How much are you earning per annum?

You don't need $175k pa to retire unless you plan to eat at expensive restaurants everyday or gamble all day. Most retired couples with no dependents and own a fully paid home can retire very comfortably with $40k pa, the most they need is $50k pa and this is a generous amount. So if your passive income is $80k or $100k pa, you can retire.

The most important thing about retirement is to plan your activities. Keep yourselves busy with exercising in the gym, jogging at parks, swimming, reading, socializing with friends, doing volunteering work in old folks home or feeding the poor, etc. If you are fully occupied with meaningful activities, then your retirement is meaningful. Look around you. Help others.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Each has to find his own way. While some are "allergic" to work, others find fulfillment, purpose and of course, financial rewards from their work.

So yes, quit your work and retire if you don't find it rewarding nor fulfilling. And downgrade your lifestyle if you have not saved enough. But make sure to occupy your time when retired, because boredom and lack of mental stimulation is not good for mind, soul and health. Worse is when you find that more and more things are getting out of your reach while your friends who are still working are buying new cars, going for holidays and leading meaningful lives.

Retiring from work, especially at a relatively young age of 55 or younger, is not an answer to unhappiness from work, as you could be unwittingly plunging into another set of problems - boredom, stress from insufficient savings, reduced social interaction and in general, lack of sense of purpose in life.

$5m in savings should be sufficient to last a couple a good 50 years at $100k pa. If not including their home value (say at $1.5m for a condo), then they still have a respectable $3.5m to depend on. If they are able to invest that money to generate 5% return, they could reap a passive income of $175k pa. This is more than enough to afford them a comfortable life! But for some people, it is not always about money anymore, it is about deriving the meaning of life.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Bonus is on the low side but i guess decent.

Increment is too low.

But if you like your colleagues and working environment, that is a huge plus point. It's not all about the money.

As long as you find you are earning enough for the lifestyle you desire as well as to prepare for retirement, i guess no harm staying on. No need to earn more just to feel like you are on par with the rest. Many people earn much more but hate their jobs.

4 months bonus is hardly low, you must be hanging around with too many bankers. You would be hard pressed to find a 4 month bonus in your average private company. Increment however is a bit low at around 200-300 per year.

It is not a question of adequacy of his savings for retirement. He said he can generate a passive income of $175k pa and you are trying to advise him about retiring with $50k pa?

When people communicate anonymously, there is often mismatch and misinterpretation of intent especially when they are using from different benchmarks.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

You don't need $175k pa to retire unless you plan to eat at expensive restaurants everyday or gamble all day. Most retired couples with no dependents and own a fully paid home can retire very comfortably with $40k pa, the most they need is $50k pa and this is a generous amount. So if your passive income is $80k or $100k pa, you can retire.

The most important thing about retirement is to plan your activities. Keep yourselves busy with exercising in the gym, jogging at parks, swimming, reading, socializing with friends, doing volunteering work in old folks home or feeding the poor, etc. If you are fully occupied with meaningful activities, then your retirement is meaningful. Look around you. Help others.

First June 2015 COE bidding starts today. This is the last month before CEV changes kicks in next month.

My prediction:

Cat A $68k
Cat B $77k

Originally Posted by Unregistered

First June 2015 COE bidding starts today. This is the last month before CEV changes kicks in next month.

My prediction:

Cat A $68k
Cat B $77k

The show room traffic has been light
The number of bids have decreased over past few bids
The quota has increased and will continue to increase

Get ready for a decline in COE... Congrats to those who had waited patiently for this period.

Huat ah!

Secure your new car now !!!!!!!!!

Huat Ah !!!!!!!!!!!!!

Originally Posted by Unregistered

The show room traffic has been light
The number of bids have decreased over past few bids
The quota has increased and will continue to increase

Get ready for a decline in COE... Congrats to those who had waited patiently for this period.

Huat ah!

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Secure your new car now !!!!!!!!!

Huat Ah !!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wait first.

CoE will drop to below $50k soon...

Huat ah!

48, $130k pa. Spouse is home maker. Children is schooling.
Home is a condo unit, currently valued at $1.1m, paid up.
Car, two year old, loan left $20k.
I save $30k pa.
Can I retire at 60?

Originally Posted by Unregistered

48, $130k pa. Spouse is home maker. Children is schooling.
Home is a condo unit, currently valued at $1.1m, paid up.
Car, two year old, loan left $20k.
I save $30k pa.
Can I retire at 60?

You made a wise decision many years ago buying your condo.

To be frank, for a 130k pa in today's context, it would have been difficult to afford a 1.1million condo.

You didn't give info on your cpf balance so a bit difficult to tell if you can retire at 60

Originally Posted by Unregistered

You made a wise decision many years ago buying your condo.

To be frank, for a 130k pa in today's context, it would have been difficult to afford a 1.1million condo.

You didn't give info on your cpf balance so a bit difficult to tell if you can retire at 60

My other assets are cash and CPF (OA, SA, MA) $300k in total. So my net worth is $1.4m. I don't have investments as I don't know much about investments. What should I do to retire at 60?