First World Problems

Sometimes I stir a lot of shit on weekends.

The topics that blog readers get anxious about include topics on dating Singapore women, dissing Financial Advisors or delivering a nasty brutal lesson to Polytechnic students. Regardless of the negativity of the engagement, I get 2000+ views in one day.

But sometimes, the world stirs throws some shit at me. In such a case, I should also share on this blog because we can learn something from the experience and I get to dissipate some Bad Kharma I accumulated from previous blog posts.

My dad has currently been hospitalised for a few weeks and it's been quite rough for him. The doctors found three problems with him and are systematically resolving it one by one.  At the home front, we've been trying to hire a domestic help to support my mum when my dad comes home.

Apparently to sponsor my domestic help, I need one of the following :

• Notice of Assessment for my Income Tax
• Evidence that I have a Fixed Deposit account containing $50,000

Unfortunately for me, I only started reporting my income tax for year 2018 so I will only get my notice of assessment maybe end of this year. Prior to that, I was a student. So I spent the yesterday contemplating the stocks I need to sell to build that $50,000 fixed deposit account. 

This is a rare case of something financially independent folks face. 

While I can easily liquidate my stocks to build the fixed deposit account, the opportunity cost assuming 7% dividends is almost $3,500 every year. Considering that I am likely to take this from my leveraged account, the penalty is much worse.

This is not the first time I was inconvenienced by my lack of conventional employment in this society. Years ago, I was abused at at ICA by part time counter-staff and had to document my dividends payments for ICA to initiate my wife's SG citizenship application.

I think insisting on a fixed deposit is cruel, and alternatives should be offered to citizens who really need a domestic helper to assist at home :

• Instead of $50,000 fixed deposit, it is much better to also allow $50,000 in SSBs to also qualify.
• Perhaps the sponsor can also show that his CDP has $250,000 in his account.

I am pretty used to government officers explaining that my case is very special and have experience getting concessions from them. 

But right now, if life throws lemons at you, make lemonade :

• Looks like I now have an emergency fund. 
• As the trade war gets worse, I now have a war-chest.
• I am likely be getting rid of my equities first to reduce the beta of my overall portfolio. 
• For my leveraged portfolio, the securities with the lowest yields will be culled first

Let me know if you have experienced a similar problem I did and whether you have a workaround.

All my administrative requirements have been explained to me by the maid agency. 

( If you are a private banking client, do share with me whether these banks have some sort of way to help their HNW clients out. )