PlayFacto @ Kovan · CFO note · Private, for JY and Aiting

Paying for the move to Kovan CC: what we can carry, and what we cannot

9 October 2026. Rewritten after JY shared his loan notes, and updated with his corrected cash flow of 9 October (no money has gone into the businesses for three months). It replaces the 8 Oct funding note. Written for a non-financial reader; every number comes from JY's own figures or from our business model, and the appendix lists what still needs confirming.

The short version

  1. The business needs about $360k by February 2027 if we move. HQ can shrink that to about $340k now and take about $150k of cost off the next two years. That part has not changed.
  2. The household is in better shape than the first draft said. JY's corrected figures (9 Oct): $14k of salary in, $32k out ($15k home, $17k loan repayments, and nothing into the businesses for the past three months), so about -$18k a month before dividends, and $200k of dividends every six months. That leaves about $150-185k a year after everything, instead of the $40-75k in the first draft. On that path the household clears every balance transfer by August 2028 from its own cash, with the credit lines never more than about $75k drawn.
  3. We still cannot pay for the whole move ourselves. Putting $360k into the business in December to February would take JY about $170k past every credit line he has. But we can now carry part of it: the $55k deposit bridge until March, and a $50k standby for the business.
  4. The short-term debt is still the thing to respect. About $430k of balance transfers, plus Ben's $50k, fall due within the next ten months. On the new figures each one is smaller next to the cash, but five of them still need a bank to say yes between November and December 2027, UOB has already said no, and the MAS borrowing limit could freeze the lines the plan leans on. Those two risks have not changed.
  5. The home equity loan is now insurance, not rescue. A bank loan secured on the condo, used to replace the Standard Chartered and April DBS balance transfers (about $270k), cuts the bank yeses still needed from five to two, and it is what makes a shorter friend loan and the $50k standby safe. It costs about $5k a year more than rolling the transfers. Worth doing, and the broker should still be called this week; it is no longer a question of survival.
  6. If we move, the money still has to come mostly from outside: HQ's package in writing, plus about $300k from a friend or investor. JY's preference for a fixed return, not shares, is fine. With the home loan in place, 3 years now works (a third repaid after each June dividend, 2027 to 2029). Without it, the honest term is still 4 years. Two years does not work on any version of the figures.
  7. Go only if all three are in place by 23 October: HQ's answer in writing, a committed lender on 3-year terms (4 if the home loan is refused), and the broker's in-principle approval. If not, renew 780 USR and use 2027 to clear the balance transfers, which the new figures say the household can do on its own. Either way is a sound year.

1. What the business needs if we move

The move costs about $273k (fit-out, aircon, HQ design fee, reinstating 780 USR). On top of that the CC wants a deposit of about $55k before our 780 USR deposit ($56k) comes back in March 2027, and the business loses a little money for the first few months in the new place. So the deepest point is about $360k in February 2027 in every growth case (the slow case dips again, to $387k, in late 2028 because of the franchise renewal). After the 780 USR deposit returns in March the figure settles at about $300k.

What happens after that depends on how fast the CC fills. The chart shows the running total of money we have to put in, month by month, and when the business starts paying it back.

-$400k -$300k -$200k -$100k $0 +$100k +$200k +$300k Money we must put into the business (running total) Below $0 = cash we have put in and not yet got back. Above $0 = the business has paid it all back. Jan 2027 Jan 2028 Jan 2029 Jan 2030 Low point: about $360k, Feb 2027 Full in 2 years: +$258k by Dec 2030 Base growth, with HQ package: +$177k by Dec 2030 Base growth: +$22k by Dec 2030 Slow growth: -$280k by Dec 2030
CC full in 2 yearsBase growth (our 2026 pattern)Slow growth (our 2025 pattern)Base growth, if HQ gives the full package
-$400k -$300k -$200k -$100k $0 +$100k +$200k +$300k Money we must put into the business Running total. Below $0 = put in, not yet back. Above $0 = the business has paid it all back. Jan 27 Jan 28 Jan 29 Jan 30 Low point: $360k, Feb 2027 Full in 2 yrs: +$258k Base + HQ package: +$177k Base: +$22k Slow: -$280k
End values are at Dec 2030.CC full in 2 yearsBase growth (our 2026 pattern)Slow growth (our 2025 pattern)Base growth, if HQ gives the full package

PlayFacto Kovan only, before GST, Little Forest costs removed, tender rent $8.00 psf. "Base growth" means 34 children join each January and 76% stay a full year, which is our 2026 pattern. "Slow growth" is our 2025 pattern (30 join, 64% stay). Full detail is in the stay-or-move deck.

If we move and growth is...Most we must put inWhenThe business has repaid it all by
CC full in 2 years$362kFeb 2027Sep 2029
Base (our 2026 pattern)$360kFeb 2027Sep 2030
Slow (our 2025 pattern)$387kDec 2028around 2034
Slow, but HQ gives a fresh franchise term$363kFeb 2027around 2033

The slow case needs more because the $104k franchise renewal falls due in November 2028, and slow growth has not earned enough by then to cover it. That is why a fresh franchise term from HQ matters so much in the slow case and hardly at all in the fast one.

2. What HQ can take off the bill

JY's instinct is right: if Justin is confident in the CC, the honest way for HQ to show it is to share the cost. Three asks, in order of how easy they are for HQ to say yes to. Each is worth a different amount, and they lower the need at different times, which matters for how much we have to borrow and for how long.

AskWorthLowers the Feb 2027 peak?Lowers the 2027-28 need?
Waive the relocation / design fee$15kYes, $15kYes
Royalty holiday for 6 months after opening (royalty is 9.3% of fees, about $5-7k a month at the CC)$32-40kOnly about $6k (one month's royalty before the peak)Yes, $32-40k spread over Feb-Jul 2027
Same, for 12 months$61-84kOnly about $6kYes, across 2027
Fresh franchise term on relocation (no $104k renewal in Nov 2028)$104kNoYes, in Nov 2028. Turns the slow case from $387k into $363k
Full package (fee, 6 months' royalty, fresh term)about $155kPeak falls from $360k to about $340kSlow case falls from $387k to about $342k; every case is about $150k better off by end-2028

So the package is worth about $155k, but only about $20k of it arrives before the February peak. We still have to find about $340k of cash up front; the package mainly means we need it for a shorter time and the business can repay it sooner. That is still a big deal for whoever lends it.

The royalty figures come from the model's fee income in 2027: about $5.1k a month in the slow case, $5.8k base, $6.8k if the CC fills in two years. The franchise agreement (clause 4.10) says relocation means a new agreement with a negotiable term, so a fresh term is a reasonable ask, not a favour. Check it against the signed copy; ours is a 2023 draft.

3. JY's money, honestly

This section is built from JY's Google Keep notes (October 2026), his summary of income and spending, and his corrected "current situation" of 9 October. Where his summary and the line-by-line detail disagree, both are shown. Nothing here is a criticism; it is simply the picture a bank or a friend will see, so it is better that we see it first.

Income

about $20k
Salary a month, before CPF and tax (Island Family Clinic about $10k, SNEC sessions about $10k). About $14k after CPF and tax.
about $400k
Dividends a year from the clinics: JY says $200k every six months (January and June). His clinic-by-clinic lines add to a little more ($206k Jun 2025, $216k Jan 2026, $221k Jun 2026, so about $437k in the last twelve months); $400k is used here as the safe figure. Tax-free in JY's hands.
$570-640k
Total a year. JY said "about $800k"; the detail gives $400k dividends plus $170-240k salary. The gap may be gross clinic profit before company tax. To confirm.

JY's note says "monthly income with dividend 34k + 20k = 54k". The dividend part is right ($400k over 12 months is about $33k). The salary part is $20k gross but $14k in the bank, so the usable figure is about $47k a month, and only $14k of it arrives monthly.

Spending, each month

Each monthJY, 9 Oct (current)From the loan detailJY, 8 Oct (superseded)
Salary after CPF and tax+$14,000+$14,000+$14,000
Home, including the mortgage-$15,000-$15,000-$15,000
Loan repayments (UOB $6k, Citi $2k, HSBC $2.7k, DBS $6k, Standard Chartered $3k)-$17,000-$19,700-$17,000
Money into PFS, Little Forest and TDA$0 (none for 3 months)$0-$10,000
Short each month, before dividends-$18,000-$20,700-$38,000 as written (lines add to -$28,000)
Left over in a year, after $400k of dividendsabout $184kabout $152kabout $30-75k

The change from the first draft is the $10k a month that was assumed to be going into the businesses. JY says none has been needed for three months. That moves the household from "just covering" to about $150-185k a year left over after all loan payments, and more if the dividends run at the $437k the detail shows. Section 4 shows what that does month by month, and the appendix records both sets of figures. One caveat, set out in section 4: the business model still shows PFS losing about $5k a month on paper at 42 children, so some support may come back for a few months in early 2027; the figures below are shown both ways.

Where the $700k of debt sits

Rebuilt loan by loan from the Keep notes (the appendix shows the working). Balances are JY's figures rolled forward at the stated monthly payment, so the instalment loans are estimates to within about $10k.

LenderOwed now (approx.)TypeFalls duePaying
Standard Chartered$222kBalance transferAug 2027, in full$3k a month
DBS$60kBalance transfer7 Nov 2026 (to confirm with DBS; treated as the same loan as the one taken Jul 2025)$6k a month across the three
DBS$40kBalance transfer9 Dec 2026
DBS$60kBalance transfer23 Apr 2027
"Ben"$50kFriend loan (to confirm)Jan 2027-
UOB$142k5-year personal loan ($296k, Mar 2024)Mar 2029, by instalments$6k a month
HSBC$68k3-year card instalment ($84k, Apr 2026)Apr 2029, by instalments$2.7k a month
Citi$57k5-year personal loan ($100k, Aug 2024)Aug 2029, by instalments$2k a month
Maybankabout $4kCredit linesrevolving-
Totalabout $700kof which $432k is short-term and must be repaid or rolled by August 2027

Two kinds of debt are mixed together here, and they behave very differently:

Credit still available today: DBS about $98k, Maybank about $81k, so about $179k. UOB shows $130k of room but has refused, so it counts as zero. The month-by-month picture in section 4 leans on that $179k; if the borrowing limit above froze it, the picture would be a good deal tighter, which is another reason to do the consolidation in section 5. The Keep summary line "1,130k of facilities, 986k taken, 82k left" does not match the detail (the detail gives about $650k owed to banks and about $179k usable), and JY has said that line is out of date, so it is not used anywhere in this note.

4. Can we pay for the move ourselves?

Not all of it, but now part of it. The chart follows JY's cash month by month from now to the end of 2028 on his corrected figures: salary in, the $15k home out, every loan payment from the loan detail ($19.7k a month), every balance transfer falling due, the two dividends a year, and nothing into the businesses.

-$400k -$300k -$200k -$100k $0 +$100k +$200k +$300k +$400k JY: cash in hand at month end, after using the credit lines Below $0 = living on the DBS and Maybank credit lines. The grey band is where those lines run out (about -$179k). Below this line: all credit lines used up Oct 2026 Jan 2027 Jan 2028 Dec 2026: -$65k on current course Dec 2026: -$348k if we paid for the move ourselves After the June 2028 dividend ▲ dividend month (Jan, Jun, assumed) ◆ a balance transfer falls due
Current course, no money into the businesses (JY's figures of 9 Oct)Current course if $5k a month of support returnsIf we paid the $360k move from our own pocketCurrent course, after a $300k home loan retires the two big balance transfers
-$400k -$300k -$200k -$100k $0 +$100k +$200k +$300k +$400k JY: cash in hand at month end After using the credit lines. Below $0 = living on the DBS and Maybank lines. Grey band = those lines are used up (about -$179k). Below this line: all credit lines used up Jan 27 Jan 28 Dec 26: -$65k, current course Dec 26: -$348k if we paid for the move After Jun 2028 dividend ▲ dividend month (Jan, Jun) ◆ balance transfer due
Current course, no money into the businesses (JY's figures of 9 Oct)Current course if $5k a month of support returnsIf we paid the $360k move from our own pocketCurrent course, after a $300k home loan retires the two big balance transfers

Assumptions: dividends of $200k in January and $200k in June; a balance transfer that cannot be paid off in full on its date is rolled into a new one at a 3% fee; shortfalls are covered from the DBS and Maybank lines; the "move paid ourselves" line adds the business's $360k need in Dec 2026 to Feb 2027. Starting cash is taken as zero, so the first three months show the lines being used before the January dividend; JY's actual balance today would shift every line up by that amount.

Current course (blue line). The family still lives in a saw-tooth: each dividend lifts the account and five months of about -$21k eat into it, but the troughs are now shallow. The lowest point is about -$65k in December 2026, then -$20k in May 2027 and about zero in December 2027, against $179k of lines. From there the dividends pay off the transfers one by one: the April DBS in April 2028 and Standard Chartered in August 2028. By end-2028 the household owes only the tail of the three instalment loans (about $45k) and has about $40k in hand, more than $110k if the dividends run at $437k. That is a very different picture from the first draft, where $190k of transfers were still rolling at end-2028.

If $5k a month of support comes back (grey dotted line). The business model still shows PFS losing about $5k a month on paper at 42 children, with a bigger loss in December when bonuses are paid. "No cash needed for three months" may partly be timing: the twenty P1 deposits ($1k each), January fees paid in advance, GST timing, or bills not yet paid. So it is prudent to assume $3-5k a month could be needed again in early 2027, before the January intake lifts revenue, and for longer in the slow-growth case. At $5k a month throughout, the troughs deepen to about -$80k and, more importantly, Standard Chartered cannot be cleared in August 2028: about $140k of transfers are still rolling at end-2028. The year's margin falls from about $150-185k to about $90k. Everything below is tested both ways.

Paying for the whole move ourselves (orange line). Putting $360k into the business in December to February takes the account to about -$350k, roughly $170k past every credit line we have, and it does not get back above zero in two years even with the higher dividends. The January dividend would cover barely half of the move, with Ben and two balance transfers due in the same weeks. This is still not a close call.

Paying for part of it. This is where the new figures change the answer. JY can carry the CC deposit bridge ($55k in December, back in March when the 780 USR deposit returns) and a $50k standby for the business from mid-2027. On $0 support that takes the December low point to about -$120k (lines still $60k short of their limit) and the household still clears the transfers by end-2028, finishing with about $10k in hand. If $5k of support returns as well, it is too thin: about $147k of transfers still rolling at end-2028. With the home loan in section 5 in place, the same package is comfortable either way (worst point about -$90k; about $120k in hand at end-2028 even with the support). So: the deposit bridge and the standby can come from JY, provided the home loan is done or the support really has stopped.

A shorter friend loan, repaid from the dividends. Section 7 shows the schedules. The short answer: a $300k loan repaid in thirds after each June dividend (2027, 2028, 2029) works if the home loan is in place, on $0 support with room to spare and on $5k support with the deferral clause doing some work. Without the home loan the same loan leaves $147k of transfers still rolling in 2029 and uses the lines to $92k, and it breaks if any support returns. Two years (halves in June 2027 and June 2028) fails without the home loan and is thin even with it. So: 3 years with the home loan, 4 years without.

What this reframes. JY earns well and, on the corrected figures, the household is paying its debt down at about $150k a year on its own. The problem that remains is the shape of the debt, not the amount: $430k of it has to be re-borrowed on a bank's say-so every few months until mid-2028. The right order is still to take that risk off the table first, then decide how much of the move to carry; the difference now is that step one is insurance rather than rescue, and the household can carry more of the move than the first draft allowed.

5. The condo: how much could we release, and how

The Vales (executive condominium, completed 2017, so past its 5-year minimum occupation; fully private from around 2027). JY's figures: loan about $600k, value about $1.4m. Banks will lend against an EC once the minimum occupation period is over, so there is no timing problem there. One practical point: while the mortgage is outstanding, the equity loan normally has to come from the bank that holds the mortgage. Another bank would have to take over the whole $600k as well, which costs any lock-in penalty on the current loan and more time.

How much, in principle

Bank rule: 75% of the bank's valuation, minus the loan still owed, minus every dollar of CPF used on the flat plus the interest CPF says it would have earned (2.5% a year). The CPF part is the number we do not know, and it decides everything.

CPF used on the flat, incl. accrued interestIf valued at $1.4mIf valued at $1.5m
$0$450k$525k
$100k$350k$425k
$200k$250k$325k
$300k$150k$225k

Assumes a loan of $600k and a tenure that ends by age 65 and within 30 years; otherwise the 75% becomes 55% and the figures roughly halve. The CPF figure is on the CPF website under "My Statements, Property": it takes five minutes to pull.

The debt test, with JY's real income

Banks allow total monthly debt payments of up to 55% of recognised income, tested at a 4% interest rate (the broker will call this the TDSR, the total debt servicing ratio). Here is how that comes out:

Income the bank countsA month
Salary, $20k (Island Family Clinic $10k at 100%; SNEC sessions may be treated as variable, at 70%)$17-20k
Dividends, $400k a year at 70% (if the bank accepts them; see below)$23k
Recognised income$40-43k
55% limit on all debt payments$22-24k
What already counts against it, a month
Mortgage, $600k tested at 4% (over 25 years)$3.2k
UOB, Citi and HSBC instalments$10.7k
Balance transfers: banks count about 3% of the outstanding $380k (bank-held; Ben is excluded)$11.4k
Already committed$25.3k, which is over the limit

So as things stand, a bank would decline an extra loan of any size: the existing debt alone is over the 55% line. The way through is to make the new loan replace the balance transfers rather than add to them. If the $300k from the home is used on day one to pay off Standard Chartered ($213k by then) and the April DBS transfer ($54k), the test becomes:

Mortgage at 4%$3.2k
UOB, Citi and HSBC$10.7k
Remaining DBS transfers ($100k at 3%)$3.0k
New $300k equity loan, tested at 4% over 25 years$1.6k
Total$18.5k, which is under the $22-24k limit

That passes, with $3.5-5.5k of room. (Household spending does not enter this test, so JY's corrected figures do not change it.) Three things could still stop it, and they are exactly why a broker earns their keep:

What the home loan does for the family

Current course (support $0 / $5k)With a $300k home loan that retires SC and April DBS (support $0 / $5k)
Bank "yeses" still needed (balance transfers that must be rolled)5: Nov 2026, Dec 2026, Apr 2027, Aug 2027 (about $190k), Dec 20272: Nov and Dec 2026 (about $90k together)
Monthly outgoings on debt$19.7kabout $16.5k (about $3k a month less)
Credit lines used at the worst month$75k / $90k of $179k (Dec 2026)$53k / $63k (Nov 2026)
Balance transfers still rolling, end-2028$0 (last one cleared Aug 2028) / about $140k$0 / $0
Cash in hand, end-2028about $40k / $40kabout $305k / $170k
Balance transfer fees paid, Oct 2026 to Dec 2028about $10k / $16kabout $3k / $3k
Interest on the home loan, Dec 2026 to Dec 2028-about $18k at 3%
Debt at end-2028about $45k / $185kabout $320k, of which $275k is a 25-year home loan that can be prepaid at any time

On the corrected figures the home loan is no longer what keeps the household afloat: the current course clears every transfer by August 2028 on its own, as long as no support goes back into the businesses. What the loan still does is take four of the five remaining bank decisions out of the next fourteen months, including the big one (about $190k at Standard Chartered in August 2027), and it is the difference between a thin plan and a comfortable one if support returns, if JY carries the standby, or if a friend lends for three years rather than four. The cost is modest and should be stated plainly: about $18k of interest over two years against about $7k of rollover fees saved, so roughly $5k a year for the insurance; the much larger cash pile at end-2028 is simply the loan not yet repaid, and it can be prepaid. The one true cost is that the family home then stands behind debt that was unsecured before: if the dividends stopped for a long time, the bank could take the flat. That is a serious thing and both owners should weigh it; it is also true that the current arrangement, where a bank can refuse a rollover at any time, is not safer.

If the full loan is refused, the smaller route (an equity loan of up to $100k that keeps total borrowing at 50% of value, so no debt test) still removes two of the five rollovers (December 2026 and April 2027) but not the Standard Chartered one; the June 2027 dividend of $200k gets within about $30k of that $190k on its own, so a partial repayment plus a smaller rollover would be the fallback.

How much of the home could go to the move?

Only what is left after the consolidation. At a $1.4m value with $100k of CPF used, that is about $350k released minus $267k of transfers retired, so about $80k; that would cover the CC deposit bridge until the 780 USR deposit comes back in March. With $200k of CPF used there is nothing left for the move at all. Plan on the home fixing the household, not funding the CC. If the CPF figure turns out to be small, treat anything extra as the standby.

Two smaller routes, in case the full loan is refused: an equity loan that keeps total borrowing at or below 50% of the value is exempt from the debt test, which at $1.4m is $100k ($700k minus $600k). And JY's current bank may do a repricing plus a top-up faster than a full refinancing to a new bank. Avoid non-bank "home equity" lenders at 5-15%; the flat is still at risk and the cost is far higher.

6. Aiting as a co-borrower

The idea was to raise Aiting's salary for about six months so that she could take part of the loan. Here is how that works in practice, and the version that does work.

What banks need to see. For an employee: the last three months' payslips, the last 12 months of CPF contributions, and the latest Notice of Assessment. If the person is a director or significant shareholder of the company paying the salary, banks treat them as self-employed instead and want two years of Notices of Assessment, then count the income at 70%. Aiting is a director of PFS (and Little Forest), so a salary from either company would be judged on tax returns that do not exist yet: YA2027's notice arrives around mid-2027, YA2028's in 2028. Six months of payslips from our own company will not move a bank in October 2026, however genuine they are.

The legitimate version. If Aiting is doing real work for PFS or Little Forest (she is: she runs the centre and met Justin), paying her a proper, declared salary for that work is right and sensible for its own sake, and in time it does count. It would need CPF (17% from the employer, 20% from her, on pay up to $8,000 a month), income tax on it, and the money actually leaving the company and landing in her account. The cost is real: at $6,000 a month, PFS pays about $7,000 a month including employer CPF, about $84k a year, out of a company that is losing money. It would raise the business's cash need, not lower it. And it only counts in 2028, not now.

The version that does not work. A temporary pay rise on paper, with no change in her role, created so that a bank will lend, is a false declaration of income. A bank that finds it can call in the whole loan, and it would sit on both your credit records. Not worth it, and not needed: the real route through the debt test is the consolidation in section 5, not extra income.

Co-ownership. If Aiting is a joint owner of the flat, she signs anyway and her existing income (if any) is counted. If she is not on the title, most banks will not add her as a borrower on a housing loan at all. Worth checking the title before planning around her.

7. A friend's loan that can actually be repaid

JY's preference is a loan with a fixed return and no shares. That is fine, and simpler for everyone. On the corrected figures the repayments can come from JY's June dividends rather than waiting for the business, so the loan can be three years instead of four, provided the home loan in section 5 is in place. Proposed terms, written so a non-financial friend can read them:

TermProposalWhy
Amount$300k, lent to PlayFacto @ Kovan Pte Ltd, not to JYLending to a company is outside the Moneylenders Act; a loan to JY personally at interest is a grey area unless it is clearly a one-off. Keeps JY's personal unsecured debt where it is.
Return7% a year, simple, fixedAbove anything a bank pays a saver, below what the business would pay a lender, fair for a friend taking a real risk. Costs about $31k in total over three years.
Length3 years: December 2026 to June 2029, early repayment allowed any time. If the home loan is refused, 4 years (to June 2030) instead.JY's June dividend can carry $100k a year once the balance transfers are off the table. Without the home loan the transfers still need the dividends until 2028, so the friend has to wait a year longer.
RepaymentInterest accrues and is paid with each principal payment. Principal: $100k in Jun 2027, $100k in Jun 2028, $100k in Jun 2029, each just after the June dividend. (4-year version: $150k in Jun 2029 and $150k in Jun 2030.)The friend receives about $331k in all: $110.5k, $114k and $107k. If the CC fills in two years the business can bring the last payment forward.
If a dividend is late or the business is behindEach payment may be deferred once, by up to 6 months, interest still running. After that JY's personal guarantee applies and the home equity standby is the backstop.Says in advance what happens, so nobody has to have an awkward conversation later. On the $5k-support case the June 2028 payment is the one most likely to use it.
SecurityPersonal guarantee from JY; no charge on the flatA friend lending $300k to a loss-making company will reasonably ask for this.
InformationThe friend sees this note, the monthly enrolment and profit figures, and is told before any new borrowingAnyone lending $300k should know the whole picture, including JY's debt. Showing it is also what makes the fixed return fair.

The 3-year schedule against JY's cash

Each payment is made from the June dividend. The table shows JY's cash in hand after the payment (after any credit line use), with the home loan in place and JY also carrying the deposit bridge and the $50k standby, on $0 and on $5k a month of support.

PaymentFriend receivesJY's cash after it, support $0Support $5k
Jun 2027: $100k plus 6 months' interest$110.5kabout $100kabout $55k
Jun 2028: $100k plus a year's interest$114kabout $130kabout $25k, lines in use again by autumn
Jun 2029: $100k plus a year's interest$107kFrom the June 2029 dividend; on base growth the business also has about $150k of its own cash by then and can pay this one itself.

The business's own contribution, on base growth: nothing in 2027-28 (it keeps its cash for the Nov 2028 renewal if HQ will not waive it), about $150k in 2029. So JY carries the first two payments and the business can carry the third. In the slow case the business has little to spare in 2029 and JY's June 2029 dividend carries it, which is why the deferral clause is there. Without the home loan, this schedule leaves about $147k of balance transfers still rolling in 2029 and the lines drawn to about $92k at the end of 2027; it holds only if no support goes back into the businesses, which is too fine a margin to promise a friend. That is why the 4-year version is the fallback rather than this one with fingers crossed.

A short note on Ben: the $50k due in January 2027 is also a friend loan on the Keep list. The January dividend covers it. Keep that promise before taking on a new one.

8. Shares and convertibles: parked

The earlier note recommended a convertible loan: a loan that turns into shares if it cannot be repaid. It is still the right tool if a friend wants a share of the upside, or if nobody will lend for four years at a fixed return. But JY is right that it is not needed for its own sake: the business can repay a fixed loan on base growth, HQ's package shortens the time, and the repayments now come from JY's dividends on a schedule the household can meet, which removes the main reason the convertible was there (the fear of a demand for cash in 2028 that the business could not meet). So: fixed-return loan first; convertible only if the lender asks for upside, at the terms in the earlier note ($900k valuation, with unpaid amounts converting at $600k). HQ or Justin investing directly would still be welcome and would say more about their confidence than any waiver.

9. The risks, plainly

10. Decision and next steps

Recommendation. Start the home-loan consolidation this week regardless of the CC: on the corrected figures it is insurance rather than rescue, but it is cheap insurance against the two risks that have not changed, and it is what lets the family carry more of the move safely. Then bid for the CC only if, by 23 October, (1) HQ has agreed the fee waiver, a royalty holiday and a fresh term in writing, (2) a friend or investor has committed about $300k on 3-year terms (4 years if the home loan is refused), and (3) the broker has an in-principle approval, or, failing that, the friend has accepted 4 years and JY's own figures have held for another month. JY carries the $55k deposit bridge and the $50k standby himself. If any of the three is missing, sign the 780 USR renewal, use 2027 to clear the balance transfers, which the household can now do on its own, and keep the CC conversation with HQ open for the next vacancy. Either path is a sound one. The one path to avoid is funding the whole move from the household's own cash or credit lines.

  1. Fri 9 Oct (JY) Call DBS: confirm the 7 Nov $60k date and whether the Jul 2025 loan is the same one; ask DBS and Maybank whether you are within the MAS borrowing limit and whether a new balance transfer is still available when the current ones end. Pull the CPF property statement, the latest mortgage statement (balance, rate, lock-in date, which bank), the last three Notices of Assessment, two years of dividend vouchers or bank statements, and a Credit Bureau report (about $8, online). Note today's bank balance: section 4 starts from zero, and the real figure shifts every line up.
  2. By Mon 12 Oct (JY) Speak to a mortgage broker (free to you; the bank pays them). Brief: equity term loan of about $300k on The Vales, to be used to settle the Standard Chartered and April DBS balance transfers at disbursement; income is $20k salary plus $400k of dividends from companies JY owns; which banks accept that income, and what in-principle figure can they give by 20 October.
  3. Tue 13 Oct (Aiting) CC site show, 2pm. Confirm the deposit amount and date, and that student care with a 7am opening is allowed.
  4. By Thu 15 Oct (Aiting with JY) Send Justin the three asks with their values ($15k fee, $32-40k royalty holiday, $104k fresh term) and ask for a written answer by 20 October. Ask how fast the other CC outlets filled.
  5. By Fri 16 Oct (JY) Lawyer: does the September correspondence bind us to 780 USR? Quote for a simple loan agreement with the friend.
  6. By Mon 19 Oct (JY) Sound out one or two friends with the section 7 terms and this note. A real yes means a signed term sheet, not a kind word.
  7. Fri 23 Oct (JY and Aiting) Go or no-go, on the three conditions above.
  8. Tue 27 Oct Tender closes 5pm. The 780 USR signing window ends about now as well.
  9. Nov - Dec 2026 Roll the 7 Nov DBS transfer as usual. If approved, the home loan arrives early to mid December and settles Standard Chartered and April DBS. If we won the CC, sign the friend loan and draw it in December, and JY pays the CC deposit (about $55k) from the lines, to be repaid from the January dividend and the 780 USR deposit in March. January dividend: repay Ben.

Appendix: loan by loan, and what to confirm

A. Rebuilding the balances from the Keep notes

Balances at February 2026 were given by JY; later balances are rolled forward at the stated payment. Where a payment includes interest, the principal falls more slowly than shown, so instalment balances are estimates to within about $10k. "Still to pay" is the sum of the remaining instalments including interest, which is what matters for cash.

LoanWorkingOwed now (principal, approx.)Still to pay
UOB personal loan$296k, 23 Mar 2024, 5 years at $6k a month (so about 4.3% flat, about 8% effective). $190k at Feb 2026, less 8 payments.$142k30 x $6k = $180k to Mar 2029
Citi personal loan$100k, 30 Aug 2024, 5 years at $2k a month (about 4% flat). $73k at Feb 2026, less 8 payments.$57k35 x $2k = $70k to Aug 2029
HSBC card instalment$84k, 23 Apr 2026, 3 years at $2.7-3k a month ($2.7k implies about 5% flat; $3k would be nearly 10%, so $2.7k is used). Less 6 payments.$68k31 x $2.7k = $84k to Apr 2029
DBS balance transfers$60k due 7 Nov 2026 (to confirm; the Jul 2025 loan and this entry are treated as one), $40k due 9 Dec 2026, $60k due 23 Apr 2027. $6k a month paid against them.$160k$160k
Standard Chartered balance transfer$220-225k taken 17 Aug 2026 on a $237k limit, due 17-18 Aug 2027. $3k a month paid against it.$222k$222k
Maybank$85k of lines (Easicredit $55k, Creditable $30k), $81k available.$4k$4k
"Ben"$50k due Jan 2027. Treated as a friend loan.$50k$50k
TotalBanks about $653k, plus Ben $50k. Matches JY's "about $700k".about $703kabout $770k

B. Facility limits and what is usable

BankLimitUsedRoomUsable?
DBS$258k$160k$98kYes (JY's note says about $100k)
UOB (Cashline $150k + card $200k)$350k$142k + card use$130k shownNo: UOB has refused further credit
Citi$100k$57k$43k shownNot listed by JY as available; assume no until checked
HSBC$100k$68k$16k shownCard limit holding the instalment plan; assume no
Standard Chartered$237k$222k$15kMarginal
Maybank$85k$4k$81kYes
Total$1,130kabout $653kAbout $179k usable (DBS + Maybank), not $82k

C. Checks on JY's summary figures

D. Numbers JY and Aiting need to confirm

E. Assumptions made in this note

Prepared by the CFO desk for JY and Aiting. If a number here looks wrong, it probably is one of the estimates above; say so and it will be corrected.