6 Must-Haves Before You Turn 40
They say that life begins at 40. It is the time that you get serious and dedicate all your energy to be secure both financially and emotionally. Here in Singapore, many 40 years old have the following things:
- Own properties: When you are working, whether you are twenty or thirty years old, the society expects you to be living on your own and eventually have your own family. After marriage, your first goal should be to acquire your own home. If it is mortgaged, by the time you reach 40, it should be fully paid.
- Outstanding credit score: When you were young, you tend to be a compulsive buyer thereby gathering debts everywhere. When you reach 40, you already know how to discipline yourself. Make sure that you leave nothing but outstanding credit score. It would be very stressful still paying your debts at this age. This is the time that you should be thinking about education and emergency fund of the family.
- Steady stream of income: By this time, you should not be completely clueless as to where to get money. If you are really serious about a steady source of income, as early as possible, you need to learn budgeting and investing. Remember that financial management is not an exact science – it takes time and discipline.
- Diversifying investment portfolio: Now that you have a steady source of income, investment follows. As your source of income solidifies, your financial ability gets stronger. Investing your money instead of letting it sit in the back is a good thing. Financial experts would advise you to diversify your investment and not focus everything in one place. Many things are worth investing here in Singapore if you are really serious about this.
- Get covered through insurance: By now you are aware that life is really unpredictable. You will not know what will happen in the next few days and that is enough reason to have insurance. You do not want to spend so much money for unfortunate events, right?
- Secure your retirement: If you secure your retirement fund as early as possible, you have the freedom to stop working when you want to. Do not wait when you are 40 just to build your retirement fund. If this is the case, you will be finished maybe when you are 60 or 70. That is kind of troubling.
When you reach 40, it is considered your “prime” years. If you prepared for it, you will not have problems. Remember that the earlier you establish your life, the easier it will be when you reach 40 and eventually retirement.
