Coded Lux: Branded stuff you buy when you’re old money
Want to really blend in with old money, or the ultra-rich? Forget the Prada and Luis Vuitton and Gucci apparel. Those are more likely to mark you as a try-hard, rather than someone with the cultural sophistication to appreciate true artisans. The upper crust of society has always sought to differentiate itself from bourgeois tastes, […]
Retirement costs that are most likely to blindside you
Retirement costs are harder to predict than most of us imagine. Blame that on “coffee and eggs” planning, where we tend to create modest lists like $2 breakfasts, and little beyond three meals a day and an occasional $50 splurge. In reality, it’s possible to end up spending more during our retirement than during our […]
Going on my own solo travel tour…at age 62
Many of us have dreamed of fantasy getaways, or months-long tours around the world. This week, we met someone who struggled financially in her youth; but who was indeed a single-digit millionaire today. The downside? She was already near retirement by the time her finances turned around. The upside? She’s still energetic and healthy enough […]
How much can you afford to borrow for your home?
A common aspiration among Singaporeans is to upgrade to a private property; or to go from a condo to a landed home. In these instances, a common question is “How much can I afford to borrow?” There are two answers to this question: the first covers the actual financing limits, put in place by the […]
Surviving an online love scam
There’s a certain level of victim-blaming and prejudice when it comes to online love scams. But with these scams costing us $33.1 million as recently as 2020, and still on the rise, we can surmise it’s not just the “gullible and uneducated” who get caught. Scammers are getting more sophisticated every year, and are becoming […]
Rebuilding lost savings: the all-important first month
There inevitably comes a time when emergency funds, or related savings get wiped out. Some of us are cool cucumbers about this, and acknowledge that well – that’s what emergency savings are for. But for some of us – especially single-digit millionaires who may see much larger sums used up – the effect can be […]
Winning by not losing: is it a viable investment tactic?
If you’re not familiar with investing, then odds are you’ll default to the most common tactic: it’s called winning by not losing. This is a risk-averse approach, where you focus almost entirely on not losing money; but making money is relegated to a bit of an afterthought. As the old saying goes, a bird in […]