Last Updated on 23, November 2015
A recent poll conducted jointly by DBS and Straits Times reveal that:
- 48% have not even started planning for retirement.
- Among the remaining 52% who said they have started planning for their golden years but felt that it may not be enough.
In addition, the top concern is not having enough sources of passive income, followed by outliving one's savings, and inflation.
In a second poll also conducted by DBS & Straits Times, 40% wished they had started planning and saving when they were younger. About 20 per cent wished someone had shown them the way, and about one in 10 said they should have spent less and saved more.
Comments:
The survey results reinforce past survey findings that there is a strongly retirement gap in Singapore. I don’t think anyone wants to work throughout their lives but at the rate many Singaporeans are going, it is likely retirement is merely an illusion.
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xyz says
hmmm ST didn’t reveal the age groups of the respondents. Usually most people don’t think about retirement planning until 35 or older. Especially Sinkie guys who start their real working lives relatively late at 25.
The survey also reveal that having a plan & saving may not yield you a secure retirement:-
Although 83% of retirees polled said they consciously planned & saved for their retirement, but yet only less than half are confident of having enough money to last their retirement.
A large proportion (46%) also mentioned having to rely on other family members to provide a portion of their retirement funding.
My gut feel is that no more than 20% of retirees are truly financially independent enough to retire. The other 80% of so-called retirees are dependent on their children giving them “pocket money” else they would have to work until they drop dead.
And I think this will still be the reality for the current generation of existing workers.
Pierre says
Most of these surveys are not independent -i.e. run by some insurance firms or advisors or financial cos.
If the survey shows 100% planned and happy, they’ll be out of business.
It would be helpful for this site if there are more discussion on the available products and insurance plans out there (annuities, UL etc). If these does not breach any regulations or create problems.
Cut long story short: benefit the reader here. Maybe help reader to contact website creator for further advice.
Wilfred Ling says
You can always post your question here: https://consultwho.sg/questions
For a more detailed response, you need to engage the service of a financial adviser.
Kevin says
I strongly advise anyone reading this to consider meeting up with Wilfred and giving him a chance to work with you to plan for your finances.
I am a financial adviser just like Wilfred. I am a Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC), Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU), Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), and would be a Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) middle of 2016 if I pass my last test. I graduated from NUS being on Deans list a few times (majoring in Finance and minoring in Financial Mathematics). I will probably be leaving the financial advisory business soon. The reason is because I cannot survive in this industry because I do not have enough clients supporting me.
I believe that with my departure, the industry would have lost another financial advisor (one of a small handful based on my 8 years experience in this industry) who is equipped to give good quality advice. If you guys who are reading this do not support Wilfred, then I fear that the industry may lose another capable financial advisor.
I am not exaggerating when I say that Wilfred is probably the most knowledgible financial advisor that I have known in my last 8 years in the business. 90% of them call themselves advisors but are more like product salesmen/women.
xyz says
The irony is that if you had joined a major bank 8 years ago, by now your basic monthly pay should be about $15K. If you think I’m BS-ing, I have some relatives with soft degrees (e.g. humanities, psychology) who are now earning $10K – $12K salaries in banks after 8-10 yrs experience.
testchoices says
Hi Kevin, I’m Ian, part of the team at consultwho.sg. We aim to raise the profile of top advisers in the industry through our own platform, and partnerships with Yahoo and Asiaone. You are exactly the type of person I am looking for but there is no way for me to contact you here, so please drop me an email at [email protected]