Special Needs Planning

So What is Special Needs?

According to Wikipedia:
In the United States, special needs is a term used in clinical diagnostic and functional development to describe individuals who require assistance for disabilities that may be medical, mental, or psychological. For instance, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and the International Classification of Diseases 9th edition both give guidelines for clinical diagnosis. Types of special needs vary in severity. People with autism, Down syndrome,dyslexia, blindness, ADHD, or cystic fibrosis, for example, may be considered to have special needs. However, special needs can also include cleft lips and/or palates, port-wine stains, or missing limbs.

Personally, I learnt these two simple English words “SPECIAL NEEDS” the really hard way or probably a lot more than the word “Hard”. Many know I have a special child, Alex. When I learnt he is autistic 7 years ago, I took more than 4 years to be able to accept the word “autistic”. I spent lot of time and energy researching, learning and sometime I blame myself like many parents out there. One thing I did maybe a bit differently is I set up a few Golden rules for the investment plans because I know like many people out there we only have 24 hours everyday to earn a decent living. However, I probable need tons of money for my son, Alex. I have a simple goal for Alex and my loved one which is to build a simple passive income model. The journey begin here…

GOLDEN RULES FOR MY 3 POTS OF GOLD
– A PROVEN STRATEGY

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1. Invest using TIME not timing, Begin with the end result in mind. Be prepared to STAY INVESTED over the long term. Long term mean a period of at least ten years. I started my CPF investment on 29th April 2002 and liquidate it only on 22nd August 2014. It took me more than 12 years to see a nice positive result.

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2. Using Dollars cost averaging to reduce market risk. In 2002, I propose to my wife and before starting this new journey. I understand that I must have a plan for my new family before getting marriage. As a financial planner myself, I want to ensure I can make good my promise to my wife as well as my future family. As a man of integrity, I want to make sure it won’t be just an empty promise. I understand the responsibility involved and I started writing my master plan. After much consideration and I decided to put in all  my $20K capital from CPF-OA and $5K capital from my CPF-SA savings to an investment-linked platform. As a result of withdrawing all my CPF savings into this investments, I can only rely on the $40K government grant to purchase my 4 rooms HDB flat with my wife in year 2002. After that, I diligently top-up from my CPF-OA saving and my capital increase from $20K to $70K.  As for my CPF-SA  investment, my capital increase from $5K till about $9.7K. As a result, a profit for my CPF-OA investment is a nice $33K and profit for my CPF-SA investment is a nice $6K.

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3. Be patient and be logical. In year 2013, the company I stay loyal for 12.5 years decided that me and everyone in the agency are not needed any more. This is definitely devastating to me because I never make a backup plan for my career. As a result of the deep disappointment and heavy heart because my daughter just recover from her open surgery and my son receiving expensive autism therapy, I fell sick several times and even hospitalized a few times. I reminded myself to stay calm and do not let my heart rule. After I started working with another Financial institution for about 6 months, I decided to liquidate my investment. A profit of about $40K from these CPF investments was realised.

I was a durian farmer myself and I apply my farming experience back with my knowledge gained from 3 professional chartered certifications. When planting durian, it’s important to have  a long term strategy. Constant commitment and consistent  effort is required. Never lose heart to any challenges and believe in your initial plan is key. Have the flexibility to make adjustment when necessary and not making unnecessary adjustment. This might sound difficult. It’s very simple in fact. Rule with your head not heart and decision is easier to make.
DIY Resources for Special Needs Planning

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Wealth and Legacy Screening Stress Test

Important resources for Special Needs Planning

I have personally developed this letter of intent specially for my child, Alexander. In the event, my spouse and my son are not able to care for our son. The care giver will be able to receive important and immediate resources like the essential needs to care for Alexander. 

Personal Financial Tracker & Letter of Intent

You may want to start tracking your personal financial and do some simple calculation to have a better view of your own money management.

Email me if you are interested to find out more.