Singaporeans Try: $1500 Monthly Spenders Live Frugally For 72 Hours
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- čas přidán 19. 08. 2024
- Can Sew & John, amongst our office's biggest spenders, spend 3 times less than their regular monthly expenditure for 72 hours? Watch to find out!
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Featuring:
Brenda Tan - / brendatjy
Charmaine Sew - / charmainesew
John Lim - / johnjohnah
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What was your most expensive purchase in the past month? 👀
My badge!! 😅
My Chiropractic treatment. Set me back $3k++
Tattoo money
A denim romper @ $39.90.
A shoutout to Brenda, you are an amazing girl👍👏 ! You are chio, humble, funny, cute and now I find out that you are also frugal (same like me), wow! 💯🌈💐
cai png with fish. 5.50
can i be friends with brenda? she’s such a positive influence like we all need a brenda in our life
sorry, u have to queue up first. I’m first
Ya true WE ALL NEED A BRENDA IN LIFE
@@bettafavowner4356HELP NOT THE QUEUE
Sew is how I imagine a child adulting... like a child with access to adult money & freedom 😂 picky eater & uncontrolled spending 😂 She reflects the guilty side in all of us & I love how y’all drag her for every challenge !!
Her genuine reactions and honest opinions while being game for these videos really complete the experience 😂
she is a disgusting women
LOL at the part where John smirks and goes "ahhh smart local"
Should totally get Sew & John to do a one month challenge to see how much they can actually save :)
Assuming ure single and not living separately from ur parents having to rent a room, i have tried ~$150 per month before, inclusive of food, transport, phone bill ($25), insurance ($20). My advice: Eat prata ($1) or ananas Nasi Lemak ($2.5) or ananas chicken rice ($2) and rotate. I combine breakfast and lunch into brunch so i save even more. This isnt that frugal yet but yah. Most ultimately pick up financial education. Even insurance can be an investment.
PAP wants to know your location. You are their perfect poster child for their stance on "no need for min wage" and "$1000 income can afford HDB". 😂
@@sunlightdavid But it is true though, maybe not $1000, but $1500-$1700, you cannot live a luxurious lifestyle, or a very comfortable lifestyle, but you will live. And if you can save up, eventually you will get to a point that you can treat yourself to something good every once in a while. But of course employers need to support and also have wage increment along the way, which is why there is the progressive wage model. Having kids on the other hand, would not be advisable, so thats a concern.
@@jeddjoseph237 I believe that the average Singaporean aspires to be more than just being alive - we all want to live life. The kind of income inequality and being unable to shoulder cost of living comfortably would create feelings of imbalance, bitterness and resentment. I think many of would agree that for a first world nation, just a roof over our heads and food on the table is setting a very low bar for standard of living.
@@sunlightdavid I don't disagree with you there, everyone strives to better themselves and their conditions. But practically not everyone can do it. If everyone can, then I believe we, as in humans in general, would've found that out long ago. I am not saying I don't hope for real equality, I am just calling the bitter truth as it is.
Most first world nations, there is inequality, from my limited but i believe at least a little relevant experience in this world as a youth, I believe that the world is a Zero-Sum game. Someone, or something has to lose, in order for the other party to win. Not in every case, but generally in nature, your dinner, be it plants or animal, had to die for you to eat, and you win, you get to live another day. Other first world countries such as Australia, they may have a more fair economy, but their richness comes at the expense of their environment, exploitation of natural resources. Singapore does not have those resources, so the more prevalent inequality we can spot are within the only natural resource we have as LKY stated many years ago, our people. It is not fair, and I can only hope that things changed, but as far as civilisation has been around, so has inequality.
For me personally, I believe this will be resolved with technology, robotics, AI, yes job displacement will be rampant when that comes, but that's also when the basic needs of everyone can be met, fairly, and humans can move on to other aims in life for fulfillment and the advancement as a society. Until then, I believe we will always be in this chicken and egg situation of trying to find the balance between desirability, and reality.
@@sunlightdavid This has nothing to do with politics, it doesn't matter who u support, even if u support Trump or Putin, facts remain facts that if anyone were to do this as a challenge, it can be done within the boundaries i have stated. I myself am a WP supporter. That doesnt change the economics and facts. And minimum wage in Singapore exist in a different form that's more complex which is why there is no need for cookie cutter typical min wage system that doesn't help ur cleaners etc but ironically puts their job at risk when healthy young adults are attracted to the wage-revised $12/hr cleaning jobs and potentially becoming competitors to older cleaners, putting their livelihoods at risk. Firstly, instead of having a one size fits all solution that actually doesn't solve all, there's a Progressive Wage Model in place which increases min wage by encouraging workers to upskill instead of setting a flat out min wage for all jobs without any incentive to upskill. That apart, there are various other safety nets such as financial assistance, gst rebates, which makes up MORE than if the typical minimum wage were to be implemented. You would know if ure from a low-income family like me earning $1000+ but that amount itself is automatically increased to at least 2.3K when u factor in the FA and vouchers we receive. Some may not realise how privileged they are to downplay it as merely having a roof and food while typing their opinion on a Samsung/iPhone that's many times expensive than a budget phone. The common problem is financial management and education, the problem isnt whether one is a poster child or not. Now that u talked abt 1st world countries and roof over ur head, we are one of the countries with the least homelessness in terms of its ratio to population. Can SG do better? Obviously, we can start with the workplace culture which is why productivity is stagnant. U want the price of housing to drop so ppl can afford? Sure, then u urself can start by not selling ur house at a loss to others so that they can afford housing. As long as ppl sell their house with the intention to gain huge profits, the cycle will never end. This aint Finland or Norway where we have the luxury of natural resources. Not to mention, we are limited by land size, which is the biggest factor in the size n price of ur house.
Oh man people please learn from Brenda and spend responsibly! What a great role model :)
In order to get qualified for the cash back you have to spent minimum $500 :) on the same mnth and keep cash withdrawal under $400 as well..
When she stopped in her tracks as she passed by Starbucks, I couldn't help but say "No, don't do it" lol and she did
their monthly expenses is some people’s monthly income or more :O
i feel like brendas lifestyle is 80% of us and sew john is 20% of us
i’m 20 this year and to me $600 is perfect to last one month - $400 on food and $200 for bus+mrt transport (ever since poly ended, adult transport fees is so expensive!!!) i go out 6 days a week and i buy $7 drinks from cafes every day. When im outside, i only eat one meal or just snacks. it’s possible and comfortable!
Brenda is such a positive example!!!
i literally spend less than $8 on my lunch and dinner on normal days lol. i know brenda’s level of healthy spending habit well 👍🏻
I spend less than $5 for whole day meal because 1 Maggie mees and 1 egg cost 40cents only eat 1 meal outside
A shoutout to Brenda, you are an amazing girl👍👏 ! You are chio, humble, funny, cute and now I find out that you are also frugal (same like me), wow! 💯🌈💐
I hope that from this challenge, the big spenders Sew and John who don't blink an eye on what they spend will really learnt to cultivate a healthier spending habit , now they can see how they spend daily.
To all 20s folks, be financially woke when you can. Get a good headstart!
Ahah... I only spend 30% of my net salary, the rest goes to savings. That's about $800 a month for expenses
I think if Sew never take grab for 1 month she will save $500
Omg sew I feel you. I used to spent alot on grab rides and grab food and I decided to dare myself not to spend on those and then I realised I've so much money more. That's when I save and reward myself with like a starbucks drink.
$8 a day is $240 a month
next episode sg try living on nsf allowance
Must specify what's the allowance. Ur rota commanders from scdf are probly earning at least 1.2K while ur chao recruit from saf is earning arnd 600 (cant rmbr).
@@johnwig285 560 for rec I think
@@jianxiongRaven now rec earn 600
@@jerrywong243 haha I see.
I know got changes while I was still in service
Brenda's hair looks good on her!!
I get the foreign transaction cashback is a feature.. but putting it as united states website then telling people to make use of that cashback, may not be that great of an idea. The exchange rate and processing fees could be higher than the 2% you save as a foreign transaction, which makes it more expensive overall.
Wow..The luxury i wish i had. To spend $1.5k that easily?? This challenge will be super easy for me. Ha. Most of us are not blessed with a fat paycheck haha.
Anyway with this DBS debit card cashback, the t&c are... 'Simply spend a minimum of S$500 on Visa and keep your cash withdrawals to S$400 and below in the same month'.
My boss’ Hermes birkin bag cost $30,000. She just go shopping buy 1 small item is like my whole month salary already lol
"im saving a lot of money"
followed by
"maybe ill buy 2"
Brenda going to be a millionaire very soon :) If she invest her spare cash it would be even faster ahhaa
One minute ago WOOOO. I literally just logged onto yt. BUT SEW IS 27?! I THOUGHT SHE WAS YOUNGER WAT?!
If she dyed her hair black she could most definitely blend in a lower sec class tbh 😌
@@TheSmartLocal HAHAHA YES YES
When Sew decide to buy to cook at home I don know why I was kind of expecting a call to her Boyfriend for the mushrooms part XD
When you’re a kpop fan and being thrifty is too difficult
I eat at home where ever possible. For lunch at office, I will tabao the leftover food from previous night, if there is any and food that is suitable to tabao. Then at night go back have dinner at home again. Save money!!! Of course sometimes also got tabao outside food but at most once a week. The rest can save for some little splurge or entertainment with friends.
I do the same thing as Brenda too! I cart everything I want and then I take my time to decide if I want them. I end up filtering and removing and buying those that I really need.
Brenda is a legit wife material.
brenda's new hairdo looks like the girl next door... before this was like ..the girl next few blocks away....😁😁😁
Kinda cool, got a better idea of what the usual “budget killers” are - Grab, Grabfood, Starbucks and fastfood etc! TBH though, I lived both ways before. Alone my expenditure ~$600, while dating (rarely) hit $1.5k exactly. Glad to know what a $500 budget is like!
I was expecting this to happen
TSL: your expenses will be fully paid by us
Brenda: okay i dont mind if i need to follow sew’s and john’s total😁😁
if money fall down from the sky, can!!
me: *sees my fave kpop idols release of their newest albums*
also me after watching this video: *not everything new on the market means you have to really buy it right away*
we gotta spend wisely and earn more ! :->
Same, but if u know how to curb yourself then I think its ok. I wanted to buy certain pc. But then the prices so ex. So i wont buy it unless its really worth it
15:32 most people I know would give the same advice LOL but it just doesn't work on me. I would still think of getting it and only feel regret within minutes after purchasing :'D
Ooh I was quite Brenda today and only spent 320 Baht which is like $13.66 in SGD
Breakfast I usually buy a coffee and a sandwich as a deal for 80 Baht which is like $3.42, then lunch is like 120 Baht ($5.12)
Recent days off school and just being at the cafe at the condo I live at they’ve all been under 400 Baht ($17)
There are times where I buy myself a treat after payday, but the rest is mainly on groceries.
My rent is 8000 Baht ($341.55) per month
Sew wasted money unnecessarily in many ways which is a no no to saving for greater joys
Have you looked at her? She screams spend! HAHA judging much.
Ok la some ppl like to save for greater joys while some prefer a constant trickle of little joys. We can choose either and we if possible switch between the two every now and then depending on your stage of life and plans.
Sew is 27!!! I thought I watched her show growing up man.
Hafeez: Got money eat popiah no money eat bobian
Waaq joy joy miss seeing her on screen
Sew and John needs UOB One card for 10% cashback on grab hahaha
They need to invest in Lendlease Reit also.
The one that owns JEM and somerset313
Earn dividends + capital gains
I’m so excited so Sew’s “singing transformation”
thanks sew for the Gojo sticker recommendation
finally 😭😭 ive been waiting a week for this video!
omg this video is so good. pls do more of such videos with different people! am curious to know what are the Singaporeans spending habits.
i really like this series! so cool! i rewatched this again.!!
Oh the joy of those who are living with parents and don't have to give parents monthly allowance.
Meanwhile, I need to pay for rent and give parents monthly allowance 😭
Ps: my parents lived overseas and it is not easy to be alone here especially because of this covid thing, haven't seen my family for almost 2 years now 😭
Indeed, most parents expect that you pay for monthly allowance esp if you still live with them.
@@Aurica34 i don't even live with my parents since I was 15, but I still give them monthly allowance. Though it is because I want to help them financially, not because they force me too
@@Frooooooo how did u earn money to give your parents allowance at age 15?
@@themeowycat i mean I start living alone by the age of 15. But I only started giving allowance to my parents at the age of 26 (a few years after I started working and paying off my student loans coz yeah, my parents didn't pay for my university)
I dont understand, where are ur parents tho? Is this the case of a Johorean making their child stay in Singapore? But hey look at the bright side, it made u independent and gives u the freedom to do a lot of stuff.
Can they do it for a month? Haha would be awesome to see
wah later the producers broke HAHHAHA
@@y.ello._.w haha opps
If Brenda does it on IG and ask us to follow can we do the same for a month ?
Oh... Brenda looks very pretty and elegant in the opening of this video... can try more this fashion & hair style more in the future...
Wah Brenda no joke sia, every ep more and more pretty, what kpop skincare regiment and makeup she use sia?
Tbh, many people don't even make S$1500.00 a month$ 🥺😩
1.5k is likely more than half of their takehomes yikes
@@manofthehour_ that's really excessive spending. I suppose it's partly a culture thing. If everyone around you takes PHV everyday to work, it could become internalised as acceptable habit which then becomes a lifestyle.
This is what most of singaporean low wage worker earn in mth but lesser due to CPF contribution. 1 week is nothing at all, Easy
uhm, but this expenditure is also not considered frugal uh
I agree. Frugal should mean expenditure on absolute essentials/needs only.
It's a sponsored video mah, LOL😆
If spending $1500 does not include insurance and investment then it’s really wasting all the hard earned money.
You are just poor.
Trying to squeeze too much out of every dollar can be a waste of life to others.
No harm spending $1.5k if you can afford it. What’s the point of earning money if you prohibit yourself from spending on things that make you happy/ have a better standard of living.
I personally spend about $1k a month which I used to feel it’s too much. Now I strike a balance between spending and saving to keep me happy. Otherwise I feel suffocated.
Understand some people can’t afford to spend $1.5k just on food/ transport/ entertainment. It does not work for everyone but if you can and it makes you happy why not?
Best to invest in Lendlease Reit also.
The one that owns JEM and somerset313
Earn dividends + capital gains
@@lendleasereit6797 do you use syfe/stashaway?
@@pinkapple6530 no eh... but I have heard good things about syfe (I am also in favour of their picks/stocks/counters for their funds which I have taken a look at - looks safe and stable). I didn't look into stashaway
The cost of dinner/homecooked food day should be included as does not fall from the sky.
Like that my breakfast lunch and dinner all home cook...
My monthly expense is $0?
You are going to pay for health issue if you have a pack of ramen everyday for dinner.
Just imagine Sew, John and Brenda in a SG Try challenge with The WokeSalaryman as collaborators... my gosh the scenes
5:31........did i just see vegetables in sew's cai fan???? round of applause please!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRENDA ALL THE BEST
Walk home from the MRT..... don't make sense when u are only saving less than 10 cents
The total bus trip should be within $2.15 as it is the max cap on a continuous trip
I think John and Sew will go back to their old ways. Because spending is not something u can change immediately 😅😅 personally,I monitor my expenses very closely and I already find it difficult. I'm pretty sure they will continue to spend all/most of their salary.
Try to budget $500/month. Eat instant noodle 1 or 2 meals a day. You still can save after this amount
i love this ep! keep making gr8 content! ❤️
i was also watching a tsl video before this and this came out :)
AYO SAME
@@anvighimireystudent7346 HARLOW ANVI
normally ppl take home cooked meals for granted but once you live alone or got put into a situation where u cant meet parents you really will miss it
My colleague and I challenges who can spend the least everyday. Home breakfast, bus, $3 chicken rice, no drinks, no grab, bus home, “mother sponsored dinner”. Daily spending under $5.
We take pride in seeing who can spend less, and also who loses more in the crypto/stock market everyday. Only complaints about losing and spending money, always secretive when earning 🤣
Honestly my Best Buy ever is my Nespresso machine! It seriously cuts down the cost of coffee/Starbucks
I'm living vicariously through sew
omg sew's caifan is 1/3 veggie!!! so proud!
Who eats biscuits and coffee for lunch. That’s so not full
tbh Sew does that a lot 😂😂 even when she's in the office! she will sometimes have a snack later or a heartier dinner
It's a classic move when u feel guilty of spending too much money that u compensate by not buying food
Wait sew eats broccoli?... doesn’t she hate vegetables
Her broccoli got terms and conditions. Must be cooked and seasoned to the point you can’t taste “the green” (according to her)
I am a changed person, thank you TSL + EB producers✌🏻. Also, it’s cause I’m on another veg related challenge🤷🏻♀️
@@TheSmartLocal The most foolproof way, ‘cooked by Rainier’
@@CharmaineSew HAHAHAHAHA
@4:52 Sew looks like Yoon Eun-hye in her younger days.
I think Sew is prettier than YEH 👀
👍
How people spend $1500 a month is something I can't and don't want to comprehend... even if I had the money there's nothing to splurge on or gift other people. Maybe that's why I find myself boring :')
My boss’ Hermes birkin bag cost $30,000. She just go shopping buy 1 small item is like my whole month salary already lol
I prob earn same amount as them but i only spend like $500…. Maybe cuz I want to retire early
Overseas trip can easily cost thousands. If you are not single, birthday gift etc can cost a few hundreds as well. Then there are people who are renting, where the rent itself exceed 1k easily. Not everyone has the luxury to live at home like you do.
John and Sew must be earning a lot. Can spend 1.5k a month!
Or they just spend a large portion of their income lol
Can check glassdoor for indicative numbers
Sew is so funnnnnyyyyy im a fan now 😂❤
Where’s the 50 Questions video with Zula team I’ve been waiting for months 😢🥺
Spend $500 and invest the remaining $1000 monthly... let it compound over 40 years so you can retire with at least $1 million.
I don't even spend more than 600 a month.... how do these people spend like 1.5k a month? Super atas lifestyle?
tbh it's really not that difficult if you enjoy online shopping, food delivery and taxi rides! 😅
No family responsibilities leh.
Food in the CBD is expensive. Especially when have to join your older colleagues for team lunches and they are all earning many times your salary 🤦🏻♀️ now work from home I can save a lot.
@@embershen364 Haha totally get you point. Peer pressure
My lifestyle must be quite frugal then, I don't spend alot on shopping online and always take bus/MRT only.
I remember spending only $20 a month during secondary school and only $100 a month in poly.
I mean only spending $20 a month during secondary school is pretty easy because you don’t really have anything you need to pay for. Parents will pay for most things.
@@rachelcookie321 You would think it's easy but most people typically spend more than $100 especially when you hang out with friends on the weekends.
@@MoneywithEumi $100??? That’s so much money. I wish I had that much to spend every week. I only have $20 a week too and I’m in secondary school.
@@rachelcookie321 huh? we're talking about $100 a month on average amongst my friends here lol.
@@MoneywithEumi oh, sorry. I just realised I got confused with months and weeks in my last comment. I still think $100 a month is a lot.
their salary must be very high
Rainier so cute lah give sew a dumpling 🥟
Like Vince McMahon says, there is NO CHANCE IN HELL that a working adult can spend $500 a month inclusive of parents' allowance.
Excluding parent’s allowance, food, transport and insurance
Maybe she doesn't give an allowance - I remember that she's in a single parent family. And she's quite young so they may not rely on her. Most of us have to do that on top of utilities' shared cost. It's doable to some extent but it does feel a little like you're not living life lol. I think 600 to 700 is a more comfortable figure to work with.
They already said not including parents’ allowance, bills and insurance. Basically the expenditure that we have more control over ea mth
Parents’ allowance? I am so confused. Do your parents not work? Why do you need to give them an allowance? Parents give an allowance to their children why are kids giving an allowance to their parents? Why would parents need an allowance, they have well paying jobs.
@@rachelcookie321 not all parents are young to work anymore, and some kids also come from poor families.
Just one question. Is Brenda on the same pay grade as John and Sew? John and Sew might spent $1.5k per month but they can still be saving more than Brenda if they earn more
Not really , that time sew mentioned in one video she saved 4 digit number for the first time , so I'm guessing she have poor spending habits .
TBF it's not abt how much they make. Brenda being younger may make lesser but if your lifestyle inflation exceeds your income growth rate then its gg to be a snowballing mountain of card debts. I think the objective here is that your expense is the area you can control immediately since your income depends on many factors that aren't always in your control. Esp in this pandemic economy.
Can say I am picky with food in Sense of flavour. So, I enjoy making myself the food. The process of making is also a enjoy.
Assuming an 18 yo starting off with 1.5k, he/she can live in SG. NSFs, 18-23 yo receive arnd 800 allw/month for 2 years. That 18yo after 2 years, with 500 savings/month from the 1.5k would have 12k in savings. In today's world, if u choose to work at 18yo, either u use that money saved to study further and raise that amount or just suck up/be thrifty. That is until one chooses to get married maybe arnd 25 yo (considering the fact that he/she started to work at 18 alrdy), then at least they're a young parent, good for them. The world works in a very unique way - if u work early, and/or get married early, n if ur kids work then u get to retire early
You deserve a like but idk why Nobody like your msg lmao
what switch game was John playing???
Should do it for 1 mth and give the budget for 1 mth
Oh wow, I'm so gonna do a reaction video to this!
u sure this is being frugal? I think I'm on another level haha
i miss brenda’s old hairstyle i like her hair when it was short
Nobody wanna talk about sew ordering veg in her caipeng? 🤔
She’s a ✨changed woman✨
$15 budget a day is doable if they bought food from hawker....
I onpy have $400 to spend per month,around $10 budget a day
The gojo stickerrrrr
1.5k sounds more like including bills, insurance, investments, etc...
You'll be amazed how so many people spend like this just for food, transport, shopping.
yeah and i feel that Brenda isn't even living that frugally, she makes smart choices, but does spend her money as well, albeit not as much as Sew and John. For example, even for my lunch in the office, I bring from home to save money on that too and only eat out during the weekend. This is great starter habit to encourage though, especially for fresh grads getting their first full time pay!
@@athinluvspurple Think it's ok to eat out at work, just eat cheaply like mixed rice, which when you add up can actually even be cheaper than home cooked food, but not as healthy.
@@joanneng9145 Yeap true, you can’t have it all haha.
It's good to save from young... You never know when you need money. Best to spend only 30% of your net salary while 70% goes to savings and allowance for parent.
OMG SEW!! THE GREENS! 5:30
I'll take up this challenge any day
TO BE FAIR I BOUGHT MY MUM AN APPLE WATCH FOR MOTHER'S DAY THATS WHY 1.7K OK HAHAHAHAHAHAH
look at them struggling on over $10 a day but thrs me eating 2 caipengs a day and spending on nothing else and its $7 brrrr
Wad else is me u still rmb me that I forget. Pls new episode