This is the third article in the mini series titled: ‘Leaving it too late to achieve your goals’. Most of us had retirement dreams and could not wait to finish work. So once retired, why haven’t we started ticking items off the bucket list? There is no time like the present for living your dreams. […]

Did you have a savings account when you were young? It was not uncommon and those old Passbook accounts funded many a first car. Now you are a parent, are you thinking of opening an account for your kids? Record low interest rates have taken some of the fun out of watching bank accounts grow, […]

Virtual currencies, or cyber currencies, are both a medium of exchange and a store of value, just like traditional money. However, unlike banknotes or coins cyber currencies exist only as digital data stored in computers. Trading in virtual currencies requires membership in an online community connected by appropriate software, with the value usually being determined […]

This is the second article in the mini series titled: ‘Traps to avoid in retirement’. There’s a common view that as you approach retirement you should tilt your investment portfolio towards more conservative investments. This means favouring things like term deposits, annuities and cash management trusts while reducing exposure to more volatile assets such as […]

We all have a vision of our perfect retirement. But whether it’s travelling around the country in a luxurious motor home, playing golf every day or spending more time with the grandkids, how do you accumulate enough to pay for your golden years? How much do I need to live my lifestyle? Lifestyle is a […]

As we commence another year and ponder how fast the last 12 months have come and gone, many of us find ourselves thinking about the year to come and our aspirations for the future. Now is the time to reflect on what we have achieved; where we want to go; and what we need to […]

This article is the first in a mini series titled: ‘Traps to avoid in retirement’. This first article details the many choices you have in retirement once you can access your Super and the importance of making the right decisions. Retirement: you’ve made it!  And one of the rewards for all your hard work is […]

We all want to give our children a head start in life.  This three-step article will help you to instil sound financial habits in your children by setting the foundations of good money management and savings now. For many of us, our first experience of banking and savings was the school Savings Account Program.  But […]

Move over debit and credit cards; consumers are flocking to Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) services. Afterpay, Zip Pay and several similar payment solutions allow shoppers to take home their goodies now while paying them off via a few weekly, fortnightly or monthly payments. There’s no interest payable as such, although fees are charged for […]

While cuts in interest rates are greeted with glee by homebuyers and other borrowers, for the millions of retirees and others who depend on interest payments for their income, falling interest rates can be a disaster. For them, a drop in interest rates from 4% to 3% equates to a 25% drop in income. If […]