The website is http://www.avivia.com.sg/
It is quite easy to get a quote. I found that the quote for my car insurance is $1,015. My existing insurer charges $761. So, Aviva is more expensive. My daughter also checked and found that in her case, Aviva is more expensive than the existing insurer.
I like other readers to check their premium based on your existing cover. You can post the details of the premium (existing compraed to Aviva) here.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Freedom, fairness and responsibility
A new government has taken office in the UK. It is a coalition government formed by the Conservative and the Liberal Democratic party. The new Prime Minister David Cameron said, "It will be an administration based on three key principles - freedom, fairness and responsibility".
I am heartened by these key principles and hope that Singapore will also aspire towards them. Here are some changes that have to be done in Singapore:
1. Freedom: allow people to express their views freely, without being sued for damages when they give any honest, negative opinion.
2. Fairness: reduce the wide disparity in income and ensure that people can seek justice, even if they do not have the money to engage lawyers
3. Responsibilty: take action to correct any flaws, instead of pushing the responsibility from one agency to another.
Tan Kin Lian
I am heartened by these key principles and hope that Singapore will also aspire towards them. Here are some changes that have to be done in Singapore:
1. Freedom: allow people to express their views freely, without being sued for damages when they give any honest, negative opinion.
2. Fairness: reduce the wide disparity in income and ensure that people can seek justice, even if they do not have the money to engage lawyers
3. Responsibilty: take action to correct any flaws, instead of pushing the responsibility from one agency to another.
Tan Kin Lian
Property bubble?
Read this article.
My view.
All bubbles will burst one day. What goes up must come down. Any investment, including property, can go up to an unrealistic high price, but cannot stay there forever. It can only be sustained at a level that is affordable to the buyers, i.e. relative to the average national income.
Like Singapore, Dubai also had limited land. It created a property bubble that has now collapsed. Singapore will not be exempted.
There is one key difference in Singapore, and that is the role of the HDB and the CPF. The savings in the CPF had been used not only to service the mortgage payment but also to prop up the property market (by taking second priority to bank mortgage). HDB had been tolerant in allowing unemployed owners to delay payment of their mortgage installments.
In the case of Singapore, I expect that the property market will not collapse, but will remain dormant for many years. It will not show the kind of appreciation that had happened in the past. The return on property, as an investment, will be low.
Someone sent me this link:
http://www.coverville500.com/real-estates/the-next-dubai-real-estate-property-bubble-mike-maloney-of-gold-and-silver-inc
My view.
All bubbles will burst one day. What goes up must come down. Any investment, including property, can go up to an unrealistic high price, but cannot stay there forever. It can only be sustained at a level that is affordable to the buyers, i.e. relative to the average national income.
Like Singapore, Dubai also had limited land. It created a property bubble that has now collapsed. Singapore will not be exempted.
There is one key difference in Singapore, and that is the role of the HDB and the CPF. The savings in the CPF had been used not only to service the mortgage payment but also to prop up the property market (by taking second priority to bank mortgage). HDB had been tolerant in allowing unemployed owners to delay payment of their mortgage installments.
In the case of Singapore, I expect that the property market will not collapse, but will remain dormant for many years. It will not show the kind of appreciation that had happened in the past. The return on property, as an investment, will be low.
Someone sent me this link:
http://www.coverville500.com/real-estates/the-next-dubai-real-estate-property-bubble-mike-maloney-of-gold-and-silver-inc
Feedback on Business Simulation Game
Click here for more details of the Business Simulation Game (BEST)
AA: it's a fun and interesting game, and we can learn about business planning from playing it.
HMW: I noticed there are a few parameters, namely unit price, capacity, expenditure on marketing. I tried a premium pricing strategy, i.e. high price for high margin, and correspondingly putting a higher marketing expenditure and reducing capacity. The performance was dismal. Incurred big losses.
JA: Best Global is not only fun and interactive, it also allow us to develop good practical business sense. Some strategies, which I personally found quite useful.
a. Set the right price that generates sufficient margin to cover our overheads + some modest profit. Excessive price undercutting may gain us market share but at the expense of our overall profitability.
b. Over investment in infrastructure and over recruitment (capacity) is expensive. Manage our expense well.
c. Understand the market. If the market is not doing so well (i.e. in the red), we may wish to consider reducing our market share by increasing our price and reducing our capacity.
AG: Good and very user friendly.The guide is very informative and useful. Overall the interface is much better than what we had previously. I also see new elements like capacity, market share and profitability which makes it more interesting.
Read the Player Guide here:
AA: it's a fun and interesting game, and we can learn about business planning from playing it.
HMW: I noticed there are a few parameters, namely unit price, capacity, expenditure on marketing. I tried a premium pricing strategy, i.e. high price for high margin, and correspondingly putting a higher marketing expenditure and reducing capacity. The performance was dismal. Incurred big losses.
JA: Best Global is not only fun and interactive, it also allow us to develop good practical business sense. Some strategies, which I personally found quite useful.
a. Set the right price that generates sufficient margin to cover our overheads + some modest profit. Excessive price undercutting may gain us market share but at the expense of our overall profitability.
b. Over investment in infrastructure and over recruitment (capacity) is expensive. Manage our expense well.
c. Understand the market. If the market is not doing so well (i.e. in the red), we may wish to consider reducing our market share by increasing our price and reducing our capacity.
AG: Good and very user friendly.The guide is very informative and useful. Overall the interface is much better than what we had previously. I also see new elements like capacity, market share and profitability which makes it more interesting.
Read the Player Guide here:
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Building wealth
Mortgage on your home
This article explains how to pay off your mortage early. - but after you have built up an emergency fund and have set aside money for your children's education.
My comment
It is more important to avoid getting a large mortgage in the first place. You should buy a property within 5 years of your annual income, and pay it within 25 years with a monthly repayment of less than 25% of your income. This is explained in my book on financial planning.
My comment
It is more important to avoid getting a large mortgage in the first place. You should buy a property within 5 years of your annual income, and pay it within 25 years with a monthly repayment of less than 25% of your income. This is explained in my book on financial planning.
Mother Tongue Language
There is much controversy over the issue of the mother tongue language. I do not have my personal view about whether the weightage should remain the same or be reduced.
I wish to express my concerns on two issues:
a) Some people hold strong views that the weightage should be maintained while others felt strongly that it should be reduced. I am concerned about the manner in which the views were expressed, without regard for the views of other people who may be in different circumstances.
b) There seem to be a loss of trust in the government leaders to find the right balance that takes into account the diverse views of the people. I believe that they have the responsibility to seek the right policy which accommodates the views and needs as many people as possible.
I believe that it is possible to encourage students to learn a second language, without forcing them to do it through the "weightage" in the PSLE.
Tan Kin Lian
I wish to express my concerns on two issues:
a) Some people hold strong views that the weightage should be maintained while others felt strongly that it should be reduced. I am concerned about the manner in which the views were expressed, without regard for the views of other people who may be in different circumstances.
b) There seem to be a loss of trust in the government leaders to find the right balance that takes into account the diverse views of the people. I believe that they have the responsibility to seek the right policy which accommodates the views and needs as many people as possible.
I believe that it is possible to encourage students to learn a second language, without forcing them to do it through the "weightage" in the PSLE.
Tan Kin Lian
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