What to invest?
 

i'm new to investing. May i know as a new investor, what kind of investment can i go for? i will prefer low risk investment and i have around 10-20k of start up capital to invest.
Can anyone advise me? thank you.

I suggest u put that lump sum into CIMB starSaver account. it gives like 0.8% P.A. Safest. Lowest Risk.

If bank crashed, government will pay u back the money as insured by SDIC (SGD $50,000).
Put in $20,000 = $13 per month.

Epic fail advise. This is not investing. This is just like keeping money under the pillow.

Inflation is now at 2.5%, but was 4 - 5% just a year ago. So your money is losing value each day it stays in the fixed deposit.

But having said that, it is sometimes ok to do nothing (ie keep the cash ready) and wait for the right moment to pounce -on shares or property.

My approach was to accumulate blue chip stocks all my working life (30 odd years). In my early years, all I could afford was just 1 or 2 lots each time after receiving my bonus. Now my passive income from the dividends is $5k per month average. My approach is to buy and keep.

And yes, you will see your share value go up in good times and down in bad times. So you must only invest with money that you dont need for something else.

Good news, the SGX is trying to implement smaller lot trading to allow younger people (with lower income?) to buy into and accumulate good stocks. So look out and read up on the various listed companies and decide for yourself which ones to buy.

The feeling of getting money every month that you dont have to work for is undescribable. The dividends have paid for our yearly holidays overseas. Any remaining amounts are re-invested.

We all want to sit back, relax and have money coming in without having to work for it. But unless we have a large inheritance, or strike toto group 1 price, we have no choice but to go out and work for the money.

The answer to your question "what to invest?" is thus obvious. It is yourself - you are your biggest asset. Invest in yourself through continuous upgrading, courses and training. And work as long as you can. Our gahmen has been telling us to work till 65. Actually people in the US and UK are already working beyond that.

Even if you are earning a salary of $100k pa or say $50k pa, it is still way higher than what most people can get from their passive income.

From my own experience, rental income returns now is about 3% net of expenses and taxes. That means you need to invest in a $1m property just to have $30k pa passive income. Shares fare slightly better. If you plonk $1m into reits you could achieve $60k - $70k dividends. But there are risks.

The Maths therefore tells you that to have a comfortable passive income of $100k pa, you will need a principal sum of at least $2m to invest.

And you still need a place to stay, say an HDB flat costing about $600k. So minimum asset you need is $2.6m!

And you know what? Getting there is through working and saving up. When you acquire better skills, knowledge you increase your value to your company, and increase your promotional prospects.

Having worked 30 years already, and established a passive income stream of $80k - $90k pa, I know there is no way my passive income is ever going to replace my salary. So to me, work is still the way to go. Even now, although I am now training my younger colleagues, I still look out for courses to attend to upgrade myself. Learning never stops.

And yes, having that passive income coming in every month is satisfying. It does give an added peace of mind. You are more willing to indulge, to treat yourself and family to good meals and holidays.

> rental income returns now is about 3% net of expenses and taxes. That means you need to invest in a $1m property

since most property purchases are funded by mortgages, the return is actually higher than 3% if you take leverage into account. on the other hand, retail investors don't usually borrow money to buy stocks (including reits).

If it is too good to be true, it probably is.

Whoever can get 5-8% consistently PER MONTH ought to be the Chief Investment Officer for both GIC and Temasek Holdings.

insurance investment policy

There's a sucker born every minute.

Sadly as per the advise above you need a huge amounts of money, tyou can start of with just 100 a month below. This would give you a kickstart


You may want to look at fundsupermart for unit trust.
You can look at bond funds and global equity

You may also consider getting a saver plans from manulife, ntuc income,....
Basically, you put in few hundred dollars a month and get back a small return
eg principal + 3% something like that