Singapore-based financial blog that aims to educate people on personal finance, investments, retirement and their Central Provident Fund (CPF) matters.

Saturday 22 August 2020

The CPF Withdrawal Age & CPF Payout Eligibility Age

There are 2 age-numbers about CPF that you should know about.

They are the CPF Withdrawal Age, and the CPF Payout Eligibility Age.


Recommended Read: Should I Top Up My Young Next-Of-Kin's CPF?


What is the CPF Withdrawal Age?

Singapore's CPF Withdrawal Age is currently set at 55.

This is the age you can start withdrawing money out of your CPF account.


How Much Can I Withdraw?

You can only withdraw money above the Full Retirement Sum or $5,000 (whichever is higher).

Alternatively, you can withdraw money above the Basic Retirement Sum if you perform a property pledge.

Click here to see the examples of how much you can withdraw.


For members turning age 65 from 2023 onwards, they can also withdraw up to 20% of their Retirement Account savings in a lump sum anytime from age 65 onwards.


Recommended Read: Cannot Withdraw CPF Money If Never Hit CPF Retirement Sum?


What is the CPF Payout Eligibility Age?

Singapore's CPF Payout Eligibility Age (PEA) is currently set at 65.

This is the age you can choose your CPF LIFE plan (CPF LIFE) and start receiving monthly payouts until you pass away.

You also have the option to start your CPF LIFE payouts later, up to age 70.


Why Would I Want To Delay My Payout Age?

You can choose to start receiving payouts anytime between age 65 and age 70 (eg when you reach age 67), but the latest age to start is 70. 

For each year deferred, your future CPF LIFE monthly payouts may increase by up to 7%.


Conclusion

Understand at what age you can withdraw how much from CPF.

Consider if you really need to make that withdrawal at 55, or is it better to keep the money inside CPF to earn the higher interest rates.


Recommended Read: Why You Should Max Your CPF Retirement Sum Early

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Friday 14 August 2020

Should I Top Up My Young Next-Of-Kin's CPF?

Young next-of-kin refers to family members that are below the age of 55.

We'll do the 'next-of-kin above age 55' next time.

So subscribe to us if you want to be notified when the next article is out 😉.


Who Qualifies As Next-Of-Kin?

  • Spouse
  • Siblings
  • Parents
  • Parents-in-law
  • Grandparents
  • Grandparents-in-law

Recommended Read: Why I Still Own Big Tech


Benefits of Topping Up

1. Tax Incentive

If you top up your next-of-kin's CPF accounts using cash, you get up to $7,000 per calendar year of tax deduction.


2. Earn More Interest

Topping up to your next-of-kin's CPF allows them to build up their retirement savings, and it will earn interest of up to 6%.


Criteria

There is a list of criteria to fulfil before your cash top-up to your next-of-kin qualifies for the tax deduction.


1. For All Next-Of-Kin Below Age 55

To recipients age below 55, you only get the tax deduction for up to the current Full Retirement Sum (FRS).

FRS - SA Savings - SA monies withdrawn under CPFIS*

*CPFIS: CPF Investment Scheme


Example:

The current CPF FRS is $181,000

Your mother's CPF SA currently has $150,000 and had previously withdrawn $30,000 for CPFIS.

So her "Total SA Savings" is $180,000.


If you top-up $7,000 cash to her CPF SA, only $1,000 will be eligible for the tax deduction.

Any additional amount ($6,000) you top-up will not be eligible for the tax deduction.


2. In Addition For Spouse/Siblings

To qualify for the tax relief for spouse or siblings top-up, in addition to the criteria above, they must also meet one of the following criteria:

  1. Income (e.g. salary or tax-exempt income such as bank interest, dividends and pension) not exceeding $4,000 in the year preceding the year of top-up*; or
  2. Handicapped** 

* "Income" of a person would include income from all sources, such as tax-exempt income (e.g. bank interest, dividend and pension) and foreign-sourced income remitted into Singapore. Hence investment income/rental income/directorship income etc, are considered to be the income of a person.


** A handicapped person is one who has been incapacitated mentally or physically. Some examples are visual-impairment, loss of hearing, loss of limb and dementia.


Recommended Read: Why You Should Max Your CPF Retirement Sum Early


Any Additional  Things to Note?

One More Thing...

There is a cap on maximum tax deduction one can receive in a given year.


The personal income tax relief cap is currently $80,000.

Meaning you won't get any additional tax deduction for each dollar you top-up to their CPF accounts if you hit the tax deduction cap of $80,000 before the top-up.


Conclusion

Topping up next-of-kin's CPF for tax reduction is a lot of work.

Need to make sure they have not met FRS.

Need to make sure they meet the income criteria.

Need to make sure I have not hit the cap for tax relief.


So view the top-up as helping your next-of-kin hit their retirement goals.

The tax deduction is just icing on the cake; additional benefits.

Not the main point.


Recommended Read: Cannot Withdraw CPF Money If Never Hit CPF Retirement Sum?

Promos & Referrals
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We hope you could help us fill in a short survey of 8 questions (4 of them are MCQs) so that we can help tailor our content to you.
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Tuesday 11 August 2020

Warren Buffett: Buying Stocks Every Year Since He Was 11 Years Old

Source: CNBC

Personal Net Buyer Of Stocks

Buffett has been a net buyer of stocks almost every year since he started when he was 11 years old. 

He grew his wealth by buying and owning more and more shares over the years.

Maybe you should too.


Recommended Read: The CPF Bond That You Cannot Sell


The Interview Clip

Need proof to show that the man said it himself?

Here's that 1-minute clip of him saying explicitly just that.


Recommended Read: Why I Still Own Big Tech


Does He Sell Stocks?

Yes, he does!

Just that he is a net-buyer overall.

Meaning even if he sold stocks, he would still invest in other stocks.


Conclusion

World's greatest investor buys stocks every year.

Shouldn't you be doing that too if you want to build wealth? 😉


Recommended Read: Cannot Withdraw CPF Money If Never Hit CPF Retirement Sum?

Promos & Referrals
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If you have a money related story about you or your relatives' that you want to share, let us know in the comments below or email us at investmentstab@gmail.com.
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As we progress towards the next phase of our journey, we would like to find out what would make you like us even more.
We hope you could help us fill in a short survey of 8 questions (4 of them are MCQs) so that we can help tailor our content to you.
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Saturday 8 August 2020

Cannot Withdraw CPF Money If Never Hit CPF Retirement Sum?


Today, we would like to share with you an important issue we believe every Singaporean faces: What happens if I cannot hit my CPF Retirement Sum?

Answer: NOTHING HAPPENS!


Recommended Read: Answering the 2 Common CPF "Complaints"

Seriously, Nothing

Do not worry. 
If you do not hit the Retirement Sum (FRS, BRS, or ERS), there is no penalty involved.

You are also not required to top up the difference to CPF in the event you do not hit the Retirement Sum.

Yes! You are correct! 
It is not compulsory for you to hit your CPF Retirement Sum.


You Still Get A Monthly Payout

Whether you hit it or not, you would still draw a monthly payout from CPF when you reach your draw down age (age 65). 

You will just receive a lower money payout from CPF.
Well, less money in Retirement Sum = Lower Monthly Payouts.
Make sense right? 🤷‍♂️


Recommended Read: The CPF Bond That You Cannot Sell

But The Lump Sum Withdrawal

The only problem is that you are unable to withdraw most of your money in your Retirement Account - you can only withdraw up to $5,000 at age 55.

For members turning age 65 from 2023 onwards, they can also withdraw up to 20% of their Retirement Account savings in a lump sum anytime from age 65 onwards.


If I Want To Withdraw More Money?

You can pledge your property to withdraw money in excess of the Basic Retirement Sum (BRS).

The BRS as of 2020 is set at $90,500.

If you pledge your property at age 55, you will be able to withdraw money in your CPF in excess of the BRS.

Eg: if you have $100,000 in your Retirement Account (RA) as of August 2020, you can withdraw up to $9,500 from your RA if you pledge your property to CPF.


Conclusion

Don't fret over hitting the Retirement Sum.
It is not the end of the world if you don't hit it.

Recommended Read: Why You Should Max Your CPF Retirement Sum Early

Promos & Referrals
We are starting to build a list of Promos and Referrals for our readers.
Click here to view the full list of Promos and Referrals we have. 

Hey You!

If you have a money related story about you or your relatives' that you want to share, let us know in the comments below or email us at investmentstab@gmail.com.
Alternative, you could fill in the form below for us to contact you.
Story Form

Dear Reader!
As we progress towards the next phase of our journey, we would like to find out what would make you like us even more.
We hope you could help us fill in a short survey of 8 questions (4 of them are MCQs) so that we can help tailor our content to you.
Survey

Remember to offer your opinions. If you don't put your two cents in, how can you expect to get change?
Have feedback? Tell us now!

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Saturday 1 August 2020

Why I Still Own Big Tech


Quite a few of my friends have been asking me what I was invested in recently.

When I mentioned that I was invested in Big Tech, they were a little stun for 2 reasons.

1. Why would anyone stay invested in the current market?

2. Why would anyone want to invest in Big Tech now?

Decided to pen down the explanation once and for all.

What I Own Currently

Amazon and Microsoft.

What I sold recently:
Facebook, at $250

Recommended Read: The CPF Bond That You Cannot Sell

I Bought It Long Ago

First of all, I would like to make it clear that I accumulated these positions some time ago.

I bought Amazon when it was in the $900 range, Facebook when in the $170 range, and Microsoft at the $150 range

So they have done pretty well for me.
But, if you were to invest in them today, you might not get the same results as I did.

So do your own due diligence, research, and understand if that investment is suitable for you.

Why Have I Not Sold My Big Tech?

Despite the whole anti-trust congressional hearing, Big Tech reaching new highs, the whole COVID situation, and huge disconnection between the stock market and the real economy, I remain long-term oriented and still think Big Tech has a lot of potentials.

Break-Up Or Not?
An anti-trust congressional hearing happened recently with the CEOs from Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, and Facebook.

It does not bother me whether or not they are broken up or not.

If they are not broken up, they can "keep their monopolistic business", which means more growth and profits.
That makes sense for me to continue holding them.

If they are broken up, most analysts expect that it will lead to a temporary rise in the stock prices of these companies.
A "conglomerate discount" is usually applied to companies that are huge.
Breaking up Big Tech might release more shareholder value.

Such breakups tend to unleash lots of shareholder value.
Case in point, eBay+PayPal and AT&T.

Split Shares Or Not?
Apple announced that it will split its shares 4-for-1.
Basically, shareholders will receive 3 additional shares for each Apple share they own.
That will make the share price lower from $400+ to $100+, making it more affordable for retail investors, thereby increasing the investor pool.

Generally, share splits have been met with a slight uptick in the share prices.
Because now more funds can afford to invest in the cheaper share price.
Amazon is now trading at $3,100+, Microsoft at $200+, Facebook at $250+, Alphabet at $1,500+.

Sounds to me like it's a good time to split the shares and give it a slight pop in the share prices.

Recommended Read: Why You Should Max Your CPF Retirement Sum Early

Conclusion

These are the 2 reasons why I'm keeping my investment in Big Tech for now.

Are they undervalue or overvalue?
That's up to the individual's interpretation.

To me, for now, they are undervalued or at fair value.

Disclaimer:
Do not make any investment decisions based upon materials found on this website.

Investment Stab is not a registered investment advisor, broker-dealer, and is not qualified to give financial advice.


Investors are reminded to do their own due diligence and invest according to their risk appetite.

Promos & Referrals
We are starting to build a list of Promos and Referrals for our readers.
Click here to view the full list of Promos and Referrals we have. 

Hey You!

If you have a money related story about you or your relatives' that you want to share, let us know in the comments below or email us at investmentstab@gmail.com.
Alternative, you could fill in the form below for us to contact you.
Story Form

Dear Reader!
As we progress towards the next phase of our journey, we would like to find out what would make you like us even more.
We hope you could help us fill in a short survey of 8 questions (4 of them are MCQs) so that we can help tailor our content to you.
Survey

Remember to offer your opinions. If you don't put your two cents in, how can you expect to get change?
Have feedback? Tell us now!

Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for more timely updates about finance-related articles and memes! 😁

Subscribe to our newsletter too in case social media platforms decide to stop showing you our content.