Malaysia Financial Blogger | Financial Freedom Ideas | imDavidLee.Com

Financial Planning for A Young Adult

We are faced with various financial concerns on life. Some of the common concerns are:
i. Should we invest? Which investment vehicle? How much?
ii. Can we buy another property?
iii. What sort of protection should we look at?

How can we best optimize our current resources to meet all these concerns and at the same time, meet all our financial goals? Shall we address all concerns at the same time? What is the best strategy moving forward?
Are we overcommitted to a particular asset class? Do we just sell all our loss making investments and concentrate on the oldest investment vehicle such as property? Will this asset help if we need cash urgently?

One of my readers who realized that he needed to get a professional planner to help him out of his dilemma and came to ask me.

From the above, one can see that his major concerns are as follows:
i. Investment: Should he continue to invest, switch or sell the investments in view of current market uncertainty? Would reinvesting the dividends be a good idea?

ii. PTPTN loan (RM63k): Should he settle the amount, now that the government is giving a 20% discount? or should he buy another property instead?

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Having Proper Mindset for Investing

Having proper mindset when investing allow investors to obtain a realistic perspective of their investments. Due to misconceptions about investing, some investors may be disappointed when their expectations and needs are not met. Investors who have a realistic expectations of their investments are more likely to achieve their long term financial goals.

Below are several misconceptions about invest8ing which investors should be aware of in their investment:

i. Quick Gains
One of the biggest roadblocks in achieving the successful of long term investing is impatience. Investors need to remind themselves that investments are for the long term mostly. As such, gains made from investing may take some time to be realized. Impatience investors, in their quest to chase returns, may not give their investments enough time to perform adequately.

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Is Property in Penang Still Affordable?

Scarcity of land has caused to the escalating prices of housing in Penang. The current average condominium price on the Penang island itself is RM450,000 while the median household income is RM52,884, which is equivalent to RM4,407 per household (Source: Penang Monthly, 2012). In fact, the house prices on the island have increased by 50% over the last 5 years.

However, the middle income groups have not experienced an increase in their wages, and the cost of living continues to rise on yearly basis, which biting into any income growth. As a whole, the ratio for Penang state is 5 (RM265010/RM52884), which has been risen from 4 in year 2006.

In comparison, the house price-to-income ratio for US was 3 until 2000, and it rose to 5.8 by 2006, before the subprime crisis. In UK the ratio reached 11 in 2008, just before the credit crunch. The above figures are obtained from October 2011 research on ‘Supply and Demand in the Penang housing market: Assessing Affordability‘ published by Penang Institute.

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I’m Now a Google AdWords Qualified Individual!

It’s finally official. I am happy to say that I have been qualified to be a part of the Google Adwords Certified Partner Program. For those who know AdWords for years, this qualification is indeed valuable as it offers credibility and acts as a door opener.

Google AdWords Certification Program is a globally recognized which showcases knowledge of the best AdWords tools and techniques. I have attained this certified partner status by passing a minimum of 2 certification exams which are Google Advertising Fundamental Exam and Google Search Advertising Advanced Exam. Through its learning process, you are able to illustrate your practical expertise in managing accounts and understand the terms & conditions of AdWords.

Benefits of Google AdWords Certification Program
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