Investing For Your Future

Just yesterday, a fire broke out in our compound. It burned down one apartment unit just in front of ours. Fortunately, the firemen who got there in no time were able to keep the flames from spreading. It was such a traumatic incident. Everything happened so fast that I was only able to get dressed (I was still in my jammies!), to bring my wallet and my cell phone, that’s all! My mom didn’t bring anything either. Unlike us, my dad was able to get our car out and the other cars in the compound as well (our neighbors gave him the keys). He still went back to get a bag of important documents (birth certificates and other papers) and one laptop despite the rising smoke! There were a lot of things in the back of my mind at that moment. I was thinking, “What if it’ll burn down our apartment? What will we do? Where will we go?” All those things that I mentioned in my previous post except for the laptop were all in the house. They could have gone down in flames in a matter of minutes! If we didn’t save anything in the bank and didn’t invest in something then all our hard work would be useless. That’s why it is really important to have a backup plan.

Aside from insurance, my boyfriend, Joel, (he is also working full time at home) and I are investing in land. Just recently, he found a 2-hectare lot for sale in their city at a very good price (not even close to a million pesos). He already paid half of the down payment (33% of the total amount) from his savings just this month. I will also be paying half of it next month when I get there for the signing of the contract. The rest of the amount will be paid monthly starting this March. We decided not to loan from a bank or a cooperative to avoid the interests. The owner, a widow, is selling it because her daughter will be going overseas and they need money. The lot is located on top of a hill, just a few-minute ride from the center of the city. The area is not yet developed but there are already residents nearby. It already has electricity but no water supply yet. The 2-hectare lot was split into two parcels of land by the highway. One side, which has an area of 4k sq.m., was filled with around 20 mango trees; the other 16k sq.m., coconut trees. Joel’s mother also heard from a friend in that area that the owner was able to harvest the coconuts and sell them for around P17,000 (not bad!). It is indeed a good investment because not only can we profit from harvesting coconuts or mangoes but also as soon as the area is developed, its value will increase perhaps even more than ten fold!

So if you are thinking of what to do with your money whether from your online or offline work, it is wise to invest it in things that don’t depreciate in value. Unless you're freakin' rich, spending your earnings in shopping, dining in high-class restaurants, buying new cell phone models will only satisfy you for a short period of time. Save some. Plan ahead. Reap the rewards.