Something I have blogged about from time to time is how people who plan to get married and have children should be financially prepared first.
Have a strong financial foundation and we would have less money problems in future.
I can understand why those who have children on the way must get married in a hurry. Oops.
Bad AK! Bad AK!
Otherwise, why should anyone be in a hurry to get married and have children? Hmmm.
I have blogged about how some people borrow money in order to have a wedding or to renovate their matrimonial homes.
I have also blogged about how people ran out of money and had to borrow money from friends to pay the monthly installments on their matrimonial homes.
"I was told of a person in his early 30s who is married and has two children.
"He is regularly borrowing money from his family and friends.
"In fact, he would borrow from friends to pay the installments on the mortgage of his 5 room HDB flat as well.
"Amount? S$800 a month."
From: Not enough money to be married.
It is quite mind boggling and I wonder why some people just become stupid when they fall in love.
Can being in love generate income to pay for everything? Hmm...
Of course, one thing that so many in Singapore complain about is how they cannot hope to ever retire because they don't have enough money.
For some, if they are honest with themselves, they might not have enough money because they got married (and had children) too early in life.
Wealth needs a base and this base takes time to grow.
If we spend all our money as soon as we make them, a base can never form and our wealth will never grow.
"... the sooner we realise the benefit of delaying gratification and the sooner we start investing for a more secure future, the better."
From: Delaying gratification and getting stuff for free.
So, if we have a choice, it isn't so terrible a thing to push back marriage plans by a few years or is it?
"I transferred much of my CPF-OA money into my CPF-SA in the first 4 years of my working life.
"Then, I let the magic of compounding do the rest.
"This is something that anyone, especially those in their 20s, should seriously consider doing.
"It might mean putting off marriage plans by four years for some but it would be worth it."
From: How to upsize $100K to $225K in 20 years?
Regular readers know that I do not believe in being overly pessimistic or optimistic.
I believe in being pragmatic.
In a world like ours, financial security must be of paramount importance.
The pragmatic me tells me that this is a hard truth.
Certain decisions in life have very long term or, indeed, life long consequences.
They are not to be taken lightly or we might not ever see the light of day.
"A Happy Marriage is Worth Waiting for." Taken during one of my visits to the National Museum. |
A happy marriage is worth waiting for.
Not I say one hor.
Our government say one hor.
Yes, I know.
Bad AK! Bad AK!
Related posts:
1. What is our attitude towards having children?
2. Financially prepared to be married?
3. How to have children and retire comfortably?