We’ve had a few clients asking us about cryptocurrencies, or ‘digital currencies’, recently and whether they should be part of their investment strategy. While it’s not something I’m personally investing in, it’s certainly a space I’m keeping an eye on. More out of interest than anything. For the uninitiated, there’s a lot to get your head around. In fact, there are three key concepts you need to have...
To say your credit rating’s important is an understatement. Interestingly, though, the majority of Australians have no idea what their credit score is. If you happen to be in the ‘no idea’ camp, you’re not alone – you’re one of the 90 percent of people who don’t know what their credit rating is, according to Australia’s credit-reporting agencies. Now, your credit rating isn’t something that’s typically top of...
Being a dad. Where do you even begin? It’s a mix of being the most amazing experience and the most challenging at the same time. In fact, it’s difficult to put it all into words, actually. Parenthood’s something that you don’t fully appreciate until you experience it. The joys, the trials, the tribulations, the challenges – things you can experience together all in the space of half-an-hour. As clichéd as it sounds,...
It’s that time of year. If you’re like me, chances are you’ve done your tax return by now and are waiting on a potential return. Going by the stats, you’re likely one of the 82 percent of Australians who’ll get a refund this year. On average, Australians typically get a return of around $2,112, give or take. Now, it’s easy to fall into the trap of seeing your tax...
Like most, I came out of uni all guns blazing, wanting to do something with my life. Looking back at the first 10 years of my career, everything was going great. In fact, I loved it. Post graduation, I worked with IBM, then headed to the UK before returning to Melbourne to deliver business and software solutions for a raft of blue-chip corporates. Life was good. But then something happened...
Debt. It’s an often misunderstood term. For your average Australian, it’s typically perceived as a dirty word, conjuring up a degree of anxiety in the process. When it comes to the D-word, Australia is one of the most leveraged countries in the world. With average household debt sitting at around 189 per cent of annual household income, it’s a bit of a worry. A lot of that has been spurred...
Having it all is a subjective thing. Everyone measures success in different ways, and through their own filter of what it actually means. Same goes for work-life balance. In fact, I’d argue that, for society’s high achievers, the notion of work-life balance falls by the wayside in pursuit of the upper echelons of success. If I’m completely honest in asking the question, can you really have it all? I’d say...
Mention the word tax, and it typically draws a grumble from most people, even a sense of grievance. And fair enough. Most Australians feel like they pay too much tax, generally speaking, and often don’t have a whole lot in the way of expenses they can claim to help bring their taxable income down. I’m all for paying my fair share of tax. That’s a given. But, with a young...
The Australian property market. Everyone has an opinion, but no one has a crystal ball. If you believe Fairfax and News Limited and their respective newspapers, there’s never been a worse time in history to buy a house. For those not already in the market, many feel the horse has bolted, and now the government is trying its best to coax it back in. Whichever way you look at...
We just wanted to quickly share a success story. To get a gauge on what clients think we decided to participate in a client satisfaction survey. Well, the results are back and we're pretty happy about it! Jason and I want to say a big thank you to all of our amazing clients for their feedback. We've found out things like the ten key metrics where we outperformed the...
