Author: Retire by 50

This is an update on how I saved money on my Hulu subscriptions this year. Its slightly different from the Hulu savings tip I posted in a few years ago and in this post, I will also cover on VPN subscriptions as well. In 2014, I blogged about how I saved money by purchasing disconted Hulu gift cards on eBay to pay for my Hulu subscription. That’s one way to get around paying for monthly Hulu subscriptions because I don’t have a US credit card. That ship has already sailed and if you do a search on eBay, the Hulu gift...

In the last 2 years, businesses have been transitioning their products and services from a ‘pay once and use forever’ business model into a subscription-based business model. For me, I’m using subscription-based services for almost everything in my daily life. Here’s a some of the subscriptions I’m paying on each month: Microsoft Office 365 Netflix Hulu Spotify Premium SingTel fibre and mobile Personal insurance Mortgage loan All of them are paid automatically with my credit card, which is great because I don’t want to spend time making regular payments all the time. The downside of this is that I tend...

Here’s an update to my fixed expenditure for 2017 with some changes to my expenses liabilities. Mortgage: $828 $879 (CPF) As I move to the 3rd year of my bank loan for my HDB flat, the monthly mortgage repayment amount has increased from $828 to $879. Still within my monthly CPF contribution with some surplus so I’m comfortable with that. Parent Allowance: $600 My mother retired many years ago after her leg started giving her problems. On top of the monthly payouts from her CPF account, I have been giving her some allowance each month. $500 $600 isn’t very much but that...

I’m starting afresh to diligently report my expenses after taking a break for a year. I wish I have the perseverance of Mr 15HWW to keep doing this year on year but I’m going to try my best! Transportation: $145 Commuting charges on the B.M.W (bus, MRT, walk) went much higher this year due to the Chinese New Year as we took cab rides when visiting our relatives. Food: $378.70 Food expenses wasn’t as high as I thought considering the number of public holidays this month. I’m still not bringing lunches to work as my current workplace has affordable eating...

Singaporeans typically recontract their mobile phone plans every 1.5-2 years for a new mobile phone. It’s the norm because mobile phones either don’t last that long, or the user experience gets really bad after a few Android/iOS updates. Not a great way to save money if you asked me. The last time I signed a contract with my local telco was at least 6 years ago when they were still offering 12 GB data plans on 3G network. Since then, I have always bought mobile phones at full price (or slightly discounted rates through friends) to replace damaged ones directly...

November is one of those months when I decided to reward myself with a couple of cool toys for working hard in 2015. A delayed gratification for not splurging for the past 10 months. Net Savings rate fell to 21.5% this month. Transportation: $72.94  Commuting charges on the B.M.W (bus, MRT, walk) remained high as we enter the wetter part of the year where it rains almost every day. Food: $355.66  Food expenses stayed high this month as I wasn’t cooking as much as I used to. I also ate out more frequently during work lunches. Groceries: $28.02  Grocery expenses was still reasonably low...

October is a face-punch month for me with lots of additional expenses compared to previous months. The haze issue that’s plaguing Singapore resulted in a huge reduction in bike commutes to work and I also spent more money dining in restaurants. Fortunately, I didn’t go too overboard with the spendings and Net Savings rate stayed at 80% this month. Transportation: $66.20  Commuting charges on the B.M.W (bus, MRT, walk) remained high, similar to September as I haven’t cycled much this month because to the haze. Fortunately, I didn’t take any taxi rides this month. Food: $307.31  Food expenses remain high this month...