Yeah, yeah. I could tell you all the “normal” stuff. Spend deductible money before June 30. Delay income until July 1. Same, same. But let’s try something bigger picture and positive. We always moan about how quickly New Year’s Eve resolutions are broken, usually by mid-January. The weather’s great, you’re on holidays and it’s chillaxin’ […]

This sort of financial lessons for young adults advice makes me feel old. But, I guess, anyone who can remember Australia’s America’s Cup victory can no longer claim to be “youthful”. Sniff. Sob. And if you remember Alice Cooper’s Department of Youth coming out … massive fail. Waaaah! I wish I’d understood the following two […]

Oh, property! How do I love thee! Let me count the ways. What! Just three tips investing in property? Property investment can be a beautiful thing. But let’s be clear: plenty of people lose plenty of dough on property. Or, nearly as bad, don’t make any money. Largely because they buy the wrong stuff. Tip […]

MMMM. To be honest, I wouldn’t have said Gen Xers. So many Xers have kiddliwinks – our donating to charity is to try to raise them right. Kids leach all our money, most of which does NOT qualify as a charitable tax deduction. They soak up all our time (occasionally even appreciating it). Cute and […]

“You’re only young once, but you can be immature forever.” No, my bad. That was my 40-something-year-old mates. My DebtKids have reinforced in me the lesson of “learned behaviour”. We learn from watching our idols. At my kids’ ages, their idols are us. That, to me, is what makes parenting terrifying. Your tin lids watch […]

You’re pulling my leg, right? You’re asking me, Debt Man, a Generation Xer, whether debt is evil? Debt, like greed and Miley Cyrus, get bad reputations in times of crisis. Thanks to Gordon Gekko and Wall Street, greed got it in the 1980s stockmarket crash. Debt copped it more recently with the Global Financial Crisis. […]

EXPENSE: Purchasing an investment property. Paid for: With a truckload of debt. That might not be repaid. Ever. It had been a while since Mrs DebtMan and I had made a significant investment. Some parcels of shares here and there. But in recent years, our focus has been elsewhere, not on investment strategies. After the […]

WHOA! Bring out the big scales for Generation X on this one. This is a tough balancing act, because Xers financial commitments are monstrous – huge home loans, income-ravenous tin lids to raise, and pathetic superannuation balances. But my answer is both. Emphatically. Like Meg Ryan’s “yeessss!” in the deli in When Harry Met Sally. […]

DEATH! Hey, can we lighten this up a bit? To Salt ’N’ Pepa’s classic: “Let’s talk about death, baby. Let’s talk about you and me …” About once a month, DebtBoy makes me squirm. “Dad, I hope you don’t die.” He means it as an “I love you” comment, but I wince every time. I’m […]

Bugger. Might have to start paying them bills before they turn red. It’s a shame – red is such a pretty colour. Really grabs your attention If that’s you, then take the new credit/privacy reforms as a wakeup call. If you ever need credit – not just mortgages, but credit cards, mobile phones and utility […]