How to insulate yourself from the impact of the economic crisis

We all know it’s getting ugly out there. Jobs are going, share prices have plummeted, year-end bonuses look shaky and anxiety levels are sky-high. Time, then, to batten down the hatches.

For many people, that means keeping their finances on track until the economy turns the corner.

Experts have various tips on how to do this, but they mostly boil down to belt-tightening and taking a hard look at expenses and liabilities.

Ms Anne Tay, OCBC Bank’s vice-president of group wealth management, encourages people to go back to basics and revisit some principles of managing wealth.

‘I agree that we are entering turbulent times now and cash is king. But bear markets or financial crises come and go and things will recover,’ she notes.

‘The real test is how long it will take and can we hold out that long. This is an opportunity to rethink our wealth-building strategy.’

Here are 10 tips to ride out the recession.

1 Take stock of your cash position

It is vital to get a handle on your cash flow - income versus expenses - so that you know how vulnerable you are if, say, you get retrenched.

Ms Janice Poon, Standard Chartered Bank’s general manager of wealth management, believes that managing cash flow is the first step towards planning for a rainy day and it could mean having enough cash for emergencies.

‘It’s something you should be doing all the time but it’s even more critical during a downturn,’ she says.

The chief executive of financial advisory firm New Independent, Mr Joseph Chong, says people must ensure they have enough emergency funds.

‘This should be in the region of six to 12 months of your monthly expenses. The downturn in the global and Singapore economies will see more layoffs and fewer hirings,’ he says.

2 Home loans

In this high-inflation, low-interest-rate environment, one of the best things you can do is to review your debts and refinance wherever possible.

It is crucial to prioritise your debts and manage them.

Your home loan should rank high in this scheme of things simply because it is a big-ticket item. This means it could provide the single biggest cost-saving option.

Consider moving to a variable rate mortgage pegged to the three-month Sibor or Singapore interbank offered rate. This rate fell to a near five-year low of 0.89 per cent on Tuesday and was 0.95 per cent on Friday.

Mr Chong notes that central banks around the world are slashing interest rates to head off a steep recession, so short-term rates are expected to stay low next year.

This means big savings for those on variable packages.

Alpha Financial Advisers’ chief executive, Mr Arthur Lim, suggests that home owners look for refinancing savings by checking out the different mortgage rates - but take into consideration any penalty charges.

3 Credit card debt

With hard times coming, consumers should be wary about credit card spending and unsecured debts such as credit lines.

‘The good times experienced by Singapore over the last few years have lulled individuals into complacency and some bad habits have been built up, such as not paying your credit card bills in full,’ says Mr Kuo How Nam, president of Credit Counselling Singapore (CCS), a non-profit group that advises debtors.

‘This is a good time to tighten their belts, pay off the unsecured consumer debts as fast as possible and build up a buffer fund as a cushion if something bad happens to their jobs and incomes.’

One way is to curb spending on non-essentials.

Ms Chenise Lim, vice-president at ipac financial planning Singapore, warns consumers that credit card debt is one of the most expensive loans available.

‘Don’t be taken in by the minimum payment option on your statement, as outstanding balances can attract an annual interest cost of up to 24 per cent. If you’re unable to pay your debt in full, try to pay as much as possible and then set aside your credit card and avoid using it until your debt is fully cleared,’ she says.

4 Consolidate your debts

As a guide, your monthly long-term debt commitments should not exceed 35 per cent of your monthly gross income.

Consider debt consolidation if you have outstanding balances with different credit card companies and have difficulty paying. CCS can negotiate with these banks and help restructure the repayment of these debts on your behalf.

Ms Poon suggests taking advantage of balance-transfer promotions offered with a lower interest rate to refinance your higher-cost debt.

5 Review insurance policies

Mr Chong urges people to ensure that their hospitalisation policies are in force.

‘Remember, you cannot rely on your company’s insurance coverage, especially in a downturn, as the company may not always be there,’ he says.

An exception is if you have a portable medical plan that follows you even when you leave your employer.

Check if your policies still meet your financial objectives. You may want to discontinue them if they are no longer necessary. Otherwise, it is prudent to take a policy loan, says Mr Lim.

This means you maintain your protection while you take a premium holiday.

During this period, premiums will be deducted against the policy’s cash value so you still enjoy your cover.

6 Review your investment portfolios

It is very likely that many investors’ portfolios have suffered big losses with gains wiped out and even the starting capital reduced.

Given that your objectives, time horizon and risk appetite remain unchanged, Mr Lim recommends restructuring the portfolio to cater for more risk.

But if taking on more risk is not consistent with your investment profile, then either moderate the target amount needed or extend your time horizon.

Here’s a suggestion from Mr Chong on how to restructure a portfolio: ‘At least rebalance your portfolio in accordance with your investment-risk profile. A 60 per cent equities and 40 per cent fixed income portfolio would probably need to be rebalanced by selling one-third of the fixed income and deploying the proceeds into equities.’

This discipline means you automatically buy cheap as equities now are at bargain prices with an average dividend yield of 4 per cent. ‘The economy and the stock market will eventually recover as global money supply is beginning to pick up in response to the aggressive central bank rate cuts,’ Mr Chong adds.

7 Investment checklist

If you are planning to enter the market, Ms Lim says you should ensure that your investment strategy is well diversified across asset classes, countries, sectors and stocks.

In addition, practise dollar-cost averaging, which involves buying into the market via a fixed sum regularly so when the prices are low, your money buys more units.

Over the long term, your portfolio will benefit as markets tend to trend upwards.

For stock traders, DMG & Partners head of research Terence Wong’s advice is to stay away if they need the cash in the next couple of months.

Enter only if you are willing and able to wait for the long haul. While stocks appear cheap now, he expects better opportunities next year as the negative sentiments are expected to weigh on the market.

8 Use of CPF top-ups

Enjoy tax relief on your income when you top up either your own CPF Minimum Sum or those of your immediate family members.

You can enjoy tax relief of up to $7,000 a year if you use cash to top up for yourself and/or receive cash top-ups from your employer.

You can enjoy an additional tax relief of up to $7,000 a year if you use cash to top up for your siblings, spouse, parents or grandparents.

Your siblings and/or spouse must have earned $2,000 or less in the preceding year to qualify for the tax relief.

The giver can claim tax relief in the following year’s tax assessment.

9 Use the Supplementary Retirement Scheme (SRS)

Contributions to the SRS account bring income-tax relief. You can contribute any amount each year subject to a cap of $11,475 for Singaporeans and permanent residents and $26,775 for foreigners.

Besides providing you with the discipline to save consistently for retirement, SRS gives an additional nest-egg on top of your CPF account.

Note that 50 per cent of your withdrawals from SRS is subject to tax at retirement. Withdrawals can be made over a period of 10 years. With lower or nominal income at retirement, you may end up paying little or no income tax.

10 Recession-proof your job

With job cuts reported more often now, this is not the time to take an extended holiday or sabbatical. Be visible, go beyond your basic responsibilities, upgrade yourself and continue to network.

Remember, no one will lay off a star performer.

But, update your resume just in case.

Source : Straits Times - 16 Nov 2008

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