[quote=“GuyInTaiwan”]Dan: Is a college diploma plus TESOL enough for an ARC? Does anyone know?
To be honest, I really wouldn’t get into day trading. Maybe some people make money off it, but I wouldn’t take my chances. I’d suggest you go down the route of really finding out about something like value investing, or at least learning enough to put your money with someone who did something like that. That’s probably what you want to do. You need to be able to get to a point where you can assess if someone else managing your money 1) understands what you want, what you’re comfortable with, etc. and is on the same page as you without simply giving you some crap multiple choice survey and then applying a formulaic approach to your situation, 2) is following through with that and performing reasonably based upon the parameters you two have established. Treat it like you would in dealing with any other service provider, be it a doctor or a mechanic. Does he know what my problem is and how I want it solved? Has he solved the problem reasonably well based upon that? Two very simple questions, but they require you to know what your problem is and how you want it solved before you go and ask for help.
Another option would simply be to try to build up a portfolio of shares in good holding companies such as Berkshire Hathaway, though obviously, you’d need to know what you were doing to some extent and try to get them when they were good value. Failing all that, then I’d simply suggest you stick your money in ETF or several ETFs.
If you were to put your current 3.2 million NT into something and leave it there for ten years, without adding anything more and if you got 3% above inflation, you’d end up with 4.32 million NT (in today’s terms). If you got 5% above inflation, you’d end up with 5.27 million NT (in today’s terms). Obviously, contributions beyond that would help and be necessary. Let’s say you could save 30,000NT/month. After ten years, in the 3% above inflation scenario, you’d end up with 8.51 million NT (in today’s terms). In the ten year, 5% above inflation scenario, you’d end up with 9.93 million NT. Still, obviously, those scenarios are still inadequate, and you really do have to face the distinct possibility that you really only have ten years in EFL here. So what’s your exit plan, and how feasible is it? What could/would you do after teaching, how successful could you be at it, and over what time frame would you need to be able to do it to reach your number?
Again, I seriously question whether coming here soon would be the right financial decision. Perhaps it’s where you want to be and a whole lot of other emotional reasons, and that’s fine, but you would have to be quite honest with yourself that coming here would be based upon an emotional reason, rather than a financial reason. On the other hand, if you have been able to save 3.2 million NT in three years (did I read that correctly? It seems pretty good, unless that also includes savings from the time before you were in Taiwan for a year) in Canada, then it might be worth holding off moving here for a few more years. If you’re basically saving 1 million per year, then think of this:
Starting with 3.2 million NT now, investing that and getting 3% above inflation, plus adding 1 million per year (83333/month), if you did that for just three more years, you’d have 6.64 million NT. Obviously, you would simply have a much greater capacity to save money in Canada and so it would be a more efficient use of your time in that respect. I suspect that the 3.2 million NT was saved over a greater time span (i.e. including the time before you were in Taiwan), in which case, you’d need to look at how much you can save each month in Canada compared to how much you could save each month here and see if that’s worth it.[/quote]
Hi Guy
Yes a 3 year college diploma and a TESOL will get me an ARC.
I have been making money day trading, but I think it is more sheer luck… I have ordered a few books that explain the detail behind it to be able to make correct decisions.
You are right, my intention to move is strictly an emotional one. I don’t mind the loss of revenue as long as I can retire at 55 as that is my goal. If I must live more simply, that is OK with me. My 3.2 M was saved over about 5 or 6 years in Canada. While I might make a lot more money here, the tax rate is ridiculous at 35% - 40 of my income. With Taiwan’s tax rate of 10% or so, I may be able to sock more money away due to lower costs but that would be still to be determined.
What do you think of the plan just to drop the money on a condo outright, and then just save going forward? At the very least I would have a paid for place to stay and some equity.
As far as my exit plan, I was thinking that since I am 30, I could go for up to 5 years and try to get myself established. If it fails by then, i would still be young enough to go back to Canada and get back into my field as I have all my certifications already.
Its a large move so I appreciate your suggestions. Your figures have given me a good estimate as to what I will need to do if I go.
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, slightly overweight, balding guy in his 40s or beyond = 
for a whole lot of reasons, most of them irrational. If you were to come back to teach English, I’d suggest either come here with a Masters, some sort of teaching licence for back home (so you could teach in a government school) or have a pretty clear route for getting yourself into a niche field.
