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2023 has been a yr filled with ups and downs. If somebody had advised me to start with of the yr that we’d see the Russia-Ukraine warfare proceed into its second yr, and that October would see Israel launch a full-blown assault on Gaza main to fifteen,000 lives misplaced in beneath 2 months…I might have discovered it arduous to consider.
However that’s precisely what occurs – Life usually has its approach of unusual us.
As 2023 involves an finish, that is my annual assessment of my funds to examine the place we at the moment are and be certain that we’re not falling too far off from our targets. Throughout this yearly assessment, I usually look at my revenue development, bills, financial savings, insurance coverage protection, and funding efficiency – which helps me to raised strategize for the brand new yr.
Time flies, this marks the tenth yr that I’m doing this on the weblog! Earlier than I’m going into this yr’s assessment, right here’s a fast recap of earlier years:
- 2014: Saved $20,000
- 2015: Saved $30,000 and grew revenue
- 2016: Saved $40,000 and grew revenue, hit $100k in web price at age 26 together with CPF
- 2017: Saved $45,000 and doubled my web price in a yr
- 2018: Saved $50,000
- 2019: Saved $35,000 (didn’t realise I utterly missed out on a round-up publish, however right here’s our child-related bills as a substitute)
- 2020: Saved $30,000 and achieved loopy (irregular) funding returns
- 2021: Saved $40,000, grew revenue however noticed diminished funding returns
- 2022: Saved $45,000 and battled a bearish funding local weather
Financial savings & Revenue
This yr’s financial savings hit an all-time excessive, largely fuelled by the expansion in my revenue – which greater than made up for greater family bills attributable to inflation.
| 2014 | $20,000 |
| 2015 | $30,000 |
| 2016 | $40,000 |
| 2017 | $45,000 |
| 2018 | $50,000 |
| 2019 | $35,000 |
| 2020 | $30,000 |
| 2021 | $40,000 |
| 2022 | $45,000 |
| 2023 | $60,000 |
Loyal readers would possibly recall how I selected to take a step again in my profession after welcoming my second child. In 2021, I gave up my Director position and was headhunted to hitch a competitor, the place I requested for a less-demanding Senior Supervisor position as a substitute, clocking in simply 3 days per week (and extra throughout crunchtime). However in 2023, I acquired promoted to a brand new portfolio as Director, working carefully with the federal government on new insurance policies and I now handle a staff answerable for bringing in and sustaining an enormous bulk of our firm’s Singapore income base.
Consequently, my salaried revenue doubled.
My aspect hustles have additionally continued as BAU (enterprise as ordinary), however I seen one thing highly effective kick on this yr: the ability of referrals. Phrase in regards to the work that I do (for weight reduction) actually began spreading as my preliminary base of shoppers (who efficiently misplaced weight) shared their “secret” with their family and friends members, which resulted in referrals and loads of new enterprise from people who by no means in any other case heard of me (or Price range Babe).
Subsequent yr, I’m trying to construct one other new supply of revenue, so we’ll see if that kicks off!
Bills
On account of inflation and rising costs, our household bills have risen considerably. We acquired hit by the next mortgage charge (since we opted for a financial institution mortgage once we signed our mortgage pre-COVID at 1+%) and greater family payments on the similar time, similar to everybody else who’s a house owner and pays for his or her household in Singapore.
Our present month-to-month family revenue has risen to:
| Nate: childcare & enrichment | $1,200 |
| Finn: childcare & enrichment | $1,000 |
| Helper wage and levy | $1,000 |
| Mortgage & residence insurance coverage | $1,300 |
| City council, carpark and utilities | $650 |
| Eating & groceries | $1,400 |
| Household insurance coverage insurance policies | $1,200 |
This excludes our particular person eating bills, the allowances that we give to our mother and father (a 5-figure sum every year) and different miscellaneous bills that aren’t recurring in nature, so you possibly can think about how the precise sum is rather a lot greater.
Our payments (mounted bills) have gone up, however the greatest ache has positively acquired to be from the price of consuming out, which has elevated considerably as F&B retailers hiked their costs this yr. To adapt, we’ve been making an attempt to chop down on this so as to not bust our price range (though it’s arduous to run away from it solely, particularly when you’ve got children who request to eat at sure locations on weekends).
For abroad travels, we introduced our household (and oldsters) to Taiwan for a 2-week journey and spent 4D3N in Cameron Highlands, so our whole vacation price range rose from $5k final yr to $13k this yr.
Insurance coverage
My husband and I added 2 new insurance coverage insurance policies this yr to our portfolio to extend our protection for vital sickness, particularly after MOH dominated that most cancers will now not be coated 100% beneath typical insurance policy.
We misplaced just a few buddies to dying this yr and noticed a number of others acquired identified with most cancers, so we determined to behave whereas we’re nonetheless in good well being.
Investments
However what was much more surprising?
That the inventory market would formally backside out in December 2022 and see the beginning of a brand new bull ushered in by ChatGPT’s launch (on 30 Nov 2022, marking the stellar rise of Synthetic Intelligence shares (and hype?).
And that the S&P 500 would go on to achieve 25% in 2023 alone, principally pushed by mega-cap shares together with Microsoft, Apple, Alphabet, (new-darling) Nvidia and Meta, and so on.
Should you had diligently caught to your investing all through (as a substitute of giving up like what most retail traders did, when the bear market triggered by the tech shares crash in 2022 continued for for much longer than most individuals anticipated)…congratulations, you’ll have seen your portfolio transfer from being within the pink to into the inexperienced.
After I wrote this final yr,
“In whole, my funding portfolio is at the moment down by about ~35%”.
SG Price range Babe, 30 December 2022
I actually wasn’t anticipating the market to reverse so quickly and for my portfolio to return into the inexperienced so shortly, however that’s precisely what occurred.
On one other good be aware, my dividends payout have additionally hit an all-time excessive this yr, with a major increase coming from DBS’ hike earlier.
All in all, my investments are again on monitor.
Conclusion
I’m stunned that my financial savings hit a brand new milestone this yr – contemplating how the final time I hit $50k was earlier than I had children, I actually wasn’t anticipating to surpass the quantity this yr attributable to inflation.
However that’s the ability of elevated incomes potential. If something, this yr has really been reminder that we must always proceed to work arduous and construct by way of our 20s and 30s, in order that we are able to have a neater time in our later years.
After I began this weblog in 2014, I wrote that my aim was to retire by age 45. my very own monetary report card and progress since then, it’s protected to say that barring any surprising occasions, I’m nicely on monitor to attaining it.
My 2023 monetary abstract would thus be:
- greater revenue (attributable to a promotion at work, and extra referrals),
- greater bills (attributable to inflation),
- a extra resilient insurance coverage portfolio, and
- improved funding efficiency (because the inventory market turned bullish).
The subsequent large merchandise on my monetary agenda will likely be to construct my dividends portfolio to the purpose the place my dividends will likely be sufficient to pay for my residing bills. I estimate that this can take me 2 – 4 years to execute, so I’ll replace as soon as I clear that milestone.
See you guys over within the new yr!
With love,
Price range Babe
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