M. Pattabiraman's Blog

It may seem like an odd name for an Excel file, but sometimes you need to create attention. On Saturday, October 4, 2025, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman stated that financial assets worth ₹1.84 lakh crore were lying unclaimed with banks and regulators, and officials need to ensure these reach the rightful owners. About the...

The post Post-Death Information File – A Single Spreadsheet Your Family Can Rely On appeared first on freefincal.

A reader who wishes to be anonymous asks, Hello, I was avidly reading about your answer to a 30-some reader. It was surprising that you need an 8+ crores rupee to sustain a lifestyle with 40000+ monthly expenses. And I am very worried (despite living in my own house-fully paid up, owning another property worth...

The post How to Plan for Retirement in 5 Years With Insufficient Savings appeared first on freefincal.

A 35-year-old individual is inquiring whether it is feasible to retire comfortably by age 55 and the steps necessary to accomplish this goal. He is married to a 30-year-old homemaker. When he reaches 55, his wife will be 50. So, we shall plan for retirement income until she (the younger spouse) reaches 90. Therefore, he...

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In this article, Dhilip Krishna discusses why he became a fixed-fee-only SEBI-registered investment Advisor. He is a member of Fee-only India*. Dhilip can be contacted via his website: Apta Investment Advisors. * Fee-only India is an informal association of SEBI RIA that charges a fixed fee or a flat fee (independent of AUM). Recently, BSE...

The post Why I Chose to Become a Fixed-Fee SEBI-Registered Investment Advisor appeared first on freefincal.

A reader says, “I read your blog on financial planning where you mentioned that it’s better to invest in mutual funds through a joint account as the transfer of units is easier than via nomination. But there is a lot of confusion regarding its taxation”. “I read about a couple online who handle their mutual...

The post Should I pay tax if I am second holder in a MF portfolio? appeared first on freefincal.

A reader asks, “Can I invest a lump sum in equity MFs to increase my equity allocation from 45% to 65%?” A 65% equity exposure is not that high, but what matters is, do you have a strategy to reduce risk progressively as you head towards the goal deadline? As we have shown, this can...

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Recently, someone on X referenced a trailing 5,7,10Y SIP returns comparison of direct plan large cap funds vs the Nifty 100 TRI and concluded that most active funds beat the index. They also noted that using SIP returns avoids the bias introduced by trailing returns. I responded that using a 5Y or 10Y SIP is...

The post 10-year active large cap MF Rolling SIPs vs Nifty 100 TRI appeared first on freefincal.

Last Updated on November 25, 2025 at 8:14 am A reader says, “I am part of a private forum of FIRE (financially independent early retirement) seekers.  We share each other’s FIRE journeys from time to time. I recently achieved a 40X corpus (= 40 times annual expenses) and stated that I continue my job as...

The post Am I financially independent if I have achieved my FIRE corpus but am still working? appeared first on freefincal.

This article compares my stock portfolio with an equivalent investment in a Nifty index fund and the Nifty 100 Low Volatility 30 TR index. We post this comparison each month. Before we begin, new readers need to understand the context of these investments. Update: We recently added a new tool to the freefincal investor circle...

The post My Stock Portfolio Analysis: Nov 2025 appeared first on freefincal.

After reading the details of our family’s health insurance policy – Why we purchased the United India Super Top Up Policy with 95 lakhs sum insured – a reader wanted to know, “if it makes sense for him to buy a 25 Lakh base health insurance policy?” We have a Rs. 25 lakh individual cover from...

The post Does it make sense to buy a 25 Lakh base health insurance policy? appeared first on freefincal.