Saving to move to Singapore

danicheng

Hi All,

I am currently 23 and working in Procurement. My current salary is £25,500 and each month I earn around £1600 after tax. Ultimately I am saving so I can move to Singapore to work as I have wanted to do this for a while and think Singapore would be an ideal country to take my career to the next step before moving back to the UK when I decide to settle down.

My outgoings

Rent/Bills - £250 (Parents bought a flat and paying for Bills mainly)
Fuel - £200 (I travel 38 miles each day back and forth to work)
Food - £250
Other - £300 ( More than I use, but rather over estimate than underestimate)

Savings

£250 to monthly saving account with Bank of Scotland
£180 to Vangaurd 60% Life Equity
£150 salary sacrifice to Company Pension each month

Just want to know what other people think as to what I can do save as much as possible so I have money in the bank when and if i move to Singapore. And If my motive to move and if anyone has any advice on my situation .

eskbanker

danicheng wrote: »

Savings

£250 to monthly saving account with Bank of Scotland
£180 to Vangaurd 60% Life Equity
£150 salary sacrifice to Company Pension each month

The Bank of Scotland regular saver account only pays 2% so probably worth checking the better offerings of up to 5% at http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/best-regular-savings-accounts

The Vanguard money isn't saving, it's investing! Not necessarily a bad thing but you should only put money into products like this if you're comfortable that you won't need access for at least 5-10 years, as investments are much more volatile than capital-protected cash-based savings products.

Always good to get a pension started early, but do your contributions maximise those made by your employer?

Finally, it's worth thinking about what you're saving for - moving elsewhere to work shouldn't necessarily mean needing a savings pot as you'd presumably expect to earn enough in Singapore to cover rent and other costs of living anyway?

danicheng

eskbanker wrote: »

The Bank of Scotland regular saver account only pays 2% so probably worth checking the better offerings of up to 5% at http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/best-regular-savings-accounts

The Vanguard money isn't saving, it's investing! Not necessarily a bad thing but you should only put money into products like this if you're comfortable that you won't need access for at least 5-10 years, as investments are much more volatile than capital-protected cash-based savings products.

Always good to get a pension started early, but do your contributions maximise those made by your employer?

Finally, it's worth thinking about what you're saving for - moving elsewhere to work shouldn't necessarily mean needing a savings pot as you'd presumably expect to earn enough in Singapore to cover rent and other costs of living anyway?

Thats true about the Vanguard. If i have enough saved then I would ideally want some money behind me in the event of needing for a deposit for a flat, etc. Thanks for the advice

steampowered

Great move, if you can find a decent job out there. Singapore is a wonderful place to spend a few years.

I believe you'd need to find an employer willing to sponsor you for a work permit.

You'd need enough to cover two month's rent - the market standard in Singapore (or at least it was a few years ago) is one month's rent as a deposit and one month paid in advance.

Living costs can be quite high too - it is a developed country that is wealthier than the UK, so you might not save as much as you think - it is much more expensive than the rest of the region. But you will most likely pay less tax.

elephantrosie

thats a high salary for a 23!

Rich2808

Good luck with your plans.

However as has been said Singapore is not the easiest place to emigrate too. You will need a sponsoring employer and have to meet the earnings threshold too.

https://www.guidemesingapore.com/business-guides/immigration/singapore-visa/singapore-employment-pass-scheme

I love Singapore - but its a very crowded and busy place and the cost of living is high. Have you looked at other options like Malaysia if you want to move to that part of the world temporarily?

Mojisola

I might come as a shock to find yourself responsible for all the bills after having such generous parents so build in a good emergency fund as well as the amount set by the authorities.

Pincher

danicheng wrote: »

I am currently 23 and working in Procurement. My current salary is £25,500 and each month I earn around £1600 after tax.

elephantrosie wrote: »

thats a high salary for a 23!

http://www.minimum-wage.co.uk/

21 to 24 £7.05
25 and Over £7.50

If you work 7 hours a day, 5 days a week, that's 1,820 hours a year.

£12,831 = £7.05 x 1,820

So, if you were working in McDonalds, you would expect to make £13k+

I think £25k for a graduate is about right these days.

I was talking to a guy in Costco, it seems they easily pull in £30k+!
Naturally, it is not easy to get in.

Procurement?

I had a conversation with a woman who did that.
I was saying doesn't that mean you end up with the coarsest possible toilet paper, because you are always going for the lowest bidder. No, of course not, because you specify the quality of what you are procuring.

As if any boss will ask for Andrex Double Velvet because he cares for his staff. :rotfl:
Executive bog roll for Executive bottom only.

enthusiasticsaver

There is no benefits system in Singapore and cost of living is expensive. I think you will need a large cash buffer so I am not sure investing in the Vanguard LS60 is a good idea for you. Don't get me wrong, I rate that fund highly and invest in it myself but we won't be needing to access it in the next 7-10 years. If you were investing in the VLS80 or VLS100, given your age I would say that would be a great plan for retirement. If you are intending to move in the next few years I think it needs to be more accessible.

elephantrosie

see the world while you are young.

Eco_Miser

eskbanker wrote: »

The Vanguard money isn't saving, it's investing!

Actually it's both! It's being saved from the OP's salary, and then invested.

Two different meaning of saving which are often confused.