Being an OFW may seem all frills and fancies; sure, it’s no surprise how OFWs earn bigger money and a different currency, at that; be surrounded by many luxuries, but all this hard-earned money can go out in an instant if not spent carefully. So, we have come up with a practical list of investment options for the hardworking OFWs and their families:
Smart Investment Choices for OFWs
Real Estate
To date, the Philippine Real Estate Industry has yet reached its growth ceiling in contrast to neighboring Asian countries and other parts of the world. This is actually one of the bigger prospects OFWs can consider for placing their hard-earned savings on. Given the fact that the Philippine economy is significantly sustained by remittances made by OFWs, realtors and developers have taken the extra mile to reach out to Filipinos working abroad who are capable of capitalizing on these investments by placing satellite offices abroad and provide systems to ease retrieval of information and speed up paperwork for OFW clients. With the technology nowadays, viewing sample units can be done live even if you’re based in other countries such as Dubai or Singapore. So long as big developers and new investors abound the playing field, investing on real estate properties seems to be an ideal move for every Filipino, locally or based abroad.
Stock investments and Mutual funds
There are plenty of ways to grow your funds – and banks have been specializing with just that especially in the Philippines. OFWs can certainly generate the kinds of funds that can help grow businesses and produce more income. There are various plans and programs for the kind of investment that you would like to make and there are plenty of financial advisors in almost all of the banks that you wish to work with. Their job is to help you find the right type of investment to reach your financial goals. With the right help, you can find the most suitable investment for you and your family.
Health Insurance
When you’re working and earning a substantial income, sometimes life can drive you too fast to reach your goals, but being an OFW, you need to set your priorities straight and invest on your health first as well as the people you’ve left behind back home. Getting insurance for yourself and the people you care for is one of the most important investments that you can ever make as a person since the cost of healthcare nowadays are continuously on the rise.
Education and Self-Improvement
One of the many reasons why OFWs leave their families behind for a better-paying job abroad is to invest on their family’s future- one way of making it so is through paying for their family’s and even some relatives’ education. Filipinos hold on to the belief that education is one, if not the only means to succeed in life and so, families make it a goal to send their children to good schools to help them realize their goals and land a better opportunity in life. This should not only be the case for the people back home, even you yourself can and should invest on your education because it is with continuous learning that we become closer to reaching our fullest potential. Higher education is certainly an option but you can also start simple by getting yourself involved in skills training classes and seminars- anything that can help you improve yourself.
Retirement
Despite how much attractive living abroad may seem, OFWs would always have the idea of coming back home eventually, if not for good. So, it’s important that we set goals as we spend years and years away from home. Until the time you finally decide coming back, it’s important to carefully invest on one’s retirement so that you can enjoy your prime years at home with the people you love.
For those who are given the chance to work abroad, it is very important to set a goal for yourself and for all the time that you’ll spend away from home. Doing so can help you plan a good future for your family and create a clearer path towards achieving your personal and financial goals.