Plan for Your Retirement

Your Retirement
You are never too young or too old to plan for retirement.The earlier the better, but it is also better late than never.Nonetheless, it is desirable to inculcate the saving habit at a young age.In fact, saving should be part of your lifestyle.It is wise not to rely solely on your EPF as your retirement fund because you may not have enough in your account to provide you with a comfortable lifestyle.

Young adults normally do not think they are going to retire one day.Retirement is difficult for people of all ages. Even people in their 40s do not want to face the prospect of retirement. They have obligations – there is the house, the children’s education, the parents’ health care, and 1001 things to take care of first.

There is also the fear of the unknown. Not knowing what will happen to you when you are old may sometimes prevent you from taking stock of your financial welfare.You prefer to live for now rather than plan for the future.Perhaps you are afraid of being told that you are not on track when you start to plan for your retirement fund. You know that you have spent too much money, your income earning ability is not improving and you are not able to increase your savings.

If you start saving as soon as possible, you will be in better shape than you think you would be. If you have been regularly saving some money and cultivating saving habits,you will find it empowering for your personal self-worth.

Basics of retirement planning
As in any planning process, you need to know where you are at present:

• How much savings or assets do you have now?
• What is your monthly income?
• What is the percentage of your income contributed to EPF or other retirement plans?
• What rate of return do you want on your investments?
• How many years do you have until retirement to earn your money?

After analysing your current assets and liabilities, estimate your spending needs and adjust them for inflation. Then decide when you want to retire – at age 45, 55, 60 or 65?

Calculate the monthly retirement income needed for your desired retirement lifestyle.
Your retirement planning should include debt reduction, budgeting, diversifying investments and, believe it or not, maintaining good health through diet and regular exercise.

The question of health is vital during old age. Health costs can be a major expenditure and a drain on retirement savings. Even if you have medical and life insurance that covers critical illness and disability, this may not include all the procedures and prescriptions that you need to have.Sometimes certain illness are only partially covered or not at all covered under insurance benefits. Therefore, adequate retirement planning has to be done for maintaining and living a healthy life.

A balanced life
While money is necessary in today’s world, it is not everything. Do not make it the sole reason for what you do in your life. Health, family and spiritual wellbeing are
important elements that contribute to happiness. We should also make regular donations and give to the less fortunate to alleviate their hardships and misfortunes. It is very important to create a balance in your life.



By saving early in your adult life, you may find that you have enough to enjoy some of your money even before you actually retire.
source:money sense

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Debt Consolidation

Do you know your exact financial situation? If you find yourself falling into debt, you may not even have a clear idea of how many cards you owe money on, or the exact amount you owe to your creditors. Whether you are just beginning to rack up debt, or owe thousands, you should consider debt consolidation. The best place to go for debt consolidation advice is to experts with the knowledge to help you.

Debt consolidation entails taking out one loan to pay off many others.Debt consolidation is usually done to get a lower interest rate, a fixed interest rate or for the convenience of paying only one loan. The purpose of consolidating debts is to bring together all your existing credit card, store card, personal loan, and overdraft debts into one single loan.This simple restructuring allows the individual to get a better grasp and handle on his or her fiscal situation.

If you decide to consolidate your credit card debt, please make sure that you don't continue to spend on your credit cards, as many people fall into this trap.

The main advantage for debt consolidation loans over multiple lines of finance however, is that of the interest rate. The single loan will have a lower rate of interest than separate loans, and so will save you money, making the initial amount easier to pay off.

Below are some of the Pros and Cons of debt consolidation :

Pros

• Reduced interest rate.
• Lower monthly payments.
• Single monthly payment simplifies money management.
• All debts brought together with one lender.
• As long as the monthly payments are maintained, there nothing else to worry about.

Cons

• You will end up paying more in the long run.
• It will take you longer time to pay off your debts.
• It's easy to spend money saved from reduced payments.
• Could mean even more debt to consolidate at a later time.
• It addresses symptoms - not the causes of your debts.

Get your advice from a debt counselor who understands your situation and can make a plan that will work for you. If you follow their plan completely, you can find your way out of debt.

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Amanah Saham 1Malaysia

Our Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has just launched another Amanah Saham National Berhad's (ASNB)fund called Amanah Saham 1Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur today.

The fund size of Amanah Saham 1Malaysia is RM10 Billion and it's open to all Malaysians aged 18 years old and above.It is the biggest trust fund in Malaysia and will go on sale for 30 days, start from August 5 to September 9, 2009.

Besides that,the government has agreed to give a special gift for 50,000 first-year public university students--each of them will get 100 units of Amanah Saham 1Malaysia for free (totaling RM5million)!!Thanks to Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) and Amanah Saham Nasional Berhad (ASNB) agents - Malayan Banking Berhad, CIMB Bank Berhad, RHB Bank Berhad and Pos Malaysia Berhad for the contribution.The students eligible are those who had enrolled for their first degree recently in the mid-year intake in 2009.

To ensure that the units were fairly distributed, 50%(5 billion) of the units had been allocated to Bumiputras, 30%(3 billion) to the Chinese, 15%(1.5 billion) to the Indians and 5%(0.5 billion) to other races.After the 30-days sale period, the cap on purchase on unsold units would be lifted, and the sale would be open to all Malaysians above 18, regardless of race.

If you are interested to buy the units,go to your nearest branch of ASNB offices, Post Offices ,Maybank, CIMB Bank and RHB Bank during the operating hours of the banks.

For more information of Amanah Saham 1Malaysia,please visit the official site of ASNB.

How to Get Rid of Credit Card Debt

People tend to use their credit card for almost every expenditure from grocery, accessories, entertainment to children's toys.Sooner or later,they find themselves facing serious credit crunch and unable to pay back their debt.

Choose the Right Credit Card
Before you apply for a credit card, you have to make sure you understand the credit card terms and what a “credit card” really is. Being a form of borrowing that involves charges, credit cards usually have underlying credit terms and conditions affect your overall cost.So,before you apply for a credit card,please remember to compare terms and fees and agree to open an account.

Search for 0% APR(annual percentage rate) interest
When you apply for a credit card, you must know how the APR affects your credit account.Here is another way that can really help you to cut down the amount of interest that you pay each month on your credit cards.Get a credit card that has 0% APR(annual percentage rate) interest, and make sure that this benefit will last for at least one year.

Budgeting
A budget is the most fundamental and effective financial management tool to help control your spending. Budgeting can keep track of your finances and achieve your financial goal in the long run. Hence, setting up a good personal budget is vital to personal finance perspective as it will show you how much money you have spent and where you have spent it.Make a budget will guide you to spend less than you earn.

Stop using too many credit card
It's hard to get rid of debt if you keep using a lot of credit card.Although paying with a card seems convenient compared to carrying lots of cash,using your credit cards usually will only increase your debt problem and make it harder for you to control your finances.

Lastly,it’s tough to get out of credit card debt.However lots of peoples just like you have begun to cut their credit card debt by following the simple steps outlined above.If you are willing to put in the effort and spend some serious time thinking about how get rid of credit card debt,I believe you can get out of debt very soon.Good Luck.

Compound Interest

According to Wikipedia,compound interest is the concept of adding accumulated interest back to the principal, so that interest is earned on interest from that moment on.

In other word,earning additional interest on interest. Once you earn your first interest payment, it is added into the principal. It will allow your money to earn even more money over time. It is the most common type of payment you will earn by lending your money to a bank.

For example,say you had invested $1,000 today in a 5% savings account. You will have $1,050 after one year. However, in year two, that same initial investment would be worth $1,102.50. And in year three, the same $1,000 would be worth $1,157.63.After 10 years, the initial $1,000 investment would be worth $1,628.90 and after 20 years, it would be worth $2,653.30.What if by year 50,it woud be worth $1,1467.40.

This second example shows how the compounding effect can work against you.
Let say you want to borrow $5000.00 to purchase a used car. You want to be able find out how much the carry will cost you if you borrows the $5000.00 at an interest rate of 8% for 4 years. The amount that you actually paying for your $5000.00 is $6802.44.Thus,the total amount of interest you will be charged for borrowing the $5000.00 is $1802.44.

Can you the the the power of compound interest now??