Over-insured? Under-insured?

Let it be clear at this early: I am not an expert on insurance.

But I am deeply frustrated about people who think that all they need to achieve their financial freedom are life insurance policies. They may fall under the case of being over-insured.

I am also equally disappointed with people who has an insurance coverage way below their insurance needs and think that they do not need to increase coverage. They are what I call under-insured.

And they may sound arrogant when you talk to them.

Doubling your money and the Rule of 72

As greedy humans, we want something that doubles our money.

Fine, I will give you something that can double your money.

The Rule of 72.

(click or open image in new tab to enlarge)

How does this work?

Credit Card, anyone?

Credit card. Necessity or status symbol?

Ever since I knew what a credit card is, I promised myself not to get one. Around 2009, when BPI offered me a pre-approved credit card, I declined it. They even tried to deliver the card at home, but I told the messenger that I did not apply for it.

BDO cuts interest rates too (after MBT and BPI)

(image from www.slatepropertiesnow.com. No copyright infringement intended.)

I already blogged in a previous post about the rate cuts on deposits products of Metrobank and BPI this year.

And now, BDO has imposed the same rate decrease on savings products. See the new rates on their website.

0.25% annual interest rate.  Seriously?

After Metrobank, BPI to cut deposit rates too

(image from www.slatepropertiesnow.com. No copyright infringement intended.)

Because of the low interest rate environment, Metrobank welcomed the year with also lower interest rates for its depositors.

From 0.375% gross annual interest rate for regular savings accounts, this was lowered to the current 0.25% per annum starting January 1, 2013.

And now, BPI announced recently that it will also cut the rates of deposit accounts starting February 15.

Double your money in a mutual fund

"You could double your money by investing P5,000 a month for five years in mutual fund."

Sounds like a scam or hyped-selling? For some, it may.

But this is a real investment in the Save and Learn Equity Fund (SALEF) of First Metro Asset Management, Inc.

In mutual funds, there are no guaranteed returns. But historical figures from 2008 to 2012 suggest you could actually double your money, not just by lump-sum investing, but also by peso cost averaging.

(Note: lump-sum investing is not advisable for a fund that invests in volatile markets like equity funds. Please understand the risk and your risk appetite before investing.)

If you redeemed all your shares today, you would have a whooping 102% return of investment!

How? Read on.

Being an IMG Associate

Somebody asked me about being an Associate of the International Marketing Group or IMG. He specifically asked whether he can do it in part-time capacity.

For the uninitiated, IMG is a brokerage firm with primary goal of educating Filipinos about financial literacy. Its head office is in Makati but has several satellite offices/sub-group in major Philippine cities and in other countries. Mind you, it is too big a network to be a scam. And there is no promise of exaggerated returns. You have to do some thing to be compensated.

Anyway, part of my answer to the question is after the jump.

Why piso matters?

I currently have accounts in stocks and various mutual funds. And last January 2, the first banking day of 2013, I just started a Unit Investment Trust Fund (UITF) account with BPI.

That opening statements may send an impression that I have big funds. No. What I am doing is just preparing an allocation for certain goals. As of now, there are no specific goal for each fund.

Just one general goal: capital growth.

This quest for capital growth started in the first quarter of 2010 when I opened a mutual fund account with PhilEquity Fund, Inc.

But my interest in personal finance (I didn't know then that it was called as such) started when I was in second year college.

I applied and was accepted for a part-time job at one of the libraries in UP Diliman. It was my first experience in earning money from my own sweat (literal sweat as we had to move books from shelf to shelf).

It was also the start of my own "budgeting" exercise on my limited P2,000-monthly allowance and my P2,500-monthly income from that part-time stint.

I jotted down every cash inflow and outflow in a tiny notebook that looked like this:

(image after the jump.)

Journal for the new year and years ahead...

I've been thinking of putting up a blog about personal finance for several months now.

One of the things that hindered me is that I am not a financial guru or expert. But... I read somewhere that many successful people keep a journal and it is deemed instrumental in whatever they've accomplished. I know that success is relative but I want to at least be successful in my quest for financial freedom, ergo this blog.

It was around January 2010 when I convinced myself that working hard is not what will ultimately bring me to financial freedom. Yes, hard work is needed but financial intelligence is a much greater force to achieving that goal.

Marami naman tayong nakikitang kayod-kabayo na sa pagta-trabaho pero may problema pa rin sa salapi. Baka isa ka sa kanila.