I'm a 25-year-old woman and my spoken English is awful. How can I improve it?

Ans: Dear Anonymous,
Well, it's dream v/s practicality, yeah?
When you get to a stalemate situation like the one you and your wife are in, the best way is to go back to the Square A.
Start where you began when you married...list down what's important to each of you and somewhere in your case, it will lead not just to her wants and yours, but it will go back to money and financial prudence. When you hit this, come to an understanding as to how you will overcome this; it has to be mutually agreed upon. Then bring your current home buying issue and solve it just like the way you sorted your differences over finances. Try it...it will work...

All the best!
Anu Krishna
Mind Coach|NLP Trainer|Author
Drop in: www.unfear.io
Reach me: Facebook: anukrish07/ AND LinkedIn: anukrishna-joyofserving/

Ans: You have a well-diversified portfolio. It includes real estate, mutual funds, equity, gold, EPF, NPS, and FDs. This balance reflects thoughtful planning.

Your rental income of Rs. 30,000 adds stability. Contributions to Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana secure your daughters’ futures.

Your focus on NPS and diversified mutual funds is commendable. These build long-term wealth efficiently.

You aim for Rs. 8 crore as a retirement corpus. With careful adjustments, this is achievable.

Key Areas to Strengthen
1. Portfolio Consolidation

Your portfolio has eight mutual funds. This may lead to overlap and inefficiency.

Review these funds with a Certified Financial Planner. Ensure no duplication across asset categories.

Consider consolidating into 3–5 actively managed funds. This maintains diversification while improving focus.

2. Asset Allocation

Your portfolio is heavy in real estate and gold. These are illiquid investments.

Aim to rebalance toward financial assets like equity mutual funds. These provide liquidity and growth potential.

A Certified Financial Planner can assist in optimal asset reallocation.

3. Emergency Fund

Ensure liquid funds for 6–12 months of expenses.

This fund should not overlap with FDs or long-term investments.

Maintain this emergency fund in a liquid fund or savings account.

4. Mutual Fund Taxation

When selling mutual funds, consider capital gains tax:

Long-term capital gains (LTCG) above Rs. 1.25 lakh are taxed at 12.5%.

Short-term gains are taxed at 20%.

Debt mutual funds are taxed as per your income slab.

Plan withdrawals with this tax implication in mind.

Actionable Strategies
1. Increase Equity Exposure

Your diversified mutual funds are strong.

Consider increasing equity mutual fund SIPs for long-term wealth.

Focus on flexi-cap, large-cap, and mid-cap funds for balanced growth.

Small-cap funds are volatile; limit exposure to 10–15%.

2. Optimise NPS Contributions

NPS is excellent for retirement. Its tax benefits under Sections 80C and 80CCD are helpful.

Invest up to Rs. 50,000 annually for additional tax savings.

However, review NPS as it locks in funds till retirement. Maintain flexibility elsewhere.

3. Rationalise FD Holdings

FDs are safe but offer low post-tax returns.

Shift a portion to debt funds for better returns and tax efficiency.

Debt funds balance portfolio risk without sacrificing liquidity.

4. Review Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana

Your contributions here are thoughtful. They offer assured returns for your daughters’ education.

Continue until the full maturity period. This ensures maximum benefit.

Retirement Planning
1. Expense Mapping

List all post-retirement expenses. Account for inflation at 6–7% annually.

Break these into essentials (medical, household) and discretionary (travel, hobbies).

Use this as a guide to calculate your future income requirement.

2. Corpus Building

Your current investments, including EPF and NPS, are solid.

Increase your mutual fund SIPs marginally to stay on track for Rs. 8 crore.

Continue Rs. 1.5 lakh monthly contributions strategically across financial instruments.

3. Health Coverage

Health insurance is critical post-retirement.

Review coverage for yourself and family. Ensure at least Rs. 50 lakh in coverage.

Consider adding a top-up plan for unforeseen medical costs.

Gold Portfolio Insights
Your gold portfolio is significant at Rs. 70 lakh.

SGBs are excellent for regular interest income and long-term growth.

However, physical gold is less efficient. Selling may involve lower liquidity and higher costs.

Convert a portion of physical gold into SGBs or financial assets.

Final Insights
You have made strong financial decisions so far.

Focus on reducing portfolio complexity and enhancing liquidity.

Rebalance your portfolio with a Certified Financial Planner. This ensures alignment with goals.

Stick to disciplined contributions toward NPS and mutual funds. This will help you reach Rs. 8 crore comfortably.

Ensure diversification without overextending into illiquid assets.

With this strategy, your retirement goals are well within reach.

Best Regards,

K. Ramalingam, MBA, CFP

Chief Financial Planner

www.holisticinvestment.in
https://www.youtube.com/@HolisticInvestment

Ans: Hi,

You need to apply for a new community certificate and submit it when applying for the NDA exam.

Why is this necessary? The certificate you uploaded was obtained in 2018, and since the current year is 2024, it is now outdated. According to state government regulations (which can vary from state to state), the validity of a community certificate is typically a maximum of 5 years, and in some cases, just 1 year. Therefore, your community certificate is no longer valid.

Additionally, there is no reservation in the army. However, having a valid community certificate is important because it allows candidates belonging to Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes to be exempt from paying fees. To receive this fee waiver, you must present a valid certificate.

It's also important to note that financial statuses can change every 5 years. Therefore, it is advisable to apply for the new certificate as soon as possible and complete the process by December 31, 2024.

ALL THE BEST.

Ans: Hi,

You need to apply for a new community certificate and submit it when applying for the NDA exam.

Why is this necessary? The certificate you uploaded was obtained in 2018, and since the current year is 2024, it is now outdated. According to state government regulations (which can vary from state to state), the validity of a community certificate is typically a maximum of 5 years, and in some cases, just 1 year. Therefore, your community certificate is no longer valid.

Additionally, there is no reservation in the army. However, having a valid community certificate is important because it allows candidates belonging to Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes to be exempt from paying fees. To receive this fee waiver, you must present a valid certificate.

It's also important to note that financial statuses can change every 5 years. Therefore, it is advisable to apply for the new certificate as soon as possible and complete the process by December 31, 2024.

ALL THE BEST.

Ans: Hi Anonymous,
I would suggest not leaving your job immediately. Instead, consider experimenting with your freelance physics classes from class 9 to class 12, this could be quite lucrative if you are a good teacher and have a strong knowledge of physics. Once you receive positive feedback on your teaching style from the market, you can think about leaving your job and pursuing this full-time. Please feel free to connect with me and message me on LinkedIn—I’d be happy to provide further insights.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/onkarcsrandsustainability/

Ans: B Tech ELECTRONICS & Telecommunication covers mostly hardware. Computer science focusses on Both. Coding will help for software job

Ans: What is his dream?

Ans: Hi
please write an email jo the JEE authorities stating the correct date of birth. Also carry the proof of actual date of birth & hard copy of email with you to avoid any inconvenience.

Ans: Hello;

Hope you have adequate term life insurance for yourself.

You may start a monthly sip of 90 K in a combination of pure equity mutual funds.

After 10 years your sip and lumpsum investment will grow into sums of 2.09 and 1.24 Cr respectively.

This adds upto 3.33 Cr. If you add your ppf and EPF corpus then this should add upto a sum of around 4 Cr.

If you invest this corpus in a conservative hybrid debt fund and do a SWP at the rate of 3.5%, you may expect a post tax monthly income of
1 L+.

As you get married your expenses will rise as also the need to plan for various other goals.

Therefore the decision to retire from regular 9-6 job should be backed up with alternate business plan or such other plan to monetize your hobbies that may yield income over atleast next 10-15 years.

Best wishes;