Thoughts on my finances and future plans?

Budgeting

Hi everyone, I (23F) would like some feedback on my current situation and what I’m planning ahead. I've been working pt since my teens and then ft, but rn i am schooling. I will start working ft again next year.

Debt: only need to pay school fees for my last year

What I have right now: 48k

$14k of that are my rainy day savings (2% pa bank for immediate use) (school fees parked in here too but I'm not adding it together since I don't consider it my savings) 30k will lump sum in VWRA 4k in syfe Flexi cash as my 'bonds'

I am currently cosigned to my family HDB flat (ailing parent with siblings living together). This is for when my parent passes away so no extra legal headache to do in the future.


Future income and expenses (when I start work next year)

Take home: below 3k

Monthly Needs (including insurance): about $1k

Fun money/extra saving: $300

Travel savings: $500 per month (set aside)

Wedding savings: $300 per month (target $20k by age 30. just in case :p. Set aside)

Investments: $500 per month into VWRA (IBKR) and $50 per month into Syfe (when I start work)


Housing plans

If I ever marry in the future OR decide to live alone, I plan to apply for a 1 or 2 room BTO. Will be covered with CPF OA. Otherwise I'll just continue living in the family flat. Dw kids.

for renovation, I plan to use bonus payouts from work (is 20k enough?).


Investments

I will lump sum $30k into VWRA

Syfe Flexi cash is my bond portion, currently has about $4k inside. I like it for liquidity, hence over t bills or ssb in case my rainy day not enough. I'm considering if I should take MBH instead but my small bond portion doesn't justify the fees(?)

As mentioned, I will contribute $500 per month into VWRA (IBKR) and $50 per month into Syfe when I start work. I'm going with the 90/10 allocation until my 30s where I'll switch to 80/20 and so on.


Insurance

Term :Death $500k, TPD $500k, CI $175k (single-claim, if I claim CI the plan ends)

Hospitalisation: about $200–$300 per year

No disability income insurance yet, but I am considering it (Term is only for permanent disability, so do I need smtg like DII for when I can't work for months/years but might recover?)


Retirement

I plan to rely on investments first when I retire at 60 until CPF LIFE payouts start at 65.

Target retirement income: equivalent of $4k in today’s dollars (about $8k in the future). So may need around total 1.47mil in my investments to sustain? Till 90? Or is it too much lol, I'm not sure what's the target to retire comfortably.


Questions I would like feedback on

How much should I aim to keep in cpf OA before moving excess to SA, or is there even a need to move at all?

Is 20k enough for renovation of a one or two bedroom HDB?

Should I add disability income insurance or is it too much alrd, considering I'm alrd stretching my income with saving for a lot of things (while still enjoying life!)? Is it unnecessary?

Does it make sense to keep Syfe Flexi cash as my bond portion? Should I consider MBH/A35 even if the portion I'm putting in doesn't really justify the fees?(?). Because I prefer the liquidity of syfe tbh but dk if their interest is lower than what's good for a bond.

For the $30k lump sum into VWRA, should I lump sum or DCA it over time (just need some validation)?

Am I over or under saving in any area, or any blind spots you notice?

Thank you in advance for any advice!

Posted Jul 17, 2025, 8:39 AM UTC

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