#ILoveMyFamily: This Landlord Wahala Must Stop!

#ILoveMyFamily: This Landlord Wahala Must Stop!

We left our former place because the Landlord insisted we pay two years rent in advance at the expiration of our first-year rent. We couldn’t afford it. I went to his house to plead but he said we pay or move out of his property. He was so arrogant and insulting. I left his place and went home to meet my wife, Chidinma.

When I narrated my ordeal to my wife, she was furious. It dawned on us that it was high time we started making plans to own a house – the way most Landlords treat tenants in this part of the world, one would think it’s a crime not to own a house. But before that, we needed to get another place ASAP. I told my new Agent to help look for a good place.

Two days later, he called and took me to a house a few miles away. I liked the building. It was more spacious. We were ready to pay and move in but the Agent said the Landlord would like to meet me in person. He booked an appointment with the Landlord and we were scheduled to meet him the following day by 6 pm at a popular bar where he usually relaxes in the evening.

On the scheduled day, we were already seated at the bar waiting for my new Landlord-to-be. We waited for an hour and there was no sign of him. My Agent called him, he said he was close by. I was getting uncomfortable with the smell of cigarette and alcohol that filled the air.

Finally, the Landlord appeared.

The moment our eyes met, he was as shocked as I was. My Landlord to be is my present Landlord. I looked at my Agent and asked, “Is this the man we have been expecting?” He answered, “Yes.”

The Landlord looked at me and left. The Agent was confused, and I had to explain everything to him on our way home.

“Do you have any other place?” I asked

The following day, the Agent took me to another house. The Landlord of this house stays abroad and when we spoke on the phone, he was friendly. It was a good place but a bit more expensive. After payment and cleaning, we moved in.

We were determined to make a move towards having a house of our own by saving for it as a long term goal. I consulted a friend who already own a house, on how he was able to achieve it; he said he was able to save for the house by using ARM Saving Plan. He said with the plan:

I can start saving with as low as N10,000 monthly;

I will get a tax free lump sum of all your investments and interest at the end of the Plan which is then used to fund your expenses;

I will be paid a lump sum if something happens to me (critical illness or Permanent Disability);

I can access my money during the contract period (at no charge only after three years). In addition, the policy allows me to access to 25% of whatever my account balance is on an annual basis;

I will get a guaranteed return on investment with attractive rates.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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#ILoveMyFamily: (Episode 1): Welcome to Our World

#ILoveMyFamily: (Episode 1): Welcome to Our World

My name is Lakunle. I am a husband, a father of two, and a salary earner. I married my wife, Chindima, the most beautiful woman in the world as far as I am concerned, five years ago when I started working.

I met my wife during my National Youth Service Corps year in Enugu and we became best of friends. We had good plans. We shared our life goals and we were ready to take on the world.

My two children, Nifemi and Chinedu, are very special to me. Nifemi is the older of the two. We had her on the day of our 1st wedding anniversary; every 24th of July is always a day full of fun activities in the family.

Nifemi is just like her mother: beautiful and enthusiastic. She has started behaving like a woman at age 4. She now helps in the kitchen and runs errands within the house. She is going to be a responsible woman someday.

Our little boy Chinedu is 2 years old. I love to call him Chinny and he somehow likes it because he usually giggles happily whenever I call him that name. He is one of the most energetic 2 years old boys I have seen.

One of the things I love about my wife is her cooking skills. I am not bragging, my wife is the best cook in the world. Ever since we got married, I can count the number of times I eat out. My friends can testify to the fact that my wife cooks better than anyone else. Whenever they visit, they always look forward to eating our food.

My wife is a salary earner like me. I have always wanted her to own a restaurant so that she can start making money with her talent. Two years ago, when we discussed this, she said she was not ready for it. She said when the time comes, she would let me know. I didn’t mention it again and we seemed to have forgotten about it until recently when she raised it again in the middle of the night.

“Dear, there is something that has been troubling my mind.” She said.

“What is it baby?” I asked curiously.

“Did you remember sometimes ago when you wanted me to open a restaurant? I have been giving it a lot of thought recently. I think it’s high time we had a business of our own.”

I saw her desire and I promised to help her with a business plan. We found out that for us to start a very good restaurant in our neighborhood, we will need nothing less than N3 million. We both agreed that we were not going to borrow the money for it, instead, we would save towards it.

We started looking for a good platform and a friend introduced us to a platform he has been using for a long while: ARM Life Saving Plus He said we were going to get interest at the expiration of our saving tenure, that makes so much sense to us and we didn’t hesitate to start the journey towards realizing our ambitions.

 

Join us for the next episode next week

 

 

 

 

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How to deal with the inevitable expenses of 2019

Some things remain constant with each year while some new situations welcome themselves regardless of our level of preparedness. Here are some things that will likely gulp your money in 2019 apart from your daily home expenses.

 

School fees – If you’re a parent, you must know that you will pay school fees thrice this year. The last one in September being of a bigger sum because your child will be entering a new class which will demand some financial responsibilities.

Valentine’s Day – February still has 14th on it and the world will mark Valentine’s Day. Unless you are a Valentine’s Day Grinch with nobody to gift, you’ll be spending some money this season

Elections – This is the year of elections and as a Nigerian, you must remember that uncertainty looms. Instead of waiting to be thrust into the unknown, it is wise to make plans to ensure that however the tides turn, you and your family remain largely unaffected.

Easter and Eid celebrations – Whether Christian or Muslim, you will be marking these special seasons in 2019 and they will require some expenses. Knowing and planning is the surest way to have a joyous celebration without going broke afterwards.

Special birthdays – Be it that of your spouse, child, friend, parent or relatives – birthdays are those celebrations that we don’t count but often leave a hole in our pockets if we don’t budget for them.

Rent – This is an inevitable expense unless you currently live in your own home. Plan for it as well.

Big celebrations – If this is the year you plan to wed, put a down payment on your first home or buy your first car amongst other big celebrations, then it is an inevitable expense for you – one that requires planning. The first month of the year is the right time to start planning towards these big steps and the best investment vehicle is your best option to being financially prepared for them.

Latest brand of gadgets – iPhone may announce an upgrade to their latest version as can other companies. Be prepared for this announcement and decide ahead of time if you really need it. If yes, now is the time to start investing towards it.

The unexpected – Emergency car breakdown, hospital bills, last-minute travel expenses… name it. Because you know that life can throw you an unexpected curveball at any point, it is wise you have an emergency fund somewhere for the just-in-case moment.

Discounts and deals – With every celebration, businesses offer you deals and discounts. Expect no less in 2019 and brace yourself for them. Whether it is Easter deals, Black Friday discounts, End of the year sales – expect it and plan for or against it.

Christmas – Oh no, it’s not too early to recognize that Christmas gulps a good amount of money and can leave many accounts red. But not if you invest early towards it. Did you know that investing as little as N1000 every other day this year can have you balling through Christmas in the lifestyle you desire? Think about it.

2019 can be rosy for you if you start early to plan for the inevitable and invest appropriately to tend to them.

 

Meet all your 2019 expenses by investing towards them starting now. Check out investment options at www.arminvestmentcenter.com

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Source: Blog

My uncle’s children

My uncle’s children

My cousin Gerald has visited again. This time, he is staying for one month to buy all the necessities for his first year at the University. Dad would be funding it as usual. I and my five siblings have gotten used to seeing my dad fund his nephews’ education while my uncle did his best to keep populating the world.

My mum wasn’t against dad helping his nephews, but she kept prodding dad to save some money for his own children’s education as well since we were all still quite young. Dad didn’t understand her. He believed that if he gives the best to his brother’s children, his brother or maybe someone else would do the same for him. In truth, I think he never really envisaged that his business would go under before his own kids were grown – he was so sure of this that he asked mum to resign from her government job as a teacher. Unfortunately, the business stopped doing well and thank God mum didn’t resign.

Growing up, I and my siblings lived a life of managing. Dad became a sad version of himself especially when we asked for money for the basic needs as students. It was almost as though we shouldn’t ‘need’ anything. Back in the University, we weren’t the kids that carried the latest phones, or wore the best clothes or even had the required textbooks. We were the kids that made do and never complained.

Mum soon took over the financial reigns as dad’s business completely crumbled. Seeing her struggles fostered some form of discipline in us all to succeed and make her and dad proud. Did my uncle finally help out financially? I wish. He never even looked our way again.

Somehow, we all scraped and managed till today. Today, I own a multimillion naira apparel business alongside my lucrative consulting role in an Oil and Gas firm while my other siblings are doing good in their careers and businesses.

Every day I remember how we all got here. How mum put in her sweat and blood – and how dad miscalculated with his finances and when we were little.

Yes, we all turned out well, but would we have if mum didn’t make all the sacrifice? What if dad had saved for our education like mum persuaded him to? I know a lot of people will say that the struggle made us better people. That is true only because of the upbringing mum gave us and her kind of woman. I’ve seen families that went through what we did, and it shattered their future.

I’ll be a fool to allow the thunder strike twice in the same place. That is why the moment our twins were born four years ago, I got an education plan for them as well as a trust fund. Life has taught me enough lessons, so I know better than to leave anything to chance.

I still take care of needs from extended family but at least I’m at peace knowing my wife and children will never have to struggle through life like I did.

 

 

 

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Don’t be like Uncle Jimoh

Don’t be like Uncle Jimoh

The moment I crossed that finish line and felt the coldness of the medal as it was hung around my neck, I felt truly victorious.

When 2018 began, I had pledged to be a healthier version of myself, get serious with investing, get married and begin planning my retirement. The latter was informed by my uncle’s heart-attack on his 65th birthday which the doctor relayed was partly due to his hard work and little or no rest. You see, Uncle Jimoh had retired but had to keep working at a Primary School to make ends meet.

His children could have taken care of him, but even those two are still trying to find their feet financially. After his burial, I wondered how different things would have turned out had Uncle Jimoh had some millions in his retirement account and didn’t have to work so hard to earn a living. Perhaps, he might still be alive today.

Well, as a sharp guy with common sense, I did the mathematics and research. If I wanted to live long, I might as well do it healthier. If I wanted to live wealthy, I might as well start investing. If I didn’t want to be paying school fees in my 50’s, I might as well marry early and most of all, if I wanted a retirement free of hassles, I might as well start growing my retirement savings account.

A crucial step

So you see, crossing that finish line at the ARM Pension’s Run For The Future run/walk event on November 24, 2018, was a very crucial step in forging ahead with redeeming my pledge to myself this year. That makes it three things I have succeeded in checking off my list this year.

The first one about investment was super easy. I simply found a great investment vehicle that suited me and went with it. The second was even easier – topping up my RSA. Since my Pension Managers were so reliable, all I had to do was put a call across to indicate interest in making Additional Voluntary Contributions to boost what my employer deposits into my RSA and like Aladdin making a wish, my wish was granted. Now I rest easy knowing my investment is growing, retirement fund is bulking up and my fitness is on track – it has to be because I completed the 8K race…yippee!

Now I have only one thing left on that list. Marriage! This thing called marriage isn’t as easy as I thought. I had meant to propose to Amaka in October before the run. When 2Baba released that song about Amaka disappointing him, I rebuked that fate. But apparently, the die had already been cast. My Amaka relocated to the UK for good on October 5th while making it clear she isn’t ready for marriage.

It’s all good though since I still got three out of my four pledges down. Who knows if love will still find me before 2018 gets over and done with? Hey don’t call it wishful thinking, I am an optimist to the bone and believe anything is possible. You just watch…

Meanwhile, don’t let my Uncle Jimoh’s fate be yours. Join me in planning your retirement by making Additional Voluntary Contributions to your RSA. Start at www.armpension.com/avc

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4 reasons you should never write a Will

4 reasons you should never write a Will

What’s all the fuss about writing a Will? You’ve watched it in movies and heard too much talk about writing a Will but you know deep within that you don’t want to do it. You think it’s a preparation for demise. Well, we’ve compiled some reasons you may not need to write a Will. Take a look.

No family or dependent

If you don’t have children or family you love who depend on you financially, then don’t write a Will. Knowing that anything can happen at any time, don’t be the person that leaves their family financially unprotected.

Don’t care how your estate is disbursed

If you don’t care who gets all you’ve worked hard for, then there’s no use writing a Will. Not writing one can mean that the uncle you didn’t like or the cousin that you never knew could turn up and take the lion’s share of your properties should anything happen to you. Would you like that?

You think peace of mind is overrated

If you will not like to have your mind at rest just knowing that your spouse, children, aged parents and all those you care about will be well-off if anything happened to you, then why write a Will? All a Will does is help you rest easy and enjoy a good quality of life knowing everyone that matters is sorted legally in case of any uncertainty.

Don’t care about leaving a legacy

Most parents want to leave a legacy for their children be it in terms of estate, knowledge or setting an example. When you set the example of writing a Will in order to preserve wealth for your loved ones, your children are bound to pick up on that and the chain continues. If you don’t care about leaving that worthy footprint in the sands of time, then don’t write a Will.

 

Just before you leave, remember that only a Will can convey the wishes of a person when they are not there. Imagine what will become of the loved ones of that person who leaves this world with nothing to speak for them.

 

Don’t take any chances today. Secure your family’s future with an EasyWill. Begin at www.armtrustees.com/easywill

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Expecting the email?

Expecting the email?

Have you received the email yet? The one from your child’s school reminding you that you need to pay a certain percentage of the fees on or before the school term resumes. Typically, it is accompanied by account details/bank teller and a comprehensive bill featuring items/activities you are convinced your child does not need but for which you have to pay.

As you go through the list- tuition, books, school uniforms, school bus, lunch, music classes, elocution training, inter house sports, swimming lessons, field trip– your stomach does a flip flop, your countenance changing as you take a mental trip into all your accounts. What miracle will I perform over the next three weeks? You wonder. You remember the client who is yet to pay and wish you had invested the proceeds from that contribution you did two months ago. God help you if you have more than one child or if any of your children is crossing into secondary school or university.

That is scenario one. But there is scenario two.

You receive the email, go through the list, check the final figure, retrieve the bank details and transfer the money to the school’s account without sweating profusely, practicing your addition and subtraction skills or worrying about the deadline and where money will come from. Even when you have more than one child and your children are crossing into secondary school or university, you are not fazed.

No, you don’t necessarily earn more than you did in scenario one, you have simply learnt to plan and save ahead. You started an education plan for your daughter when she was in Primary one. Now that she is crossing into secondary school, you call your account manager at ARM Life, redeem your lump sum. It is enough to take care of her secondary school fees and everything she needs for school. When you buy insurance, you are not paying for risk, you are paying for peace of mind.

So are you a scenario one guy? No problem, now is always the best time to start doing thigs right. Get an education plan today or start a savings plan. As your child grows, the cost of education will likely increase, your reserve should increase as well.

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30 and ready to Will it

30 and ready to Will it

I didn’t think I would come this far so soon. 10 years ago, I was just a starry-eyed girl, fresh from university looking for her place in the world. What is now my chain of stores began like child’s play. My first job was as a front desk executive at a consulting firm. Many of the well paid big girls in the office could not resist complementing my dress sense. They found it amazing that I could pull of magazine cover type of looks on my entry level salary. I knew all the hot spots for good clothes, the will to go the distance, good negotiation skills and an eye for combinations that work well. I soon became a personal shopper for most of the ladies in the office.

When I could no longer cope with the demand, I resigned and faced the business head long. Consulting for corporate fashion became my thing and I was soon a popular name at many organisations. Along the line, I picked up the habit of attaching little favours for my clients, alongside their purchases. It made a massive difference, the referrals poured in and soon, I was ordering fabric from Bangladesh and India, sending original designs to China and shipping in clothes in my label. The first store was a huge success, two stores quickly followed and now I have over 30 stores stocked with unique designs for the corporate woman, bearing my seal.

Of course, making and selling clothes is not all I have done in the past 10 years. I found love along the way and started a family not long after. Seemingly, the only thing not working in life is my relationship with my in-laws. They just cannot stand the sight of me. Traditional in their outlook and set in their ways, they cannot understand a wife that jets all over the world opening stores and gracing runways. They think their banker son deserves to come home to sumptuous food made by his wife every day. They think I am not prioritizing our two kids and that my wanderlust is the reason we do not yet have a son.

If only they knew that the glory days of bankers are over. That their son is not yet highly placed enough to earn the kind of money that can fund our current lifestyle. That the houses and cars are products of my country hopping. That the fat allowance they get every month often comes from me. Already I can hear the whispers, the prodding, he needs to get a younger wife that will stay at home to take care of him and bare him sons. At first, I was certain he would not budge, but his recent incessant complaints about my schedule is betraying the fact that he is beginning to succumb to their prodding. I would not be shocked if I return home one day to meet a yellow sisi in my kitchen, wearing the madam glow and feasting on my hard work. That’s why I could not wait, I had to take steps to secure my children and my assets.

First, I put my children’s education in a Trust, that way they will still get to attend the best schools, regardless of what happens. I am also considering estate planning. It’s time to put my house in order. Not many people think about getting a Will in their 30s but I have to. Given my situation, I can’t take chances, it’s time to Will it. I hope I live a long happy life, but if I don’t or if something happens to my marriage, I want it to be clear who owns what and who gets what. I also want my daughters to know they mean the world to me and they are the reason I work so hard.

I am not leaving this to chance, it’s time to be 100% sure.

Securing your assets for the ones you love is now really easy, sign up on our Easy Will portal to get a secure and valid Will online.

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5 ways to enjoy the Sallah break

5 ways to enjoy the Sallah break

Nothing makes the average Nigerian happier than a weekend that cascades into a 2-day public holiday.

For many, this is the perfect time to catch up on much-needed sleep and do some things they’ve been putting off due to lack of time. Not to talk of the inner satisfaction of not having to wake up early and endure morning rush-hour traffic.

But how do you make the most of the break?

Here are ideas you can use just to make sure you have an amazing 4-day break;

 

Give yourself some love

When was the last time you treated yourself to a good time? Don’t allow work and the need to please everyone else make you forget that even you are human. Smother yourself with some self-love this break. Go get a massage, sleep in, and get the rest that will get you hyper when you resume for work the following week. Your body will thank you for it.

 

Spend time with family

Work and busy schedules rob most of us of the time with family. This is the perfect time to catch up with family. You can either take your family somewhere fun or keep it indoors seeing movies or enjoying the World Cup over some home-made popcorn or barbecue. If you have kids, this time can also help you bond better if you’ve not really spent time with them.

 

Tick off certain tasks

It’s a break but it must not be all fun and games. Now might be appropriate to do a mental check of things you’ve put off for too long – like applying for a course, attending a webinar, rejigging your monthly budget, or setting up a direct debit to your various investment and insurance accounts. Doing all these before the resumption of life’s busyness helps you keep your mental and financial house in order.

 

Get away

Maybe you have friends or family who live in another state or who you haven’t seen in a while, 4 days is ample time to do an interstate travel to visit them or getaway to some cozy place in town to catch up. Not only will they appreciate your effort, your relationship will also be strengthened.

 

Events and more events

Whether it’s a stage play, or comedy show (these events always come up), find one that catches your fancy and relax to the entertainment they offer. You may not have the time for such in the coming weeks, so enjoy it while you can.

 

The idea behind all this is to enjoy yourself for a few days and get back to work fully energized to meet your goals.

Enjoy your break!

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Ask Shade: He Left Everything to His children From a Previous Marriage! How Do I Secure My Child’s Future?

Ask Shade: He Left Everything to His children From a Previous Marriage! How Do I Secure My Child’s Future?

Dear Shade,

I’m in my early 30s engaged to a widower in his 50s. We plan to get married in a few months and I‘m already pregnant. While cleaning his study last week, I stumbled on something that looks like his Will and it seems like he already willed everything to the three children from his previous marriage. Since then I’ve been worried about my unborn children. What would be their fate? What if something suddenly happened to their father, will they have anything from him? How can I be sure what I found is really his valid Will? Since I’m already carrying his child, I am contemplating asking him to write another Will. The document I found dated back to 2009, what of assets he has acquired after he wrote this Will? Please advise me, how can I secure my children’s future?

Fikayo, Lagos

***
Hello Fikayo,

I completely understand and empathize with your situation as it could be quite a challenge bringing up the issue of Wills with your fiancé considering the fact that you are not yet married to him. It is only natural that you are concerned about the security of your children’s future, given the prevailing circumstance. Your concerns are valid and thinking about an update of your fiancé’s estate plan is the way to go.

The details you provided about the document you stumbled upon are hardly enough for me to ascertain if it is indeed your fiancé’s Will. However, even if it is not his Will, it is likely an indication that a Will exists, and your fiancé is knowledgeable and intentional about estate planning. I think you should find a little relief in this fact, it gives you a good pedestal to start the conversation about an amendment and all that.

It should interest you to note that the Wills Law of Lagos State makes it necessary for your fiancé to make provisions for all his dependents in a Will which would include your unborn child and subsequent children. In the event that he refuses to make the appropriate provision, he must state a reason or reasons for his refusal. You should also be aware that since you are not yet married to him you do not outrightly become his dependent, the baby notwithstanding.

If all else is in place, you should focus on getting married as the marriage will confer on you rights as a dependent and give you the needed standing to discuss his succession plan. Once married statutorily-that is marriage done through a marriage registry, all prior Wills written by your husband (including his 2009 Will) would become invalid according to the provisions of the Wills Law. He would therefore need to rewrite his Will based on the statutory marriage with you.

Should there be any fatality to your husband after your marriage without him rewriting his Will, you would be entitled to all his personal belongings (items like clothes, jewelry, watches etc) and one-third of his estate according the Administration of Estate Law while his children would be entitled to two-thirds of the estate. These unspecific distributions could however be likely cause of dispute amongst family members due to valuation and sharing issues relating to the Assets. Should the unfortunate occur before your wedding, the child should still be considered his dependent.

I understand that the subject of Wills may appear to be a bit emotional, but I would recommend that you subtly encourage your fiancé upon marriage to re-write his Will so that the intestacy rules are prevented and the beneficiaries’ gifts are clearly stated to reduce dispute amongst family members. You should also consider writing your Will if you do not have one.

Thanks to everyone who has reached out to me with their concerns. If you would like to have your question featured, please email your question to [email protected]. ARM has a new and easy way for people to get started on their last will and testament. The Easy Will portal  is designed to take the stress off getting a Will. In a few clicks, interested people can now easily get a valid and secure Will online. Have a look here.

Warm regards,

Shade

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