It is good to know that many posters are happy with their lives, no matter the income level they are currently in. This is important for a harmonious society where there is no envy nor jealousy among the different income levels.
The wealthy are happy with their bungalows/semi Ds, big chauffeured conti cars, expensive overseas holidays and their gilded lives. The upper middle income people are happy and proud of their terrace homes, condos/penthouses, conti cars, and annual holidays, yearly incomes of $500k and above.
The middle income and lower income people are equally proud and happy of their smaller condos, DBSS, or BTO flats.
I think this state of mind, which is a good thing, is mainly due to the following reasons:
1. Lower income people have the perception (rightly or wrongly) that the higher your income, the higher the stress level. So they are contented to earn a lower salary for the perceived lower stress. The fact is that capable people, coupled with the right skills and training and right job fit can manage their high paying jobs well.
2. People believe that meritocracy works here. They believe that if they work hard, upgrade themselves and invest well, they could also become rich.
3. Different income class tended to stay or cluster together. This is logical since people naturally buy properties in neighborhoods they can afford. So they look around them and say they are the same as their neighbors and they feel they are doing alright. They also sometimes do not believe the rich are actually rich. They thought the big landed properties, big cars and expensive holidays that the rich enjoy are all paid by taking on debts!
4. Posters also accept that if they don't work hard, they have to accept a lower standard of living or lower quality of life. Here you see many posters suggesting cutting back on their lifestyles, downgrading their homes, eating simply just because they want an easier, carefree lifestyle.
It is a good and natural outcome that ensure harmony in our society. Mind you, Singapore has quite a huge income/wealth gap!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Unregistered
My spouse and I have upgraded from low income families when we were young to a typical middle class, middle income Singapore family today. Our meritocratic system has allowed us to move up the social ladder. Today, at the age of 46 and 44 respectively, we are proud of our achievements. I earn a modest income of $80k pa while my spouse earns $90k pa. We started off staying in a HDB flat but managed to upgrade to a condo eventually. Today, our condo is worth $1.1m and we have only about $250k of mortgage left to pay. We have no problem paying the monthly mortgage payment via our CPF.
We are fortunate to be able to save too. From my income of $80k pa, I save $30k pa. As for my spouse, she saves $40k pa from her income of $90k pa. We are also fortunate to be able to change to a new car, which we paid off in cash using our savings, saved over the years.
We look forward to a good retirement as we watch our CPF funds grow. |