And with RA already at ERS, with yearly interest paid into RA, you are likely able to maintain the yearly increase in the ERS till age 65 .....
Is the above assumption sound, or is there a "catch" that will cripple the assumption??
Not quite. When the Enhanced Retirement Sum increases, it increases for every CPF member age 55+, including for those who've previously reached the ERS. That's because the ERS is based on principal only. Every time the ERS is raised you can keep adding funds to your CPF Retirement Account — for the rest of your life if you wish.
But you need to know from 55 to 65 years if not working monies top to ERS you still got spare for living expenses? If budgeted already then I would say safe. For me I would not hoot all in as I only see at age 65. Maybe hoot some.
If you have a property pledge or charge, you can still make a large lump sum withdrawal from your CPF RA. Usually the maximum is an amount equivalent to your age 55 Basic Retirement Sum ($110,200 in 2026 for example), but it could be less if you met the Full Retirement Sum in your RA partly through cash top ups (including SA cash top ups).
Note that qualified family members (such as children, grandchildren, and spouses) are often eligible to transfer their OA dollars into your RA. They may even have lots of OA dollars, but those OA dollars are subject to liquidity constraints at least until they're age 55. Instead of cash allowances (if that's how your family rolls), how about OA transfers? Let you and your family members maintain more liquidity if that's your worry.
Yes, you should maintain
adequate liquidity if you reasonably can. But maintaining
excessive liquidity is expensive. RA's 4.0+% interest rate is comparatively very attractive, especially when you're age 55+ and worried about retirement finances.