Is the Fund You Are Building for Retirement Enough

Is the Fund You Are Building for Retirement Enough? This is the question I posed to fellow OFW investors during our recent session.

In many instances, we are saving for our future goals without taking into account inflation. It is the same mistake I made 15 years ago when I started to save and invest.

It may sound basic but the reality is that many OFWs are not equipped with the enough information hence we end up retiring in poverty or barely surviving with our retirement fund. We should not forget that most OFWs do not have mandatory pension funds such as GSIS. And even we have SSS, it is barely enough for our basic needs.

Below is my suggested simple guidelines on how to calculate enough retirement fund.
1. Calculate years to retirement.
2. Get the current monthly lifestyle cost of your desired retirement. Apply CPI as inflation to get the future value of your desired retirement.
3. Get the number of years between your retirement and the usual life span of your family.
4. Determine how many months or years you want to save for it.
5. Calculate minimum monthly investment needed. Apply rule of 72 with the interest dependent on the financial instrument where you can invest your fund
6. Choose the best investment instrument for this goal. If more than 10 years, you may put in stocks - either direct or pooled funds (Mutual Fund or UITF).

This is just general guideline. You still need to sit down with someone who can help you calculate depending on your own circumstances.

Note that long term healthcare should be a separate fund from retirement fund. And we should not forget while building our retirement and long term healthcare that upon retirement, we will have more time for socials as well as become more sickly.

When I ask fellow OFSI members on the biggest challenges they face in building these funds - EXECUTION and CONSISTENCY come on top of the list....

So the key to success in building your funds lies in finding ways to be consistent and becoming biased for action!!!

Be Money Smart Everyone!!!

OFSI conducts another Passive Investing for Newbies

OFSI Newbie Session Batch 2

Philippines is the fastest growing economy in Asia. But the big question is how can we feel this growth. While the government has to do more in bringing this growth to the sector where there are more poor Filipinos, i.e. Agriculture sector, we as individuals can make our own initiatives. We can help create small businesses especially for returning OFWs. Meanwhile, I strongly believe that our fellow OFWs can start to invest in paper assets as we prepare to go home for good. Invest in the country for our retirement fund, long term healthcare and children's educational fund. But before that, we need to make sure that the foundation of our finances is strong before we start investing.

Today, thirty fellow OFWs had attended our session for newbies. It is a 6.5 hours session but this did not deter our attendees to be glued from the start to finish. It is such a humbling experience to be in front of our fellow OFWs who are all committed to learn and excited to start working on their finances and investments.

The response for our session is another testament that our advocacy for a Modern Day Bayanihan of OFWs is slowly making a dent to the people around us. Our group is committed to continue reaching out to those who wants to partner with us to be empowered and enabled in making better financial decisions.

A toast to a great retirement for fellow OFWs!!! And Congratulations to our Newbie Session batch 2. Cheers to our journey towards Financial Freedom and Abundance...

OFSI Volunteers while sis Aiki is giving Insurance Tips

Feeling Model :)

Attentive Attendees

Traditional Selfie

OFSI Newbie Session Batch 2

How can an OFW Start Investing

Meeting a fellow OFW before his vacation for tips and ideas.

I'm always asked how can an OFW start investing. Here's my 3 simple steps on how can you start fast and easy.

1.  Educate Yourself
There is no substitute to learning. Attend seminars and webinars. Read books and blogs. Learn!!!

2. Pay Off Your Debts
You want to invest? Pay your debts first. You can have debts if it is used for creating additional income.

3. Learn How to Save
Develop the habit of a saver. Make sure you save part of you salary every month.  Start with small amount - whatever is possible and challenge yourself to increase it every month.

If you are able to do these 3 simple steps then you are on your way to becoming a successful OFW Investor and hopefully a successful OFW Entrepreneur in the future.

Anyone can be an Investor and Entrepreneur!!!

Have a Purpose for your Investments