Let Money Works For You

“The act of saving and investing money regularly will significantly change the way you live in the future”

One time I caught my grandmother arranging her set of jewelries that led us to have a fruitful conversation about investements.

Did you know that money works for you? This is my grandma’s initial statement.

What I know is you’re working for the money eversince Lola. I’m just curious you are retired now but how come you stil have funds to spend it with us?

Interest, apo from our investments. These were what me and Lolo prepared to back us up:

• Bank and Time Deposits
• Properties
• Jewelries

Their values appraised every year. We kept them and they were growing thru years –  interests and jewelry value.

For the properties, the apartments that we built alone and rent every month were the answered everyday finances.

If there would be excess, I can have the time to treat all of you and then we travel.  Some of it, we can deposit it to the bank..

I was sixteen (16) years old then but this finance literacy led us a guidance to prepare our future.

Yes, our first investments:

• Stocks / Mutual Funds
• Got our mortgage home before we get married at the age of 21
• Collected jewelries – birthstones, heart designs, crosses from ring, earrings, bracelets, necklaces, pendants, lockets

Aside from that, it was habit also to save anything in papers and coins that we can use for extras like travel expenses.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BMpsKuGAAg2/

Since we were also renting, paying for our mortgage every month and got a baby, renovating our new home was a struggle.  The turnover house was really bare and need big fund especially hubby decided we have to transfer due to increasing rental every year,

Options:

• Bank Loan
• Credit Card

With the high interest and requirements to prepare, this led me to get alternative to pawning with 3% to 5% interest per month.  With the jewelries I have for collateral,  this becomes the best decision for fast fund.

I was doing it until now for emergency purposes.

When my daughter resigned from work, her decision is to have a part-time  business on her own to start with.  She has a saving but it was not enough.

She cannot open a credit card nor a loan since there is an employment requirement that always included in the application.

This led me to ask queries about her well-kept jewelries eversince she was a child given by us and relatives.  My daughter always took care of her stuff eversince especially if she knows the value of it.

I asked her if she tried to pawn some of her jewelries for an extra fund.  Yes and according to her, she will not do it again.

The pawnshops she had inquired did not accepted some of it because:

• it was dirty.
• it was cut jewelry especially the bracelets and necklaces

She did try it again but for her it was weird when she saw them:

• rubbing it in a stone and putting some chemicals
• low appraised value

Being independent minded and can do decisions on her own, I told her next time, do let us know to give her first-hand advises about jewelry pawning.

I recommended her one of the trusted pawnshops I trusted – Cebuana Lhuillier.

Since she had a phobia in a pawnshop, what I did was to volunteer to pawn her earrings.

After I handed it, the staff oriented me to the procedure as he asked also  permission to be done:

• Using loupe lens to tell the marking.  It has an 18k embelishment inside the earrings.
• Rubbing in a black stone with a solution to test gold’s authenticity.
• Weighing it in scale to check the no. of grams.

The result?

The 18k earrings has 5.1 grams which assessed 8,100.00 PHP.  It was a graduation gift to her nine (9) years ago which originally cost 5,000.00 PHP.  That only means the value of gold increases thru time.

Since I’m into Loan System project right now, part of assessing my work is to do some reserch in appraisal formula to be driven for each collateral.

18k Gold per Gram = 1550.24 PHP

If its 5.1 grams multiply to 1550.24 PHP =  7,906.00.68

That only means that the appraised value is higher than 200 PHP.

With the 4% interest per month compared to 5% to others, it would be an advantage  If you will pay the earliest like 2 weeks, the interest would be down to 2.5%.

We might give extra fund for our daughter to her plans but we also like her to be trained in handling decisions like this as what she extended her effort in taking care of her belongings all these years that made value in the future.

Well goodluck kiddo on your future endeavour.  Hope this fund can assist you.

This led me also remembered my grandmother advise to us:

When you are earning already, be mindful on what you spend, do invest and save.  Aim for quality time for your loved ones.

Again, let the richness of meaninngful moments  be a design on the life you like and not to be slave working for money til you drop.

I will Grandma and definitely that time will come just like you taught us.