Most people struggle with working out how to invest their money. Do they upgrade their home, contribute more into super, buy an investment property, invest in the share market, or something else? In fact, this common challenge was the reason that I decided to write my book, Investopoly. I knew that if people understood the…
There are three ways to generate passive income; start a business, invest or speculate. The keyword in that sentence is passive. Passive means you can generate economic benefits without the requirement of your personal exertion. Since it doesn’t require personal exertion, it frees up your time to spend it on activities or with the people…
Many people don’t like to save for the future because they think it’s painful. Saving means they have to do without. Conversely, spending today is fun and enjoyable. Buying a new gadget, a new pair of shoes, dinner at a fancy restaurant, some wine (well, I regard wine as more of an investment). These things…
I find it ironic that the two common financial mistakes that people make are not investing i.e., procrastination or doing too much i.e., turning over investments, changing their minds and so on. But, sometimes reacting, changing, tinkering, selling, buying and so on can be equally as bad. The truth is that investing requires a lot…
We are all aware that central banks around the world have been hiking interest rates to reduce inflation back to normal levels. The US economy, and particularly the labour market, have been more resilient than most expected. This means the US central bank might have to hike interest rates higher than in other jurisdictions to…
It has been very well reported that many mortgage holders will soon be paying much higher interest rates when their fixed rate terms expire. It is estimated that $478 billion worth of fixed-rate mortgages is due to expire in 2023. In addition, borrowers may also have to navigate the end of an interest-only term, which…
When it comes to building wealth, the truth is that relatively unremarkable actions completed consistently over many years (and decades) produce remarkable results. But because these actions appear unremarkable, people tend to overlook their importance. Also, sometimes, people are tempted to undertake intense and often risky “investments” as a shortcut to make up for past inaction. Unfortunately,…
Twenty-three-year-old, Ashleigh Petrie nominated her mother as the sole beneficiary of her super. However, Ashleigh’s 63-year-old fiancé was successful in claiming her full super balance after she died in a car accident. Ashleigh was in a relationship with her fiancé, Rodney Higgins for only 7 months (living together for four of them). This story highlights…
Tax isn’t necessarily a bad thing. If you’re paying tax, it means that you are making money (income or capital gains). But of course, there’s no need to pay any more than you legally have to. I discuss our common-sense approach to saving tax below. Minimising risk is often more important than saving on tax…
Last week, a prospective client asked me a very good question. They asked whether I have data that shows what investment returns my clients have generated. Whilst this sounds like a logical question, my response was that not only did I not have this data, but it also wouldn’t necessarily be that useful. The reason…
