By James Lew
Living in one of the world’s most expensive cities with a family of six isn't for the faint-hearted. Our 4-room HDB in the heartlands of Singapore is home—not just to memories and chaos—but to a dream: retiring early and financially free. I’ve walked this journey, stumbled many times, and picked up strategies that have transformed our family's life and outlook. Here’s my candid take on how we’re getting there—and how you can, too.
1. Define What Financial Freedom Means for You
Early in the journey, my wife and I sat down and mapped our true north. For us, financial freedom isn’t about luxury condos or big HDBs. It’s the ability to choose—whether it’s working less to spend time with our kids, or traveling during off-peak months without stressing over leave days.
We calculated a realistic number: how much we’d need monthly to sustain our lifestyle. This included utilities, groceries (our kids love cereal and yakult!), education, insurance, and the occasional prata supper. That figure became our target passive income. Our figure in 2025 is $3million generating a passive income of $200k/per year. So far we are only 20% of that figure in our journey.
2. Budget Ruthlessly, Spend Intentionally
I used to think budgeting was restrictive. Turns out, it gave us control. We switched to the 50-40-10 rule—with tweaks. Here's how it works for us:
- 50% Needs: Mortgage, food, insurance, transport, tuition.
- 40% Savings/Investments: This includes CPF top-ups (To get tax rebates and made the money work harder) , dividend portfolio (Singapore), and a modest stock portfolio (US index funds by Endowus) .
- 10% Wants: Family outings, bubble tea runs, even those last-minute Lazada buys.
Our Family do not have a car and it helps in reducing our expenses even more. We take private transportation and occasionally we do Grab if we are going to places.
3. Maximize Government Support (It’s There!)
There’s a surprising amount of support if you know where to look:
- Baby Bonus & CDA: Every bit helps when you’ve got 2 kids! We used CDA funds wisely—mostly for healthcare, vaccinations, and enrichment classes which we have used up as our 2 daughters are in primary school.
- U-Save & GST Vouchers & CDC Vouchers: These reduced our utility bills and gave breathing space.
- CPF Enhancements: We used cash top-ups for our Special Accounts to compound our future security which we have max out. Projected to be around $700k+ for both mi and my wife when we reach 55 years old after which we will go for enhance retirement sum and we will do a top up. My estimate is to have another $140k+ to top up so that at age 65 we will have a passive income stream of $8k per month which will amounts to $96k per year for life. This will form our baseline living.
Learning to navigate these schemes gave us the edge. Every dollar saved was a dollar invested.
4. Turn Your HDB into a Financial Ally
Some people see their HDB as a place to live. I see ours as a quiet wealth-building machine. We didn’t over-renovate—just the essentials. That meant more cash flow to invest elsewhere.
We also plan to right-size eventually. Once the kids fly the nest, we’ll consider selling and moving to a smaller flat, unlocking equity to support our passive income. Property in Singapore may not make you rich overnight, but with long-term vision, it can anchor your retirement. As both mi and my wife got 2 chances to buy new hdb flat. We have used up 1 for our 4 room HDB. We have another chance as 2nd timer. We are planning to look out for HDB flat once we clear the mortgage by this year Oct 2025. From there we will monitor for HDB flats where every quarter there will be launches to see what are the available locations. My current flat estimate to sell @$700k+. By buying 2nd HDB and selling my current flat, we should have some funds left after selling and buying the 2nd HDB.
5. Invest—Even with a Modest Salary
The turning point for me was automating investments. I chose low-cost ETFs, and dabbled in US stocks via dollar-cost averaging. It wasn't glamorous, but it was steady. Robo-advisors like Endowus become my silent partner.
And yes, there were nerves. The 2020 dip during COVID shook us, but sticking to the plan paid off. Time in the market, not timing the market, became our mantra. Compared to the investment i did in mutual funds else where through insurance, i have more control and i'm not paying high percentage of fees.
6. Side Hustles & Skills Stacking
With kids, time is precious—but I squeezed in weekend blogwriting which you are looking at it now: even reselling pre-loved items through Carousell. I'm still some way to having adsense on my blog but hey every baby will take me to my eventual goal for adsense on my blog. Eventually to momentise.
We focused on building marketable skills—I upskilled via SkillsFuture credits and learned basic coding. Every skill gained makes me more marketable.
7. Teach Kids About Money Early
Raising money-smart kids eases the load. We gave each child a mini piggy bank and taught them to split money into spend, save, and share. Watching them grow into little savers made our sacrifices worth it.
We avoided over-indulging. Each child had a modest allowance and knew how to stretch a dollar. That way, when we said no to a new game console or designer kicks, they understood it wasn’t about stinginess—it was about goals.
8. Plan for Health & Insurance
One medical emergency can derail everything. We ensured each family member had MediShield Life coverage and added Integrated Shield Plans. It cost more, but gave peace of mind.
I also got term life insurance to cover my family if anything happened to me. It’s morbid to think about, but necessary. Financial freedom must be built on a foundation of resilience.
9. Track Progress, Celebrate Small Wins
Every few months, we revisit our spreadsheet, CPF dashboards, and investment apps. We track net worth growth—not to brag, but to stay motivated.
And we celebrate small wins. Reaching our first $100k net worth was huge. Even paying off a credit card bill felt like a champagne moment (well, teh peng will do).
10. Stay Grounded, Stay United
Ultimately, this journey is as emotional as it is financial. There were nights we argued over money, worried about the kids’ future, and felt behind. But being aligned as a couple made all the difference.
We remind each other why we're doing this: not just to quit jobs, but to buy back time—to watch our children grow, to care for our parents, to wake up without an alarm clock.
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