Singapore personal finance, explained in plain English
How the numbers actually work: CPF interest, SRS tax relief, SGX dividend dates, and tracking your net worth. No jargon, no buy-or-sell tips, just clear explanations you can act on yourself.
How much CPF should you have at 35, 40 and 45?
There's no official benchmark by age, but there is honest arithmetic. Using the Full Retirement Sum as a yardstick, what your balance today implies at 55.
Are dividends taxable in Singapore?
SGX dividends and most REIT distributions arrive tax-free in your hands. Where tax does bite: foreign withholding, fund domicile, and SRS on the way out.
US dividend withholding tax for Singapore investors
Singapore has no US tax treaty, so US dividends are withheld at 30%. What the W-8BEN form really does, why the rate isn't reduced, and how it lowers your real yield.
CDP vs custodian account: how your SGX shares are held
Your SGX shares sit either in a CDP account in your own name or in a broker's custodian. The difference, and why it changes where your dividends land.
How to calculate your net worth in Singapore
Everything you own minus everything you owe, done right: how to handle CPF, value your HDB, count the mortgage once, and land on one honest S$ figure.
SGX payable date vs ex-date: a plain-English guide
Ex-date, record date, payable date: what each one means, why the payable date is the one that matters for your cash flow, and why it's so hard to find.
The December SRS top-up: how the tax break actually works
Why so many Singaporeans top up their SRS in the last weeks of the year, how the relief is calculated, and the deadline and caps to watch.
The CPF interest timing trap (and why your projection looks off)
CPF interest is computed on your lowest balance and credited once a year. Here's how that timing works, and why a naive projection overstates your balance.
How to track a multi-currency portfolio in Singapore dollars
US, UK and SGX holdings make your true position in SGD hard to read. Why FX distorts cost basis and dividends, and how to get one honest S$ number.
Track Endowus, StashAway and your brokerage in one view
Your money is scattered across robo-advisors, a brokerage, SGX and CPF, and no single app shows the whole picture. How to consolidate it into one net-worth view.
SRS withdrawal rules: tax, timing and the 10-year window
When you can take money out of SRS, how much is taxed, the 5% early penalty, and why spreading withdrawals over 10 years is the real planning lever.
Don't miss your home loan reprice deadline
When your fixed rate ends, the loan can quietly roll onto a higher rate. How repricing and refinancing differ, and how to track your lock-in expiry in time.
Do you pay capital gains tax on stocks in Singapore?
Singapore has no capital gains tax, so share profits are generally untaxed. The plain-English version, the trading exception, and what it means for tracking.