Updated: 20 October 2015 PORTFOLIO POINT: Don’t go into salary sacrifice blindly just because you’ve heard you should. There are plenty of potential traps. Here’s how to avoid some of … Read More Salary sacrificing’s traps
Category Archives: Articles
“When it comes to household finances, should couples have joint bank accounts or separate ones?”
Good question, Mr Editor … if your aim was to create a flood of bookings with couples counsellors and divorce lawyers like Arnie Becker (Corbin Bernsen in LA Law). The … Read More “When it comes to household finances, should couples have joint bank accounts or separate ones?”
The DIY mortgage buster
PORTFOLIO POINT: Here’s another super salary sacrifice strategy touted to help pay off your home loan faster. If you can tick the boxes, it could save you a $10,000 to … Read More The DIY mortgage buster
“Should property investment be about rental income or capital gains? And will that change as I age?”
We’re talking property, so we’re talking fences. Here’s a general rule for Generation X and property investment: If it doesn’t have a fence, then steer clear of it. Capital gains … Read More “Should property investment be about rental income or capital gains? And will that change as I age?”
“What lesson did you learn as a child that has helped you through the investment challenges of recent years?”
It was the toughest lesson of my life and I still grapple with it today. But if I hadn’t learned it, I could never have become an investor at all. … Read More “What lesson did you learn as a child that has helped you through the investment challenges of recent years?”
Will Shorten make a difference to super
PORTFOLIO POINT: Bill Shorten and APRA stats. Should Australia’s superannuation industry be fearful or welcoming of Bill Shorten? The former Victorian union leader was sworn in yesterday as the new … Read More Will Shorten make a difference to super
“Australians are notorious non-savers, with about half of us having no savings. How much should we put away for a rainy day?”
Died-way-too-young singer Karen Carpenter said it wasn’t only rainy days that bummed her out. She lumped Mondays in to the same category. But Karen believed being with someone special fixed … Read More “Australians are notorious non-savers, with about half of us having no savings. How much should we put away for a rainy day?”
Check your “retirement readiness”
PORTFOLIO POINT: With Labor confirmed in government, here’s an interesting piece of research about the potential impact their retirement and super policies. Sometimes, a survey that has little to do … Read More Check your “retirement readiness”
“A friend asks you how much money you get paid. What do you say, and why is it taboo to talk about our earnings?”
My kids are 3½ and 2. I’m literally elbow deep in poop! The parents at mothers’ group, sometimes that’s all we talk about. We bad? My troublesome questions are “Who … Read More “A friend asks you how much money you get paid. What do you say, and why is it taboo to talk about our earnings?”
Make the most of franking credits
PORTFOLIO POINT: Dividends are on the rise again, which is handy, because the market has done squat for 12 months. What’s the value in a franking credit for a SMSF? … Read More Make the most of franking credits