I’m under-investing too

It really depends on how much you’re earning. In my case, I don’t think I can eat and be sheltered well if I do that.

on average, we save around 20-30% for the long haul. no magic number here, imo. the more the better. =D

have to make sure that 75% of my basic salary goes to my MSD Account, been doing this for than 2yrs now, hope to continue it this way.

77% is quite a tall order for a 23 years old. But I invest as much as I can.

im in that area too. under investing but over spending. Really making sure atleast 30-40% goes into investing. Trying into real estate properties and hoping things will work out as planned at retirement age.

If you count me paying my rent as an “investment on myself” then I guess, yes, you can say I am investing 76% for the long haul.

I’m under-investing too. Have to rectify this as soon as possible … Have planned to add to our MF and UITF anyhow.

By the way, is insurance an investment?

75% is definitely hard to get. But I can save as much as 50%.

much of my salary is going to amortizations: a condo and vacant lot.

I computed how much money is “sinking” in my car and found out it’s not too much. I’m paying only 50% of it, the other half by my company. after five years, it’ll be mine i can sell at about half the original price. which means the actual cost on me is not about P6k/month i pay for it but just the interest at 7%/annum for using the vehicle. gas is free from my company, btw, and shoulders half of my annual insurance premium.

by next year, i will finish my condo payments. the excess funds will go straight first to my savings and probably allot some for investment

i can sock away like 60%-70% of income (after taxes)

any spare cash i have goes to investments…i havent bought any new clothes since Uni…got the same phone since Uni…everything nice i’ve gotten i’ve gotten from prezzies lol.

so with that article in the Asian Wall Street Journal i should be investing 75% of what? annual income?

it also doesn’t state WHERE that 75% should be invested in….the results will vary greatly IMO dpending on the asset class invested in.

Quite a tall order for me, 63%!! As of now i can only max out 35%. Maybe after 2 years paying off insurances, lot ammortization and loans i can play catching up with that.

But i think it’s not impossible once we get to manage putting into investment our savings and our hard asset/s made to earn profit as well.

Year 2008 is a tough ride financially, hope that 2009 will be for the better.

“Using that rule, I’m under-investing and spending too much on current concerns! That is, unless I count the money hubby and I are putting into our home.”

Good way of investing in the Phils. Pay for your home first. The YTM is worth it.

In the Phils. to keep investing for the future one must make sure that gains must AVERAGE IN REAL TERMS AT LEAST A YTM* that above the inflation rate. Headline and an individuals personal rate.

Example:

One will need four million pesos to equal the purchase a representative basket of goods that would have cost only one million pesos twenty years ago.

You can thank the so called economic managers of the country for that.

So if you intend to live here permanently make sure your YTM (yield to maturity)
capital gain plus income is from 15 - 20 % on average per year.

Do not trust finance companies and banks in the Philippines. Learn finance on your own and become a mini bank or landlord yourself.

That is the only feasible business model in the Philippines under the renteir model of economics in the country

I’m 34, a mother of 6 kids, ages between 13 and 1 & 5 months. Working on and off, and fortunately just got regularized on my current job, American BPO employer. No specific financial plans yet but aiming to be debt-free by the end of 2008. After paying debts (around 20K in all, credit card and personal, for both of us, excluding encyclopedia for 24 months) that will be the time to save, aiming to do it one step up at a time, until we reach the maximum percentage of like 50%-75% of MY fixed income. Scouting a place now to open a business, which the kids can also take part in day to day operations specially during vacations. Btw, husband has minimum pay, but maximum chances for incentives, I have great pay, no incentives, great benefits like maximum health care coverage for all of us, but doing sidelines with rackets requiring no capital at all, like a credit card agent and ESL tutor. Have to work real hard, spend only on needs and work harder so we can start to save. And with 6 kids, that will definitely be very hard and saving a sizable amount of money would be next to impossible, but it’s a big challenge for us! With God’s help, of course. Currently exploring options abroad, to speed up saving for the children’s college funds.

And I copied most of the financial ideas from here, with certain twists to fit my current situation. Thanks a lot!

i admire your courage and effort, audrys. Having 6 kids at this era is really a challenge for someone who is still accumulating wealth. Good luck and God bless. =D

It really is a hard climb, but we do intend to climb up! Thanks, ACN!

Hi Salve!

Would you mind explaining the rule further? I don’t quite get it yet. After getting the percentage, where do you apply it?

gross/net income?

somehow, I don’t get the logic behind the rule. Like say if you’re 30 now and earning 30,000 in a month. That means you’ll have to invest 21,000 (70%) for retirement. And at 65 when you’re suppose to be retiring already, you still have to save 35% of your income/pension?

Thank you.

8 Secrets of the Truly (no. 2)@ Free Personal Finance Site
The Pinoy Entrepreneur: Starting your own business

@mzkukuro, many insurance companies now sell insurance as an investment, but i would be very careful about fees, which are not transparent in insurance instruments. In general, I have heard personal finance professionals say that it is better not to mix insurance with investments.

@hvrds, thank you that is very informative. Finding 15% to 20% overall return is tough! Any tips?

@audrys, I definitely agree with ACN. Raising kids and thinking about their education and living in this day and age of spiraling prices AND thinking about retirement can be really tough! But you sure showed determination to do it, and i wish you all the luck and the patience :). Great work on the planning part.

@Sunjun, Rick and the rest: as with rules of thumb, this is a loose statement and is certainly not gospel. When we say investing for the long haul, that means aggressive investing and therefore should be concerned more about growth than stability. If you’re now 30, that means you invest 70% (roughly) of your investment funds for the long haul–maybe in stocks if your risk profile shows you have the capacity to handle that kind of risk, or in stock funds and other investments for long-term growth. The remaining 30% of your portfolio should be in more conservative investments for diversification. Thank you for the chance to clarify things

Hi Salve!

THanks for the explanation. ^^ I get it now ^^

pls, help,…i did start investing 4 my retirement at 40,7 years ago…I’m 47 years old at present,…

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