenses and are operating on a tight budget.
If you don’t already have an emergency fund, today’s the day to start one. And if you do have one, it’s time to review if what you have is enough and consider how you can grow it. Are you able to funnel more money into your emergency fund during the next six to twelve months?
The healthier your emergency fund is, the better you and your family can weather any unexpected short-term financial storms.
<h2>Review your life insurance coverage</h2>
Have you ever considered how your loved ones will cope after your death?
It may seem like a macabre idea to contemplate, but it is a practical consideration particularly if:
<ul>
<li>You are the sole breadwinner of your family</li>
<li>You have dependents such as young children or elderly parents to care for</li>
<li>You have outstanding liabilities such as a home loan, car loan, or other financial obligations</li>
</ul>
Your savings and assets, such as your home, may help provide financially for your family, should you suffer from an untimely death. But it’s very likely that they will not provide full financial security.
That’s why getting sufficient life insurance coverage is so important.
Life insurance can help cover the shortfall between your assets and liabilities, as well as provide an income for your loved ones after your death.
Life insurance plans come in two general types: term life insurance and whole life insurance. For pure insurance protection and a budget-friendly price tag, it’s worth taking a look at <a href="https://singlife.com/term-life/">term life insurance</a>. Whole life insurance can offer you a savings element on top of death coverage.
Aside from having coverage purely for death, you may also want to consider other types of coverage that can provide further financial protection for your family.For instance, at Singlife, you can add on riders to your term life plan to extend your life insurance coverage. The Critical Illness Cover provides financial protection against major critical illnesses such as cancer, stroke, and heart attack. The Disability Cover, on the other hand, will provide you and your beneficiaries with a lump sum payment if you become disabled and are unable to earn an income.
Not sure where to start when it comes to life insurance coverage? Check out <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/a-simple-formula-for-calculating-how-much-life-insurance-you-need">our guide</a> to calculating how much coverage you need.
<h2>Protect your home</h2>
Everyone needs a roof over their head, and according to <a href="https://www.singstat.gov.sg/find-data/search-by-theme/households/households/visualising-data">SingStat</a> 91% of resident households own the home they live in.
But have you considered what could happen if you or your partner suffer from an unexpected death, leaving your dependents without financial resources to pay off the mortgage?
Or what if your home gets damaged by unexpected incidents such as fire, water damage from malfunctioning water pipes or tanks, or gas explosions?
Your home is an important asset for your family, and it’s crucial that you protect it.
There are two types of insurance that can help in this case. One is home insurance, which is meant to cover the financial loss associated with any damage or loss of contents due to unforeseen circumstances.
The second type of insurance to consider is mortgage protection insurance. Such a plan is intended to cover the remainder of your mortgage, should you die or suffer from total permanent disability before the loan is completely paid off.
This ensures that you and your family don’t lose your home if you’re unable to make your mortgage payments.
If you own a HDB flat and are making your mortgage payments via your CPF, you are automatically covered under the <a href="https://www.cpf.gov.sg/Members/Schemes/schemes/housing/home-protection-scheme">Home Protection Scheme</a> (HPS), which is a mortgage-reducing insurance plan.
However, HPS does not extend to homeowners of private residential properties and as such, you’ll have to find your own mortgage insurance.
<h2>Invest in yourself</h2>
As you enter the life stage wherein you start bringing up your children, daily life often segues into a routine. While family is undoubtedly a place where we feel comfort and love, don’t let your role as a leader in your family leave you stuck in your comfort zone.
There’s nothing wrong with security and stability, but don’t let that limit your ambitions and potential for professional growth. Keep investing in yourself because developing your skills and gaining more knowledge will be to your own benefit.
Not only will upgrading yourself mean that you can ensure you remain employable, you could even position yourself as an expert in your field. Or you could learn skills that allow you to build your own business on the side.
Investing in yourself means that you remain professionally valuable, and as such, you can continue to financially provide for your loved ones by growing your income. Consider maximising any learning or training opportunities available at your workplace, and seek out other avenues and areas you’d like to improve in.
If you haven’t yet used your Skills Future funds, now is perhaps the best time to look into a course that can help in your self-development.
<h2>Get started on estate planning</h2>
The term “estate planning” may sound intimidating, but it is an essential aspect of caring for your family’s finances in the future when you’re not around. Most families don’t like the idea of talking about death but figuring out these logistical and administrative matters now will give both you and your loved one’s peace of mind.
Essentially, estate planning involves creating a will.
You may opt to have a living will, which will outline how your family will handle your care in the event that you are unable to make your own decisions. You may also choose to appoint a power of attorney which would give an individual the legal right to make decisions on your behalf.
A will can also help direct how your assets will be divided after your death. Who receives your monetary wealth, and in what proportions? Who will inherit your home, other properties, and valuables? Who will take guardianship of your children, should you die while they are still minors?
Your will can address some of these basic considerations, but you can also be as detailed as you like. It’s recommended that you seek legal help to craft your will, particularly if the distribution of assets is not straightforward.
In Singapore, if you die without a will, Singapore’s <a href="https://sso.agc.gov.sg/Act/ISA1967#pr7-">Intestate Succession Act</a> will determine how your assets will be distributed. So, if you’d like to get full control of how your family will benefit from your assets after your death, estate planning is crucial.
How many of the five things on this list are already taken care of? Get started on the rest and secure your family’s financial future and happiness!

Protect Your Family’s Financial Future by Doing These 5 Things Today

When it comes to money, we learn a lot from our experiences growing up. However, most of us grew up either without learning about personal finance or we unknowingly picked up bad habits from our parents that followed us into adulthood.
<a href="https://singlife.com/blog/9-financial-resolutions-every-singaporean-should-have-for-2019">Good financial management</a> is undeniably one of the key skills that each adult should have and you can help your children get a headstart on life by nurturing their financial literacy.
Teaching them good money habits and simple financial concepts while they’re young can help put them on the path to financial success in the future.
Here are six ways you can teach your kids about personal finance.
<h2>1. Talk to your kids about money</h2>
In Singapore, money matters are often not openly discussed within families and this can curb the growth of personal financial literacy. If we don’t talk about money at home, and we don’t learn about personal finance while in school, then we’re left to bumble around and try to figure things out when we’re adults.
Actually talking to your kids about money is a great first step to teaching them about personal finance.
If you think that sounds intimidating, it shouldn’t be. You don’t have a financial genius to teach your kids to be financially responsible.
Talking to your children about finances is more about imparting basic knowledge such as how money works, how money is earned, and the concepts of income and savings. It’s about teaching them the difference between wants and needs.
It also doesn’t have to be a big production such as sitting them down for a serious lecture-style session. You can have small teaching moments, whenever the situation allows for it.
For example, when you’re queuing to use the ATM, you use that time to explain to your child how an ATM works and that the money you’re taking comes from your own savings account. Or if you’re at the supermarket and you’re paying by credit card, you can share with them how a credit card works and why it’s important to pay your credit card bills in full every month.
Little moments of teaching can grow into an arsenal of knowledge over time. Having an open and safe environment to talk about money could also give your kids the comfort and confidence to approach you with questions when they’re unsure about money matters.
<h2>2. Set a simple budget for them and teach them how it works</h2>
Budgeting is a crucial personal finance skill, and you can teach this to your kids when they’re young.
This lesson is well-suited for when your kids start going to primary school and have to manage some of their own daily expenses. You can have a talk about how much spending money they have every day and how they can allocate their expenses.
You can emphasize the value of having a budget by giving your child their spending money on a weekly basis. This gives them the opportunity to manage their spending and learn the consequences of going over budget and not having enough by the time Friday rolls around.
If your child is old enough to have their own phone, you could teach them to use a budgeting app. Challenge them to track their spending, their income (if they earn any extra cash from doing more chores or doing a part-time job), and their savings.
After a month of tracking, you could discuss with them on how they’re spending their money and if there are anything they could do better in terms of money management.
You could also share with them that you have your own budget for family expenses. This gives them an idea of how much it costs of support a family, and that the lifestyle and activities you enjoy together all come with a price tag.
<h2>3. Give them opportunities to earn their spending money</h2>
As parents, you want to provide your children with the best and, if you’re financially comfortable, you may not bat an eyelid at making expensive purchases for your kids.
A parent’s’ desire to give their kids the best often means that children have very little understanding of the value of money. Kids may not have a good understanding of what things cost, what’s considered cheap or expensive, or what is a need versus a want.
You can teach your kids these concepts by making them earn their own money through their own effort, sweat and hard work.
When your children are old enough, instead of just giving them allowances, consider reframing their “allowance” as “commissions”. You can do this by tying their “commissions” to the completion of simple chores or tasks.
In essence: have them earn their pocket money instead of just receiving it. And if they have their eye on a special purchase, encourage them to take on more chores to earn more money to save for that goal.
Work is a necessary life skill, and teaching your children the value of hard work and of earning their money can set them up for success when they’re older.
<h2>4. Show that every financial decision has a cost</h2>
To let your kids learn the value of money and managing it well, you have to allow them to make mistakes and experience the consequences of their actions.
If your child has spent all of their weekly budget by Wednesday, let that be an opportunity for them to experience what it means to not have enough money. That could mean them not being able buy canteen food and bringing a home-packed lunch for the rest of the week. Or perhaps they could do extra chores to earn more pocket money.
Teach them that a bad financial decision will lead to bad consequences, and they will learn from the experience.
You can also teach them about opportunity cost and that money is finite. For instance, buying a backpack means that they can’t also buy a new pair of shoes. If they want to buy those shoes, then they need to find a way to earn that extra money.
Allow your kids to understand decisions and outcomes, and have them weigh one decision over the other.
Nothing in life is free, and allowing your kids to learn about how to earn money, what it is worth, and how to spend it wisely can let them develop a healthy mindset towards personal finance.
<h2>5. Get them started on a savings habit</h2>
We all know that saving money is a good habit, but for some of us it can be a hard habit to cultivate. Teaching your kids the value of saving as well as how to save can shape their mindset about this important facet of personal finance.
So what are some practical ways to teach your kids about saving?
For young children, incorporating a visual element can help them better understand this concept. So instead of a piggy bank, you could try having them use a clear jar to put their savings in.
This allows them to literally watch their savings grow, which can have a powerful and motivating effect. Last week, they might have had only $2 but now they $10. Talk them through the growth and make a big deal out of it so that they feel good about saving.
With older kids, you can take it one step further and allow them to open their first savings account. This gives them the responsibility of managing a bank account and also offers you a chance to impart knowledge about interest rates, different types of bank accounts and how to manage a savings account.
You can also share with your children the ways that you are <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/19-everyday-things-you-can-do-to-help-you-save-more-in-singapore">saving money</a>. Speak to them about why you’re saving and encourage them to set their own savings goals as well.
<h2>6. Set an example for your kids to learn from</h2>
The last tip we have is to teach by example. While actively making the effort to teach your children money management is great, it’s even better when your kids see you practising what you preach.
Do you want your children to understand the value of delayed gratification? Then don’t undermine the lesson by making your own impulse buys. If you’d like your kids to learn how to save money, let them see you putting aside your own money. Take them to the bank with you when you make a deposit into your savings account and tell them why you’re doing it.
Setting a good financial example for your kids shows them what good money management looks like and that it’s possible to have those habits in real life.
You may not think you’re actively teaching your kids, but remember that they’re always watching and <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/6-lessons-parents-practice-before-preach">learning from what you do</a>.
The congruency between what the advice you give them and your actual financial actions is what will help your children internalize these lessons and develop good financial habits.
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6 Ways to Teach Your Children About Personal Finance

The start of a new year offers the opportunity to reflect on what you’ve accomplished, as well as set goals for what you’d like to achieve next.
Losing weight, exercising more, or quitting a bad habit are some common new year’s resolutions. But what about reflecting on your financial health?
Every Singaporean’s resolution list for 2019 should include financial resolutions as well. Such resolutions can help you be more intentional about how you manage your money and set you on a path to a healthier financial future.
To help improve your financial wellness, here are 9 financial resolutions every Singaporean should have for 2019.
<h3>Track your daily expenses</h3>
It may sound too meticulous, but the process of tracking your expenses can make you more mindful of where your money is going. Logging in how much you spend and what you spend it on can be eye-opening and provide impetus for you to make financial changes.
It’s the equivalent of counting calories when you’re on a diet and trying to lose weight. Suddenly, you realise that all that char kway teow adds up to a lot of calories, and perhaps it’s good to cut back.
There are many free expense tracking apps that can make this process easy. Simply download one of those apps onto your smartphone and remember to input your expenses at the end of each day.
After a month, you’ll have a solid idea of how you’re really spending your money, and if any adjustments in spending should be made.
<h3>Increase the percentage of your monthly income that goes into savings</h3>
“Save more money” is a common resolution for many people. But like goals, resolutions work best when they’re specific.
The usual recommendation is to save at least 20% of your monthly income. If you’re not yet at that percentage, 2019 is the time to meet the 20% level.
If you’re already saving 20%, you’re on the path to building up your nest egg. In 2019, challenge yourself to increase the percentage by 5 to 10%.
Let’s say you’re earning $4,000 per month. 20% allocated to savings would net you $9,600 in savings by the end of the year. Raising that percentage to 30% would yield $14,400 by December 2019.
Saving a higher percentage each month moves you closer to achieving your financial goals, and the beginning of the year is the ideal time to commit to this change.
<h3>Pay off your credit bills in full every month</h3>
Singapore is becoming a cashless society. With easy payment options such as PayWave, ApplePay and other contactless alternatives, it’s convenient to simply tap and go.
Many credit cards also have good rewards programmes, and some people opt to pay by credit so that they can accumulate miles or reward points.
While there’s nothing wrong with paying with credit, it’s important to remember that credit cards come with hefty interest rates on unpaid balances.
As of May 2018, MAS estimates that there are 9 million credit cards in circulation in Singapore, with Singaporeans charging an average of $555 per card. What’s worrying is that a report from AsiaOne notes that <a href="http://www.asiaone.com/corporate-news-media-outreach/are-singaporeans-being-crushed-by-credit-card-debt">credit card debt</a> is rising in Singapore.
So, in 2019, make a commitment to pay your credit card bills in full every month, on time.
This means you don’t get charged late payment fees or accrue high interest in your outstanding amount, and ultimately keeps you away from credit card debt.
<h3>Invest every month</h3>
Saving is a great financial habit, but you can make your money work harder for you by investing it.
While there are some <a href="https://blog.moneysmart.sg/savings-accounts/best-savings-accounts-singapore/">high-interest savings accounts</a> in the Singapore market, the most you can earn is 2% per annum. Even in conservative investments, you could double your returns.
A more hands-off approach would be to invest through an investment-linked insurance policy, where a portion of your premiums will be invested in specific investment funds of your choosing. Such plans also incorporate some life insurance coverage which can supplement your insurance needs.
A DIY approach would be to learn about investing and investment instruments, and then use DIY platforms to invest. In this scenario, the risk is higher as you’ll need to make your own informed decisions on what to invest in.
If you’re serious about <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/growing-your-wealth-5-lessons-you-can-learn-from-multi-millionaires-2">growing your wealth</a>, seeking the help of a investment advisor can be beneficial. They can provide advice on the best investment types for your risk profile and even manage your investments for you.
<h3>Create a plan to better manage your debt</h3>
If you have debt, creating a plan to manage it should definitely be on your list of 2019 resolutions. This is particularly important if you’re tackling consumer debt in the form of credit card debt or personal loans.
The first thing you should do is calculate how much debt you’re carrying, what type they are, and the interest rates that apply to each. You can get organized by using a spreadsheet to input this information.
This can be an intimidating first step psychologically, as it’s scary to know exactly how deep your financial hole is. However, like all plans, it’s important to know your starting point before you can formulate a strategy.
Once you have all the information laid out, it’s time to tackle how you can best manage repayment. You can look for debt consolidation options or use 0% balance transfer facilities to lower your interest rates.
Then figure out what’s the best repayment plan that suits you so that you can eliminate, or at least substantially reduce, your debt in 2019.
<h3>Try a cash-only diet</h3>
The holiday season is the time to get together with friends and family… and it’s also the time for merry-making and gift-giving. Chances are, your credit cards got a workout in December as you indulged in the holiday sales and spent some money on your loved ones.
If you’re feeling the pinch from the holiday season, we suggest trying a cash-only diet for a few weeks, or even months.
How do you do this? Give yourself a certain amount of cash every week (we suggest withdrawing the stipulated amount  from your bank account on Monday morning) and challenge yourself to live off that amount for the week.
A cash-only diet can definitely help you keep your spending under control.
What’s more, this exercise will make you more mindful of your spending and habits, and can help shift your mindset about how you spend.
<h3>Re-evaluate your life insurance coverage</h3>
The start of a new year is the perfect time to check on your life insurance coverage. We suggest taking some time to review your insurance policies.
Some things to check are:
<ul>
<li>Are your policies still in-force?</li>
<li>What bonuses were paid out on your policies, if any?</li>
<li>How much in premiums have you paid so far?</li>
<li>What’s the cash value of your policies, if any?</li>
</ul>
Aside from ensuring that your existing policies are in order, it would also be helpful to review your life insurance needs as a whole.
Ask yourself if your current coverage is meeting your needs. Do you have <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/a-simple-formula-for-calculating-how-much-life-insurance-you-need">enough life insurance coverage</a>? Or has your life circumstances changed in the last year and you now need more? Are there are other types of policies that can supplement your current policies and help you reach your financial goals more quickly?
Taking the time to re-evaluate your life insurance needs will ensure that the future financial needs of you and your family will be met, and you can peace of mind that you’re protected against any unexpected life events.
<h3>Eliminate one bad money habit</h3>
Everyone has at least one bad money habit. It could be your daily Starbucks indulgence, eating out too often, or always splurging on your kids.
As we move into 2019, identify one of your bad financial habits and plan how you can eliminate it.
People respond differently to change, so you’ll have to pick a course of action that best fits your personality. One option is go completely cold turkey and cut yourself off; another option would be to cut down your spending by setting a smaller budget for that expenditure.
One way to make this process easier is to get support from a family member or friends. Better yet, get them to join you.
Having a support system or other people in your life who’ve committed to the same goal can be motivating.
<h3>Automate one good money habit</h3>
Everyone’s always most enthusiastic about their new year’s resolutions in the beginning of the year. Take advantage of this positive momentum and automate a good habit that you’ve committed to achieving this year.
Let’s say you’re already saving 15% of your income and would like to increase your savings by raising that number to 20%. To make it easy to commit to this new habit, go ahead and change the quantum on your automated savings account while you’re feeling motivated.
Doing it now means that you’re taking action early and not letting excuses hinder you from reaching your goals. And once you’ve automated the habit, you can check it off your list and you don’t have to think about it the rest of the year!
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9 Financial Resolutions Every Singaporean Should Have for 2019

When it comes to your financial well-being, it’s not just how much you earn but also how much you spend.
Singapore is often considered <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/ddd59646-275e-11e8-b27e-cc62a39d57a0">one of the most expensive cities</a> in the world, and while there are definitely luxurious lifestyle options in our city-state, there are also ways that you can stretch your dollar.
It’s all about making small lifestyle tweaks so that you can <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/your-decade-by-decade-guide-to-financial-wellness">achieve the financial future</a> you desire.
Here are 19 everyday things you can do to help you save more money in Singapore.
<h3>1. Write a shopping list when you go to the supermarket</h3>
Going grocery shopping after a stressful day at work can be therapeutic… and also put a dent in your wallet.
Instead of going to the supermarket as and when you need to, try planning your groceries on a weekly basis. Create a list of what you need for the week and head to the supermarket with the list in hand.
A more focused approach to grocery shopping can help your reduce food waste, cut down shopping time, and save you money.
<h3>2. Don’t save your credit card information online</h3>
Online shopping and sales can be a mighty temptation, and it’s easy to make an impulse buy when all you have to do is hit the “Buy” button and your credit card information is auto-filled.
Remove this temptation by not storing your credit card information online. It’s also better for your online security.
<h3>3. Buy pre-loved items instead of brand-new</h3>
Not everything we buy has to be brand new, and some great deals can be had in the second-hand market.
For instance, pre-loved items can be a great option when you’re starting a family as it can help cut the <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/what-it-costs-to-raise-a-child-in-2019">costs associated with raising a child</a>.
You can check out flea markets or, better yet simply browse on Carousell while in comfort of your own home. You can also consider reaching out to friends and family to see if they have the items you need, and are willing to either loan it or give it to you.
<h3>4. Take the bus or MRT instead of taxis or a Grab ride</h3>
Those promo codes on Grab may feel like you’re getting a good deal, but even small amounts of money can add up.
Instead of always opening up your Grab app, consider taking the bus or MRT when possible. Singapore has one of the best public transport systems in the world, so take advantage of it and save some money.
<h3>5. Bottle your water</h3>
Save money and the planet by bringing your own bottle of water instead of buying one each time.
Sure, a bottle of water often only costs $1 but in the long run, that’s a lot of money. If you bought a bottle at $1 each every day for a year, that’s over $350 just on bottled water.
Invest in a water bottle that you like and start the habit of bringing it everywhere you go.
<h3>6. Switch your daily coffee to kopi, not a barista brew</h3>
A “branded” latte sets you back about $6, whereas a local cup of coffee is only a fraction of the price.
Cut down your expenses by giving your Starbucks Gold card a break, and start getting friendly with the auntie or uncle at your nearest kopitiam.
<h3>7. Go for Asian greens instead of imported veggies</h3>
You may have noticed that certain vegetables in the supermarket are more expensive than others. That’s likely because they’re imported, which hikes up their price tag.
Instead of reaching for that head of broccoli from Australia or the bunch of celery from the U.S., try opting for Asian greens instead. In most supermarkets, a thick bunch of Asian vegetables only costs between $1 to $2.
<h3>8. Choose the hawker centre or food court for lunch, instead of a restaurant</h3>
As a haven for foodies, there’s no shortage of food options in Singapore — and most of it is very affordable.
That $12 set lunch at a restaurant may sound like a steal, but you can also have a delicious hearty meal at the hawker centre or food court at half the price.
<h3>9. Take advantage of promotions for movie night</h3>
Make date night or a family outing to the movies more affordable by utilising promotions.
Do some research on movie promotions by checking out the cinema’s website. Some credit cards have on-going arrangements with certain cinemas and offer promotional deals.
You can also be more strategic about when you watch movies. It’s cheaper to watch movies on weekdays than weekends, and certain blockbuster movies have a higher price tag during opening weekend so wait a few days for the prices to go back to normal again.
<h3>10. Swap the gym or yoga studio for a DIY workout</h3>
Improving your fitness doesn’t have to mean spending a large amount of money. Save the money you’re spending on your gym membership or yoga studio package and start doing home workouts instead.
If you live in a condo with gym facilities and a swimming pool, make use of the facilities as part of your fitness regime. Alternatively, there are many free workout videos on YouTube that you can try.
<h3>11. Socialize during “Happy Hour”</h3>
Saving money doesn’t mean not having any fun; it’s about making smarter choices.
Next time you’re planning a get-together with friends or relaxing with colleagues after a hard day at work, take advantage of “Happy Hour” deals for drinks and food.
Thanks to “Happy Hour”, you can save money without sacrificing your social life.
<h3>12. Spend the weekend with your family doing fun and free activities</h3>
Instead of going to the mall (where you’ll inevitably spend money shopping) or shelling out entrance fees for an attraction, choose fun and free activities for your family.
For instance, you could get out to nature and enjoy the sunshine by checking out Singapore’s nature reserves and national parks. Singaporeans also get free entry to our museums so brush up on our local history and culture by taking your family to one.
Here are more ideas on <a href="https://blog.bankbazaar.sg/25-free-fun-things-singapore/">fun and free stuff to do in Singapore</a>.
<h3>13. Pack your lunch</h3>
If you cook at home regularly or often have leftovers, consider bringing a packed lunch to work. This can be a big money saver, especially if you work in the Central Business District where the average cost of lunch is $10.
Instead of joining long lunch queues at the food court, opt for some peace and quiet as you enjoy your homemade lunch in the comfort of your office pantry.
<h3>14. Use websites that offer discounts on food, beauty, services, etc</h3>
Hone your bargain-hunting skills and look for cheaper deals online instead of paying full-price. Check out deal websites such as <a href="https://myfave.com/">Fave</a> which offers discounts on everything ranging from beauty to travel to activities.
These discounts can save you anywhere from 10% to 90% of the full price. Be a savvy deal hunter by checking out the reviews of the company before you purchase so that you know what you’re getting for that price.
<h3>15. Institute “cash-only” days during the week</h3>
Challenge yourself to only use cash and leave your cards at home.
This can be a good challenge during the work week to help you control your spending on food and any lunchtime shopping you may be prone to doing.
<h3>16. Be thrifty with your use of electricity and water</h3>
Cut down your monthly expenses by being more mindful about your use of electricity and water.
Instead of using air-con in your home all the time, trying using the timer so that it shuts off at specified times. Switch off appliances when they’re not use, and turn off the tap to use less water when washing dishes, taking a shower or brushing your teeth.
<h3>17. Buy non-perishable items in bulk</h3>
Buying in bulk is a great lifehack for saving money in Singapore. Bulk buys works best for non-perishable household items as you can store them for a longer period of time without worrying about expiry dates.
Check out places like <a href="https://honeykidsasia.com/fairprice-warehouse-club">Fairprice Warehouse Club</a> and<a href="http://www.bigbox.com.sg/"> BigBox</a> for affordable bulk buys. You could split your bulk purchases with family and friends so that everyone can enjoy the bargain.
<h3>18. Share subscription services with family and friends</h3>
Addicted to Netflix? Can’t live without Spotify? Save some money on these services by sharing a group account with family or friends.
Group accounts are much better deal than individual accounts:
<ul>
<li>A Netflix account for 4 separate screens costs $16.98, compared to an individual account for $10.98</li>
<li>A Spotify family plan can be shared by 6 accounts and costs $14.98 whereas you’d pay $9.90 individually.</li>
</ul>
<h3>19. Review your life insurance policies</h3>
Instead of blindly paying premiums for your life insurance policies every year, take the time to review them. Review the benefits that you’re eligible for, evaluate if your life insurance needs have changed, and check if you need additional or new coverage.
As the insurance market is competitive, insurers often offer new benefits or upgrade their plans in order to provide more value to consumers. Check if you’re sufficiently covered and if there other types of policies that can better protect you and your family against the uncertainties of life.
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19 Everyday Things You Can Do To Help You Save More in Singapore

They say that having children is life’s greatest joy. What can compare to the experience of bringing another human being into the world, nurturing them, and seeing them grow into adults and go off into the world?
There’s also that indescribable bond between parent and child, a relationship that is unique to any other.
While having children can be a wondrous experience, it is also a very costly one.

<h3>The Costs of Raising a Child in Singapore in 2019</h3>
Having a child is not just an emotional commitment; it’s a financial one as well. As parents, it’s your responsibility to provide for your children until they are old enough to financially care for themselves.
This usually amounts to about 20 years of financial responsibility for your child.
What does that mean in dollars?
There is no universal standard cost for raising a child, as there are too many variables involved. For instance, it’s often likely that the more well to-do a family is, the more disposable income they have to spend on their children and their needs.
That said, it is possible to crunch some figures and get a rough estimate of what it would cost to have a child.
<a href="https://smartparents.sg">SmartParents</a> has put together a comprehensive estimate of how much it would cost to raise a child in Singapore.
Here’s a summary of the costs associated with each stage of a child’s life:
<ul>
<li>Pregnancy: At least $8,000</li>
<li>Age 0 to 2: At least $60,000</li>
<li>Age 3 to 6: At least $40,000</li>
<li>Age 7 to 12: At least $70,000</li>
<li>Age 13 to 16: At least $70,000</li>
<li>Age 17 to 19: At least $16,000 (JC) or $35,000 (poly)</li>
<li>Age 19 to 22: At least $40,940 (private) or $118,000 (local university) or $232,000 (overseas university)</li>
</ul>
You can refer to their infographic to view the breakdown of costs in each age range.
The grand total cost of raising a child in Singapore amounts to at least $670,000.
Your eyes aren’t deceiving you; it takes more than half a million dollars to raise a child. And that’s not even taking inflation into account.

<h3>How You Can Handle The Costs of Raising a Child</h3>
That number must look daunting, especially if you merely consider it in relation to your monthly income. You might be thinking, “How could anyone afford to have a family?”
With some planning and smart financial decisions, you’ll be able to shoulder this seemingly astronomical price tag.
Here are six tips on how you can handle the costs of raising a child.

<h3>1. Start financial planning early if you know you want to have a family</h3>
Starting a family is one of life’s big milestones, and if you know that you’re on the path of doing so, it would be prudent to start planning early.
Start building some savings as soon as you can because you’ll be spending before your child even arrives into this world. As stated in the estimate above, the costs of pregnancy and delivery can amount to $8,000.
And that’s only the beginning!
If you can get your finances sorted before the baby arrives, all the better. Answer important questions such as:
<ul>
<li>Are you financially-ready to have children? If not, what can you do to get there?</li>
<li>How many children do you want to have and what finances do you need to support a family of that size?</li>
<li>What are the best financial instruments that can help you care for your family and protect their financial future?</li>
</ul>
With good planning, you don’t have to deal with financial anxiety during one of the most important moments in your life.

<h3>2. Start saving today</h3>
Like any financial goal, the earlier you start working towards it, the more advantageous it is.
If you don’t think you’re financially ready to have a child, then it would be smart to start taking steps to accumulate savings. You can do this by putting aside a stipulated amount every month into a high-interest savings account.
Alternatively, you could plan to put some money towards medium-term investments that you can cash out as your child grows older and your expenses increase.
The sooner you begin saving, the more you can take advantage of the power of compound interest and make your money work harder for you.

<h3>3. For the prenatal stage, consider prenatal insurance</h3>
If a normal pregnancy and delivery already costs around $8,000, imagine the financial impact if there are complications. You would have to pay for such medical expenses out of your MediSave account or even your own pocket.
Prenatal insurance can help mitigate some of the financial risks of a complicated pregnancy or delivery.
Such policies usually offer a one-time payout in the event of pregnancy complications and some also cover the baby for congenital diseases. Some of the pregnancy complications that are covered are Pre-Eclampsia/ Eclampsia, Abruptio Placentae, and Postpartum Haemorrhage requiring Hysterectomy.
The scope of coverage varies from insurer to insurer so it’s important to check the policy coverage.

<h3>4. To provide your child with financial security, you should be insured as parents</h3>
Imagine what would happen if either you or your spouse — or even both of you — suffered an early death and your child had to grow up without you. Aside from the emotional effects of that loss, there’s also the financial side of things to worry about.
Who will take care of all the costs involved with raising your child to adulthood?
That’s why it’s important for you, as parents, to be insured, particularly so during the years when your children are financially dependent on you. They rely on you for shelter, food, education costs, daily living, and more.
Without you, who can take on this large financial responsibility? Life insurance can help cover this financial gap, in the event of your untimely demise.
If you’re unsure about how much life insurance coverage is enough, read our article on <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/a-simple-formula-for-calculating-how-much-life-insurance-you-need">how to calculate your life insurance needs</a>.
With sufficient life insurance coverage, you can rest easy that your child’s financial future is taken care of — even if you’re not around.

<h3>5. Consider using an endowment plan to help save for your child’s future education needs</h3>
The costs of higher education is one of the big-ticket items associated with raising a child. This is particularly applicable in Singapore, where a higher proportion of the population has gained higher education.
According to <a href="https://www.singstat.gov.sg/-/media/files/publications/population/population2017.pdf">data from SingStat</a>, the number of Singapore Residents aged 25 years and over with a university education rose from 77,000 in 1990 to almost 815,000 in 2016.
And it’s safe to assume that a tertiary education will continue to be a valuable asset in Singapore in the future.
So how can you help save for your child’s future education needs? Aside from a normal savings account or investments, some parents opt for an endowment plan to help them achieve this financial goal.
<a href="https://singlife.com/blog/how-an-endowment-plan-can-help-you-reach-your-financial-goals">Endowment plans</a> are structured to provide both savings and insurance coverage, which kills two birds with one stone when it comes to securing your child’s financial future. You can put some money towards their education and also get yourself covered so that they are taken care of, if something happens to you.
As endowment plans have grown in popularity as a financial instrument for saving for education needs, the plans in the market have evolved in various ways to meet this need.
Some insurers offer plans that are marketed specially as education endowment plans, and they are structured to pay out over a specific period (typically over the course of a three or four year university course) so that each payout can cover the costs of each year of education.
The low-risk and predictable nature of an endowment plan makes it particularly suited as a way to save for your children’s future.

<h3>6. Get health insurance for your child</h3>
The estimated costs of raising a child hold the assumption that your child is healthy.
But what if they’re not?
That’s where health insurance has a role to play. Of course, we all want our children to be healthy and well. But illness and medical conditions can arise, and getting medical help can be expensive.v
While MediSave does provide a safety net, it would be much more effective if you bought health insurance for your child. Children who are Singapore citizens are covered under <a href="https://www.moh.gov.sg/cost-financing/healthcare-schemes-subsidies/medishield-life">MediShield Life</a> but the coverage has limits.
Buying a private integrated plan for your child will provide more coverage, which means less out-of-pocket expenditure in the event that they fall ill and need to be hospitalised.
Getting health insurance for them while they’re young also has the advantage of guaranteeing their insurability, no matter what medical conditions may arise later in their life.

What It Costs to Raise a Child in 2019

It is common for people to have financial advisors (FAs) handle their financial planning. But financial planning shouldn’t be a one-man game by your FA. You should also be a part of the process of financial planning. If you are not regularly there to share with your FA, how can you expect him/her to know what you need in life, let alone design your financial plan?
Thus, if you are serious in achieving your financial goals, you need to meet regularly with your FA. Ideally, you should meet him/her every 3 months. Each time you meet him/her, there are five questions you need to ask your FA.
<h3>1.    Things have changed in my life. What should I do?</h3>
Three months is neither a short nor long time. But a lot of things can happen in three months. You might have entered a different life stage. The experience that you have had in the last three months could have altered your life outlook. These changes should be communicated to your FA, especially if it affects your financial goal.
For example, if you have just taken on a new job that has higher injury risks, you might need to adjust your life insurance coverage. If you have started planning for a new child, you might need to relook your financial plan. With your FA by your side, this is the best time to consider all the changes in your life and its financial impact. Your FA should help you identify and plug those gaps early whenever you readjust your life priorities.
<h3>2.    Am I closer to my financial goals?</h3>
When you first met your FA, he/she would have started the relationship with you by understanding your financial goals. After understanding your financial goals, your FA would then recommend you some insurance and/or investment products to help you achieve those financial goals. Thus, it is important for you to keep track of your progress towards the financial goals whenever you meet your FA for a review.
There is no better time to get specific answers from your FA than during the quarterly review. If your FA tells you that things are going on track, ask him/her to show you the evidence. It can be a simple chart to illustrate how your money has been growing towards your financial goal. Make sure to get your FA’s confirmation that your investments are performing as per both your expectations. This is especially if the success of your financial goal is dependent on your investments’ rate of return.
<h3>3.    Can you give me an update of what worked and what didn’t?</h3>
If your FA tells that you are drifting away from your financial goal, you need to find out what exactly went wrong. This is not for you to point fingers because no investment strategy is foolproof. The reason you need to understand what went wrong is so that you can make remedies and steer your financial game plan back on track. Ultimately, your financial goal is your responsibility. Thus, you need to have a solid grasp of what is and isn’t working in your portfolio over time.
In addition, getting your FA to do the explanation also gives you an idea whether he/she is doing his/her job well. He/she should be well prepared to answer you about why your investments didn’t perform to your expectations. If you notice a pattern of failure your FA doesn’t seem to have a plan to address, you need to take charge. You need to be firm and insist on changes to be made.
<h3>4.    Are you going to recommend changes in my financial plan?</h3>
Your FA has already told you that things aren’t working. He has also given you an explanation of why they aren’t working. Now, you need to know what’s next. Is he/she going to recommend any change in your financial plan? What are the changes? Why is your FA recommending these changes for you?
However, it doesn’t mean that change must be recommended every quarter. Some FAs might be less likely to make changes as they prefer to adopt a wait-and-see approach. You need to understand the reasoning behind his/her recommendation.
Ultimately, you must ensure that you find his/her recommendation is justified and comfortable for you. If you are not comfortable with the recommendation, make sure you voice out your opinions. You and your FA will then have to sit down for a longer discussion on adjustments to the recommendation.
<h3>5.    When are we going to meet again?</h3>
Regular communication with your FA is important to ensure that everyone is on the same page. Even if things don’t go the way you expect, regular communication with your FA allows you to adapt your financial plan before it’s too late. Thus, before you end your quarterly review with your FA, don’t forget to confirm your next appointment with him/her.

5 Questions To Ask Your Financial Advisor Every Quarter

I know, sometimes you sit in your office and suddenly it occurs to you that you are near or past 30; and turning 35 is not a faraway reality. Are you in a good place mentally, physically, and financially?
No pressure, but there are financial milestones that we ideally should achieve by the time we turn 35. Being young and clueless can’t be used as an excuse anymore. 
&nbsp; 
&nbsp;
<h3>1. Get insurance sorted out</h3>
Getting adequate insurance that meets your lifestyle and financial situation should be a priority. An unexpected accident or medical issue can cause income loss and set you back by thousands of dollars. That’s hard-earned money that may take a long time to make back.
Here are the basic policies that you should have:
<ul>
<li>Term insurance to protect your family in the event of disability or death</li>
<li>Critical illness insurance that offers a payout in the event of critical illness, early stage or later</li>
<li>MediShield Life with an Integrated Shield Plan to protect your wealth during illness and hospitalisation</li>
<li>Accident plan to protect you from income loss and pay for your medical needs</li>
</ul>
After buying insurance, you should also review your portfolio every few years as better policies may come up in the market and your budget and needs may change over time. 
&nbsp;
<h3>2. Have a solid emergency fund</h3>
An emergency fund is your war chest. It can save you during a rainy period, whether it’s due to unemployment, sickness, or other emergencies. Emergency fund should be at least three months of your total expenses. Of course, the more you have the better. Six months to a year worth of your expenses is more adequate. 
&nbsp;
<h3>3. Have long-term financial goals</h3>
Having a goal to work towards can help you plan for your future with more clarity. A long-term financial goal can be buying your own house, being able to travel three times a year,  saving up for your child’s education, or retiring at 50. Most people will likely have more than one goal and writing them down can help you feel more determined to achieve them. 
&nbsp;
<h3>4. Be awesome at budgeting and saving</h3>
There are plenty of personal finance apps to help you with budgeting and money management. Starting a habit to track your expenses can help you pinpoint your highest spend categories and where you can cut down. It can also help you map out whether your income is enough to sustain the lifestyle you desire. If it isn’t enough, you can consider additional income streams.
You should also commit to setting aside a portion of your monthly income as savings, which can be easily done using apps or a separate higher-interest bank account. 
&nbsp;
<h3>5. Be a pro at tax reductions</h3>
Don’t pay for more taxes than you legally need to. We have a great article on <a href="https://blog.bankbazaar.sg/reduce-income-tax/">how to reduce your taxes</a>. The money you “save” can be donated to a charity of your choice, invested, or used to finance your goals. 
&nbsp;
<h3>6. Plan for retirement with CPF</h3>
Your CPF is meant to ensure you have a sizeable nest egg for retirement. Besides monthly mandatory employee contributions, you can do a lot to your CPF to help it grow faster. Here’s what you can do to <a href="https://blog.bankbazaar.sg/what-you-can-do-with-your-cpf/">optimise and maximise your CPF</a>. 
&nbsp;
<h3>7. Have more than one income stream</h3>
For most people, a regular 9-to-5 job isn’t the solution to a comfortable retirement. We need more than one income stream to break out of the rat race. One way to do that is to invest. For other ideas, check out our list of <a href="https://blog.bankbazaar.sg/30-ways-make-extra-income/">31 ways to bring in extra income even with a full-time job</a>. 
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<h3>8. Be savvy with credit cards</h3>
Master the credit card game and let your cards earn you significant cashback and miles. However, remember to spend within your means and pay your bills on time. 
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<h3>9. Invest for retirement</h3>
Grow your money by investing it. Know your risk appetite and get started before you turn 35! 
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<h3>10. Be almost debt-free</h3>
Don’t weigh yourself down with too much debt. Debts can affect your credit score and create a lot of stress. Aim to be almost debt-free by 35 years old. That means paying off any student loan, personal loans, auto loan, and as much of your housing loan as possible.
If you have achieved most or all of these financial milestones, congratulations! But even if you haven’t, it’s never too late to start. Start planning, and put in the effort to work towards them.

10 Financial Milestones to Achieve Before You Turn 35

Do you have a yearly appointment to do a health check?
Our annual appointment with the doctor is a chance to check in with our body, ensure our health is sound, and start any preventative measures if there are signs of illness.
Using the same analogy, when was the last time you did a financial check-up?
Our financial well-being is important, just like our physical health, yet most people neglect to check in with themselves and do a regular review on how they’re doing financially.
<h3>Why Do a Financial Health Check?</h3>
Just like an annual medical check-up, a financial health check provides you with an opportunity to assess your current financial situation in relation to the financial goals you’ve set (if any).
Reviewing your finances at a regular interval means that you can make adjustments, where necessary, or even make different decisions as your own life situation changes as well.
The start of a new year can be a good time for you to take stock of where you are financially, so here are seven ways to do a quick financial check.
<h3>1. Balance your personal accounts</h3>
Just like a business aims to be in the black, so should you. The way to find out is to balance your own personal accounts.
Start by asking yourself how much money you made in the past year. For most of us, we may know the ballpark figure but not the exact number. If you’re doing well in your career, chances are every year you’re doing better financially due to salary increases, and perhaps bigger bonuses and incentives.
Take stock by adding up your salary and other bonuses, as well as any additional sources of income you may have. Then deduct what you’ve spent.
Ideally, of course, you haven’t spent more than you earned.
The second part of the equation, deducting all your expenses, is what most people have trouble with since they do not track every single expenditure. If you’d like to be more rigorous about your personal accounting, there are various apps available that can easily help you track your spending so that you know where every single cent goes.
<h3>2. Figure out what your net worth is</h3>
Building on the information you’ve collected in the first step, you can delve deeper into your financial standing by figuring out your net worth.
A simple way to calculate your net worth is to add together all your assets (for example, your cash savings, investments, property) and then subtract your liabilities (that is, any type of debt). This provides you with a quick reflection of what you own versus what you owe.
It’s important to note that income is not included in this calculation.
Here’s the key point of this exercise: the aim of calculating your net worth is not to compare yourself to others but to compare yourself to the past version of you.
How is your net worth trending? Ideally, it should be trending upwards, no matter what your starting point was.
If you’re in your 20s or early 30s, it’s likely that you currently have a negative net worth. That’s okay, as long as you keep tracking your net worth and see it growing over time.
<h3>3. Ask yourself how you can improve your net worth</h3>
Once you know what your current net worth is, the question to ask yourself is how to improve it.
In an “assets vs liabilities” situation, you can find ways to increase your assets, lower your liabilities — or both.
In terms of increasing assets, you can consider various ways to increase your income. You can also find ways to make your existing savings work harder for you such as putting it into an <a href="https://singlife.com/endowment/">endowment plan</a> instead of a fixed deposit account.
As for reducing your liabilities, look into ways of paying off your debt in a shorter period of time. This could mean readjusting your budget to increase the amount of debt repayment you do each month.
When it comes to consumer debt, you could also consolidate your debt and use financial instruments such as balance transfers which can reduce the interest payments on your debt.For more ideas on how to grow your wealth, you can look to <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/growing-your-wealth-5-lessons-you-can-learn-from-multi-millionaires-2">lessons you can learn from multi-millionaires</a>.
<h3>4. Find out what your debt-to-income ratio is</h3>
Here’s a calculation where your income does have a big role to play.
To get your debt-to-income ratio, you take your total monthly debt repayments and divide it by your monthly gross income.
Let’s say that your monthly gross income is $4,000. Your total debt repayments for the month, consisting of your car loan, student loan, and credit card payments, come up to a total of $1,600.
That gives you a debt-to-income ratio of 40 percent, which is higher than the <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/081214/whats-considered-be-good-debttoincome-dti-ratio.asp">recommended debt ratio</a> of 30 to 35 percent.
If you do have a high ratio, it’s time to take action. A high debt-to-income ratio is an indicator that you may not have control over your debt, and it can negatively impact your ability to secure other forms of credit until you pay down your existing debt.
<h3>5. Review your monthly budget</h3>
To help you get in the black, it can be helpful to review your monthly budget.
The first thing to check is whether you’ve successfully kept to your budget. If you haven’t been able to, that’s an obvious area for improvement. It could be that your budget is unrealistic or you’ll been overspending in certain areas.
If you’re spending within your budget, the question is whether you can make your budget even leaner without sacrificing the lifestyle you desire.
Consider making small tweaks in your budget, where possible. Changes such as eating dinner in a nice restaurant once every two weeks instead of weekly or substituting your morning latte with a kopi siew dai can add up to big savings over time.
<h3>6. Check if you’re sufficiently insured</h3>
Protecting your financial future is a key component of your financial health. Aside from having an emergency fund, you can also utilise life insurance to protect you and your family against any unexpected events in the future.
Not having enough money can take an emotional toll, especially in times of crisis. Events such as accidents, critical illness, and death can cause stress and anxiety, and life insurance can help take care of money matters during these difficult times.
The insurance coverage you’ve secured in the past may not be enough to meet your current or future needs.
As you move through different stages of life, it’s good to take stock of your life insurance coverage to ensure that you’re <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/a-simple-formula-for-calculating-how-much-life-insurance-you-need">sufficiently covered</a>. For instance, your lifestyle needs may have changed or your family has grown — this would necessitate more insurance coverage.
A life insurance review can help identify the gap and ensure that you and your loved ones have enough financial resources in the event the unexpected happens.
<h3>7. Evaluate your short and long-term financial goals</h3>
It’s well and good to know how you’re doing right now… but more importantly, where are you headed?
So far, we’ve discussed your current financial health but the future is important too. How can you know which path to take if you don’t know your destination?
When doing a financial check-up, take the time to dream and visualise how you’d like your life to play out. What are some big life goals and achievements you’d like to experience? And how can good financial planning help you get there?
It’s great if you’ve already set your financial goals. A financial health check then becomes the time for you reassess those goals.
A difficult question to ask yourself is: are the goals you have the right ones?
For instance, the goals you set in your mid-20s may have fallen by the wayside as life went on and you might have taken a different path. So it’s essential to revisit and re-evaluate your goals to see if they’re still right for you.
If they are, then consider your journey so far. How are you doing in terms of progress? What else do you need to do to make your dreams a reality? What mistakes did you make and how can you do better in the future?
When assessing your goals, ask yourself it they are clear enough. Clear financial goals make it easier to carve a route of action and measure success. Prioritizing your goals can also be useful as you can funnel more money to the goals that are most important to you.
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7 Ways To Do A Quick Financial Health Check

When it comes to financial advice, nothing is quite as helpful as advice that comes from those who have achieved the goals that we are reaching for. After all, experience and insight are the greatest teachers.
Here are five money lessons we can learn from multi-millionaires.
<h3>1. “Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.” &#8211; Warren Buffett</h3>
In this age of social media, we only see the highlights and successes of people’s lives and it may seem like wealth and riches can come overnight. While there are some people who made the lucky moves at the right time, they should be considered the exception and not the norm.
The truth is that building wealth and assets takes time and effort. So, it’s important to have a long-term mindset when it comes to growing your wealth.
Instead of trying to find the next easy way to get rich quick, opt for the time-tested techniques that provide slow and steady growth.
When it comes to savings and investments, do not underestimate the power of compounding interest.
Time is one of your greatest assets when it comes to growing wealth. That’s why starting a savings habit when you’re young and <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/how-much-save-retirement-steps">planning early for retirement</a> are two pieces of financial advice that are often repeated.
Warren Buffett himself took a long time to accumulate his wealth. Here’s an <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/from-6000-to-67-billion-warren-buffetts-wealth-through-the-ages-2015-08-17">interesting chart</a> that shows how Buffett grew his wealth over his lifetime.
Putting it into practice:
Financial and wealth planning are two important processes that you should undergo in order to figure out what it is you hope to achieve in terms of lifestyle, providing and protecting assets for the next generation, and more.
It’s never too late or too early to <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/10-smart-money-moves-all-young-professionals-should-make-now">make smart financial moves</a>!
On a basic level, this could simply mean setting aside some time to think about life goals, both short and long term. And then consider what financial resources you would need to achieve those goals.
On a more complex scale, this could be seeking professional advice from a financial advisor or personal banker who can provide guidance and recommendations on financial instruments you can use to reach your goals and better manage your assets.
<h3>2. “Financial peace isn’t the acquisition of stuff. It’s learning to live on less than you make, so you can give money back and have money to invest. You can’t win until you do this.” &#8211; Dave Ramsey</h3>
When thinking of wealth and assets, we often only think of one part of the equation: earning more money.
Certainly, moving up in your career or scaling your business can lead to a higher income and more wealth. But if you spend what you earn, without a care of how you’re spending the money, having more money will not lead to being wealthy.
And there lies the other side of the equation: how and what we spend our money on. Growing our wealth and assets begins from ensuring that there’s a gap between what we earn and what we spend.
Putting it into practice:
Having a personalised budget is the foundation to building wealth. It’s absolutely crucial to know how much money you earn, and how much of it you’re spending it. Without this basic knowledge and awareness of where your money is going, you can never be rich.
So, if you don’t already have a budget in place, now is the time to create one that works just for you.

<h3>3. “It doesn’t matter where you live… It doesn’t matter how you live. It doesn’t matter what car you drive. It doesn’t matter what kind of clothes you wear.” &#8211; Mark Cuban</h3>
As you can surmise from the previous lesson, being able to control your spending is a valuable skill to have. Too often, we can get caught up in material consumption and the quest to own items that signal our social status.
Cuban, like Ramsey, holds the view that material possessions and outward displays of wealth shouldn’t matter.
And indeed, according to Thomas Stanley in his book “The Millionaire Next Door”, he found that most millionaires did not live the lifestyles we think they do.
As Stanley put it, “Many people who live in expensive homes and drive luxury cars do not actually have much wealth. Then, we discovered something even odder: many people who have a great deal of wealth do not even live in upscale neighborhoods.”
Putting it into practice:
The idea of the “5 Cs” may not be as prevalent in Singapore today as it was in the 1990s, but we can’t deny that some of us do get caught up in wanting to upgrade our homes, buy a fancier car, or take a holiday to that trendy destination.
Growing your wealth means living well below your means so that you can use your excess funds to make your money work harder for you. This could mean putting your extra money into investments, buying another piece of property, or starting a new venture.
Instead of spending your discretionary funds on material items or upgrading your lifestyle, consider how you can grow that money instead.
<h3>4. &#8220;The best investment you will ever make is in yourself.&#8221; &#8211; Grant Cardone</h3>
You are an important catalyst when it comes to building your own personal wealth.
Your decisions and actions related to financial issues matter a great deal. No one ever built wealth solely through luck, chance, or making uninformed decisions.
Growing your wealth requires a depth of knowledge on financial and business topics. If business and numbers come naturally to you, then that’s an asset. If not, then you’ll have to make the effort to develop your own financial literacy.
If you learn how money works, then you can learn how to grow your wealth.
In his iconic book “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” Robert Kiyosaki stated, “Rich people are rich because they are simply more literate in more financial areas than others.”
Putting it into practice:
Building wealth requires a dedication to learning.
If you’re not well-versed in financial matters, then it’s time to get started. There are numerous resources you can look to such as personal finance books, online courses or in-person events. Start with the basics and slowly work your way up.
And if you already have a grasp of personal finance basics, then expand your knowledge base. You could learn about different types of investments, skills such as how to trade stocks, or find out how to build a stream of passive income.
When it comes to building wealth, the possibilities are endless and it’s up to you to get access to the knowledge you need to be more financially successful.

<h3>5. “Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough.” &#8211; Oprah Winfrey</h3>
For most of us, we want to grow our wealth because we want a better life for us and our loved ones.
There is no doubt that having money can bring some measure of happiness. Money does provide access to things that can make you happier, be it good food, new experiences, a bigger home, or access to high-end services.
However, studies have revealed that <a href="https://hbr.org/2016/06/why-rich-people-arent-as-happy-as-they-could-be">the rich are not necessary happier.</a> You can have all the money in the world, yet be the most unhappy person.
Acquiring more money for the sake of it will likely not bring you more satisfaction in life. Having a negative mindset and always yearning to have more wealth is the recipe for a miserable life.
So even while you’re putting in the time and effort to grow your wealth, remember that money is not everything.
Putting it into practice:
Focusing on what you lack blinds you to the abundance that already exists in your life. Take Ms. Winfrey’s advice and <a href="https://www.happify.com/hd/the-science-behind-gratitude/">practise gratitude</a>.
A simple way to cultivate gratitude is to end your day by listing out three things you’re grateful for that day. It could be something as small as your child smiling at you or something big like receiving news that you’ve been promoted.
Having a gratitude practice can keep you centered and remind you about what’s really important in your life, even as you’re trying to build a better life for your loved ones. This positive reinforcement can also act as further motivation to work towards your goals.
Plus, reflecting on the good things in your life can have a rollover effect on your overall well-being and happiness.

Growing Your Wealth: 5 Lessons You Can Learn from Multi-Millionaires

Your 30s can be full of life transitions. Marriage, home ownership, career progression, starting a family — these are some common events that 30-somethings find themselves facing.
Navigating those life changes can be challenging, and so it’s important to ensure that you’re in good financial health when you’re going through this transitional life stage.
Here are nine tips to help you stay financially fit in your 30s.


<h3>1. Have at least six months worth of emergency funds stowed away</h3>

Your 30s is typically the stage of life wherein you have more financial responsibilities.
You could be married with children. Maybe you’ve become a homeowner and now have a mortgage to service. Or perhaps you’re caring for your ageing parents.
When you have financial responsibilities, it’s important to be prepared in case things go bad. That’s where a rainy day or emergency fund comes in, as it can provide you with a financial cushion when life takes a wrong turn.
Losing your job, having unexpected large expenses or having to deal with a family emergency can put a strain on your finances. An emergency fund can give you peace of mind.
Everyone’s financial and personal situation is different but it’s a good idea to have anywhere between three to six months worth of monthly living expenses stowed away, in case of a rainy day.
In your 30s, when you’ve presumably progressed in your career and are earning more, we suggest putting more towards ensuring your short-term financial security by having at least six months worth of emergency funds.
<h3>2. Pay off any non-mortgage debts</h3>

As you move into your 30s, one recommendation is to pay off your non-mortgage debts as soon as possible.
If you made some <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/10-smart-money-moves-all-young-professionals-should-make-now">smart money moves in your 20s</a>, you should be entering your 30s with minimal or no credit card or personal debt. You would’ve also contributed as much as possible to pay off any other loans, such as student loans, as soon as possible.
The same principle applies in your 30s.
If you have any remaining student loan debt or any other debt, it should be a priority to pay them off as soon as possible. This may necessitate an aggressive approach where you direct a larger percentage of your salary to paying off debts, slashing your monthly living expenses, or taking on a side job to earn more income.
<h3>3. Increase your savings</h3>
Most individuals in their 30s have climbed up the career ladder and are earning larger incomes. But with a bigger salary comes the obvious temptation of spending more.
Resist that temptation, and save more instead.
Here’s one tip that can help you avoid the “lifestyle creep” (spending more when you earn more): structure your monthly personal savings amount as a percentage and not a fixed dollar amount.
For instance, let’s say that based on your personal budget, you would like to save 20% of your income every month. On a $,3000 salary, 20% would amount to $600. In your 30s, when you’re earning a higher income of say $5,000, 20% would equate to $1,000.
In this way, you’re pegging your savings amount to your salary and ensuring that you’re saving more when you earn more.
<h3>4. Put more towards your retirement</h3>
While retirement might have seemed a long, long way into the future when you started your working life, that time is drawing closer as you progress into the next decade of life.
By now, you should know the importance of <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/how-much-save-retirement-steps">starting to save for retirement early</a>. The good news is that starting in your 30s still provides you with plenty of time to take advantage of the power of compounding interest.
Based on the current retirement age in Singapore (age 62), you still have about 30 years of retirement saving ahead of you. And if we take into account that the average life expectancy in Singapore is around 82 years, you still have a lot of life to live.
Your 30s are typically your prime earning years, and it’s a good idea to seriously consider putting more towards your retirement funds during this stage of your life.
Some options include topping up your CPF contributions, putting money into long-term investments, or using endowment plans as one of the tools to save for the future.
<h3>5. Consider getting life insurance</h3>
You may be earning more or living a much more comfortable lifestyle in your 30s… but how can you ensure that your loved ones would be taken care of if something unfortunate happens to you?
You can cement your family’s financial comfort and security by insuring yourself. That way, if something unexpected happens, such as an early death or a total permanent disability that impairs your ability to earn an income, there is a financial cushion for your loved ones.
<a href="https://singlife.com/blog/a-simple-formula-for-calculating-how-much-life-insurance-you-need">How much life insurance you require</a> depends on your personal and financial situation.
If you think that life insurance is too expensive, that is a myth. While whole life policies with cash values built into them can be pricey, particularly for a high sum assured, there is a more affordable option which is term life insurance.
Term insurance can offer high coverage for death and total permanent disability at more affordable premium rates. What’s more, term life also <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/term-life-offers-budget-constrained-singaporeans-affordable-flexible-protection">offers flexibility</a> as you do not have to commit to the policy for your entire life.
Instead, you could choose to insure yourself for a higher amount during your high income years or during a period where you have more dependants. Term insurance allows you to terminate or renew, as you desire, depending on your life situation.
<h3>6. Set savings goals for short or medium term expenses</h3>
Your 30s will likely have you experiencing an influx of major life milestones. You could purchase your first home and have to save for renovations and furnishings. You could grow your family and welcome children into the world. Or maybe you’d like to celebrate a milestone birthday in a special way.
So aside from saving for the long term and your golden years, it would also be prudent to begin thinking about your short and medium term goals, and what finances you need for those moments.
Having a savings goal can motivate you to stick to a savings plan, and also drive you closer to living the kind of lifestyle you aspire to.
If you’ve bumbled through your 20s without much direction, perhaps your 30s is a prime opportunity to assess your life goals and how better management of your money can help you reach those goals.
<h3>7. Build assets, not liabilities</h3>
It seems like a simple piece of advice, but it’s important to live within your means.
For many 30-somethings, this stage of life means the introduction of more financial obligations. Living within your means can help prevent your financial liabilities from ballooning.
A common financial liability in your 30s could be growing consumer debt, something which has a high cost on your financial well-being.
Be cognizant of how much you are earning, and how much you’re spending. The bigger the gap between the two, the better.
You can also help yourself by building more assets during this time of your life. You can incorporate some of the tips we’ve mentioned here such as growing your savings and setting aside funds for retirement.
Getting <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/a-simple-formula-for-calculating-how-much-life-insurance-you-need">adequate life insurance</a> is another prudent move that can help protect your financial future.
<h3>8. Consider getting professional financial advice</h3>
Your 20s might’ve been easier to navigate in terms of finances. You likely had less financial obligations, only had to manage one or two bank accounts and a handful of bills, and didn’t have any dependants.
Being an adult in your 30s can be very much different. You may have to handle financial planning not just for yourself, but also for your family’s future. You could have multiple debts to service such as a mortgage and a car loan.
Don’t let the complexity of your financial situation overwhelm you. Having a professional financial advisor take a look at your overall finances and provide advice could be invaluable.
They can help you identify financial gaps, better manage your savings and investments, and generally improve your financial health.
<h3>9. Spend better, not necessarily more</h3>
Leave those days of frivolous spending behind you. As you go into your 30s, take the time to assess what really makes you happy.
Some studies have shown that <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/3043858/the-science-of-why-you-should-spend-your-money-on-experiences-not-thing">money spent on experiences</a>, not things, are more valuable and beneficial. It is believed that “over time, people’s satisfaction with the things they bought went down, whereas their satisfaction with experiences they spent money on went up.”
So even as you’re protecting your and your family’s financial future, don’t forget that life is meant to be lived!
Align how you spend your money with what is valuable to you and makes you happy on a personal level. We suggest putting some of your savings towards experiences that make you happy so that you can create memories that last.
Our product offerings at SingLife can help you stay financially fit in your 30s and beyond. Learn more at <a href="https://singlife.com/">singlife.com</a>.

9 Tips for Staying Financially Fit in Your 30s

Entering adulthood can be scary and exciting at the same time. You will be making some of the best and worst decisions of your life when you are young! These are the sort of decisions that will have a great impact on your future. Hence, it is important to make wise decisions at this age. Purchasing insurance is one of them. If you are wondering why would you need insurance at this age, allow us to explain.
When you first start working, it’s likely that your salary is around S$3,000 to S$4,000 a month (more or less). With this, you need to pay bills, buy things for yourself, have a good time when you go out with friends, and probably also give some money back to your parents. Honestly, there’s not much to go around.
Insurance is not cheap, and many of us have the tendency to put it off until much later. We’re here to say that you shouldn’t wait too long to get it.
<h3>Here are 7 reasons why we shouldn’t wait too long before getting insurance for ourselves</h3>

<h3>1. It provides a plan B</h3>
The main thing about insurance is that if the worst should happen, you are covered financially. Imagine, god forbid, you are diagnosed with a critical illness or have met with an accident that has left you disabled. There is no way you can go back to the old job and get a source of income going again. What are you going to do for money?
If you have an appropriate insurance policy in place, then such eventualities can be taken care of by the policy. It will ensure that you are not left penniless without a source of income.
<h3>2. The younger you are the cheaper it is</h3>
One look at the insurance market will show you that the older you get, the costlier premiums become. The main reason for this is that the younger you are, the lower the risk of you falling ill.
If you go for it at an early age, you get to start building your protection net. Furthermore, if your health deteriorates or if you get injured before you get a policy, that condition will likely be excluded from the policy’s coverage.
<h3>3. Your debt doesn’t become a burden</h3>
Imagine losing your source of income due to unfortunate circumstances. What happens when the monthly payment for your education loan or that HDB loan that you took is due? If you’re unable to service the loan anymore, the entire burden will have to fall on your family to deal with the debt. But if you received a pay-out from your insurance, that would help alleviate the stress a difficult financial situation.
<h3>4. There is no dearth of choice</h3>
Between the various insurance companies operating in Singapore, you have ample choice when it comes to insurance plans. Do your own research and don’t be swayed by insurance agents who might be out to sell you policies you don’t need. Ask them lots of questions, and don’t buy just because you like the agent. Remember, agents change jobs as well.
You don’t have to get all your insurance at once either. Start with your basic health insurance such as accident insurance and integrated shield plans. Next, look at critical illness policies and life insurance. These have terms plans or whole life policies. In general, term plans are significantly more affordable and are great for providing a high coverage.
<h3>5. Insurance or investment first?</h3>
The way we see it, insurance protects your money, and investment grows it. We think that you should always aim to protect your wealth first before you try and grow it. The simple reason is that it’s so much harder to make money back after you’ve lost it. As soon as you can afford it, get yourself covered by insurance and start building your emergency fund. Once you have your emergency fund, it’s time to start investing.
<h3>6. It provides for the future</h3>
Most savings or endowment plans come with an investment horizon of 5, 10 or more years. You’re made to commit to the plan so that the money gets to compound over time. Ideally, the sum would mature into an amount that is perfect for your next house or for your child to use for university education. Even if it can’t pay for all of it, it might be enough to pay for a part of the expense.
That said, be careful about mixing insurance with investments, particularly in the form of investment-linked plans. Many Singaporeans have reported that after many years of paying the premiums for the policies, the returns were dismal. It could be wiser to make your own investments separately.
<h3>7. CPF and Medisave is not enough</h3>
You may say that you are making regular contributions to your CPF accounts and earning an interest but the fact is that when it comes to savings and retirement or unforeseen circumstances, CPF won’t suffice. You will need to have another source to invest and grow your money, or at least protect you financially.
This can be done if you get an insurance policy. As we said earlier, not only do you have ample choices in this regard, you also get a choice in the type of plan you are comfortable with.
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7 Reasons Why Millennials Need Insurance and Should Get It Early

Your 20s can be both an exciting and scary time. You’re starting a career, learning how to be an independent adult and trying to finding your place in the world.
Taking care of your finances is one area that many young professionals aren’t proficient in. Here are 10 smart money moves you should make now.
<h3>1. Improve Your Financial Literacy</h3>
Personal finance lessons aren’t a part of the Singaporean school curriculum, and for many young adults who are joining the workforce, they’re now just learning how to manage their own money.
One of the smartest moves you can make right now is to get smarter about money. Perhaps you don’t speak of financial matters with friends and family, but there are plenty of resources out there that can help you improve your financial literacy.
In the age of the Internet, knowledge of all kinds is available if you merely Google it. A good resource by MAS is the <a href="http://www.moneysense.gov.sg/">MoneySense</a> website which provides online educational resources to help Singaporeans become more financially savvy. MoneySense also offers free events on financial matters.
You can also facilitate self-learning by reading books on personal finance. This allows you to build your own knowledge bank so that you can make better decisions when speaking to a financial professional or purchasing financial instruments or products.
And if you haven’t used your <a href="http://www.skillsfuture.sg/">SkillsFuture</a> yet, consider checking out courses that can help you better manage your money.
<h3>2. Design a Personalised Budget</h3>
Having a budget may sound simple but it’s often overlooked. To put yourself in good financial stead, you need to have a solid foundation, and that begins with designing a budget that works for you.
It’s important to ensure that your spending does not exceed your earning. Budgeting is key to helping you know where your money goes.
If you don’t know exactly how you’re spending your money, consider using a budget tracking app. After a month, you’ll see the breakdown of your expenses and be able to assess the areas in which you’re overspending. The cost of that morning latte can add up!
If you have a personalised budget, you can better manage your personal expenses and make small changes where necessary. You’ll also see how maintaining low recurring expenses can help you save money in the long term.
<h3>3. Start an Emergency Fund</h3>
When you’re young, the world is your oyster. Many young adults tend to live in the moment, and may not consider preparing themselves for emergencies.
However, the reality is that one emergency could very well wipe out your finances, particularly when you’re young and may not have as much savings. It could be having to pay out of pocket for medical expenses, unexpectedly losing your job, or having to chip in money for a family emergency.
Building up your own emergency fund can keep you away from financial troubles and allow you to feel more assured about the future.
A good rule of thumb is to have at least <a href="https://dollarsandsense.sg/how-much-should-my-emergency-fund-be/">3 months’ worth of your living expenses</a> stored in an emergency account. This means that if your average monthly living expenses is $1,500, then you’ll need a minimum of $4,500 in emergency funds.
Here are two additional tips for your emergency fund. Firstly, consider putting the funds in an account that isn’t easily accessible (that is, you can’t withdraw money from it via an ATM) so that it remains untouched unless necessary.
Secondly, look for the best interest rates you can get. One account to consider is the <a href="https://dollarsandsense.sg/heres-why-the-uob-one-account-could-be-the-perfect-savings-account-for-those-in-the-gig-economy/">UOB One Account</a> which offers up to 3.33% interest on your emergency funds.
<h3>4. Assess Your Health and Life Insurance Needs</h3>
Not being insured can be a huge financial drain on you or your family, should something catastrophic happen.
As a young person, you may think that it’s too soon to buy insurance, and that it’s only something necessary when you get married and start your own family.
The truth is, there is no right age to start buying insurance. At Singapore Life, we believe that it’s important to <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/right-age-start-buying-insurance">buy insurance as soon as you can</a>. There are several advantages to this.
Getting insurance coverage early can protect you against the exorbitant costs of illnesses that may strike later in life. Buying insurance at a younger age also means lower premiums as you have lower individual risk.
More importantly, being adequately insured can provide you with the peace of mind that you and your family will have enough financial resources, if you are faced with an untoward life event.
Consider getting financial advice from trusted professionals who can recommend the insurance products that best fit your needs and budget.
<h3>5. Take Advantage of the Power of Compounding Interest</h3>
Retirement may seem like a long, long way to go when you’re in your 20s, but now’s actually the best time for you to start saving for your golden years!
With both life expectancy and the cost of living rising, the millennials of today will need more funds for their retirement years. That makes it all the more important to start saving early.
Starting to save for your retirement in your 20s also allows you to benefit from the power of compounding interest
This <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/saving-at-25-vs-saving-at-35-2014-3/?IR=T">chart by Business Insider</a> shows the difference between saving for retirement at 25 and saving at 35. In the example given, saving 10 years earlier led to an additional $200,000 in savings, thanks to the power of compounding interest.
There are various financial instruments that can help you save for retirement, be it investment, insurance savings plans, or fixed deposit plans. Whichever you decide on, it’s smart to start planning for your retirement now and make your money work harder for you.
<h3>6. Start Planning for Your Next Financial or Life Milestone</h3>
What’s your next life goal? Setting personal goals can help you better manage your money because then you know what you’re working towards.
Perhaps you’re planning on getting married soon and applying for a <a href="https://www.hdb.gov.sg/cs/infoweb/residential/buying-a-flat/new/bto-sbf">BTO</a>. Or maybe you’d like to pamper your parents and take them on a family holiday. Or you could be thinking of buying a car.
Having a financial goal can motivate you to take control of your finances. Take some time to think of your next financial or life milestone. Consider how much money you need for that event, and if you’re financially ready for it.
If you’re not, then it’s a good time to start planning how you can meet your financial goals and live the life you want.
<h3>7. Separate Savings into Short Term and Long Term</h3>
We all have short and long term goals. As human beings, we may tend to favour short-term pleasure. After all, saving for a holiday sounds much more fun than saving for retirement.
As such, a smart money move you can make today is to separate your savings into short-term and long-term savings. This ensures that you’re not just indulging your short-term desires but also taking care of your long-term needs, which are equally important.
How can you do this? One way is to utilize different financial instruments for different types of goals.
For instance, saving for the short-term can be done with savings or fixed deposit accounts as these allow you to keep your savings liquid.
When it comes to long-term savings, you could use insurance savings plans or investments. These instruments may be less liquid, but they also often offer higher returns and can be great choices for the long term.
<h3>8. Do Not Borrow Unnecessarily</h3>
You’re young, you’re earning a good salary, and you want to enjoy life. There’s nothing wrong with that!
However, don’t fall into the trap of trying to keep up appearances or spending irresponsibly to the point that you’re in consumer debt. Consumer debt can come in the form of credit card debt, personal loans or bank overdrafts.
The cost of borrowing puts a strain on your income, and this can be stressful in the long run especially if you do not manage your debt well.
So, it’s smart not to borrow unnecessarily. Instead, for non-essential expenditure, take the approach of saving for it instead of using credit to pay for it. This ensures that you don’t get into the habit of spending above your means.
<h3>9. Pay Your Credit Card Bills on Time and in Full</h3>
Sometimes, it’s just more convenient to make payments via credit card. Credit cards are not just for big purchases or online shopping; more and more, it’s becoming popular to use contactless or card payments for everyday purchases in Singapore.
What’s more, some consumers use their credit cards for the perks or to rack up rewards and points.
Using credit has become commonplace, and it can be a smart move.
But it’s also smart to ensure that you pay your bills on time and in full. Not doing so will result in late payment fees and interest rate accrual on the outstanding amount – and this amount can stack up quickly!
<h3>10. Pay Off Your Student Loans As Soon As Possible</h3>
If you pursued higher education, chances are you took on a student loan to pay for it.
Once you’ve entered the working world, it’s a smart move to review your loan documents. Take note of important details such as the total loan amount, interest rate and the repayment terms, if any.
It’s a good idea to pay off the entire loan as soon you can, in order to minimize the amount of interest you pay on the loan. Be sure to factor in your loan repayments into your monthly budget.
Do you have a money tip for young professionals? Share it with us in the comments.

10 Smart Money Moves All Young Professionals Should Make Now

Regardless of your age and life circumstances, <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/everyone-needs-life-insurance">everyone needs life insurance</a>. Life insurance can help protect your loved ones against the unpredictability of life, and give you peace of mind that their financial needs will be taken care of in the event of your untimely death.
The question that trips up many consumers is, how much life insurance do I actually need?
While it’s best to seek professional advice in order to get a thorough assessment of your financial situation and needs, here’s some advice on how to calculate how much life insurance you need.
<h3>How Much Life Insurance Do You Need?</h3>
A quick rule of thumb for measuring your life insurance needs is to multiply your current annual income by a factor between 10 and 15. For instance, if you earn $50,000 a year, you would require about $500,000 worth of life insurance benefits in the event of death.
However, this method is very simplistic and assumes a one-size-fits-all approach. It doesn’t take into account your assets, your family circumstances or any future obligations.
Here’s a better starting point for estimating how much life insurance you need.
Generally speaking, life insurance is used to fill in the gap between your long-term financial obligations and your wealth and assets. The payouts from your life insurance policies can then be used to take care of you and your family’s financial needs in the event of illness, permanent disability or death.
<h3>A Simple Formula You Can Use Today</h3>
When considering life insurance coverage, the difficulty comes in determining both your financial obligations and your assets, in order to come to a reasonable estimate of the difference between them.
Here’s a simple step-by-step way to calculate these.
<h3>Step 1. Calculate Your Financial Obligations</h3>
What financial needs would need to be taken care of, in the event of your untimely demise? Here are four things to consider.
a) Living Expenses for Your Dependents
A dependent is a person who depends on your income for his or her living expenses. If you are married with children, your spouse and children would be considered dependents. If you also financially support your parents or other family members, they would be your dependents as well.
Taking into account their current lifestyles and/or how much you contribute to their expenses, calculate the annual costs of their living expenses. Then multiply that by a suitable factor.
For instance, when it comes to your partner and children, consider the number of years they would need financial support. When it comes to parents, take into account the average life expectancy.
Here’s an example. Let’s say your family’s monthly expenses are $4,000, and you’d like to support them for 20 years, until the approximate time that your children start working.
$4,000 x 12 months x 20 years = $960,000 in life insurance benefits
b) Children’s Education Needs
If you’re a parent, your children’s education is probably a priority. With the rising cost of education, you may want to provide them with a financial start so that they won’t need to take on large student loans to pay for their education.
To calculate your children’s education needs, look up tuition fees and multiply that by the number of children you have. For instance, the estimated course fees for a 3-year course at NUS is <a href="https://blog.moneysmart.sg/education/singapore-university-education-cost/">$27,000</a>. Assuming you have two children:
$27,000 x 2 children = $54,000
c) Outstanding Debts
Another component to cover is your outstanding loans. Most people do not want to pass on their debts to their dependents or beneficiaries, and life insurance can be used to cover these costs in the event of your demise.
Be sure to include any outstanding loans that you are still paying off. This can include your mortgage, car loan and other personal loans that you are servicing.
You may also want to include funeral costs here.
d) Any Lump-Sum Benefits for Beneficiaries
On top of your financial obligations, another element to consider is if you’d like to leave any lump-sum amount to your beneficiaries. This could be a gift to your loved ones or even a donation to charity.
Once you’ve listed the above, add all of them together to get the final tally of your financial obligations.
<h3>Step 2. Calculate Your Available Assets and Resources</h3>
Once you have a clearer estimate of your financial obligations, the other half of the equation is to calculate your assets and resources. This tells you what you already have in order to take care of your financial future.
There are two essential components in this category.
a) Your Assets
Your assets include your income, investment and dividends, rental income as well as any savings you may have accumulated.
You may also want to include your <a href="https://www.cpf.gov.sg/members">CPF balance</a> as part of your assets, as your dependents will receive this money upon your death.
b) Any Other Existing Insurance Coverage
Don’t forget to include the coverage you already have in existing policies. This could be your own personal policies as well as national schemes such as the <a href="https://www.cpf.gov.sg/Members/Schemes/schemes/other-matters/dependants-protection-scheme">Dependants’ Protection Scheme</a>.
If your company provides you with coverage under their group insurance, you can include that amount as well.
<h3>Step 3. Calculate the Difference Between the Two</h3>
Now that you’ve listed out both your financial obligations and assets, simply subtract (2) from (1). The shortfall, if any, is the amount of life insurance coverage you need.
Depending on your coverage needs, financial goals and budget, there are various types of life insurance to choose from, whether <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/term-life-vs-whole-life-which-choose">term or whole life</a> or endowment policies.
You can learn more about these types of policies by doing your own research or by seeking the advice of a financial planner.
<h3>I’m Single, With No Dependents — Does That Mean I Don’t Need Life Insurance?</h3>
It depends.
If you do already have enough assets to pay off your outstanding debts as well as the costs of dying (funeral and burial costs, etc), then life insurance may not be a necessary expenditure for you at this moment in time.
However, most life insurance is also able to cover permanent disability as well as the onset of critical illness – two instances that can be a huge financial drain.
This type of insurance coverage is valuable for single people without dependents, as they would be an income replacement in times of illness or incapacity to work.
<h3>Other Tips When Considering Life Insurance</h3>
Talk to somebody 
Once you’ve come up with a rough estimate of your life insurance needs, have a discussion with your partner or family members. Do the numbers make sense? Is there anything that you might have missed? Would your family require full income replacement or only a partial one?
Why consider term life? 
You may think that <a href="https://singlife.com/blog/life-insurance-more-affordable-than-believed">buying insurance is not affordable</a>, however, that is untrue. There are options that can fit a smaller budget. For instance, if you’re the breadwinner and you’re most concerned about taking care of your family’s living expenses in the event of your death, term insurance may be the best option for you. Term insurance has lower premiums compared to life insurance policies with a savings element.
Term life is just one part of your retirement plan 
It’s important to remember that life insurance shouldn’t exist in isolation; ideally, it should be part of a larger financial plan. Don’t forget to consider other needs such as retirement, health and medical expenses, and savings.
Plan ahead 
Don’t skimp on coverage, as it’s better to have more coverage than less. The truth is that most people don’t appreciate the value of insurance until something tragic happens. Moreover, with the rising costs of living, it’s likely that your expenses will rise as well. What you’ve budgeted for today may not be enough 10 or 15 years from now. Having a cushion will help hedge against inflation and higher costs of living in the future.
All eggs in one basket or to spread it out? 
Consider investing in a few small policies instead of one large policy. This gives you the flexibility to increase or decrease your coverage, depending on your changing life circumstances. Doing so can help reduce your total costs while ensuring that you remain sufficiently covered.
Reexamine your financial needs from time to time 
Don’t forget to reassess your financial needs from time to time. Life is never static, and it’s important to revisit your past financial decisions to evaluate if they are still sound. You can consider having a review every three years, or perhaps even using milestones such as the birth of a child as the impetus to reassess your financial standing.

A Simple Formula for Calculating How Much Life Insurance You Need

Wondering how much to save for retirement? This article shares some simple steps you can consider on how to get started in planning.

You may not want to hear this but &#8211;
a) You will get older (no matter what your anti-age serum says).
and
b) There is no ‘magic number’ when it comes to retirement.
Ahem.
Now that it’s all cleared up (or not!), let’s dive into the specifics. 
&nbsp;
<h3>Why Do You Need a Good Retirement Plan?</h3>
In your agile 20s and 30s, running the exhausting rat race, who cares for retirement? It’s the last thing on your mind.
But it shouldn’t be.
Life expectancy is increasing, which is a good thing, but it also means you have to rely on your retirement fund for more years. And guess who loves to keep increasing every year? Inflation and its close buddy, healthcare cost.
Did your parents ever advise you to put all your eggs into the fixed deposit basket and see off your retirement with the interest from that? With the kind of measly interest rates you now get, you might as well stash them under your mattress!
Unless you win the lottery or own a magic lamp, a robust financial retirement plan is not something that comes by chance. 
&nbsp;
<h3>When to Start?</h3>
You may know of someone who needs just one glass of wine to start going on about how they wish they had started saving sooner for retirement. Unfortunately, that person is not alone. 
In Singapore the <a href="https://www.mom.gov.sg/employment-practices/retirement">minimum retirement age</a> is 62. Say, you start putting in S$500 per month towards your retirement fund from the age of 25, you would have invested for 37 years. 
Compare this to another person who starts at 40 and gets only 21 years to invest so he has to put in a higher amount, say S$1000 a month, to secure a comfortable fund. It looks doable on paper but we all know how it feels like to be broke every month, with barely any savings to put aside.
&nbsp;
<h3>How Much to Save?</h3>
However much you can! Is it ever enough with expenses in Singapore going through the roof? Ok, if you insist, here’s a classic rule. You need around 70% of your current income in your retirement to maintain your lifestyle.
Too vanilla for you? How about the 4% rule? Under this rule, you can withdraw 4% from your retirement savings balance annually and increase the amount with inflation every year. For example, if you have S$100,000 in your retirement fund, you can withdraw S$4,000 in the first year of your retirement and increase that amount the next year depending on inflation. It is assumed that your portfolio (a mix of stocks and bonds) will also grow in the meantime.
Then, there is the simplest rule of them all, perfect if you have a phobia of numbers – The 300 Rule. Take your current monthly expense figure and multiply it by 300. The result is the figure you need in your kitty to keep up your lifestyle even after retirement. So if you spend about S$2500 a month then S$750,000 is your ballpark retirement number.
Notice the word ‘ballpark’ when we talk of retirement numbers? That’s because there is no one size fits all when it comes to retirement plans. What works for one person may not work for another.
Your idea of retirement could be downsizing into a smaller condo whereas your friend who has tightened his belt all his life may want to travel the world on a luxurious cruise. Also, do note that these ‘percentage’ rules are just guidelines that worked for the one who devised them. You don’t want to follow an ‘expert’ from another continent blindly and be saddled with low yield bonds that put even your basic 4% withdrawal rate in jeopardy.
&nbsp;
<h3>What Are the Steps to Figure Out Your Needs?</h3>
<ol>
<li>Assess your goals</li>
<li>Estimate your monthly expenses</li>
<li>Estimate your monthly savings and secondary income</li>
<li>Calculate the gap</li>
<li>Factor in inflation and life expectancy</li>
</ol>
&nbsp;
<h3>1. Assess your goals</h3>
Your retirement fund is not a piggy bank. Sure, your funds are parked to meet your expenses post retirement but if that’s all you think there is to it, we smell trouble. What use is a map if you don’t know where you want to go? Retirement without a goal is something like that.
How should you go about assessing your goals?
Simple.
Open up a spreadsheet and write down your financial goals for retirement. If you can’t write them, you don’t have specific goals yet. Keep thinking about it and it will eventually fall into place. Ideally, they should be clear, realistic and quantifiable. For example – ‘leaving some money for charity’ is vague and creates room for confusion. Instead jot it down as, ‘S$10,000 towards your favourite charity’.
Having a neat list gives you a better chance of watching your expenses, allocating funds effectively and achieving your goals. 
&nbsp;
<h3>2. Estimate your monthly expenses</h3>
The government’s Household Expenditure Survey of 2012-13 estimates that Singaporeans over the age of 60 spend an average of S$3586 per month. This includes daily expenses like food, commute, utilities like phone and electricity bill and other essentials like holidays and medical expenses.
Even if you factor in inflation, this number cannot be taken on face value as each household has different spending patterns. Noting down your expenses meticulously will give you a better picture of your spending habits.
Do take into account that priorities play a big role in your expense break-up. In your 40s, the mortgage you are paying off could be your biggest expenditure while in your 60s, the bulk could be travel or health care.
Here’s a tip from us – don’t make the mistake of leaving out irregular but unavoidable expenses like home or car repairs or assisting children in financial need. These uninvited guests may play havoc with your numbers. 
&nbsp;
<h3>3. Estimate your savings and secondary income</h3>
How much will you have saved by the time you reach your retirement age of 62? For this, you have to take into account the amount you have been stashing aside since your 30s. Compound interest is the key to growing your money!
You may start getting monthly payouts from your Central Provident Fund (CPF) Life scheme. You might also start withdrawing from your Supplementary Retirement Scheme (SRS) too. Under this scheme, you get to pay less taxes and make bigger tax-exempt withdrawals after retirement.
You can use financial calculators like the government’s <a href="https://www.cpf.gov.sg/eSvc/Web/Schemes/RetirementCalculator/CoverPage">CPF Retirement Calculator</a> to know how much this could be.
You can also continue to work a couple of more years, now that Singapore has increased its re-employment age to 67, giving you an extra financial cushion.
Even you have retired, there are many ways to make money on a part-time basis. 
&nbsp;
<h3>4. Calculate the gap</h3>
Now that you have estimated your gross income, you can subtract it with your estimated expenses (home loan, daily expenses, travel, health etc.) and get an idea of the gap.
Let’s assume your monthly expense after retirement is S$5,000 per month. That means your annual expense will be S$60,000. If you have a guaranteed income of S$40,000, then the gap of S$20,000 will have to be met from your savings. This is called a negative gap and while it may not be a cause of worry, it helps to give your retirement plan a second look.
But say your annual expenditure post-retirement is only S$42,000 and your guaranteed income more or less covers it, you will be in surplus. Having the financial ability to weather unexpected situations that may arise, isn’t that the dream? 
&nbsp;
<h3>5. Factor in inflation and life expectancy</h3>
<h4>Inflation</h4>
Inflation affects every financial plan but for a retiree, this has a significant impact. For one, inflation reduces your purchasing power. Using the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s Goods &amp; Services Inflation calculator, you can see how the costs of essentials like food and commute keep going up every year.
A basket of food in the year 1996 worth S$500 was priced at S$729 in 2016, reflecting a percentage change of almost 46% and an average annual compounded inflation of 1.9%.
Healthcare inflation is another serious concern. According to findings from a <a href="http://www.aon.com/apac/study/2018/aon-asia-healthcare-trends.jsp">recent study by AON</a>, the gross medical inflation rate of Singapore stood at 10% in the year 2017 as compared to the global rate of 8.4%. Hospitalization costs, according to the report, contribute to the high rate of medical inflation. Diagnostic procedures, drugs, prosthetics and rooms are other essential health expenses that could make a hash of your retirement kitty if not accounted for with inflation. 
&nbsp;
<h4>Life expectancy</h4>
In 2003, Singapore’s life expectancy at birth was 79.1. In 2017, the World Health Organization’s report pegged it at 83.1 years. So you get to live more than any other generation. That’s great news, right? It is. But only if you have the funds to give you a comfortable lifestyle throughout your lifetime.
Longer life expectancy means you need a bigger nest egg. Whether you want to work harder and take an early retirement at 55 to indulge in your hobbies or be super frugal and retire at 60 like your parents or you want to pull on till 67 and reduce your non-salaried years to the minimum, is your choice. But whichever route you go for, don’t forget to factor in the higher life expectancy thanks to medical advancements.
The difference between living and existing during your golden years may well depend on the steps you take today towards creating a prudent retirement plan.

How Much to Save for Retirement and Steps to Figure Out Your Needs

You may have caught a glimpse of a familiar face when flipping through the papers last weekend.
That&#8217;s right, our very own CEO Walter de Oude made the news once again!
Last Sunday, The Straits Times&#8217; Lorna Tan sat down with Walter and his lovely family for a chat on investing &#8211; both as an entrepreneur and as a family man. They also talked about Singapore Life&#8217;s future plans, including the exciting potential for regional expansion.
If you missed the print edition, you may read the digital version <a href="https://www.straitstimes.com/business/invest/ceo-banks-on-his-own-insurance-business">here</a>.

CEO banks on his own insurance business

Naturally, new parents wish to <a href="https://singlife.com/term-life-insurance/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">protect their newborns</a>, but what are the important insurance plans you need to protect your new family?

How can you spare your family (including key members such as breadwinners) from having to deal with unexpected financial problems which could arise from an illness, injury or accident?
To answer the above questions, consider the following plans for your loved ones to stay protected.
<h3>6 Important Insurance Plans Every New Family Should Consider</h3>
<ul>
<li>Pregnancy Plan</li>
<li>Term Life Plan</li>
<li>Critical Illness Cover</li>
<li>Disability Cover</li>
<li>Accident and Hospitalisation Plan</li>
<li>Endowment Plan</li>
</ul>
<h3>1. Pregnancy Plan</h3>
When you get pregnant, one of the first insurance plans you should consider should be a pregnancy plan. This is a special type of life insurance plan that covers both the mother and child for common pregnancy and birth complications.
The duration of this plan is typically short; for the mother, it begins in pregnancy and terminates upon childbirth. At this point, the plan transfers to the baby, and can last anywhere from 2 to 6 years.
Some insurers offer parents the option to convert the pregnancy plan to a life plan upon expiry, allowing them to continue protecting their child. If you decide to buy life insurance for your child, make sure to choose a plan that includes a future purchase option, guaranteeing insurability during adulthood.
<h4>Why New Parents Need a Pregnancy Plan</h4>
A pregnancy plan is a cost-effective way to protect against pregnancy complications that can inflate your medical bills. This can help save you from having to dig into your pockets to pay for the portions of your pregnancy not covered by your Medishield/Medishield Life plan.
Some insurers also bundle pregnancy plans with endowments or life insurance policies, making it convenient for you to start your child’s financial plan. However, if you believe your child should start their own financial planning only upon reaching adulthood, opt for a standalone pregnancy insurance plan.
<h3></h3>

<h3>2. Term Life Plan</h3>
With a new addition to the family, the role of the breadwinner becomes even more crucial than before. Between baby supplies like diapers and formula, and accessories like bottles, clothing, walkers and toys, you’ll be facing a constant drain on your bank account.
And not to forget, this will be in addition to all your regular expenses, such as mortgages, loans and instalment plans you may still be paying for.
Experiencing a loss of income during this time can be especially stressful, especially if it is due to a serious illness or a fatal accident.
Indeed, this is one of the most compelling reasons to sign up for a life insurance plan – the guarantee of income replacement, which allows your family to carry on in the face of catastrophe.
<h4>Why New Parents Need a Term Life Plan</h4>
Just like a Whole Life plan, a Term Life plan provides a <a href="https://singlife.com/term-life-insurance/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">financial safety net</a> that can save your family from going under.
However, a Term Life plan offers two major advantages over the Whole Life version &#8211; flexibility and affordability &#8211; and it is these two factors that make it particularly suitable for new parents.
A Term Life plan is flexible &#8211; it lets you choose how long you want to be covered for. This means you can get the cover you need, without making a long-term commitment. Furthermore, many Term Life plans offer guaranteed renewability, which lets you renew your plan at your convenience.
A Term Life plan is also affordable, owing to much cheaper premiums. This feature allows new parents to get the insurance cover they desire without spending too much money.
<h3>3. Critical Illness Cover</h3>
A <a href="https://singlife.com/protect/critical-illness/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Critical Illness</a> (CI) plan is an insurance plan that pays out upon diagnosis of certain pre-defined conditions. It is meant to pay for treatment and hospitalisation fees, which can be exorbitant, depending on the severity of your illness.
Under certain conditions (such as when combined with a hospital plan) a CI plan can also be used to fund your recovery period, during which you may not have the ability or inclination to go back to work.
By default, CI plans are paid out only when the disease reaches a late stage, but there are options that allow you to get part or all of the payout at earlier stages. This so-called “accelerated CI” or “early CI” plan is preferable because early treatment often accords a higher chance of recovery.
CI plans are often sold attached to a life insurance plan, working together to provide a larger safety cushion to you and your family in the case of a major illness or serious health condition.
However, if your existing life plan does not have a CI rider attached, you may opt for a standalone CI plan to boost your protection.
<h4>Why New Parents Need a CI Plan</h4>
A CI plan provides an additional layer of protection to your family. It qualifies you for an additional payout in case a serious illness strikes.
New parents can easily obtain CI cover by attaching it as a rider to their life insurance plan. If your quote for CI cover is too high, you can opt for lower coverage levels to bring down your premiums.
<h3>4. Disability Cover</h3>
Disability cover is a type of insurance plan that provides benefits should a disability render you unable to work. Should this happen, you will receive payouts to help fund your living expenses.
Depending on your specific disability plan, you may receive either monthly payouts for the period of your disability (or up to a specified age), or a lump sum payout. You may also receive other additional benefits to help pay for rehabilitation sessions, or even a lump sum payout in the event of death.
<h4>Why New Parents Need Disability Cover</h4>
Disability cover provides an alternative source of income when temporary or permanent disability prevent you from working. This is helpful in situations where you become unable to continue in your previous occupation, and can supplement any other payouts you may have triggered.
However, do note that maximum monthly payouts are capped at 75% of the salary you reported at the time of application. Hence, do remember to update your insurer regularly as your income increases.
<h3>5. Accident and Hospitalisation Plan</h3>
While CI and Disability plans provide cover upon the occurrence of certain health-related events, an Accident and Hospitalisation (AH) plan is focussed on helping you pay for any medical treatments and/or hospital stays and visits.
It is important not to confuse a CI or Disability plan for a hospitalisation plan. Neither is it advisable to try and use CI or Disability plans to cover any hospital costs you may incur.
This is because the benefits gained from your CI or Disability plan may be exhausted by your medical bills, leaving you or your family with little to no funds for your daily expenses.
Also, your CI or Disability benefits may take a long time to be disbursed, affecting your ability to pay off your hospital bill. This can create additional stress for you and your loved ones.
Out of all these plans, an AH plan is perhaps the easiest to attain. This is because most of us already have a Medisave plan, and upgrading to a Medishield Life plan is a solid step towards getting proper AH coverage.
<h4>Why New Parents Need an Accident and Hospitalisation Plan</h4>
Think of your AH plan as something to prevent or reimburse your out of pocket expenses, in case you need extensive medical care.
Be aware that AH plans may still require you to foot a portion of the hospital bills, hence do make sure you always have some cash in hand.
<h3>6. Endowment Plan</h3>
An endowment plan is a forced-savings type of insurance plan that is designed to help you save money for the future. The goal is to grow and accumulate a lump sum through a combination of regular deposits and investment returns.
With their emphasis on savings, endowment plans are designed to be safe investment instruments that provide stable returns.
Another feature of endowment plans is their fixed duration. Unlike other types of insurance plans, endowment plans pay out at the time they mature, or when you surrender them. The amount of payout you receive is affected by various factors, including withdrawals, loans and performance of the market.
<h4>Why New Parents Need an Endowment Plan</h4>
Well, we all know that the key to saving money is actually putting that money aside. An endowment plan is a good way for parents to automate the process of saving money, which is crucial in meeting future big-ticket needs, such as an overseas university education at a prestigious institution.
You’ll want to time the maturity of the endowment to coincide with expected milestones, such as when you child turns 18 or 21, to ensure a timely payout.
Do note that endowments are a long-term commitment, and early surrender will often result in a financial loss (i.e., what you get back is lower than the total paid-up premiums). If in doubt, start with a smaller amount, and top up the endowment when conditions allow.
<h3>Choose the Right Insurance Plans to Get a Head-start</h3>
Not every new family will need all 6 of these insurance plans. Before you commit to a purchase, you should review your policies, and if you find any gaps, plug them with the appropriate plan.

6 Important Insurance Plans New Families Need to Stay Protected

ST PHOTO: JONATHAN CHOO
You may have caught a glimpse of a familiar face when flipping through the papers last weekend. That’s right, our very own CEO Walter de Oude made the news once again!
Last Sunday, The Straits Times’ Lorna Tan sat down with Walter and his lovely family for a chat on investing – both as an entrepreneur and as a family man. They also talked about Singapore Life’s future plans, including the exciting potential for regional expansion.
If you missed the print edition, you may read the digital version <a href="https://www.straitstimes.com/business/invest/ceo-banks-on-his-own-insurance-business">here.</a>

Media Spotlight: The Straits Times Exclusive Feature

How do you go about choosing a life insurance provider that is right for you?

If you&#8217;re new to life insurance, you may feel confused about how to get started. How can you be sure the cover you’re purchasing is the right policy for your needs?
Between 2000 and 2017, the total number of life insurance policies issued in Singapore jumped from just over 4 million to <a href="https://www.mas.gov.sg/-/media/MAS/resource/data_room/insurance_stat/2017/Life-Insurance-Data_2017_PDF.pdf?la=en&#038;hash=74E2633833C6D148354D58A52FF0672997A84FED">nearly 14.3 million</a>. That’s a huge increase, and it suggests that consumers are getting more familiar with the benefits proper life insurance cover provides.
To help guide you in your life insurance research, we’ve compiled the following list of 10 questions. Answer as many of them as possible before selecting your new provider. 
&nbsp;
<h2>Question #1: Are you licensed by the MAS?</h2>
Insurance products are among the most tightly regulated financial products in Singapore. Like banks and other financial institutions, insurance companies come under the purview of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
When considering life insurance providers, ask any candidates you’re considering whether or not they’re licensed by the MAS. That goes not just for the provider, but for any agents you’re working with as well. In September 2015, the Singapore-based arm of Mercer was <a href="https://insuranceasianews.com/mas-fines-mercer-for-unlicensed-life-insurance-policies-sale-in-singapore/">fined SGD 15,000</a> for allowing employees to sell insurance policies when they hadn’t passed the Capital Markets and Financial Advisory Services exam.
Be safe, rather than sorry, by confirming providers’ licenses before going further.
<h2><img class="size-full wp-image-2764 aligncenter" src="https://singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/2_Question-2_-What-type-of-life-insurance-policies-do-you-offer_.jpg" alt="" width="1200" height="500" srcset="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163106/2_Question-2_-What-type-of-life-insurance-policies-do-you-offer_.jpg 1200w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163106/2_Question-2_-What-type-of-life-insurance-policies-do-you-offer_-300x125.jpg 300w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163106/2_Question-2_-What-type-of-life-insurance-policies-do-you-offer_-768x320.jpg 768w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163106/2_Question-2_-What-type-of-life-insurance-policies-do-you-offer_-1024x427.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" /></h2>
&nbsp;
<h2>Question #2: What type of life insurance policies do you offer?</h2>
Generally speaking, there are three primary types of life insurance:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://singlife.com/term-life/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Term life insurance</a>, which is in effect for a defined period only, but is usually renewable</li>
<li>Whole life insurance, which lasts until age 99 and accrues cash value</li>
<li><a href="https://singlife.com/universal-life/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Universal life insurance</a>, which is owned by the policy-holder and accumulates savings throughout its life</li>
</ul>
These three types of insurance have their own benefits. Term life insurance, for example, is flexible and customisable, while whole life insurance provides a cash value upon surrender. Meanwhile, universal life functions as a wealth-building vehicle that can benefit your family after your death. A good insurance agent can help you determine which policy type is most appropriate for your needs. 
&nbsp;
<h2>Question #3: Will you help me choose my cover?</h2>
Term, whole life or universal life insurance isn’t the only question you need to be asking when deciding on a policy to buy. You also need to consider factors such as:
<ul>
<li>Your age</li>
<li>Your current income</li>
<li>The number of dependents you support</li>
</ul>
The result of these different factors is that there is no single policy that’s right for everybody. Instead, it’s important that you choose a provider who can help you navigate the quoting process to ensure you select the right type and amount of cover. For example, with Singapore Life’s 100% digital journey, you can easily customise the term life policy needed for your unique situation.
If the life insurance provider you’re considering does not offer this type of support, consider looking elsewhere.
<img class="size-full wp-image-2766 aligncenter" src="https://singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Question-4-Will-my-policy-cover-me-if-I-become-disabled-.jpg" alt="" width="1200" height="500" srcset="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163144/Question-4-Will-my-policy-cover-me-if-I-become-disabled-.jpg 1200w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163144/Question-4-Will-my-policy-cover-me-if-I-become-disabled--300x125.jpg 300w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163144/Question-4-Will-my-policy-cover-me-if-I-become-disabled--768x320.jpg 768w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163144/Question-4-Will-my-policy-cover-me-if-I-become-disabled--1024x427.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" /> 
&nbsp;
<h2>Question #4: Will my policy cover me if I become disabled?</h2>
Life insurance is meant to pay out benefits in the event of your death, providing support for your dependents and offsetting any end-of-life costs. But what if an injury or illness causes you to become disabled, instead of dying outright?
It’s an important question. Although only 3.4 percent of Singapore residents aged 18-49 years are disabled, <a href="https://www.msf.gov.sg/media-room/Pages/Number-and-profile-of-persons-with-disabilities.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">13.3 percent of residents over age 50 are designated as disabled</a>. Your risk of disability &#8211; including all of the financial burdens that come along with being unable to work &#8211; increases as you age. Having disability protections in place (whether as part of your policy or as a separate rider) can minimise the negative impacts of becoming disabled. 
&nbsp;
<h2>Question #5: Will I be required to have a medical evaluation?</h2>
With life insurance policies, it is common practice to require a medical evaluation once a certain amount of cover has been requested (at Singapore Life, for example, you can purchase a term life insurance policy of up to SGD 2 million before an exam is required).
Insurance providers base their premium amounts on many factors. Smokers or those who are obese, for instance, typically pay more, based on their average life expectancy and rates of disease. Medical evaluations play a key role in determining which of several pricing tiers life insurance applicants fall into and, thus, how much they’ll pay for cover.
<h2><img class="size-full wp-image-2767 aligncenter" src="https://singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Question-6-What-is-excluded-from-my-cover.jpg" alt="" width="1200" height="500" srcset="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163321/Question-6-What-is-excluded-from-my-cover.jpg 1200w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163321/Question-6-What-is-excluded-from-my-cover-300x125.jpg 300w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163321/Question-6-What-is-excluded-from-my-cover-768x320.jpg 768w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163321/Question-6-What-is-excluded-from-my-cover-1024x427.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" /></h2>
&nbsp;
<h2>Question #6: What is excluded from my cover?</h2>
Every life insurance policy is different, which means you can’t make assumptions about the specific scenarios that are covered.
If there are particular circumstances you are concerned about &#8211; such as cover for a serious disease &#8211; ask questions of potential providers and read the fine print of any documentation they provide. It’s crucial to know for sure that your policy covers you for the risks you are concerned about, than to be let down by cover that doesn’t provide relief when you need it. 
&nbsp;
<h2>Question #7: What happens if I miss a payment?</h2>
No one likes to think about financial challenges, such as an unexpected bill or lost job. Yet, these situations can and do occur &#8211; often unexpectedly.
Plan ahead by asking potential life insurance providers what will happen to your policy in the event of a missed payment. Is there a grace period during which you can reinstate your cover by paying your premiums in full? At what point will you have to reapply for new cover?
Consider the case of term life insurance. The older an applicant is, the higher the premiums tend to be. If you allow your policy to lapse after years of cover, you may find yourself subject to higher rates if you are forced to reapply at an older age. 
&nbsp;
<h2>Question #8: Do you offer any savings or rewards opportunities?</h2>
Depending on the life insurance provider you choose to work with, savings or rewards opportunities may be available that help offset the cost of your policy premiums.
Singapore Life offers the <a href="https://singlife.com/stay-active/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Stay Active health programme</a>, which uses fitness trackers and pedometers to measure your activity. If your device records a higher number of steps than half of your Singapore Life peers, you’ll earn a 5% cash back bonus for the month (an additional 5% cashback is available for posting about the program on social media). Other providers may offer discounts based on payment schedules, payment types or other policy elements.
Remember, it never hurts to ask! You won’t know which discounts or rewards are available to you unless you ask in the first place.
<h2><img class="size-full wp-image-2768 aligncenter" src="https://singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Question-9-How-can-I-access-my-policy-documents.jpg" alt="" width="1200" height="500" srcset="https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163347/Question-9-How-can-I-access-my-policy-documents.jpg 1200w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163347/Question-9-How-can-I-access-my-policy-documents-300x125.jpg 300w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163347/Question-9-How-can-I-access-my-policy-documents-768x320.jpg 768w, https://images.singlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/02163347/Question-9-How-can-I-access-my-policy-documents-1024x427.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" /></h2>
&nbsp;
<h2>Question #9: How can I access my policy documents?</h2>
Convenience is key when you need to access your policy documents. Check with every life insurance provider you’re considering to see how they make your documentation available.
Will you need to reference or request paper versions of your key documents? Or does the provider offer an online portal that will allow you to view digital versions whenever you need to? For instance, many Singapore Life customers appreciate the ability to store their documents online and retrieve their documents instantly, using our fully-digital system. It’s all about speed, access, convenience and how your life insurance policy fits our fast-paced digital age. 
&nbsp;
<h2>Question #10: How can I get help with my policy?</h2>
Finally, try to find out how easy it is to get in touch with the customer care teams of different providers. Are they available by phone, email, live chat or some combination of these channels? How long do you have to wait for a response using each of them?
If your provider is slow to get back to you before you’re even a customer, they may be equally as slow &#8211; if not more so &#8211; once you’ve signed on. Questions about your policy may be able to wait through these delays, but in the event of an emergency, you’ll appreciate having a provider who’s quick to respond to your inquiries and help you navigate challenges efficiently.

10 Questions to Ask When Choosing a Life Insurance Provider

Start your parenthood journey on a financially sound foot by taking these financial steps:
Maybe you and your partner have just welcomed your newborn into the world or are thinking of <a href="https://singlife.com/planning-for-a-family/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">starting a family</a>. The emotional rewards of having your own family is indeed priceless. However, the financial load of child raising isn’t light. Here are 4 financial habits to adopt to help you stay on the right track.
&nbsp;
<h2>Step 1. Establish two financial safety nets with 3 to 6 months worth of your current income</h2>
If you’re planning ahead to expand the number of occupants in your family home, make sure that a SOS family fund is also in the works. If you haven’t even started stashing money away, put away at least 20% of your monthly income and other income additions into it. So yes, don’t spend away your yearly bonus; they count, too!
This financial safety net should help you and your partner cover expenses and tide your family over in the event of unforeseen events, such as sudden change in surgery plans and expenses for pregnancy complications. The two of you should also work towards building a second back-up fund with another three to six months worth of your income to cushion the impact of child-related emergencies.
<h2></h2>
<h2>Step 2. Contribute regularly to your child’s Child Development Account</h2>
Under the Baby Bonus scheme, the government will match dollar-for-dollar your contributions to a special co-savings scheme that is opened when your child is born, known as the Child Development Account (CDA). CDA savings can be used to pay for your child’s educational and healthcare expenses.
You don’t have to dump all your available funds in there at one go either. You can take up to 12 years to contribute to the CDA. Note that these deposits will be matched up to S$6,000 for your first and second child and this amount will be increased if you have more children.
&nbsp;
<h2>Step 3. Pick a Child Development Account bank that suits your family’s lifestyle</h2>
It’s fantastic to know you’ve got this support to relieve some of the financial stress of childrearing, but you can also go some way in saving money when you make a decision which bank to open the CDA with. There are 3 CDA banks in Singapore that grant different discounts when you sign up with them. At this time, the three banks are OCBC Bank, POSB/DBS and UOB Bank.
Take a look at which merchant discounts fit your family lifestyle or what you are planning for your child. For example, OCBC offers a Baby Bonus card that allows you to enjoy discounts on activities related to education, such as 50% off preschool materials and 10% off lesson fees when you enroll your kid in Chinese enrichment programmes at the Confucius Institute at NTU. Or with the POSB Baby Bonus NETS Card that comes with the POSB Smiley CDA account, you can get discounted beauty and massage treatment packages to take the edge off as a frazzled new parent.
&nbsp;
<h2>Step 4. Invest in annual passes and membership cards to save money on family activities</h2>
As your child grows older, it’s inevitable that you and your partner will be spending some money on family treats and entertainment too. Purchasing the right cards and passes can save you money on these activities, especially if you’re likely to make return trips to beloved attractions and enjoy their comfortable amenities.
One that is worth the initial purchase is the RWS Universal Studios annual membership. Your child will get to expend his or her boundless energy going on rides and rejoicing in performances there and will probably clamour to return soon enough. As a member, you will get 10% off in-park retail and F&amp;B outlets, all the cheaper to feed hungry children and tired partners. Other benefits include getting $5 off stroller rental, discounts for Universal Studios Singapore events and priority entry to attractions.
The Singapore Zoo also ranks highly for family entertainment. No child tires of animals and a zoo trip provides an opportunity for your child to learn more about the biodiversity in the world around him or her and the importance of conservation. If you foresee repeat trips to the zoo, it’s value-for-money to get a family membership and be Friends of the Singapore Zoo to enjoy benefits such as complimentary tram rides on weekdays and 10% discounts at several F&amp;B outlets at all Wildlife Reserves Singapore parks.
<hr />
This article first appeared on <a href="https://www.bankbazaar.sg/?utm_source=singlife&amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;Wt.mc_id=singlife|blog">BankBazaar.sg</a>.
 BankBazaar.sg is a leading online marketplace in Singapore that helps consumers compare and apply for a credit card, personal loan, home loan, car loan and insurance.

4 Financial Steps Every New Parent Should Take

Everyone has mistaken beliefs – that’s part of being human. Our beliefs play a very significant role in how we live our lives. We defer to our beliefs when making decisions, and tailor our behaviours to fit them. Beliefs also help us describe and make sense of the world.
To feel the power your beliefs hold over you, just imagine doing or saying something taboo in front of your boss – the mere thought is enough to make you shudder.
For the most part, our beliefs serve us well, helping us to act in beneficial ways, while stopping us from making bad decisions. However, because beliefs are powerful yet subtle, we may unknowingly hold on to mistaken beliefs that put us in a disadvantageous position.
Mistaken beliefs can crop up in any arena of life. Sometimes, their impact is negligible. Other times, however, mistaken beliefs can hinder us from important things, such as getting the life insurance coverage we need.
Here are 3 mistaken beliefs about life insurance you may have.
Mistaken Belief 1: I Don’t Need the Coverage
Let’s start our discussion with the most common belief that stops most people from getting an appropriate life policy: They simply think they don’t need the life insurance coverage.
This belief is as common as it is unfortunate, and there are multiple facets that lead to the same result.
Some of us believe that as long as we are careful to stay alert to dangers, and maintain our health, and never take risks, we can peacefully pass through life without encountering a major injury or disease. Those who follow this school of thought may consider themselves to be disciplined and careful – going for regular check-ups, looking both ways before crossing the road, sticking to prevailing nutritional guidelines, etc. In short, doing everything the right way.
However, this is actually highly risky behaviour, simply because as human beings, we cannot predict whether an accident or a serious illness will occur. Sure, we can take steps to reduce our likelihood of experiencing a catastrophe, but we cannot eliminate the possibility of such events occurring (barring extreme measures such as locking ourselves up in a hermetically sealed room all day long!)
There is another darker thread that underlies the belief that insurance is not needed. Simply put, some people resign themselves to Fate, thinking that if something serious should happen, they just have to deal with it then.
This mentality is not only short-sighted, it is also selfish. While you may not care about your ability to deal with a life-threatening disease or injury, your family members and relatives will feel the burden of supporting you through recovery.
A third factor that may cause someone to think they do not need life insurance: They believe their savings, Medishield and employers’ insurance are sufficient to cope with any emergencies. This is an assumption that is very often wrong – most people underestimate the cost of a catastrophic event. Also, it fails to account for the loss of earnings that could occur. In other words, this strategy is apt to fall short, which will leave you in trouble.
It is important to recognise that we all need life insurance coverage. The only reasonable action to take is to transfer the risks of Life to an able and willing party, so we can be protected against the negative consequences of troublesome life events should they occur.
Mistaken Belief 2: The Premiums Aren’t Worth it (Little to No Returns)
Some people don’t believe in life insurance because they do not like the idea of paying premiums over a long time, only to get little to no returns.
This perhaps stems from a consumer mindset – we are used to getting something tangible (a product, service, experience or privilege, etc.) in return for handing over our hard-earned cash.
When it comes to insurance, what you’re paying for is something slightly more vague – protection – and some people may find it hard to wrap their heads around that.
To be sure, we normally do not think about the many dangers that we can encounter in our daily lives. This could be why those who do not buy insurance do not believe in its value.
However, they’ve got it backwards. You don’t buy insurance because you’re afraid. You buy insurance so you can stop worrying about the myriad things that could go wrong, knowing that should anything happen, you and your family will have the resources to bounce back.
Additionally, there are various types of life insurance plans available, some which offer savings and/or investments along with protection. If you are the type that prefers to get something back at the end of the day, those types of plans would be ideal for you.
Mistaken Belief 3: Having Insurance Doesn’t Help You Stay Healthy
Some people believe that insurance is a ‘passive’ product, because it doesn’t actually do anything to help you to stay healthy on a day-to-day basis. In fact, some may believe that having insurance coverage causes you to be less careful and actually take more risks!
This may be so in the past, but the insurance industry today is rather more focussed on servicing the needs of policyholders. Recognising that the foremost concerns of customers revolve around issues of vitality and longevity, leading insurance companies encourage and reward proactive steps taken to stay healthy.
Singapore Life is introducing a rewards scheme which provides cashback on premiums paid for policyholders who maintain a certain level of physical activity. Through our <a href="https://singlife.com/stay-active/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Stay Active Campaign</a>, you will receive cashback on your policy premiums when you are amongst the top 50% of participants who achieve the most number of steps. All you have to do is to sync your fitness tracker to our portal and clock in the steps.
And to better inspire our policyholders to take an active role in their health, the number of steps required to qualify each month will vary, based on the activity level of every participant. This means you and your fellow participants will be challenging each other to be more active and to include more exercise into your daily lives.
With fun and rewarding innovations like this, subscribing to a insurance policy no longer needs to be boring and meaningless.

3 Mistaken Beliefs Stopping You From Buying Life Insurance

In less than one year of being in the market, and having acquired Zurich Life Singapore’s expansive customer portfolio, Singapore Life continues to push the boundaries of technology in life insurance.
According to Singapore Life CEO Walter de Oude, despite the rise of technology and artificial intelligence across the insurance industry, particularly within Singapore, the old life insurance industry has not kept up with digital innovation.
“The insurance industry was fundamentally broken in my view,” says de Oude, “and there were significant opportunities for customers to benefit from technology, opportunities that were not being explored.”
“And so that’s what we did. We set up Singapore Life to do just that, to explore the potential for what a new insurance company could do better, with all the power of today’s technological efficiency.”
<a href="https://www.gigabitmagazine.com/company/singapore-life-investing-tech-better-serve-customers#" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Read the full media feature of Singapore Life</a>

Media Spotlight: Enriching the Customer through Technology

It’s our largest milestone to date, and we’re stoked to make the pages of Business Times!
We’re proud to announce our acquisition of Zurich Life Singapore’s local portfolio, comprising $6 billion in coverage. It’s a big move to be sure, and it’s all part of our plans to accelerate quickly into Singapore’s preferred life insurance provider.
In other words, we can’t wait to meet you and serve your protection and wealth needs!
Read the full article <a href="https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/banking-finance/new-insurer-singapore-life-acquires-zurich-life-sg-and-s6b-of-coverage" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">here</a>.

Media Spotlight: Business Times Exclusive

Our debut as Singapore’s first local insurer in over 40 years earned a spot on CNBC’s Street Signs.
CEO Walter de Oude discusses our aspirations as the newest player in the highly competitive sector.
<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/video/2017/07/06/singapore-licenses-the-first-new-local-insurer-in-40-years.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Watch the media clip</a>.

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