Why do you not like it? Is it because you feel uncomfortable living with a debt...? Or is it because you have money sitting in OA while you are servicing a HDB loan? Housing loan is not an expensive debt. If you have money sitting in OA, you can make use of this to invest or transfer to SA for more interest. Locking your money in your house is not recommended unless you can't produce returns of more than 2.6% p.a.

Hi there! I believe you’re asking about the Basic/Full/Enhanced Retirement Sums. To get maximum CPF Life payout, you have to hit the Enhanced Retirement Sum by topping up. Pledging your HDB property will get you the Basic Retirement Sum, which is 50% of the Full Retirement Sum or one-third of the Enhanced Retirement Sum, and pledging your property will NOT give you the maximum CPF LIFE payout, which is the lowest payout compared to the other two sums. That exact figures depend on which year you turn age 55. Which year were you born in?

In addition to YJ's question, you also need to check out Hariz's answer regarding affordability https://seedly.sg/questions/will-my-partner-and-i-be-able-to-afford-a-700k-condo-with-our-situation

The scheme will start 2021 and matching by government be up to max of 600 per parent (as of now) I would recommend taking advantage of this to the max. For two parents, it's just 1200 per year, or 100 per month. You put in 1200, government put in another 1200. It's a 1 for 1 deal if you are eligible. Normally if people see buy 1 get 1 free in their favourite store, they would just shop liao. I don't see why it should be any different for cpf. You can approach cpf to retrigger the calculation for the monthly cpf payout. I asked before but it was a year ago, and can't remember right now. For 1200 (with govt top-up) per parent, the jump in payout would probably not be that big, but I believe it would probably cover at least two meals per month? If you can't set aside 1.2k, then go for the max you can without reducing what you give them. If you think long term, going for this relief means increasing their monthly payout over time. There is no good reason not to do so.

If you did voluntary contributions, you will get a refund of the excess voluntary contributions without interest. As for mandatory-only contributions, I'm not sure if the excess comes out immediately as cash.

Hi Anon, CPF interest is calculated monthly. Hence, topping up as early as possible will help to increase the interest earned. One thing that I would like to check is, are you topping up into your CPF or your son's CPF? This will make a difference, as topping up into your person CPF will provide you with tax relief, while topping up your son's will not. If you are after the tax relief as well, then I suggest that you take a look to determine which Calendar Year will you require the tax relief more.

Hi Anon, I understand where you are coming from regarding this. Personally, I think I would like to do that in the future when I start my family, if I am able to afford it. This will provide my children a headstart, but only towards their retirement years down the road. However, there are some risk to it. - Topups are locked in until your kid hits 55 years old, or any age it might be in the future. - CPF interest rates are not fixed. While our CPF rates had not changed for years, it is possible for the interest rates to change, for better or for worse. Coupled with the first point, you will not be able to do anything should CPF interest rates take a sharp dive in the future. Seedly had an article on this. You can take a look at it to help you come to a conclusion. https://blog.seedly.sg/cpf-hacks-tips-child/

Hi anon, No harm going for medical underwriting first to see what the outcome is, before deciding whether to proceed or not. Having sufficient death/TPD insurance is important for the loan, and it good that you know that what you currently have is sufficient for the amount. However, note that if you have a whole life with CI coverage, the purpose of such a plan is not for the event of death/TPD. Imagine a situation where you contract a CI, burn through the payout, and then pass away. There would still be insufficient death/TPD cover. So it is plausible to have a standalone plan for death/TPD cover to protect the loan, as the flexibility provided and the ensuring liquidity ensures the surviving family members will have options available to them. HPS only negates the loan and still leaves the family cash strapped.