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Ever since the CPFB introduced a colorful pie chart of our CPF savings a few years ago, I would look forward to mine every year like a teenager would wait in line for a cup of bubble tea.
Do you know that bubble tea is wealth and health destruction incarnate?
Expensive carbohydrate and sugar.
Expensive empty calories.
Oops, I digress.
So, what does my CPF pie look like?
It looks different from previous years.
I shouldn't say "it" because this year we get more than one pie.
I prefer the old pie because it looked cheerful with bright colors.
These new ones look really dull.
Anyway, I will just show the first pie:
Are you disappointed?
Oh, you are but not with the colors of the pie but with the numbers?
Right, where is the one million dollars AK hinted at in the blog title?
Well, this is where AK got tricky.
Some of you might have guessed it.
Voluntary contribution of $37,740 this month to my CPF account means I have more than one million dollars in CPF savings now!
Maybe, AK is an overgrown hobbit.
"Stupid hobbitses, tricksy hobbitses."
Gollum reads Donald Trump's tweets:
Yes, I know.
Bad AK! Bad AK!
My CPF savings in January 2021:
Total:
$1,012,703.70
Hurrah!
We know of 1M65 which is to have one million dollars in CPF savings by age 65.
We might also have heard of people who have accumulated one million dollars in CPF savings before age 65 and now AK is one of them.
AK is 50 this year.
AK is 50 this year.
So, AK is a 1M50 CPF millionaire!
Technically, AK is a 1M49 CPF millionaire as he is a year end baby but 1M50 looks more wholesome.
So, 1M50 it is.
Anyway, 49 or 50, eh, who cares?
Indeed, I would argue that it doesn't really matter if it is 1M50, 1M55, 1M60 or 1M65.
I said before that the journey to financial freedom is not a race and as long as we achieve financial freedom, we win.
The same spirit should be applied to growing our CPF savings as just like the quest to achieve financial freedom, each of us could go at a different speed because each of us have our own circumstances to deal with.
Think of it as a rewarding journey that should provide some pleasure along the way.
No pressure, just pleasure.
As long as we are doing the right things as much as we can, we should give ourselves a pat on the back.
Growing my CPF savings over the years has been very satisfying and although I can only see the pie now, I will get to eat it one day.
Growing old is definitely not all doom and gloom if we are well prepared and we should help the CPF to help ourselves.
If we have not done so, start now.
Stay the course and, over time, we will see results.
Remember, compound interest might seem like magic but it really is simple math.
We don't have to be talented like Harry Potter to make it work for us.
If AK can do it, so can you!
AK says one hor. ;)
Related posts:
Recently published:
Bloggy Award
51 comments:
Happy New Year, congrats on being 1M50!! Would like to thank you for talking about CPF, lots of gem in this blog of yours and I'm also starting on my 1MXX journey.
I have been topping up my parents and OWN SA to the MAX 7k and transferred some OA to SA. As I would be buying a house soon, I won't be transferring all of my OA. What are your opinions of the type of housing that one shld get? Buy expensive first then downgrade ltr on in life?
Happy New Year 2021. Congratulationss on being 1M50, you have great discipline and good heart to share. I hope the readers can learn, follow and put their effort to improve their retirement funds aka CPF.
Congrats an important financial milestone. AK well done!
Hi CupcakedCrusader,
What type of housing to get?
Alamak, this one so personal.
I share a few blogs with you and you ownself decide for ownself, ok? ;p
1. Why did I choose to stay in a condo?
2. More passive income than richer friends.
3. Buying a property: Affordability or value for money?
4. Big loan to buy condo and CPF not enough?
5. Pay off home loan and hit MS ASAP?
I might have missed a few but these should be good for a start.
You can find more in the right sidebar of my blog under the heading:
"Wealth Creation: Investing in Real Estate."
Anyway, it is always good to have company on our 1MXX journey. :D
Gambatte and happy new year! :D
Hi PCB Guy and Siew Mun,
Thank you for the encouraging comments. :D
I will be very happy if my sharing inspires more to help their CPF savings to help themselves.
If something is worth doing, it is worth doing well and this is definitely worth doing.
Happy new year and huat ah! :D
GXGX AK71 for your CPF.. You wrote that you VC > $37K..Do you know the max we can contribute to CPF annually?
Thank you Ak, you encouraged me to become 1M55 in Sep 2020. I began with $8,900 in my bank account in 2014, your blog inspired me towards 1M55 with some windfall. I chose to retain and refund all my money to CPF from enbloc sales in 2017. The journey was challenging with temptations along the way. Enjoyed and experienced alot thru out the journey. Once again thank you!
Hi AK. Congratulations on becoming a millionaire! Thank you for sharing your knowledge. I have been topping up my SA since I chanced by your blog 5 years ago. As of today, my SA has reached the FRS. Now I'll wait for compounding to work it's magic. Hopefully I will have a job that allows me to continue contributing to my SA.
Hi Ak, congrats on your great achievement 1M49 and cracking the CPF code. Can i ask how come your OA is so high at $600K plus. Majority pple would use the OA to fund their property mortage. Did you sell your property and money (amount used to fund property plus accrued interest was refunded back to OA. Your SA would exceeded the ERS ($279K), what is your strategy when reached 55? Shield SA and use main bulk of OA fund plus SA (40K) or cash top up plus SA (40k)? can share your strategy?
i suppose u are fortunate to cash out from your inherited pte property and use some cash to buy a smaller pte property and do both vc and mc to cpf accounts to grow cpf faster
May know why your cpf ma 61k++ can exceed the bhs sum 60k for year 2020? funny?
May know why your cpf ma 61k++ can exceed the bhs sum 60k for year 2020? funny?
Hi GlobalPassiveIncome,
Thank you. :)
The CPF Annual Contribution Limit (Mandatory + Voluntary) is $37,740 this year.
I shared the source recently in this blog in case you missed it:
4Q 2020 passive income.
Hi Siew Mun,
I always enjoy your sharing. :D
Your CPF journey is an inspiration to every CPF member, especially those who might think they are late in realizing what a good financial product the CPF actually is.
Some will remain suspicious including some of my family members (sadly) but it is their money and their choice to make.
Oh, I know temptations and I used to be very hard on myself but I have become somewhat more indulgent in my "old age."
See:
Spent money and now will spend more time.
and
Passive income from 2015 all gone!
LOL. ;p
I think I have become less tight fisted with money in the last few years.
Have to learn to enjoy life a bit more.
Come, join me in Neverwinter!
Yes, I know.
Bad AK! Bad AK!. ;p
Hi JJ,
Thank you and congratulations on hitting the FRS in your SA.
Yes, once your SA hits the FRS, you cannot do top ups anymore but a portion of your mandatory contribution from employment will still go to your SA.
Of course, you can also consider doing voluntary contribution if conditions allow.
Good luck to all of us and happy new year! :D
Reference:
4 ways to beef up our CPF savings.
Hi Investminds,
You will find the answer in this blog entry made at the start of 2015 almost 6 years ago:
How did AK amass so much money in his CPF-OA?
At the time, I had only $382,360.21 in my CPF-OA.
As for turning 55, that is more than 5 years away and I don't know if the rules will change.
However, if the rules do not change, I will very likely shield my SA and let the bulk of my RA be formed by money from my OA.
I shared the article from The Straits Times by Ms. Lorna Tan published in October 2019 on how she did this.
There is also the option of doing OA shielding too which means that there will only be $60,000 in my RA at age 55 but this would require me to top up my RA with cash on hand.
I am not sure that by that time I would have so much spare cash on hand to top up my RA to the prevailing FRS.
After all, I have not been economically active in the last 5 years and I probably won't be economically active in the next 5 years.
Anyway, will think about this more when the time comes and I might blog about it then. :)
References:
1. Withdrawing CPF savings: How much and how? (Maximising CPF savings and returns?)
2. How much passive income do I need?
Hi tong,
I did not inherit any property.
You might want to read this blog to know my story:
Why did I choose to stay in a condo?
I did VCs to max out the CPF annual contribution limit allowed yearly but there was no MC involved for many years as I retired from work in the year I became 45 years of age.
As for having $61K+ in my MA as shown in the pie chart, that was after interest earned in 2020 was included at the end of December.
On 1 January 2021, the balance in the MA would have been $60K as any excess would have been transferred to my OA (as my SA has exceeded the prevailing FRS) but it is shown as $63K in this blog because I did VC3A on 1 January.
At the end of 2021, I will probably see my MA amount higher than $63K (i.e. the BHS for 2021) because of interest earned in the year.
All clear now, I hope. :)
Congrats Ak, another milestone.
i wish for more blogs from AK this year.
Hi SgFire,
Thank you. :)
More blogs from AK this year?
I will most probably disappoint as blogging more is not one of my resolutions for the new year.
Yes, I know.
Bad AK! Bad AK! ;p
Hi AK,
Just curious...I notice your total CPF balance as at 31 Dec 2020 was 974,963.70 which I think is excl. CPF interest earned in 2020 as this is normally credited on 1 Jan 2021. Your total CPF balance on 1 Jan 2021 after contributing 37,740 is 1,012,703.70
What happened to the 2020 earned CPF interest which in your case is easily more than 30k.
Hi KT,
Oh, I think the CPF balance on 31 Dec 2020 was inclusive of interest earned in 2020 which I blogged about earlier.
See:
Interest income from CPF in 2020.
If we add this to my CPF balance at the start of 2020 together with VC in the same year, it becomes clearer.
See:
2019 CPF savings in a pie.
and
Voluntary contributions to CPF in 2020.
I hope I am not delusional. O_o
Hi EX,
It depends. :)
If we are very savvy when in comes to investing in stocks, then, investing could be more rewarding.
However, for the vast majority of the population, I believe going for the low hanging fruit that is the CPF first is probably a good enough option especially when (for those below the age of 55) topping up the CPF-SA (for the first $7K each year) will attract income tax relief which is an immediate financial gain for workers who have to pay income tax.
For someone who wishes to build his SA savings but has limited cash or does not wish to use cash, OA to SA transfer is an undemanding option worth considering but this will not be eligible for income tax relief.
OA to SA transfer was something I did in the first 4 years of my working life.
See:
How to upsize $100K to $225K in 20 years? Oppa AK style!
You might also be interested in these blogs:
1. How to turn $60K into $332K?
2. Investors eat crusty bread with ink for peace of mind.
3. CPF is all we need unless we are very rich.
4. How to grow our CPF savings?
Hi AK,
thank you for your generous sharings and talking to yourself. You have inspired me since many years ago, and i started topping up my SA a couple of years ago. have done some OA to SA transfers, and topped up MA as well! now 0.2M35. lol. nothing to shout about, but it's a start!
thanks again for your sharings and may 2021 be huat & healthy for all!
Hi Deet,
ASSI is here to inspire and I am happy that it has worked for you. :D
As long as we are all moving in the right direction, sooner or later, we will reach the goal.
Moving in the right direction is more important than moving fast.
So, give yourself a pat on the back!
Happy and healthy 2021 and, yes, huat ah! :D
Congrats on achieving your 1M 49/50 journey... Inspiration to all... And like you I really prefer the old pie...
Hi T.H.I.R.T.E.E.N,
Thank you and I am glad you are inspired. :)
The old pie looked so cheerful, like it was made of custard and raspberry jam. :D
This new pie has a yucky green color as if the pie has gone bad. O_o
I also like to have all the info consolidated instead of being split up into 3 pies.
Less is more. ;p
congrats on achieving 1M by 50.
1M Anything also can, as long as not 1MDB! haha :D
Hi EOTS,
Thank you. :)
I like your "1M Anything" very much! :D
1MDB?
Alamak, 1M goes to DB cham liao lah.
No wonder 1MDB habis. ;p
Congrats AK. You're the 1st self-made millionaire I met here, without inheritance or daddy's $.
Have to thank you for talking to yourself on ASSI, the CPF code was the best I unlocked. Used this to scare the living daylight out of many peers too - the accrued interest on their OA that was used to pay for housing loans. hehehehehe. Bad SnOOpy that is hoping around happily too.
Was to touch the ERS on my 50th last month, as a gift to myself. After adding the interest from FY2020, I just missed the mark by a bit due to the Annual Limit cap. My consolation looking at your pie chart, 1 of the 3 accounts, we are equal hehehehe. MS for sure. The others? Trying hard to narrow the SA gap, just for fun. Not giving up on the OA portion, even thought I am 遥远的一万八千里 .
For our sake, Le Noblesse Oblige, please keep talking to yourself regularly. :-)
hi ak.. assuming we already hit frs, shld we focus on refunding our cpf oa + accrued interest used for housing? even before investing if we r unable to beat at least 5% (2.5+2.5) return ?
Hi SnOOpy168,
I decided to publish my main reply to your comment as a blog.
Akan datang! :)
From your comment on inheritance and my time spent with my parents on Sunday, I had a few things to say which might poke some readers. ;p
What I want to say about my blogging frequency should also reach as many readers as possible. :)
Congratulations on just having a little bit more to go before you hit ERS! :D
Hi Chenheyuan87,
Coincidentally, thanks to SnOOpy168's latest comment, I am going to touch on that topic in my next blog.
The opportunity cost for using our CPF-OA savings for housing is huge. O_o
Hi AK
Every year this time whenever I see my CPF statement, I want to say my biggest thanks to you and your wonderful blog. Best decision made to follow your advice then to bulk transfer from OA to SA.
Though I have yet to hit 1M and probably still a long way to go the current amount will allow me to hit ERS when 55 years come.
Thank you!
Blog reply published:
Parents' CPF, voluntary refund to CPF and don't do silly things.
Kamsiah plenty plenty everybody. :)
Hi pirate,
I am so happy that it has worked out well for you.
OA to SA transfer is an undemanding and effective way to help boost retirement funding adequacy for those who don't have any other use for their OA savings.
I like that the government is working hard to help fund our retirement. ;p
ERS55! Gong xi gong xi! Huat ah! :D
Reference:
How to upsize $100K to $225 in 20 years?
Congrats AK! I am also one of the beneficiary of your CPF write ups. You deserve a national medal for helping so many of your readers realise the potential of CPF pot. Thank you!
Hi Winnie,
Sharing my CPF story has been lots of fun for me.
I am glad that my story telling has helped you and some other readers along the way. :)
National medal?
If it is one of those made out of dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa) and gold color foil, I will accept. ;p
Hahaha.. so practical as always :)
Hi Winnie,
I always ask, "Simi lai eh, can eat or not?"
Just to be sure. ;p
Hi ak,
It's very inspiring.
Hope I can too, 1M50
But in EPF lol...
Anyway, thank you for talking to yourself.
Hi sid,
That is all AK is good for, really, and that is to inspire others to be financially prudent and to work towards financial freedom.
I am very happy you are inspired and thank you for letting me know. :D
Gambatte! :D
Hi AK
What happens when I contribute the max 37K+ VC in January and still work throughout the year?
What would happen to the monthly contribution from my employer and myself - does it get refunded to myself in cash or added on to my CPF?
Hi Avant,
Our mandatory contributions (i.e. contributions from employment) and voluntary contributions in total cannot exceed the CPF Annual Contribution Limit which is $37,740, if I remember correctly.
Any excess contribution will be refunded without interest.
Hi AK,
Have been a silent reader of your posts.
I have a question on your CPF allocation. I noticed that you have a higher weightage of OA as compare to SA. Why don't you transfer your excess OA funds to SA to earn a higher interest?
Or is there a reason for you to keep a higher weightage in OA funds rather than SA funds?
Hi reggrg,
Once our SA has hit the prevailing FRS, OA to SA transfer is not allowed. ;)
You might want to read these blogs:
1. Know how to grow our CPF savings.
2. 4 ways to beef up our CPF savings.
The updated CPF ruling announced on 1st Nov. I am still blur
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/five-changes-to-cpf-rules
So, come 1st Jan 2022. I can only VC $8k to MA for tax relief. the rest is status quo ?
I hoped they will consider lifting the cap on MA - I damm scared the med insurance and deductible will be very steep when my time comes.
Blog on CPF Amendment Bill 2021 published:
CPF Amendment Bill 2021 and AK talks to himself.
Hi AK, Happy New Year! A quick update on my target I mentioned in March last year! I just attained 1M48 today with top up of 3k Medisave! My wife should be hitting her 1M48 too next few months. Thank you for inspiring us. ��
Hi Staerfeldt,
1M48 CPF millionaire! Hurrah!
Always happy to read comments like yours. :D
Yes, all I can do is to inspire my readers.
What they do after is up to them. :)
Happy New Year! :D
P.S. Try to inspire the stubborn horses around you too, ok? ;)
Reference:
A river called CPF and the stubborn horses.
Hi AK,
Yup, my wife used to be one of those horses but glad she chose to follow what I did :p
Glad to update she attained her 1M48 as well & we hit 2M48 combined. We were fortunate to be hitting the AWC very early in our career and had not the need to go through many hoops, only regret was not transferring OA to SA before hitting FRS.
Our original plan was to contribute max CPF until 55 and then just let it compound after. Assuming if I have streams of passive income post 55, why not pump max into CPF post 55, and using it like any other bank - I don’t mind a bit of delay in getting funds.
What are your thoughts? Will u continue to top up ur CPF post 55 & use it like a bank? :)
Thank you.
Staerfeldt
Hi Staerfeldt,
Congratulations to both of you! :D
Although I plan on doing VC till age 55, I am not sure if I would do it beyond age 55.
See:
CPF can be our best friend.
Will cross the bridge when I come to it. :)
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