Tag: life

Syfe – Performance Aug 2021

On By RistrettzIn Performance, Personal Finance Series, Robo AdvisorsLeave a comment

Here is yet another robo advisor that I get on my portfolio since the start of 2020. It has been okay I feel. Ever since 2020, it has been a year and till today – I’m not exactly convinced though.

I am caught in both minds. I like reits but yet I don’t quite like Singapore equities in general. Dividend paying equities are definitely good but yet I have more appetite for a growth company. It is just not that sustainable over the long term I feel. Where are the money coming from to build more creativity and expand their business.

Why Syfe?

When the markets were down during March 2020, it was quite exciting times because those were the kind of period which I actually will put money into investments. To a certain extent, I have also put money into other robo advisors such as Endowus and StashAway. While those are more of a “global diversification”, Syfe is more of a local bias for it’s Reits+ Portfolio and truth be told I then took the plunge for a small amount just to try it out a non-DIY approach to Reits investing.

Next, what I struggled with then over the period is that there were quite a discount off many equity tickers and I didn’t really know what to buy or what to expect since the market was in a downtrend. As with every investment, making a rational or emotional decision can only be determined after the event has passed. Reits has since risen, dropped and risen yet again. Frankly, I’ve been busy to keep looking into my own portfolio.

I haven’t got around to increase the investment funds so it is only a very small initial amount. Partly, my mind tells me to do dollar cost averaging for my other investments so we still have to see how things go.

Performance (August 2021)

 

12 months has gone by and +28.65% is pretty insane in my opinion. The last time I looked at this was 6 months ago in March 2021 and it has increased by slightly more than 5%. Then again, the base that I started out with is quite a fantastic benchmark so maybe that isn’t too fair. From here, there isn’t fresh funds invested as I am think more about my overall portfolio. I do think I have enough of the local investments and typically Singapore equities are rather slow and neutral in performance. Even the STI isn’t that exciting in my opinion. If you really look at a 50 year and beyond horizon for S&P 500, it is an amazing uptrend with good returns.

Do use my referral code to get some benefits when you sign up a new account with Syfe. Referral Code: SRPTSMQ5J

You will get (Find our more about their referral scheme here Syfe Signup) :

a. S$10 bonus if you invest S$500

b. S$50 bonus if you invest S$10,000

c. S$100 bonus if you invest S$20,000

Disclaimer

This is not a sponsored post. This is purely my own opinion after using their service and/or products. If you like what you are seeing, do remember to check they out and do your diligence. There is no one size fits all investment strategy.

If you like what I am sharing or if it resonates with you, do use my referral codes here at Referral and Recommendations

The pictures were taken from Syfe website for this article.

Syfe – Performance Mar 2021

On By RistrettzIn Performance, Personal Finance Series, Robo AdvisorsLeave a comment

Here is yet another robo advisor that I get on my portfolio since the start of 2020. It has been okay I feel. Ever since 2020, it has been a year and till today – I’m not exactly convinced though.

I am caught in both minds. I like reits but yet I don’t quite like Singapore equities in general. Dividend paying equities are definitely good but yet I have more appetite for a growth company. It is just not that sustainable over the long term I feel. Where are the money coming from to build more creativity and expand their business.

Why Syfe?

When the markets were down during March 2020, it was quite exciting times because those were the kind of period which I actually will put money into investments. To a certain extent, I have also put money into other robo advisors such as Endowus and StashAway. While those are more of a “global diversification”, Syfe is more of a local bias for it’s Reits+ Portfolio and truth be told I then took the plunge for a small amount just to try it out a non-DIY approach to Reits investing.

Next, what I struggled with then over the period is that there were quite a discount off many equity tickers and I didn’t really know what to buy or what to expect since the market was in a downtrend. As with every investment, making a rational or emotional decision can only be determined after the event has passed. Reits has since risen, dropped and risen yet again. Frankly, I’ve been busy to keep looking into my own portfolio.

I haven’t got around to increase the investment funds so it is only a very small initial amount. Partly, my mind tells me to do dollar cost averaging for my other investments so we still have to see how things go.

Performance (March 2021)

12 months has gone by and +23.44% is pretty insane in my opinion. Then again, the base that I started out with is quite a fantastic benchmark so maybe that isn’t too fair. From here, there isn’t fresh funds invested as I am think more about my overall portfolio. I do think I have enough of the local investments and typically Singapore equities are rather slow and neutral in performance. Even the STI isn’t that exciting in my opinion. If you really look at a 50 year and beyond horizon for S&P 500, it is an amazing uptrend with good returns.

Do use my referral code to get some benefits when you sign up a new account with Syfe. Referral Code: SRPTSMQ5J

You will get (Find our more about their referral scheme here Syfe Signup) :

a. S$10 bonus if you invest S$500

b. S$50 bonus if you invest S$10,000

c. S$100 bonus if you invest S$20,000

Disclaimer

This is not a sponsored post. This is purely my own opinion after using their service and/or products. If you like what you are seeing, do remember to check they out and do your diligence. There is no one size fits all investment strategy.

If you like what I am sharing or if it resonates with you, do use my referral codes here at Referral and Recommendations

The pictures were taken from Syfe website for this article.

Happy Holidays -Merry Christmas

On By RistrettzIn Personal Finance SeriesLeave a comment

Season Greetings

Christmas is finally here. Truth be told, I didn’t really feel that it is festive but it is here and personally I just love Christmas. Perhaps it is because of religion but most of all, what i like is the warm fuzzy feeling of the celebration to the year and also in preparation to the upcoming one.

Finance Blogging

Maintaining a blog isn’t exactly the easiest thing to do but it is one of the more handy things to do since you generally just write what you like and what you feel. Different people have differing views, hence why we have different opinions and how one react to certain things will be unique as well. Some of our actions are determined by the culture, the attitude and the way we were brought up so none of these are wrong. However, in my opinion it is wrong to shout or scream in public no matter what unless you are slightly deranged.

Media

I also learned that social media is an extremely negative arena. One wrong move and you will be victimised or CSI-ed by people. People take no responsibility for mistakes if they found the wrong person. Can you imagine the stress the family members have to endure to only find out that they got the wrong person. I’m not a big fan of naming and shaming. After all, no one knows their side of the story. Everyone would think that they are right in their own manner of reasoning. That’s why there are still lawyers in the country.

2020 – The year that the impossible happened

Not everyone had a good year. For those who had a good one, plenty to shout out about given how tough a year it has been mentally, physically and monetary wise. Anyone who had an okay year, I guess it isn’t that bad given the circumstances. For those who were impacted this year and you have struggles which will bring through the next year don’t feel bad. Remember that positive vibes will bring you positivity. Don’t forget to always help other regardless of your situation.

Conclusion

Regardless, life must still go so. We are resilient. Life is tough but so are we as Singaporeans. Saving for a rainy day is something we do best. Different people have different levels of savings. The most important thing is to accept that you need a rainy day fund. Start today.

Disclaimer

Whatever I blog about is purely my own opinion. If you like what you are seeing, do remember to check they out and do your diligence. For me, it is always about the whole package. Like minded people can flock together to create good and powerful things.

If you like what I am sharing or if it resonates with you, do check out my shop or drop me a note here at https://lifejourney840443474.wordpress.com/contact/

The pictures were taken from the websites for this article.

SNACK – Microinsurance

On By RistrettzIn Deals, New Ideas, Personal Finance SeriesLeave a comment

As I have said, I am a firm believer of insurance but not a firm believer of agents. I am of the mind that there are invested interest. Even the most honest guy needs to earn a living but I have yet to find anyone who is able to pass my test. More often than not, I tend to DIY on my own so most of my plans are generally bought online. The exception is that during the early years, agents used to manage those that I bought.

Why Insurance?

Let’s face it. Everyone needs to transfer their risk and that is a fact. Whether it is term or whole life plans, it is up for a debate but no best answer. You need health insurance, life insurance, disability insurance, travel insurance, car insurance and the list goes on. My only grip is that DIY stuff comes cheap but you have to figure out how to to that on your own. Nothing wrong with that but it comes in as a pain when you don’t have time to manage those stuff.

Try Microinsurance

Personally, I feel that it is fine to try out a cheaper alternative of insurance just to get yourself covered at the lowest cost possible. SNACK is by Income and recently introduced this concept of microinsurance. I find it appealing personally coming from someone who understand how these things work. It kind of like supplement what i have existingly.

I think that the Income branding is starting to change and this helps with the brand image. At least they try to speak the millenia language. Next, I find that with such low cost products – There will be less barrier to entry. The difficulty in this solution is to educate people. It is much easier to say that it is complicated than trying to find out what this is all about.

Once you sign up online and register the amount you can commit daily, every document will be sent to you via email or digitally. Quite simply, I would say.

They are 3 ways your can choose to buy insurance from (Choose 1 or whatever you need):

a. Critical Illness

b. Personal Accident

c. Life Insurance.

You can also trigger these daily costs from a few parts:

a.  Redeeming a deal from Burpple or pay for meals using a VISA card.

b. Commuting bus, train or cab and pay for it using a VISA card.

c. Through retailing and purchases using a linked VISA card.

d. Shopping for groceries using a linked VISA card.

e. Through entertainment and paying using a linked VISA card.

f. Topping up petrol and paying using a linked VISA card.

g. Pay your utilities and paying using a linked VISA card.

h. Activate your fitbit app and fulfilling your daily steps.

You may be thinking what happens if you hit every objective. There is a limit to the premiums charged to your credit or debit card depending on the weekly cap you’ve set up. Once you’ve hit this weekly cap, SNACK will no longer charge you premiums when you complete lifestyle triggers and you will not be issued any more policies for that week.

The minimum amount daily you can set is $0.30 and you can add on as many triggers as you wish.

There is also a cap on each insurance segment:

a. For Personal Accident, the cap is at $100,000

b. For Life Insurance, the cap is at $200,000

c. For Critical Illness, the cap is at $200,000

These insurance are known as non-participating policies so the moment you stop paying for these, the coverage will stop. To me it is a stop-gap kind of coverage and at an extremely low cost. If you are looking at the full suite, take time to understand and learn. You will definitely benefit from the knowledge and to suss out your new insurance agent. Whether they are in it for the long term or to hit and run. We will never know unless we experience and have the basic knowledge.

Disclaimer

This is not a sponsored post. This is purely my own opinion after using their service and/or products. If you like what you are seeing, do remember to check they out and do your diligence. There is no one size fits all investment strategy.

If you like what I am sharing or if it resonates with you, do use my referral codes here at https://atomic-temporary-178675883.wpcomstaging.com/contact/ for the services.

The pictures were taken from SNACK website for this article. If you need a referral code, please use my referral code “PAU4055” and both of us will be rewarded with additional $500 coverage for personal accident. Visit here https://www.snackbyincome.sg/ to find out more.

Leisure of Life

On By RistrettzIn Wealth & HealthLeave a comment

It has been almost 6 months since I have started working from home. The wife, not so much, roughly about four months or so. We have gone past the two months of Circuit Breaker and food delivery. At Phase 2, we are glad not to eat our lunch and/or dinner in a container box. Cooking at home regularly has also come off, though that was way better than ordering delivery. By working from home, we actually spend more time whacking away at our computer. That includes lunch time and after dinner. Depending on how you look at it, it can mean more productivity or we just can’t really draw a line to when is work time and home time.

Exploring Singapore – National Gallery Singapore

This is brought some delight to us. First, the mood in the National Gallery is soft and quiet. There was literally no rush walking in the Gallery. By taking some time off our work, we brought our little one to visit and rediscover Singapore little by little. While looking through the artifacts and history of Singapore, I did felt a sense of pride to call Singapore Home. Second, I really like it when it is quiet and the National Gallery provides that serene form of art. No noise was coming out from anywhere and we could just walk where ever we wanted.

In my previous post which you can access here. (https://lifejourney840443474.wordpress.com/2020/08/04/ndp-2020-promotion-1-year-free-membership-for-gallery-insider/) The Gallery Insider is still available to all Singaporeans for one year so do visit them before end of October 2020. It is a worthwhile visit and stop by the Courtyard Cafe (Level 1) for some drinks and snacks. They make pretty good food and snacks. Blueberry cheese muffin, pandan kaya coconut cake and the fried wantons are my top choice. Local and Western delights are available – It is much better than most places.

The Corner Grill

To end the day, we must always do what a true blue Singaporean does. Find a good and decent hideout for a nice hot dinner for a good meal. It is rare that we have such “me” time and we found some hidden gems in the alley of 1 Ann Siang Hill. Hidden within the red and black shop houses and sloped roads, right at the intersection of Club Street lies The Corner Grill. The restaurant brings the impression that they serve quality food over quantity and I truly respect that. Link here: https://www.facebook.com/thecornergrill.sg

Still, we ordered too much for dinner and will definitely come back in the near future.

Fried Onions

For Starters, the Onion Stickles make a perfect appetiser. The complement is the mild but savory curry sauce which went really well with the thinly sliced onions.

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Lobster Roll

The classic lobster burger which you once ate at the market grill or Pince and Pints somehow just tastes awful. Biting into the Lobster Roll at The Corner Grill, it is a sequence of experiential taste which starts with the freshness of the seawater, followed by the buttery creaminess of the sauce and tender warm lobster meat with the toasted bun. Simplicity at its best.

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Pork Chop!

One of the classic highlights would be their Pork Chop which they really should rename it as a Tomahawk Chop or Pork Steak bone taste perfectly pinkish. This is cooked/grilled slightly Pinkish and well charred. The whole Pork Chop weighs around 300g and is easily the best thing I had during the last 6 months. The condiments compliment so well with the Pork Chop that I have nothing to say but to go try it. I also never knew olives, fig, onions and cauliflower tastes so good when preserved and mixed

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Lemon Tarts

Desserts turn out as a surprise with Lemon tarts. They were not too sweet and perfect to end the palate. I’ll let the picture tell the story.

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It is one of those rare times that we took time to explore and find good food but it has indeed been a great Friday today.

By chance, during a chat with the owners, The Corner Grill license was approved two days before the Circuit Breaker rules were announced. With the current Phase 2 ongoing, their business has been affected. I do hope they can manage to tide through this phase. The quality of ingredients is definitely a high standard but I am guessing that they have too much on their plate at the moment.

Support Local. Support our Food Culture. You can’t miss quality once you try it.

Disclaimer

If you like what I am sharing or if it resonates with you, do use my referral codes for other services at https://atomic-temporary-178675883.wpcomstaging.com/contact/

The pictures were taken from The Corner Grill website for this article.