The first quarter of 2024 went by so fast… For the first time in ten years, I sold some stocks and experienced a negative saving rate—what happened?
Portfolio in Q1, 2024
I sold stocks worth SGD 13,266 as I invested a total of SGD 58,861 in two company participations. Most of the funds came from my cash buffer. I consider this money gone and will value my ownership in both companies at SGD 0. Having said that, one of the companies is already profitable, and I bought a significant stake in it, so there is great potential for upside.
I do not plan to make further angel investments. It is too stressful, complicated, and it generates a lot of extra work. I realize I want my investments to be passive and hands-off, even though I enjoy the entrepreneurial challenge and impact it can bring.
The portfolio is still growing nicely:
Portfolio Allocation:
I sold my REITs and individual stocks, so now my portfolio consists almost entirely of index funds of shares and bonds. REITs are quite popular in Singapore because their distributions are tax-free. In Germany, I have to pay close to 30% tax on any dividends, so it’s not so great.
Income:
After my salary increase, my monthly net income increased from ~SGD 3,783 to ~SGD 6,112, which is a relatively good salary for Germany. In the first quarter, I had the following income sources:
- Salary: SGD 18,539
- Side gigs/other: SGD 1,872
- Dividends: SGD 3,380
- Total: SGD 23,791
I was lucky to receive SGD 1,092 as compensation for a canceled flight on my business trip, which I booked under “other.”
Spending:
In the first quarter, I spent SGD 11,457 or 62% of my salary / 48% of my total income.
The main retirement chart is quite stable.
Last year I spent ~SGD 6,840 to subscribe to a car; this year, I decided to resume my car-free lifestyle.
Other main expenses this year included eating out & bars at around SGD 1,460—this was because I lived in Spain for two months and spent some time in France again. The restaurants there are much better than in Germany, in terms of quality and value. In Germany, I hardly ever eat out—good quality restaurant food is hard to find and more expensive than in France or Spain. Back in Germany, I cook more.
Spending on groceries was high as well: about SGD 1,601. This means that I spent about SGD 1,019 a month on food in total. I think I could very easily eat well and healthily for around half that if I had to, but I bought lots of expensive groceries without caring so much about the price. I did not buy processed food, but typically I only buy organic meat, nice seafood, etc…
Outlook:
These days I do not think about personal finance as much as I used to. I do not have to set foot in an office or deal with many meetings each day, so overall I feel quite free. I have been taking Spanish classes and helping out in the two companies I invested in. My main job in the startup is going great as well. By startup standards, it is neither terribly busy nor too crazy.
I lived in Southern Spain for two months in the first quarter and also visited Marseille (by train)— nice place. I am now back in my base camp—an empty family property in the middle of nowhere in Germany. I made a pile of books next to the bed and am enjoying reading again.
Life is good!