This was written on my previous blog last 2019. Hope to update this soon!
Time really flies by so fast! But still, I feel like I have just begun my adulting life and felt like I have wasted the past years doing nothing but waste time. Hello, procrastination! Haha!
So much about the negatives, let’s now move forward and see some improvements this year.
If you are here and you kinda feel lost as well and want personal growth, I hope this blog post will help you in one way or another.
Looking back, I was always aware of insurance, emergency funds, savings, stocks, and many investment vehicles. I even read books about investments, personal growth, and whatnot. And make yearly goals! However, I have been stagnant for a while and would just wanna read and plan, but never execute.
That’s where I was before.
Overprioritizing others before myself have been a major setback for me. It doesn’t mean that I am not prioritizing others now, but I have started to know my worth and how to spend my time wisely.
It took me a long time to finally wake up and stand for myself.
I hope you are too.
Anyway, here are some of my target investments goals this year that you want to try as well. I am the only child in the family and now the breadwinner. And I can say I am such a realist, most of the time, a worrier. Because hey, who will take care of my Mother if I’m gone already? Haha!
I would often think of what will happen to my Mother if I die or if I got into an accident and whatnot. So as early (or late) as today, I need to have back up plans.
And of course, for the future as well. I want my family to have a better life. Remember the saying, “Hindi mo kasalanan kung nabuhay kang mahirap. Pero kasalanan mo na kapag namatay kang mahirap.”
Very harsh, can be a case-to-case basis, but this, my friends, is generally true.
Before I proceed, I would want to remind everyone that you need to properly study want you want to invest in. At an early age, I bought a house through PAG-IBIG. I was getting a monthly salary of 11,000 pesos before. I haven’t studied about it and just said yes to my agent.
Thinking about it now, I have no regrets but if there’s one thing I would do before, I would study about the place, and my budget. But yeah, everything’s fine now and we are happy at where we are staying. No flood, happy and kind neighbors, and the house is generally good for Mama and me.
Will post another story for our PAG IBIG house journey.
So, if you are asking where to invest money in the Philippines, let’s start with these 6 investment ideas that you might want to try as well.
1. PAG IBIG MP2 Savings Program
Aside from the most popular benefit that we can get from PAG IBIG which is the house loan, you can also invest your money with PAG IBIG.
What is PAGIBIG MP2 Savings Program?
If you will be investing your money with PAG IBIG MP2, you will get an average of 8.11% interest rate per annum.
Who can join? Any active PAGIBIG Fund members. Former PAGIBIG members can join as well provided that you have an active source of income or pension and has 24 monthly contributions.
How much is the minimum investment? 500 pesos per month. But there’s no limit on how much you can save. For savings over 500,000 pesos, this
How many years is the lock-in period? 5 years. So make sure you the money that you will be investing in something that you can forget for 5 years.
Can I have multiple MP2 savings? Yes, you can.
How can you start? Simply submit your duly accomplished MP2 Savings Application form at your nearest Pag-IBIG Fund Branch, along with the following:
- Valid Identification Card
- Passbook or ATM Card of your nominated bank account
- You may download the MP2 Savings Application form at http://www.pagibigfund.gov.ph/dlforms.aspx
Minimum Investment: P500 per month for 5 years
Update: The nearest PAG IBIG branch from our office is in SM Aura so I am planning to go there during lunchtime to process my MP2. For now, I’m gonna start at 1000 pesos per month.
2. VUL Insurance
One of the best things that you can do in your life is to get insurance. Yes, because we will never know what will happen in the future. We will never know when accidents, sickness, and even death will happen in our life.
So, might as well get ready for it.
After I got my policy from a Sunlife Financial Advisor, I got a calling that I also need to spread financial literacy, first to my family, because we don’t have insurance policies in our family.
So after a month, I talked to my a Sunlife Manager and fast forward to today, I am one of the Financial Advisors under the Bright Millenial group, headed by Garett Maralit.
If you wanna know more how to protect your family and your income, message me here or send an email at marialyn.m.bernaldo@sunlife.com.ph.
Update: July 2023 | I am not a Sunlife Financial Advisor anymore
What is VUL?
VUL stands for Variable Universal Life.
Variable universal life (VUL) is a type of permanent life insurance policy with a built-in savings component that allows for the investment of the cash value. Like standard universal life insurance, the premium is flexible. VUL policies typically have both a maximum cap and minimum floor on the investment return associated with the savings component. – Investopedia
Unlike Traditional Life Insurance, VUL is insurance WITH investment.
Minimum Investment: PHP 1,500
Update: I also purchased one for my Mama! Happy girl here. Hehe.
3. Stocks
This is actually one of my goals ever since college and have been reading about this since my first job. Funny because I just started now at 28 years old. Haha! There has been a lot of could-have-been but well, as they say, better late than never.
What is a stock? Stocks are shares of ownership in a corporation. A stock market is a place where stocks are bought and sold. The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) is the corporation that governs our local stock market. People buy or invest in stocks to benefit from a company’s tremendous value potential over time. – COL Financial
Once you buy or invest into a stock you now become part owner or a shareholder of that particular corporation.
How can I start? Where can I open an account? There are a number of stockbrokers in the Philippines that you can open an account.
- AB Capital Securities, Inc.
- Abacus Securities Corp.
- AP Securities, Inc.
- BA Securities, Inc.
- BDO Nomura Securities, Inc.
- BPI Securities Corp. (BPITrade)
- Coherco Securities, Inc. (CohercoTrade)
- COL Financial Group, Inc.
- DA Market Securities, Inc. (iTrade)
- F. Yap Securities, Inc. (2TradeAsia)
- First Metro Securities Brokerage Corp.
- HDI Securities, Inc.
- Investors Securities, Inc. (Investors Online)
- JAKA Securities Corp.
- Lucky Securities, Inc.
- Maybank ATR Kim Eng Securities, Inc. (MakeTrade)
- Meridian Securities, Inc. (MSiTrade)
- Optimum Securities Corp. (Optimum Online)
- Papa Securities Corp. (P2P Trade)
- Philstocks Financial, Inc.
- RCBC Securities, Inc. (RCBC ezTrade)
- Regina Capital Development Corp.
- Timson Securities, Inc. (Timson Trade)
- UCPB Securities, Inc (UCPB My Stocks)
- Unicapital Securities, Inc. (uTrade)
- VC Securities Corp. (VC Trade)
- Wealth Securities Inc. (WealthSec)
Minimum Investment: 1,000 pesos
Update: I have already opened an account at AB Capital through my co-Financial Advisor. Will fund it next month!
4. FarmOn
Just like stocks, I have been eyeing to invest and help farmers using FarmOn.
What is FarmOn?
FarmOn.ph is a crowdfunding community where people can help farmers on their financial needs and at the same time reap rewards for their contributions. FarmOn.ph was developed by Sproads, a web publishing company based in Manila.
Established in 2014, and a pioneer in the integration of new technology. FarmOn.ph has developed its own concept in reintroducing farming with the use of social media and online applications; thru virtual farming. People who wanted to engage in farming but has no time can now participate and help by financing our partners at their own expenses.
FarmOn.ph currently owns 96 hectares of farmland property which we use for farming. These farms are managed by our partners and local farmers and are located in Isabela and Quirino Province. The farms that were tilled are all properties of FarmOn.ph. – FarmOn Website
How to invest in FarmOn?
FarmOn.ph uses the concept of crowdfunding in assisting our farmers. How does crowdfunding works?
In every cycle FarmOn will open a new project, which will then be funded by the contributions given by our crowdfunding community. Our crowdfunders will then choose a specific product from the list which FarmOn will be posting. With the aid of the given contribution, our farmers can start the production.
Members who have given their contribution for that project will receive reward only if the project has been deemed successful. Each community members must also acknowledge the risks involved in farming. Factors like climate change and natural disasters are some of the risks involved.
For more information, head on to FarmOn.ph
Minimum Investment: P1,500
Update: It was January 2018 when I registered at FarmOn. I tried to invest but was not able to deposit the payment. Sad!
Update: 7/22/2020: Been hearing news that it’s not that good to invest in FarmOn now. Will keep you updated.
5. Online Business
With the emergence of e-commerce platforms like Shopee, Lazada, Carousell and many more, you can reach as many customers as you like!
So why not take advantage of this and sign up as a seller? You can sell your used clothes, toys, or even be a reseller of a particular brand. You can actually go to Divisoria or Baclaran and check what you can offer to the online world!
Minimum Investment: Depends on you and your product 🙂
Update: I have an Ukay Okay shop on Shopee but I am not active in selling. We are also planning to resell brands on Shopee.
Update: 7/22/2020: We now have an online shop! Please support small businesses like us: Facebook.com/alltreatsph
6. Invest in yourself
Have you always been thinking of getting masters or study another short course for your passion?
Never deprive yourself of the things that you want to do that can make you grow.
Remember, your best investment will always be yourself. Learn from books. Look for mentors. Prioritize self-growth mindset. List the things that you want to achieve. Know more about self-awareness.
As the saying goes, ‘Don’t look for the happiness on others. It should start from within.”
We need an investment plan talaga . Thanks for sharing po ❤️