Our Scans · (FS.6.06) Personal Finance · Weekly Summary

• [New] SINGAPORE - Lower-wage outsourced workers such as cleaners, security officers and landscape maintenance workers will enjoy more annual leave from 2029, when the minimum leave entitlement will be increased from seven to 10 days. ST
• [New] The Retirement Living Council's 'Shared Care' pilot program will demonstrate that retirement villages can help alleviate pressure on the health system while allowing older Australians to receive care in the communities they love. Mirage News
• [New] Single-family mortgage originations will jump 24% this year to $1.96 trillion, including both home purchases and refinancing. ICBA.org
• [New] The Mortgage Bankers Association is forecasting that total commercial mortgage origination volume will increase 27% to $805.5 billion this year, while multifamily originations are expected to rise 21% to $399.2 billion. ICBA.org
• [New] On current trajectories, global construction output could fall short of demand by around forty trillion dollars cumulatively by 2040, with a skilled-labour shortage compounding the problem as an experienced generation of workers approaches retirement. Highways Today
• [New] The combination of attrition due to burnout, retirement, and more flexible or lucrative careers, with an inadequate number of people in the health workforce pipeline threaten the United States' ability to care for its population now and into the future. West Health Mosaic
• [New] Earned wage access (EWA) remains an area of significant regulatory interest, with continued focus expected on the future of California's current framework, potential legislative activity, and the use of the CCFPL to supervise providers. Morrison Foerster
• [New] Easing oil prices could mean the Bank of England may not have to raise interest rates as expected, which could bring down mortgage prices. The Guardian
• Pensions UK expects around 82% of workers to meet the minimum retirement living standard, but only 23% might reach the moderate standard and just 9% the comfortable standard. Gateley
• The Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation has begun to consider climate risks as part of their wider risk management strategy. Climate X
• 1.319 million Australian households (26.6% of all mortgage holders) are now classified as at risk of mortgage stress - nearing a 14-year high that could climb to 1.6 million if the RBA delivers even one more rate hike. WizWealth Finance
• From today, millions of Australian workers will see a real boost to their pay with the minimum wage rising above $1,000 a week for the first time. Prime Minister of Australia
• Effective interaction with AI tools, often called prompting, will carry a salary premium, while the World Economic Forum ranks analytical thinking, resilience, and curiosity at the top of its fastest-growing list. metaintro
• The U.S. is nearly unique among industrialized nations in having the 30-year, fixed-rate, freely prepayable mortgage, a structure that shifts interest-rate risk from households to investors, as the standard product used to finance homeownership. Gate House Strategies
• For most UK employees, salary sacrifice will deliver the larger overall financial benefit - but businesses gain the most by combining both: using the OZEV grant to fund workplace charging and offering salary sacrifice through a scheme like The Electric Car Scheme as an employee benefit. The Electric Car Scheme
• Rather than moving based on fear of missing out or attempting to time mortgage rates, buyers in 2026 are likely to make decisions based on life needs. CityRealty
• Under Decree 161/2026 / ND-CP, Vietnam will raise the statutory base salary for public-sector employees by 8%, from VND2.34 million to VND2.53 million per month. Vietnam Briefing News
• Mortgage rates should spend more time closer to the 6% mark in 2026 than they did in 2025, but there's little reason to expect a surge in cash-out refinancing. HSH.com
• Sub-Saharan Africa's working-age population will grow by more than 600 million over the next quarter century, more than three-quarters of the net labor-force increase across all developing economies, though only 24% of new workers today land wage-paying jobs. Slasify
• Compliance Risk When Hiring in Emerging Markets Cross-border hiring carries exposure that does not show up on a salary line, and several rules tightened in 2025 and 2026. / USA Slasify
• In Argentina, 57% of businesses plan to redesign their salary and compensation strategy to protect workers' purchasing power, against 33% globally. Slasify

Last updated: 20 July 2026