CLEARING $25K OFF MY STUDENT DEBT MYSELF?

I didn't have a financially supportive family when i wanted to go to university! The original uni fund my father left for me was gone and I had to find other ways, so I took a 50k loan from OCBC Frank to study in uni. To be honest I'm not quite sure on the interest rates etc except it's about 5.x per annum and my repayment period is 8 years. I paid interest only during my uni years + 1 year after a graduated!

As of this month I'm officially 50% down! This is quite a shock to me because I was still partying and going out, shopping pretty often up till this point, but I realised there were certain habits that i did that helped fund my lifestyle while saving $!

Here are some of the things I did:

1️⃣ No more grabfood

Grabfood is so expensive!!! Normal food items are inflated and the delivery fees can be outrageous. I started packing lunch to work because when you work in CBD, a simple lunch + a drink can easily be $10 already! That's about $200 saved a month if you think about it!

2️⃣ No expensive purchases

No designer bags or electronics! I usually try to scour clothes or bags on Shopee/Shein and i don't ever shop in physical retail stores now! I also get dupes for expensive make up or bags! I usually try to calculate how many uses I could get out of it.

For eg, i recently got this new Bottega dupe from Shopee for $50 - which is already quite expensive for me to spend on a bag la imo, but considering that i'll be using it as a work bag everyday, it's pretty much free then 🤣 #girlmath ? HAHAHAH

3️⃣ Invest in solutions not quick fixes!

This might be controversial - but hear me out! As someone who struggles with acne or acne scars - i knew that products alone would not improve my condition! So instead of spending lots of $ on different products that may not work, I just choose to invest in a sure fire effective method (which is lasers in my case)

This may not seem like a relatable example but i guess it's like how patching a hole in a shoe that spoils easily might end up costing more than getting a brand new pair of shoes if you're going to be wearing it everyday! A lump sum at first might hurt the wallet, but it's better than spending $20 here and there, as it does add up!

You can use this philosophy for loads of different scenarios - For eg i was repairing my macbook in 2020 and each time i was forking out a few hundreds and when i was doing the math, i realised that a new macbook would have been cheaper in the long run as i did foresee it breaking down even more in the future!

Ofc i understand that for some people a quick fix might be all you can give at the moment, and that's fine too! But if something is a non-negotiable item for you, or something you use daily; try to go for better quality products as it might end up saving you more $ in the long run!

3️⃣ Treat yourself sensibly

Saving $ can be painful because when you go on social media you see everyone going on lavish trips, buying houses and cars etc etc and it can be demoralising! Treating yourself can do a lot for morale, but I do so by looking for discounts or good deals! I use Fave religiously for good deals!

Or you might want to look into cashback apps so you get an even better deal!

4️⃣ Different streams of income! (not in slideshow)

When i was in uni i was working 3-4 different jobs - Part time barista, part time tutor, and a tutor agent, freelance social media manager. Not only does it give you multiple streams of income, depending on what type of jobs you choose, you get to give your resume an upgrade too!

5️⃣ No more grabbing!

Goes without saying that Grab is usually someone's biggest expense and this is coming from someone who used to grab to work every single morning to the CBD area; 1 trip usually costs at least $25 and on rainy days of especially busy mornings it HAS gone up to $40 before!!

So naturally when budgeting i knew grab had to go when i realised i was spending $1000 min a month JUST on grabs. I managed to cut down to grabbing twice a week instead of every day - tho the idea here is to eliminate grabs completely i value my sleep esp for Monday and Tuesdays!!! What i do is i give myself an incentive! If i don't grab to work, that means for that day itself I could get a snack or I could get a more expensive cup of coffee, or cart out an item I have been eyeing (as long as the item isn't too expensive la)

💐

Just wanted to preface this by saying that I don't have loads of savings, i don't earn an exorbitant amount, and and I do pay for my own insurance and phone bills etc etc

#BeReal #savingmoney #singapore #studentloans #moneyhacks #studentlife #universitylife #uni #RealTalk