Financial Wellness
Financial wellness plays an important role in active ageing as it allows seniors to be in control of their finances and plan for their silver years.
Definition
Financial Wellness is about having an understanding of your financial situation and taking care of it in preparation and anticipation of any financial changes.
This dimension of wellness plays an important role in active ageing as it allows you to be in control of your finances and plan for your silver years.
Stretching your retirement funds
During retirement, it is important to manage your funds wisely. Do make sure to focus on maintaining a healthy and active lifestyle with a balance of social activities to keep you occupied and spend time more meaningfully.
To keep track of your finances, plan a budget. This will help to track your retirement income as well as your expenses. Your retirement income may depend on different forms of regular or passive income as well as withdrawals from your savings.
1) Income
- CPF LIFE which provides Singapore citizens and Permanent Residents with a monthly payout from your Drawdown age (DDA) for as long as you live.
- HDB Lease Buyback Scheme – Additional monetisation option to help elderly households in smaller flats to unlock part of their housing equity while continuing to live in their homes and receive a lifelong income stream to supplement their retirement income
- Silver Housing Bonus – Bonus to elderly households supplement their income when they right-size their flat
- Dividends from stocks or shares (blue chip, low-risk shares)
- Rental income from properties
2) Withdrawals from savings
The budget can be used to manage and track your spending too. If you are spending your retirement funds too quickly, reduce some of the unnecessary expenses.
Here are some tips:
- Develop a budget and include savings in the budget - keeping a record of expenditure would help you manage your funds better
- Make full use of concessions for seniors, where possible
- Use public transport like buses or trains
- Instead of high teas at restaurants, invite your friends over for pot-luck.
- Attend social activities at the neighbourhood Community Centres (CCs).
- Make or bake gifts for your friends and family instead of buying them expensive gifts.
