Let’s say you’ve been saving P2,000 every month from your paycheck, and now you have P20,000.
Or you got that amount as a performance bonus from work. Or a
particularly generous relative gave it to you for your birthday. What
would you do with it? You might be thinking that it’s too little an
amount to invest in anything long-term, enough that you’re tempted to
just go shopping with it. But if you look around for wiser options, you
can find ways to make that money work for you. Below, we’ve put together
a list of investments you can make with P20,000 that are financially better for you than going on a shopping spree.
Unit Trust Investment Fund
You can easily dive into the world of investment with P20,000. For example, Security Bank offers a number of
unit investment trust funds (UITF) which require an initial amount of only P10,000. But what’s a UITF?
Unit Trust Investment Funds “pool the funds of investors to
create a large fund which, under the watchful eyes of professional fund
managers, can productively harness these funds, taking advantage of
economies of scale,” according to
Banco de Oro.
Thus, even individuals can access investments usually just available to
big investors. UITFs are also heavily regulated by not only the banks
offering the fund, but also by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas,
protecting investors.
UITFs are medium- to long-term investments that have
historically better earning options over a long horizon than traditional
deposit options, so if you can afford to leave your money in a UITF
without having to withdraw from it for a long time, it can be a good
option for you in the long run. For example, if you had invested in
Security Bank’s Peso Asset Variety Fund on January 1, 2014, these are
the kind of returns you could be expecting (disclaimer: values from
Security Bank’s UITF calculator. The investment value is only indicative
of the value of investment as of a certain date. However, for
redemption, please note that the net asset value per unit (NAVpu) will
be not be known until the end of a certain business date.)
|
Initial investment
|
3 months
|
4 months
|
5 months
|
6 months
|
|
P10,000
|
10,819.98
|
11,143.67
|
11,098.78
|
11,341.81
|
|
P15,000
|
16,229.96
|
16,715.50
|
16,648.17
|
17,012.71
|
|
P20,000
|
21,639.95
|
22,287.33
|
22,197.55
|
22,683.61
|
|
P25,000
|
27,049.94
|
27,859.17
|
27,746.94
|
28,354.52
|
That’s an ROI of 13.42% over six months, which you can’t
get with your regular savings accounts. Again, this is just an example,
so please consult with your bank first to determine which fund is right
for you.
East West Bank also offers the
Infinity Peso Intermediate Term Bond Fund,
another UITF which requires an initial deposit of P10,000. It’s a
low-risk venture, because the money will be invested primarily in
government securities and investment-grade corporate bonds. This is
ideal for investors with a long-term investment horizon.
Health
For under P20,000 annually, you can avail of Maxicare’s
MyMaxicare SIlver Plan, so if you don’t have health insurance, you could
easily get it. For example, according to Maxicare’s Quick Plan
Computation, a 30-year-old applying for the Silver Plan, with dental
coverage included, would pay P17,083.00 annually. You can check the
Quick Plan Computation
for the fees you would have to pay at your age (and whether you want
dental coverage or not), which you can set annually, semi-annually or
quarterly according to your needs.
Benefits include emergency care, annual check-up and
preventive care benefits. The Silver tier allows for semi-private room
and board for hospitals, with a maximum benefit limit of P60,000 per
illness per year.
Medicard’s Plan 2500
is another healthcare option, with a P15,876 annual fee. Hospitals
include Asian Hospital and Medical Center, St. Luke’s Medical
Center-Quezon City, The Medical City and Cardinal Santos Medical Center.
Business
For as low as P15,000, you can own a siomai business.
Shanghai Siomai
has dealership packages that start with a one-time P10,000 dealer
registration fee and a minimum order of P5,000 worth of siomai
ingredients. Consult their website for details.
P20,000 can also get you started in owning your own rice business.
Bigasanko.com,
a rice distributor, wholesaler, and retailer, requires that amount as
an application fee, which can be deducted from the down payment.
Before investing in a business, make sure you’ve done your research and have a plan for profitability.
Education
If you want to build up your management skills, the
Advanced Managers’ Course at the UP Institute for Small-Scale Industries
can help you. The 10-day course, which you can take over 10 Saturdays
and costs P18,000, focuses on leadership, innovation, technology,
environment, people management, strategic management, risk management
and customer relations management. Ideally, you should already have
attended other management courses or been in a managerial position,
though this is not required.
Check the schedule to see if you can enroll.
Or maybe you’re looking for a raise and want to improve
your negotiation skills before you go to your boss. For P10,800,
Ateneo’s Center for Continuing Education offers
Negotiation Skills: Deal or Deadlock,
which will teach you when to negotiate, how to implement your
negotiation plan and counter others’ tactics, and develop the core
skills of a good negotiator.
Self-investment
What better way to invest your P20,000 than in yourself?
Taking lessons and learning a new craft is a good way for you to grow
your skillset and expand your career options, or just make your life
better. So if you want to start your own bakery, for example, or want to
level up your skills in making pastries and desserts, take a look at
the
5-Day Pastry Boot Camp at Enderun Colleges.
This intensive 30-hour class will teach you how to make sponge cakes,
choux pastry, chantilly cream, and more bakery staples. When you’re done
with the course, you can use your new skills and techniques to start
your artisanal bakery, or bring new desserts to family gatherings.
You could also beautify your home or workspace by learning more about interior design. The Interior Styling workshop at the
School of Fashion and Art (SoFA) Design Institute,
for P10,000, is an 8-week course which helps you develop an
understanding and appreciation of color, pattern and furnishing, and how
these can improve interior spaces, whether they be residential,
commercial, or institutional.
Do you have any ideas for what else to do with P20,000?
