RetireJapan

RetireJapan wrote: ↑Mon Nov 11, 2024 6:32 am
Same here! It initially felt good to see the outstanding loan go down, but then I realised how much more I could make investing the money instead of overpaying a 0.5% mortgage...

For the sake of the comparison, would you mind telling us if this 0.5% rate is fixed or variable?

(Well, I'll probably want to be part of that conversation. You know... "asking for a friend"... who has big dreams for 2025.)

Thank you very much for this great answer! This is really helpful and a lot of food for thought.

Thank you all for the responses so far! I’m still debating whether it’s worth the added complexity. My main objective here is to mitigate currency risk to some extent. I’ve now received more details, and I’m even less sure about moving forward with this. If I were to receive part of my salary in EUR...

No, there's (virtually) no risk of that. However, I also need to mention that the converted part is only a fraction of the salary, which mainly remains denominated in JPY. This is also only for one year — this agreement is renegotiated once a year and could be terminated. I wouldn't describe this as...

Hi everyone, I'm not necessarily looking for a definite answer here, as I think there's no right or wrong response to this question. Currently, I’m paid entirely in JPY. However, we have the option to receive part of our salary in a foreign currency—either USD or EUR—when we negotiate our contracts....

It was already mentioned, but I'm in the GnuCash family. Moneytree to access the latest updates on my bank accounts and credit cards. I update GnuCash daily and enter each and every one of my expenses, try to budget a little bit, make sure that I reach my goals every month, etc. It might be overkill...

I do not believe the Japanese government "mandates" such a thing. Employers may offer this "service," for the employee's benefit, but it's on the employer to decide if they want to add this benefit. As said by Adamu, you do want to make sure you declare your iDeco deduction when ...

Except for spouse, I think most visas require you to write an essay (理由書) to apply for PR, so would be interested what they wrote for you :D "He replies to our e-mails in a timely fashion." I didn't see such a document, so if they indeed filled one out on my behalf, it could be fun to hav...

I like my "regular" rank. I picture myself as the quite regular customer sitting at the counter of a classy bar, sipping my whisky.