General Election 2006

You can get information on the general election held in 2006 here, www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx. This is useful to compare against the results of the next election to be held soon.

Brief summary:
The 2006 Singapore parliamentary general election was held on 6 May 2006. 1.22 million out of the 2.16 million eligible Singaporeans voted for Members of Parliament and elected their next government. The People's Action Party (PAP), in its first election under Lee Hsien Loong, won 66.6% of the overall votes and gained 82 out of 84 seats. The PAP returned for a twelfth consecutive term in office under thePrime Minister.


The general election was held under the first-past-the-post system. The parliament was dissolved by President S R Nathan on 20 April, three weeks before the election. On Nomination Day, the PAP gained 37 seats in divisions which were uncontested by other parties. The main election issues included employment, cost of living, housing, transport, education, the need for an effective opposition voice in parliament, and the quality of the candidates.

High paying home jobs

http://www.focus.com/fyi/finance/highest-paying-work-home-jobs/

1. web software engineer
2. financial planner
3. public relations professional
4. interpreter or translator
5. inside sales
6. technical writer
7. property manager
8. graphic designer
9. medical claim processor
10. travel agent

My observation
Technology has made it possible for more jobs to be done from home. You are paid for the work done, rather than for the time spent in the workplace.

Gold - a bubble?

Gold as the “ultimate bubble”

George Soros has repeatedly warned that gold is locked in the “ultimate bubble”,

and told investors it was “certainly not safe” in troubled times.

So why does his fund own so much of it?

http://blogs.reuters.com/great-debate/2010/09/30/gold-as-the-ultimate-bubble/

Mobile phones

This infographic shows the popularity of various types of mobile phones.

85% of Americans own a mobile phone
25% of these are smart phones (i.e. 21% of Americans)

Within the smart phone market, the share is:

Blackberry - 35%
Apple - 28%
Windows - 15%
Android - 14%

Apple and Android saw increase in market share (over 2009). The other phones saw a drop in market share.

Case study - excessive deduction under investment linked policy

Here is a case study of an investment-linked policy that takes away 65% of the accumulated savings of the young policyholder. This is shocking. It is excessive, and is ripping of the consumer.
www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

Case study: Poor yield on investment linked policy

This is the case of a young person who bought an investment linked policy from a life insurance company that has been very active in promoting this policy. The policy provides a poor yield. www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

My observation
Here is my advice to young people, especially those who have just started work. You will be approached by your friends, or your friend's friend, to buy an investment-linked policy, or a whole life policy with premiums payable for 10 or 15 years. You will be told that this is a good policy for financial planning.
Be careful. These policies will take away a large part of your future savings and leave little for you. You will be giving away your future financial security for the benefit of other people.

Read my book on Financial Planning (available at www.tankinlian.com/ishop) or attend the educational talk conducted by FISCA (see www.fisca.sg).

Top 100 billionaires - Forbes Magazine

Type of industry:
26 - finance (hedge funds, investments, leveraged buyouts)
17 - consumer goods (Walmart, Estee lauder, etc)
13 - media and IT

Male 93
Female 7
Average age 64.7

http://www.smh.com.au/money/on-the-money/blogs/savvy-investor/moneys-funny/20100927-15st0.html

What is good customer service?

1. Commit to quality service
2. Know your products
3. Know your customers
4. Treat people with courtesy and respect.
5. Never argue with a customer
6. don't leave customers in limbo
7. Always provide what you promise.
8. Assume that your customers tell the truty.
9. Focus on making customers - not on sale
10. Make it easy to buy

View the infographics in www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.
See how different industries and companies rank in customer service.

Casino: Promises not kept

A blogger had said that the promises given by the government on the two casinos were not kept. Do you agree with this view? Go to www.easyapps/sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

IPO of GIC Fund

Mr. Tan,
I found the prospectus of the IPO document in MAS Opera.  I will not be commenting on it as I don't have the stamina to go through the 540 page doc.  Looks like it is primarily China and Japan properties.  GIC supposedly said that they are positive properties so I am not sure why they sell the portfolio.  Maybe they have better use of the funds? By the way, it is not a REIT structure.  Dividend payment at managers discretion.  My hunch is that GIC is looking to make management fees from other than the Singapore Government.

Choosing the right mortage

Read these tips.

Advice given in my book on Financial Planning

• Property should be within 5 years of family income (less cost of employing a maid)
• Repay the loan within 25 years
• Monthly repayment (including withdrawal from CPF) to be less than 25% of family income 

My advice is - buy a lower price property that you can service comfortably. It can be smaller or outside of the prime areas. If not, rent a property.

Telemarketing calls

Telemarketing calls can be irritating. It can also incur cost to the consumer who is overseas. Here is the experience of a consumer who ask for the calls to be stopped and for the roaming charges to be reimbursed.
www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Robberies in the early morning

Read this message from the Police. I suspect that there is an increase of crime due to the large number of foreigners in Singapore and the difficult economic situation affecting some groups of people. I wonder if the losses of customers visiting the casinos also contribute to this situation?

www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx

Subscribe to SGE portal and TKL website

You can follow these instructions to subscribe to Singapore General Election Portal using Google Reader.

www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx

Subway on the street

New York City has introduced a new concept of uses buses that can travel fast and have short waiting time to load and unload passengers. They are using the concepts of the subway - prepaid fares and dedicated bus lanes. The cost of this system is less than 1% of the subway system. It can be implemented in a short time (compared to years to build a subway line). The bus service Bx12 in New York has proven to be successful. It is well received by commuters and has fast travelling time. Source; New York magazine.

Read www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

GIC IPO

A consumer asks for my views about whether the IPO from the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation, that is expected to be launched soon. Is this a good investment? I am not able to give an opinion. I asked an analyst to make a summary of the investment.

www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

DBS Vitamin Account

The Vitamin account is a structured product. An investor invested $40,000 in October 2005. On the maturity date in October 2011 (5 years), the investor will receive the full principal plus the performance of the underlying references (which amounts to NIL). During the 5 years, the investor obtained a total payout of 4.1099% or about 0.8% per year. This is a poor yield for an investment that is locked up for 5 years. It is a structured equity-linked product.

Many investors had invested in structured products, such as the Vitamin account, for 5 years and received a paltry return. It is advisable for investors to avoid all types of structured products, including the capital guaranteed, capital protected, equity-linked, currency-linked or credit-linked products. The experience of nearly all the products issued by the banks over the past ten years had been disappointing.

Termination of Private Shield

I terminated my Incomeshield as I preferred to be insured under basic Medishield. I received this letter from NTUC Income:

"If the insured is also covered in the integrated plan and the policy is terminating without switching to another insurer or change, of plan .... the insured will continue to be insured under the MediShield scheme with th eCPF Board, as long as he/she is eligble for the scheme. The MediShield cover willbe renewed automatically each year after the premium is deducted from the Medisave account".

In short, the transfer to Medishield is automatic. If the insured wishes to terminate the MediShield cover, a separate termination form has to be submitted to the CPF Board.

By-election in Ang Mo Kio

Will a by-election be held in Ang Mo Kio to find a new MP to take over from Dr. Balaji? Read the view from the Prime Minister in www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Dr. Balaji made a great sacrifice

Goh Chok Tong's letter to the family of Dr. Balaji.

CPF Investment Scheme

A CPF members can invest the savings in the ordinary and special account under the CPF Investment scheme to earn a better yield (hopefully) compared to the interest paid by the CPF. Here are some details of this scheme.
www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

From 1 January 2011, the approved funds must meet the following 4 criteria:

•          Lower expense ratios
•          3 per cent cap on sales charges
•          Three-year track record
•          Top-quartile performance ranking among their global peers.

Poor customer service

Telephone operators have too many customers and too many products and insufficient staff to provide customer service. Here are some complaints: www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx
.

Banking services

Nine things your banker won;t tell you.


1. Your whole deposit isn’t available immediately

2. A post-date on a check means nothing

3. Fees are the big money maker

4. You can get some fees waived – just ask

5. Your refusal to opt in for “overdraft protection” doesn’t apply to checks

6. Your online account information may not be accurate

7. Bankers are salespeople

8. You should shop around for financial products and services

9. The system is likely to decide on your loan application

The most important advice is - shop around for financial products and services, including insurance policies. Make sure that you compare like with like. Do not buy any "special product that is offered to you - they usually over charge the consumer and make a bigger profit for the issuer and the distributor!

Attract attention to your website

Here are a few tips to attract attention to the website:

Search engine
Guest post
Regular updates
Credibility
Simplicity

My blog (www.tankinlian.blogspot.com) and website (www.tankinlian.com) has most of these features.

Retirees duped by structured notes

Read this report.

It explains the situation in America. The banks are held accountable for selling structured notes without explaining the risks to elderly investors. If a similar approach is taken in Singapore, many people would have been compensated for their losses.

Corporate Manual Portal

The Corporate Manual Portal is now launched. It can be accessed at the Easysearch portal, www.easysearch.sg.

The home page gives instructions of how you can access the Demonstration Company, by entering the user ID (DC0, DC1, DC2, DC3). The password is 123456.

The Guide can be found here.

Rebuild the trust in life insurance companies

Dear Mr. Tan,
Are you afraid about offending the insurance companies and their agents by talking about life insurance policies that take away too much of the savings? I know that certain people are monitoring your blog.

REPLY
I intend that the messages in my blog go to the top managers and agents of the life insurance companies. I hope that they will be educated about the fine line between making an honest profit and cheating their policyholders. If they know the difference, perhaps they will introduce new insurance plans that give a better deal to their policyholders, rather than surreptitiously take away too much. It is important that life insurance companies uphold the image that they can be trusted to take care of their policyholders.

Ranking of Nanyang Technological University

Survey: If you have any views about the reason for the drop in ranking, please reply in this survey.


Dear Mr. Tan
Would you like to conduct a survey on NTU’s dramatic drop in university ranking? The following questions may be asked.
1) Who caused the dramatic drop in ranking
a) The management
b) The academic staff
c) The non-academic staff
d) The students


2) What can be done about it?

REPLY
According to the newspaper report, the drop in ranking is due to the change in criteria. Perhaps, there are some internal factors in the university that may account for the ranking. Let me invite views from readers of my blog.

Half truths about Life Insurance [2]

An insurance agent is highly trained to use emotional and other reasons to persuade a consumer to buy a life insurance policy that gives a poor yield for the years of savings. Some of these reasons are half truths. Be aware about these half truths. Search for "half truths" in www.tankinlian.com/ask.aspx.

Whole life policy with multiple benefit coverage

An insurance company may introduce a new policy with special features, but the consumer should not be distracted by these frills that they overlook the high cost of the main policy (as reflected by the high deduction from the accumulated premiums).

Read www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

Dr. Balaji

Letter from the Prime Minister

I send my personal condolence to the family of Dr. S Balaji.

Tan Kin Lian

Activate a credit card

I received a new POSB credit card to replace the previous card. The mailer asked me to "Activate the card immediately". I search for instructions in the mailer on how to activate the card. There was no such instruction. Why does a bank give instructions that are confusing to the customers?

Bus to Speaker's Corner

I had to give a talk on financial planning at SMU and then proceed immediately to Speaker's Corner to give my talk on "Minimum Wage". I did not want to drive there, due to difficulty in finding a parking space. I hesitated to take a taxi, as they might not be available during certain hours of the day. (Yes, our taxi service is not reliable).

I finally decided to take a bus, but was not sure which bus to take. I searched Google Map on my smartphone and learned that Service 33 is available for this stretch. While waiting for this bus, another bus came along. I asked the driver, who told me that the bus will pass Hong Lim Park. It was quite easy to take the bus
.

I am quite sad that the public transport system in Singapore is quite complicated and unreliable. I wish that the Land Transport Authority will take the lead to make it easier for people to move around.

Train announcements

The SMRT has introduced a jingle to announce the arrival of a train. It goes "training is coming ...." in a musical way. This is well done.

I have taken the NEL on a few occasions. There was an announcement at some platform, "The happy, happy platform ..... ". I was puzzled at this announcement. I heard it more than 1 dozen times and still cannot catch the words and message. It is a bad announcement. Does anyone know what is the message?

SDP rally at Speaker's Corner

You can see some photos of the event. It was well attended with 400 participants. Go to www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Property rules- 30 August 2010

A property consultant has summarised the new rules that apply to HDB and private properties that take effect after 30 August 2010. Go to www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Dollar cost averaging and ETF

Mr Tan,
Hi! Thanks for organizing last saturday's invest for the long term talk. I have never invest before. It was informative indeed. However, I have a few questions for you on ETF.
1) I want to invest an initial amount of $20,000 in STI ETF and continue to invest for the long term (20 years). I do not want to constantly monitor and track my investment. Do you think I should adopt dollar cost averaging (DCA) or invest in a lump sum?
2) If I am investing for the long term using DCA, should I care about the buying price (buy low)?



REPLY
If I were to take this decision, I would invest this sum in 1,000 units (about $3,000) every 3 months over the next 2 years to gain some dollar cost averaging. The reason for this decision is that the market is somewhat on the high side and the global economy is still uncertain (in my view), but we do not know if it will continue to go up or may correct downwards over the next two years. So, it is better to do some averaging. However, it is a difficult decision to take.

SIA Bond - no mention of maturity date

Dear Mr. Tan
The two advertisements I saw, one in Sunday ST and one in today's TODAY, did not state the maturity of the bond.  I read somewhere that it is maturing in Sep/Oct 2015.  I tried googling and found a few articles relating to the issuance and the two online reports I read did not mention maturity at all.

REPLY
Perhaps you can ask for the prospectus as a potential investor? It should have been stated in the document. Try to see it from the angle of an investor, i.e. whether the information is put in a format that an investor can understand easily.

FOLLOW UP
I found the prospectus on MAS Opera. Maturity date is 30 Sep 2015. The prospectus is similar to other prospectus, it's 113 pages and full of the usual financial and legal jargon.  I am used to reading these docs but find no joy reading it.  My point is why the full page adverts do not include bond mat date?  

HDB Compounding mistakes

Letter from HCM


So the talk now is that HDB owners are not allow to own Landbanking during the first 5 years. It is suppose to be for land banking that invest in residential property related land parcels.  I can see the arguments leading eventually to Property funds, Reits, and even listed property companies??

By not drawing the regulations properly at the beginning, HDB is now fixing leaks as and when water seeps in.

HDB --- ownership is strictly for Singaporean owner-occupier. No ifs or buts.

For whatever reasons, as long as the owner is not staying in the HDB for more than xx months, the owner has to sell the flat within x months, either in the open market or to the HDB at the posted HDB repurchase price.

HDB can resell the flats or deposit the flats in a HDB rental company (HDBrent).  HDBrent is the only agent allowed to rent HDB flats out to either Singaporeans, PRs or foreigners.

HDB owners can invest in anything they wish.    


HCM

Don't spare the rod

Today, some parents spend a disproportionate amount of time and effort to justify punishing their children.
Teachers often dare not act decisively...
School heads are nervous...
The bell tolls for a future Singaporean generation that demands instant gratification, defies rules with impunity, breaks laws recklessly, is impatient, has a skewed sense of righteousness, and regards civic responsibilities with disdain.

Ho Kong Loon
http://www.straitstimes.com/STForum/OnlineStory/STIStory_582306.html

Bus service in Singapore

Letter from Chan Whye Chuen
I READ in your newspaper
about Transport Minister Raymond Lim's ride on a Service 960 bus (Sept 15)...In case, Mr Lim, based on the above visit, concluded that the service has improved, kindly allow me share my experience...
Altogether, I lost 65 minutes that day at the two bus stops.
Although this may not be a daily occurrence, it has happened frequently enough.I would have continued to live with it had I not seen your report.
http://www.todayonline.com/Voices/EDC100924-0000066/Service-960,-another-view

Transport Minister observes bus frequency situation
According to a Channel NewsAsia report, the Ministry of Transport said
the situation in the area has improved since the changes were implemented.
http://sg.yfittopostblog.com/2010/09/14/transport-minister-observes-bus-frequency-situation/

Six sense - new technology around the corner

Watch this video.

Fake shares and investments

Downturn sees 'boiler room' share scams make a comeback. They sell fake or worthless shares, and also pretend to sell legitimate shares, which the purchaser never receives certificates for. Many young people are being conned into these bad investments. Read: www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Insurance and peace of mind

Many people buy insurance for peace of mind.They are willing to pay an additional premium to get the protection, such as the case of a rider to protect the NCD in case of a claim. But some insurance companies have questionable practices, such as the case mentioned in this letter. See www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

SDP rally at Speaker's Corner

You can find a report of this event in the Singapore General Election Portal, www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Rebranding and trust

Read this letter written by a father to a son who has just graduated and will be starting work. It reflects the words of wisdom from a father who has learnt the lesson of blind trust and wish to pass it to his son. Please pass this letter to your friends who are starting work soon.

www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

Angiogenesis

Eat the right food to fight cancer. www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

Wisdom on how to live life

Dr. Tommy Wong is offering his book 1 and 2 at a discount. Details here.

Torchlight with locator lamp - for travel

I took a torchlight with locator lamp for my travel. It was useful. I was able to locate the torchlight at night.I prefer to use the torchlight, instead of the switches in the hotel room - which was quite unfamiliar to me.

The locator lamp consumes low energy and allows the torchlight to be seen in the dark of night. The torchlight is rechargeable, so there is no need to change battery. The torchlight is available here. A discount is given for a bundle of 4 torchlights. You can pass them as a gift to a friend.

Understand your blood test report

I have just taken a blood test with my GP. This cost about $50 and is much cheaper than a full health screening. My doctor will be explaining the findings of the blood test to point out any adverse features. However, I shall also be checking against this useful guide.

Collapse of the US Housing Market

What are ninja loans? Find out how they help to cause the collapse of the US housing market. Go to www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Business simulation training

If you are interested to gain experience and skill in pricing, marketing and setting capacity for your product line, read BEST simulation training in www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Universal Life [2]

I have extracted a few articles from the Internet about universal life and compiled them into a document. It shows  the key features of universal life. This type of policy is now quite popular in a few countries and may be introduced in Singapore. It is good to learn about the features of this policy, but consumers should be aware about the charges as shown in the benefit illustration (i.e.effect of deduction and distribution cost). If the charges are low, this type of policy can be suitable, as it has flexibility and pays an interest rate that is higher than bank deposits. Read www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Singapore Democracy

Several letters were published in response to the letter from Gerald Giam asking for more active democracy in Singapore. Read the letters in www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Immigrants into Singapore

Which countries provide the largest number of immigrants into Singapore? Read www.easyapps.sg/sgep/aspx.

Customer service from Singapore Airlines

I booked for an air ticket for Bali. Later my wife decided to join me. All the flights were full, so she is placed on wait list.

I send an request to the SIA call center to ask them to assist me to get a ticket for my wife to join me. They arranged the ticket and sent a confirmation to me. I sent them my appreciation for this helpful and  good service.

Speaker Corner - Talk on Minimum Wage

I have accepted an invitation to give a talk on Minimum Wage as follows:

Date: Saturdy 25 September 2010
Time: 6.30 pm
Venue: Speakers Corner, Hong Lim Park.

There will be other speakers who will talk on other topics. You can be there at 5 pm or later, to hear the speeches. Turn up and make it a big gathering. This event is organised by the Singapore Democratic Party.

“Better” focus for the world

If you are interested to find out what is the “better” focus for the world, you are invited to read the chapters “Conversation with Guru Harry” in Tommy Wong’s book “Wisdom on How to Live Life”.

The book can be ordered here.

Election system

The public wants some changes in the election system. Read the results of a survey in www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Are GLCs employing foreigners first?

Read the article in www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Tangram and Shape Quiz on OS3

The free versions of tangram and shape quiz on OS3 are now available on the Apple Store.

Search for
Easy Tangram Lite
Bright Tangram Lite
Easy Shape Quiz Lite
Bright Shape Quiz Lite

You can also search for
Tan Kin Lian & Associates.

View here.

www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

Inequality of Wealth Distribution

America has a big inequality in the distribution of wealth. The author of this paper carried out a survey of 5,000 around 5,000 people that has a demographic distribution and political inclination that represents the the population. The key findings of this report are that the ordinary people grossly under-estimated the actual inequality in the distribution of wealth and preferred a distribution that more closely reflect Sweden (which has high welfare and taxation).

The findings of this survey is relevant to Singapore, where the inequality of wealth distribution is worse than America, as reflected by the Gini coefficient. Read www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx (Building a Better America).

Importance of meditation

If you are interested to find out why meditation is important, you are invited to read the chapters “Second Conversation with Guru Harry” in Tommy Wong’s book “Wisdom on How to Live Life (Book 2)”.

The book can be ordered here.

Survey: contingency fees

Read this paper on Contingency Fee for Professionals.

Should Singapore adopt a system of contingency fees for laywers and doctors? Give your views in this short survey.

Affordability of housing

This article suggests that a person can spend up to 40% of the monthly income for the monthly mortgage payment for a home. This is too high.

My benchmark is 25% of the monthly income on a loan not exceeding 25 years. Based on my benchmark, which is explained in Practical Guide on Financial Planning, the price to pay for a propery should not exceed 5 years of the combined income. If the couple are both working, the cost of employing a maid should be deducted from the combined income. The negative consequence of putting too much earnings into a home are also explained in my book. There is a need to accumulate savings to meet unemployment, which is now a high risk in Singapore.

My book is available at www.tankinlian.com/ishop. There is a 40% discount under a 5 book bundle.

Licence fee demand by SPH

SPH has demanded a licence and investigation fee from a local website for posting its article in their website. It seems to be quite unreasonable. There is a new for a law to be passed to determine if such action by a media company is acceptable or undesirable. Read www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Make CPF Life more attractive

Many member are not taking up CPF Life because they find it difficult to decide between the four options. They are also suspicious that it offers low value to the consumer. CPF Life will be made compulsory for those who turn 55 in a few years time. It is likely to be unpopular. I have written this article to suggest how to make CPF Life more attractive to the public. Read www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Minimum Wage in Singapore [2]

Read www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx for letters and articles about the reasons for and against implementing a minimum wage in Singapore.

FISCA talk - invest for the long term [2]

In my book on financial planning, I advised consumers to invest for the long term in a low cost investment fund. many consumers asked me, "Mr. Tan, I like your idea, but how do I implement this plan? What type of investment fund should I choose? How do I make the investment?"

The FISCA talk "Invest for the Long Term" is designed to cover these questions. The speaker will tell you about the ETFs and other funds that have low charges that are suitable for long term investors. They will also cover a few blue chip shares that can be invested as a proxy for the investment fund.

Go to www.fisca.sg and register for the talk on Saturday 25 September, 3 to 6 pm at SMU. Spend 3 hours and $30 ($20 for members) and be educated about your own financial well being.

What makes democracy work?

Read Gerald Giam's views in www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Remove means testing

Is there a way to remove means testing and make life simple for people in Singapore? It will reduce the cost of living and help people from spending money unnecessarily as they are not aware about how the system works. Read www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Bloggers views on Minimum Wage

Minister Lim Boon Heng gave a speech on why there should not be a minimum wage in Singapore. A few bloggers have given their response to the arguments put forward by the minister. Read their interesting perspective in www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

I will be speaking on this topic in Speaker's Corner on Saturday at 6.45 pm.

Escalation of Medical Bills

Some patients were shocked to find that their medical bills had escalated to a few times of what was originally indicated. They were caught by the consent form that they had signed, and were not aware of the clause that allowed additional billings to be added.

Read www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx (Excalation of Medical Bills).

Corporate bonds in SGX

Retain investors can invest in corporate bonds in SGX from 1 October 2010. They have a yield that is better than government bonds and bank deposits. The trading on SGX will give liquidity and transparent pricing to the investors.
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporebusinessnews/view/1082468/1/.html

Access to subsidised wards

I have written a letter to the Straits Times to ask the Ministry of Health to clarify if citizens have the right of access to subsidised wards or if they are restricted by some rules that restrict downgrading to subsidised wards, and what are these rules. I hope that my letter gets published and that the Ministry will give a reply to clarify this matter.

Living with peace and equianimity

If you are interested to find out what how to live with peace and equanimity, you are invited to read the chapters “Conversation with Guru Harry” in Tommy Wong’s book “Wisdom on How to Live Life”.

The book can be ordered here.

Talk on Minimum Wage

I have accepted an invitation by the Singapore Democratic Party to give a talk on minimum wage at Speaker's Corner, Hong Lim Park on Saturday 25 September at 6.45 pm. There will be other speakers earlier in the evening from 5 pm. Do turn up to hear these speakers.

More details here.

Means testing in public hospitals

A consumer asked if it was possible for a person above the means test level to be treated in subsidised wards B2 and C) in public hospitals. He was under the impression that this was not allowed.

I checked the Internet and found this document. Patients at higher income can be treated in subsidised wards, but they enjoy a lower level of subsidy. There was so much publicity about means testing that gave the wrong impression to many people, including me. The final decision was not well publicised - so many people still had the wrong impression.

I spoke to a senior doctor in a public hospital. He was also not aware about how means testing had been implemented. He thought that it was still under consideration. When I told him about the actual situation, his reply was "because I was not pesonally involved in this matter, I am not aware about its actual implementation".

I lamented. Why do we have practices that are so complicated that even those who are supposed to be implementing these decisions are confused? Can we simplify matters for the citizens?

Tan Kin Lian

Minimum wage in Singapore

In this article, I have given my reasons in support of a minimum wage to be implemented in Singapore. I have also explained why the negative aspects of the minimum wage are likely to be less serious than feared. Apart from helping the lower income workers, a minimum wage will lead to a more sustainable economy.

www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

Wikipedia

I want to talk to someone who has experience in contributing and updating contents in Wikipedia. If you have experience, please send e-mail to kinlian@gmail.com.

Singapore Girls and Pregnancies

Read a collection of letters and views of the public on the employment terms of air stewardesses by Singapore Airlines. www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Minimum Wage Policy

What do Singaporeans think about a minimum wage policy? What do they think about the Workfare Income Supplement that is implemented in Singapore, in the absence of a minimum wage policy? 49 people responded to a survey. Read their views in www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Contingency fee for professionals

We should encourage lawyers and doctors to practice on a contingency fee basis. They should charge their fees only for a successful outcome. If they outcome fails, they should only be allowed to cover their expenses.

This system will help to reduce the escalation in the cost of health care. It will also help consumers to seek redress where they have incurred a large financial loss due to the negligence of a business corporation.

Read my views in www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Case study - revised policy charges

Read this case study of a case where the insurance company revised the policy charge fro an ILP policy. www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Getting permanent residents to be become citizens

The suggestion by SM Goh to encourage permanent residents, especially those from Malaysia, to become citizens did not go down well. Read this article in www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

My view
I have always advocated a positive approach - make it attractive for people to be citizens. Over the past decades, the government had made adopted the wrong policy of making it a burden to be a Singapore citizen, especially for males who have to serve national service and be placed at a big disadvantage in the workplace. This key issue has never been resolved. The small measures, such as the $9,000 for current NS men, did not go far enough.

Treating cancer at a late stage

If you know of anybody with late stage cancer, do ask the family to read this article and make the right choice. Go to www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Easy Ads portal

A new portal (Easy Ads) will be launched on 1 October 2010. It will provide free advertising for the public for a period of 3 months. A useful feature of this portal is the easy way to search for an advertisement based on location, price range and other factors. This can replace the flyers that are now littering the letterboxes of HDB flats.

This will be of special interest to owners who wish to rent out a room or their apartments to tenants (and to avoid paying the agent fees). Tenants can also use this protal to look for available premises, based on distance to their workplace. Parents can also look for suitable tutors based on location. Owners can look for household repair services.

More details can be seen at www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Case study - rejected claim under private Shield

It is best for a retiree to be insured under Medishield and be treated in a subsidised ward. This case study shows the risk and the stress of having an expensive hospital bill being rejected under a private Shield plan. Read: www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Mio TV

Two thirds of customers give a poor rating to the Mio TV service. Read www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Poverty trap?

Are we following America into a poverty trap? Read www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Pre-election rally

There is an interesting pre-election rally to be held on Saturday at Speaker's Corner. Go to www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx to find out more details.

Direct link: http://www.yoursdp.org/index.php/news/singapore/4110-democrats-to-kick-off-ge-season-with-pre-election-rally

Junk mail

Is SingPost making a lot of money by delivering junk mail? According to this reader, it makes up 50% of the mail received daily.

Difficult experience with website of Singapore Airlines

I had a difficult time in making a redemption of my frequent flyer miles at the Singapore Airlines website. This is the first time in 30 years of flying that I try to claim this privilege - as I allowed the redemption miles to expire in the past.

I could not remember my PIN, as the account was created long ago. The previous PIN that I used had since expired and had been changed. I finally managed to find the right PIN to login.

The website was confusing and difficult to use. The webpages behaved in an unexpected manner and keep  changing due to some "context". This was developed to be a sophisticated website, but it was a nightmare to me. I finally managed to find a tab called "Online Redemption". It seemed to be what I needed. When I clicked on the tab, I got a blank page. I tried it many times and keep getting a blank page.

I finally decided to call their helpline. There was a long wait to get through to a staff. While waiting, I hear many irrelevant messages and frequent warning that any booking through the call center will incur an administration fee. What a way to treat a customer!

After a long wait, the call was answered by a human voice. I told the staff about the difficulty that I faced in making an online redemption, and in understanding their complicated website. She finally helped me to make the booking of my flight, using my frequent flyer points, and waived the administrative charge. She explained that I got a blank page most probably because the login had expired after a few minutes. How would I, as a customer, know?

If great organisations continue to develop complicated websites with sessions that expire after a short time (for whatever security reasons), they are giving a difficult time for their customers. They must realize that their customers do not visit the website daily to learn about their sophisticated features and complicated behavior.

Tan Kin Lian

PS: The call center staff was helpful, but she had to spend a lot of time giving me warning about the charges that will be incurred and the penalty that will happen, if I were to change the flight. Why spend so much time on these negative matters? It leaves a bad taste with the customer who has to worry about booking of hotels and other matters relating to travel. Why not change the slogan to: a stressful way to fly!

Case study - learning from a talk

This consumer learned how to compute the distribution cost and the effect of deduction from a talk conducted under FISCA. He was shocked to learn that his friend had sold him several policies that gave a poor deal to him.

www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

Contests in the general election

The National Solidarity Party and the Reform Party have announced their intention to contest in the general election, including the constituencies that they will be fielding their candidates. www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx

Reform Party
http://votingrp.wordpress.com/2010/09/14/rp-wants-to-give-singaporean-option-to-choose/

National Solidary Party
http://www.nsp.sg/national-solidarity-party-plans-field-some-30-candidates-next-ge

Rechargeable torchlight with locator lamp

The rechargeable torchlight has been designed to have a locator lamp that lights up at night and uses low energy. It is easy to look for the torchlight at night. It uses rechargeable battery, to reduce the cost of battery. This is now available at a special discount (for a  bundle of 4 torchlights) in i-shop. www.tankinlian.com/ishop.

Compensation for injury

How much should a consumer claim for compensation for a fall caused by unsafe conditions in a supermarket premise? How should the consumer make the claim? Is it necessary to use a lawyer? This FAQ set down some of the principles that are used to determine the compensation. www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Shuttle service to Integrated Resorts

What does the public think about the decision by the Casino Regulatory Authority to stop the shuttle service from the HDB heartlands to the resorts? 99 people responded to the survey. The results are available at the Singapore General Election Portal, www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Workfare Income Supplement

Dear Mr. Tan
Can you tell me about the Workfare Income Supplement? How much can I get and what is the criteria?

REPLY
You can find the information in this FAQ. It is applicable to an employee who earn less than $1,700 a month and live in a property with an annual value less than $11,000. The amount of the supplement  is calculated on a complicated formula and is subject to a maximum of $1,050 for a person age 35 to a maximum of $2,800 for person at age 60. This is the maximum, so that actual amount paid to you may be much lower. Self-employed people at low incomes are also eligible for the supplement.

Like many schemes in Singapore, you have to read a complicated table and apply many criteria to arrive at an amount - that is really quite small.

Tan Kin Lian

Voting at General Election

97 people responded to the survey to indicate how they will vote at the next general election. The results of the survey can be found at www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Risky to invest in gold bars

An investor found that it was risky to invest in a gold bar under this investment scheme and decided to skip the investment. www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

Criteria to assess world leaders

If you are interested to find out a “better” criterion in assessing the performance of world leaders, you are invited to read the chapter “Conversation with Guru Harry (Part 2)” in Tommy Wong’s book “Wisdom on How to Live Life”.

The book can be ordered here.

Getting medical treatment

Here are some tips to consumers on whether to buy basic Medishield or a private Shield policy to meet the high cost of medical treatment and why a more expensive Shield plan will usually require the consumer to incur a higher co-payment for the medical bill. Read: www.tankinlian.com/latest/aspx.

A few senior moments

As we grow older, it is time to celebrate the occasion - even though we may lose some of our hearing and memory. Here are some humorous situations to laugh at. Go to www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

Whole Life vs Term Insurance

Watch this youtube video to explain why you should buy term insurance and invest the difference.

Asking for Advice

Here is a guide for you to seek advice from an adviser on a financial, medical or legal matter. Be prepared to pay a fee for the time spent. You can reduce the time that is spent by doing your homework and presenting the facts in an organised format to the adviser. 


You should also follow this guide if you wish to seek free assistance from me under "Ask Mr. Tan". Read www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

The Notebook Mall

I wanted to have a flat screen monitor for my old PC. I searched www.thenotebookmall.com and found someone willing to sell it at half of the price of a new monitor. He bought the monitor at a PC show and did not use it. The owner was glad to find a buyer. I was glad to have a flat screen monitor at a good price.

Portable mini-projector

I am looking for a portable mini-projector (new or used). It is to be used to project from a notebook to a wall for a small meeting. Any suggestion? Send to kinlian@gmail.com

Buy or rent a property?

This article gives the advantages and disadvantages of owning a property. Many people have the option to rent a property when the prices are too high.

Need to stabilize property prices

A country can be prosperous when the property prices increase, reflecting confidence of the citizens and foreigners in the country. However, this situation can get out of hand, resulting in an asset bubble and property that became priced out of reach of the citizens. This harmful impact is recognized in China, and steps are being taken to address this problem.  Prime Minister Wen Jiabao said, "“It is the key responsibility of all levels of governments to stabilize housing prices and to guarantee availability of housing”. He did not say that this matter is beyond the control of the government and can be left to the market forces.

A property bubble can also be caused by excessive speculation as the speculators made big profits at the expense of the desperate home owners.

Singapore's prosperity is also largely built on an asset bubble. We have to be prepared for the economic consequences when the bubble burst.

FISCA Talk - Invest for the Long Term

This talk attracted many participants last month. It will now be repeated.


Invest for the long term SMU - School of Business (Seminar Room 3.1 - Level 3) 
Date: 25 September 2010, Saturday 03:00 PM 

This event is available to all FiSCA members at a special members price of $20. The public can participate at a price of $30 per person. We encourage the public to join as FiSCA members as the annual fee for members is only $36.

An outline of the talk:

• Principles of long term investing, compounding and dollar cost averaging
• Earn a better yield by investing in equities
• Reduce risk by investing for the long term in a low cost, diversified fund
• How to access information from the SGX website
• How to get information about ETFs, REITS and  blue chip shares (with high dividend yield)
• How to open an account with a stockbroker (using a remisier or an online account)
• Expenses of investing

There will be practical exercises and a question & answer session. Register at www.fisca.sg

Non-disclosure of existing medical condition

A consumer took a private Shield policy. His claim for medical treatment was rejected due to "non-disclosure" of medical condition. However, he did honestly declare all that he knew. There were conditions that were not explained to him by the doctor, but was not used to reject the medical claim. One condition was diabetes mellitus.

When he went for a health checkup in the polyclinic, he was not told that his diabetes had reached a serious stage that require medical treatment. In fact, he was not placed on medication. His non-disclosure of this condition was used to reject a subsequent claim for a condition that is not related to his condition. I am now helping the consumer to gather evidence that he was not concealing any information.

But it is quite stressful for him to be saddled with a hospital bill of $7,000 that was not paid. If this was not covered, he would have gone for treatment in B2 ward and pay a much lower bill. Sometimes, the existence of an expensive medical insurance policy creates more problem to the consumer.

Survey: Shuttle service to integrated resorts

Do you support the sudden decision of the Casino Regulatory Authority to stop the shuttle service? Take part in the survey in www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx

Case Study - Medishield for the elderly

Look at this case study of how Medishield can save 80% of the premium that is charged by a private Shield insurance. The elderly person needs to pay only $534 a year, instead of $3,000. Go to www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Twisting of existing life insurance policies

Dear Mr Tan, 

I read your blog (http://tankinlian.blogspot.com/2010/02/switching-to-limited-payment-whole-life.html) with much interest. Two days ago, an insurance agent was trying to convince me to take on a new limited (20 yrs) whole life insurance for $200k coverage, and to terminate my existing 2 life policies (which are the normal type payable till 60 yrs old) which covers me for about $150k in total. 

I listened to the agent's explanation how the new policy is more economically beneficial. In summary, the total premium i have to pay under this new policy is $25k less, yet the coverage is $50k more than what I have for my 2 existing policies added up together. Also the guaranteed surrender value of the new policy at e.g. age of 65 yrs is $20k more than my 2 existing policies added up, which means this new policy break even much earlier than my existing policies. Prima facie, the economic analysis seems to make alot of sense to switch to this new policy. 

However, to terminate my 2 existing policies, i will lose $6k in total because both are less than 5 years. It is a dilemma now, whether to take the short term hit losing $6k vs the longer term benefit which are in tens of thousands. 

I hence spoke to a friend who was an ex insurance agent for an independent advice. This is what he told me:

1) When I terminate policies, some items will lose coverage for a period eg cancer which kicks in only a few months after a new policy is bought. So I will have an 'exposure' period.

2) Insurance products are always improving, so I am never gonna be getting the best

3) Returns from insurance policies are just nominal, so the returns doesnt matter that much. I should focus my attention on seeking returns from investments, rather than 'optimising' the returns from my insurance policy.

I hope to seek your expert advice on this topic, whether switching to the new product is indeed beneficial for me. 

REPLY

You can send the benefit illustration for the three policies to me. 

Generally, it is bad idea to terminate an existing policy to take up a new policy, as you will be incurring the upfront cost (1 to 2 years of your premium) all over again. When an agent advise you to take up a new policy to replace an existing policy, the agent is "twisting" the policy. This is almost always at the expense of the consumer. Some agents can make a good living by adopting this type of predatory practice. It is easy to mislead the consumer by pointing out some half truths. It is considered to be illegal in some countries, but not the case in Singapore, due to our lax regulations. 

Holes in medical coverage

Read this article.

My view
Consumers in Singapore may face the same type of difficulty when the insurance company suspects that they have not declared pre-existing illness.

Twisting a Life Insurance Policy

A life insurance agent will get a consumer to stop an existing policy and take up a new policy for its "better benefits". This is an unethical practice called "twisting". The consumer is usually fooled by the agent and suffers a large loss in taking this bad decision. Read this FAQ to learn how to avoid being fooled.

www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Voting in the general election [3]

Do you wish to find out how other people will be voting in the next general election? Give your views in this survey, so that the results can be shown to all. Go to www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Essential reading for young people [2]

I have a list of essential FAQs that must be read by young people, before they buy a life insurance policy. It helps them to make the right choice and avoid losing a large part of their life saving in a bad life insurance policy that takes away 40% of their future savings. Read "essential reading: in www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx.

Survey: Singapore General Election Portal

The portal can be found here. Give your views of this portal in this survey

Tangram apps on Apple Store

You can download my tangram apps on Apple App store. They are called:

• Easy Tangram
• Bright Tangram

The free versions of these apps have 10 shapes. The paid version has 100 shapes (USD 0.99) and will be available by 1 October 2010 (or ealrier).  

My friend downloaded them and like the apps. He is helping to tell other people through Facebook and Twitter. Please help me to spread the word around. You can see the videos of these apps here. The apps will be available on Nokia and Windows by 1 December 2010 (tentative).

Portals and websites managed by TKL

I am now managing a few portals and websites. Here are the links for you to bookmark on your browser:

TKL website

www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

Singapore General Election portal

www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx

TKL blog

www.tankinlian.blogspot.com

Bright town portal

www.tankinlian.com/brighttown

Easysearch portal

www.easysearch.sg

Tan Kin Lian

www.tankinlian.com
www.tankinlian.blogspot.com

Tan Kin Lian's website

You can bookmark this page to visit the Tan Kin Lian website for the latest postings on insurance and financial planning: www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

Singapore General Election Portal [5]

The SGE portal attracted over 400 visitors yesterday. It has matched the number that visits the TKL website.
This morning, the SGE portal already attracted twice the number of the TKL website. Many people are now visiting this portal daily. You can bookmark this page: www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx

Instant Google

Google gets faster.

My view
I like Google for its content, and not for its speed of search. It does not make any difference if the search takes 1 minute later, so long as the content is good.

Property bubble in Malaysia

Diffuse the property bubble before it is too late.

My view
Rising property prices will be a burden to the future generation, especially when jobs are not secure. It is the duty of any government to manage the economic forces, and not leave these matters to be manipulated by some people.

Story of Bright Town - book

The book is now available at www.tankinlian.com/ishop. Each book will be personally signed by the author.

Wage inequality and recession

I wrote a letter about wage inequality and recession. This is the problem faced by America. Singapore will face the same challenge. If wage inequality is not reduced to a more sensible level, we will also face a economic recession or other type of economic and social problems.

www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx.

Selamat Hari Raya Adilfitria

Greetings to Muslim friends on the end of Ramadan.

Singapore General Election Portal [4]

The SGE portal attracted 333 visitors yesterday. This is a high number. It is getting quite popular. I have posted 5 articles today, taken from other blogs and website. They cover issues that are relevant for Signaporeans to consider at the next general election.

Go to www.easyapps.sg/sgep and click on "Latest"

Bookmark this page: www.easyapps.sg/sgep/latest.aspx

Betting - get a fair payout

If you place a bet or visit the casino, you need to know what is a fair payout for your bet. Here are some tips. Go to www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx. Be savvy, and you can enjoy the bet more.

SGE Portal [3]

I managed to put up a few articles in the Singapore General Election Portal. Two persons have agreed to help me as Editors. Together, we will put up several new contributions to the portal each day.

Do visit the portal daily. www.easyapps.sg/sgep. Click on "Latest" to see the new postings. You can read the summary of the article, and decide if you wish to read the full article - which is usually in a separate blog or website, or a PDF document.

Customer centric culture

Getting managers involved.

Customer Service - contact number

Richard Branson talked about companies that make it difficult for customers to contact them. This is true. Many companies bury their contact number in obscure places in their website - so that customers will not call them. How bad. http://www.todayonline.com/Commentary/EDC100909-0000080/Online,-its-the-second-impression-that-counts

Case Study - critical illness policy for 50 year old

Read the case study of a critical illness policy taken by a 50 year old.

www.tankinlian.com/latest.aspx

It gives poor value to the consumer. A better approach is described in this FAQ.

SGE Portal [2]

The Singapore General Election Portal now has a section called "Letters from Citizens". You can click on Guide tab to read the instructions on how you can submit a letter to this portal. I hope that it will encourage more citizens to take an interest in the issues that will be raised at the next General Election. Go to:

www.easyapps.sg/sgep (click on Guide or Latest)

Story of Bright Town

Here are the short summaries from 3 people who read the book:



―As governments around the world are looking for better
ways to serve their people, why not develop e-centers that
are based on the concept of this book. The greatest strength
of these e-centers is that they are easy to use even for
people who are not Internet savvy. In addition, they
provide business opportunities for shop keepers who
operate these e-centers. Mr. Tan has truly come up with a
win-win solution for the government and the people.‖
— Dr. Tommy Wong (author of “Wisdom on How to
Live Life” )

―I liked the idea of shifting the burden of form data entry
from customers to government employees. We live in the
world that tries to become more and more efficient by
making people specialize in one or two particular activities.
Hence it's surprising that the government still wants us to
become experts in tax filing, medical insurance
reimbursements, i.e. things that would far more efficiently
done by experts.‖
— Dr.Vitali Zagarodnov, university professor

―The idea of using PDF format as a way of delivering
information is quite an interesting concept. Something
different from the usual HTML concept.‖
— Tan Boon Keng, I.T. security consultant

The soft copy of the book is available here:
http://tankinlian.com/admin/file.aspx?id=165

Singapore General Election Portal (SGE Portal) - 3 postings

There are 3 postings in the portal. You can view them by clicking on "Latest". This is just a start. When more contributors and editors come forward to help, the portal will have a few new postings daily. Do make it a point to visit this portal daily. www.easyapps.sg/sgep

Critical illness insurance - is it essential?

Many people are troubled by this question - is it essential to get critical illness insurance?

My answer is, "buy critical illness insurance, only if you can get it at a low cost, such as the cover provided by the SAF insurance scheme. Do not pay a lot of money for this cover".

Why?

Read this FAQ - http://tankinlian.com/admin/file.aspx?id=173

Bundle Offers in i-Shop

There are a few attractive bundle offers in i-Shop, giving discounts of up to 40%.

5 book bundle

Wisdom on how to live life

Rechargeable Torchlights (with locator lamp) Watch video.

If you have any of the books in the bundle, you can give them away or sell them to a friend - and enjoy the discount.

Order here.

Singapore General Election Portal

I announce the soft launch of the Singapore General Election Portal. It can be access from any of the following:

Easysearch portal: www.easysearch.sg
Direct link: www.easyapps.sg/sgep

You can visit the portal now, click on "Latest" tab, to view a few contributions. I hope that there will be a few contributions daily.

I invite contributors to send relevant materials to sgeportal@gmail.com. They will be retrieved by my editors to be added to the portal. Contributors can do research about the results of past general elections to be written in articles in PDF format, to be added to the portal.You can download a PDF guide on the portal here.

I wish to ask for volunteers to be contributors and editors of this portal.

Mr. Brown sings about the $9,000 for NS men

Listen to this song.