How much are you earning per annum?

To be able to retire at 55, still living in a 3 bedroom condo in Singapore, is not easy. Most people can't do it unless they are high flyer bankers and lawyers. If you're just an engineer, you can't retire at 55.

This person wants to retire at 55 and his net worth is not very high, so he has to move to a HDB flat so that he has enough to invest to get passive income. If he wants to retire in his condo, he has to work until 65 when he gets his CPF Life.

[Canberra]

To be fair, an average family has the ability to retire at 55. A combination of prudent saving - looking at 30% savings per month - and assuming proactive credit repair approach, the family can afford to live a financially free lifestyle.

We're not including liabilities such as owning a car or indulging in extravagance. It is simply having casual meals at restaurants or coffee houses for an extended period of time. A simple holiday to Msia or Indo can suffice. By that age, the head of household is likely to be prudent too.

[lazyplane]

Disagree.

Many condo in this forum are stating that their condo value is only S$1m plus . If true, this means it is OCR condo . And that is can be easily achieved but top 25% income level group.

those owning CCR condos and retiring at 55 are the rich ones.

Some CCR HDB will match the OCR condos.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

To be able to retire at 55, still living in a 3 bedroom condo in Singapore, is not easy. Most people can't do it unless they are high flyer bankers and lawyers. If you're just an engineer, you can't retire at 55.

This person wants to retire at 55 and his net worth is not very high, so he has to move to a HDB flat so that he has enough to invest to get passive income. If he wants to retire in his condo, he has to work until 65 when he gets his CPF Life.

Originally Posted by lazyplane

Disagree.

Many condo in this forum are stating that their condo value is only S$1m plus . If true, this means it is OCR condo . And that is can be easily achieved but top 25% income level group.

those owning CCR condos and retiring at 55 are the rich ones.

Some CCR HDB will match the OCR condos.

Are you among those owning CCR condo and retired at 55?

If you need to sell your property to retire, you will not have much left for your children. The future generations like us might not have the luxury to retire in this way. We will have to pay our debt till we die!

Originally Posted by Unregistered

If you need to sell your property to retire, you will not have much left for your children. The future generations like us might not have the luxury to retire in this way. We will have to pay our debt till we die!

Nowadays, we cannot leave much for your children. Just give them a good education so that they can have good jobs. They will be able to afford cheap BTO flat. We can leave for our children our property where we stay until we die. That's all.

In a stroke of luck, stumbled upon my very first post (below) to this forum - post #360 on 20 Oct 2010.

6 years just flew past like that. Now at 56 already, so what has changed or not changed for me?

Well, I was proven wrong about my salary. It didn't remain stagnant at $200k pa but it did increase each year till $260k pa currently, mainly due to adjustment for inflation & bonuses. So, never say never. The worry that our work income was going to be stagnant spurred us to invest for passive income.

The biggest change was in our networth. That 6 years of income (including our passive income) have enabled us to grow our networth by another $2m.

Our lifestyle is more relaxed now with our children in the workforce.

We will continue to work until the official retirement age just like a few of our colleagues.

Life is good.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

200K Stagnant a few years already.

Have 2 post grad degrees but born at wrong time, starting salary then was mere $1.6K pm.

Envy young upstarts. Havent really cut their teeth already drawing above $100K

Most people trade their time and energy for money. What is the value of your time? If you know you're going to die in an accident tomorrow, then no amount of money is more valuable than your last 24 hours. You would spend these last 24 hours visiting your family and friends to bid farewell. Money has no more value for you. Your last moments in this world is very valuable to you.

So, are you still trading your time for that extra million? Only fools chase after wealth even after they are already wealthy.

If you're prepared financially, then you should retire and use your last few years to do good on this earth. You never know when you will die.

I can sense that you are unhappy person.

Try and live with a kind and generous heart. When you see people do well, be happy for them and when you see people don't do so well, show empathy.

Remove jealousy and ill feelings from your heart, and you will feel much happier and less burdened. Try it, and you will be amazed.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Most people trade their time and energy for money. What is the value of your time? If you know you're going to die in an accident tomorrow, then no amount of money is more valuable than your last 24 hours. You would spend these last 24 hours visiting your family and friends to bid farewell. Money has no more value for you. Your last moments in this world is very valuable to you.

So, are you still trading your time for that extra million? Only fools chase after wealth even after they are already wealthy.

If you're prepared financially, then you should retire and use your last few years to do good on this earth. You never know when you will die.

Engineers are smart people. By their very nature, they like to be out there solving engineering problems, and not sit at home idling away their lives.

They are also very analytical, always analyzing before they make a move / decision.

Engineers in their mid 50s know full well that this period is the golden period in their careers. This is a period where their income is peaking while their financial commitments are tapering off or are fulfilled. This is the time where their savings accelerate! I guess those people who retired prematurely (before 50) will never know and experience this wonderful phase.

And these savings from early 50s to official retirement age (62) are not insubstantial. For my engineering (& golf) buddies and I, the last 5 to 6 years have seen our networth grew by $1.5m to $2m.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

To be able to retire at 55, still living in a 3 bedroom condo in Singapore, is not easy. Most people can't do it unless they are high flyer bankers and lawyers. If you're just an engineer, you can't retire at 55.

This person wants to retire at 55 and his net worth is not very high, so he has to move to a HDB flat so that he has enough to invest to get passive income. If he wants to retire in his condo, he has to work until 65 when he gets his CPF Life.