Most of us see the new IRAS letter, swear at the S$800 jump, then just “tighten belt” and move on. In this episode, I walk through why that one‑time spike is really a slow bleed of around S$400 every month from your solvency buffer, especially if you’re self‑employed with lumpy income. We break down how the Income Coverage Ratio works for a normal HDB household budget, and why 2.5x cover is not “comfortable” when one bad quarter can wipe your tuition or mortgage buffer. If you’ve got cash sitting idle, CPF/SRS caps untouched, and T‑bill auctions on your radar, this is the forensic audit you need before the next tax cycle.
Key takeaways:
Why an S$800 tax increase can morph into a S$400/month cash leak
How to read your Income Coverage Ratio like a REIT manager
When SRS and MediSave top‑ups actually strengthen your day‑to‑day cashflow
Why a simple T‑bill ladder can patch part of the liquidity hole
What to watch over the next 18 months as reliefs move
Iggy’s Forensic Disclaimer
This content is produced for educational and informational purposes only. I am not a financial advisor — I am a retail investor who applies forensic analysis to my own portfolio and shares that process publicly. Nothing here constitutes a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security, and no specific target prices or personalised financial advice are offered. Stocks assessed under Iggy’s Forensic Yield Standard are benchmarked against a 4.7% minimum yield hurdle; stocks flagged as Growth Watch fall below this threshold but demonstrate clean balance sheet metrics and an identifiable growth catalyst — these carry a materially different risk profile and are not suitable as yield replacements for income-dependent investors. All data is sourced from public filings and verified sources; where data is unverified it is explicitly flagged. All investments carry risk, including the potential loss of principal, and past performance is not indicative of future results. If you are making investment decisions involving CPF, SRS, or personal capital, please conduct your own due diligence or consult a MAS-licensed financial adviser before committing funds.
