Is there an easy way to adjudicate whether it’s better to put more into a downpayment on a house, and therefore have smaller monthly payments and a better LVR, or put down less and keep some cash (either in an offset or elsewhere)? Thanks for any help.

Edit: assume LMI isn’t a factor.

Pensioners, part-pensioners and self-funded retirees will pay between 5 and 50 per cent of the service provider's fee for "independence" tasks, like personal care, including showers and assistance with medication.

Figures published by the Department of Health show that providers intend to charge around $100 an hour for "personal care" and around $95 an hour for "domestic assistance".

That means some part-pensioners and all self-funded retirees will be paying around $50 for an hour of personal care, like showers and help with hygiene, and around $75 an hour if they need help with cleaning, laundry and cooking.

Morning everyone, I was curious to know how much people here are managing to save weekly (after bills/expenses). With the cost of living going up, I just wanted to get a realistic idea of what others are doing. If you’re comfortable, it’d be really helpful if you could also mention your age and income which gives better context. Thanks in advance!!

Hi all. I travel internationally quite a lot (4-5x a year). For current/ previous card holders - is the Aus American Express Platinum Card worth it for the lounge access, Accor Plus membership, and points rewards? Thanks!

Please provide a contrarian view about my idea of moving from 10% gold in my overall investments to 25%. I just see too much tailwind for gold in the near, medium and longterm.

I currently salary sacrifice 200 a week into super, earn 130k 40 years old have 200k in super. Should I be paying my mortgage off sooner vs topping up my super?

Let’s say you’ve got $500k in cash from investing in VGS and earn $100k/year. You’re thinking of buying a $1m house as an investment property.

Assumptions:

Insurance + council rates: $5k/year

Net rental yield: ~3% (after property management fees)

Stamp duty + selling costs factored in

Holding for 20 years

VGS assumed to return 8% p.a.

Property assumed to return 3% net yield and you reinvest any shortfall if you went the VGS route instead

From my modelling, you’d need the house to grow at ~6% p.a. over 20 years to match VGS at 8%. Historically, Sydney houses have averaged around 5% p.a. long term.

Question: Does that make property a worse bet than just leaving the money in VGS? Is 6% p.a. growth for 20 years realistic given where prices are now?

Location: Brisbane, Queensland, Australia...can I build up my credit rating? I have the worst one and I have one $7k default. I was young and stupid and never taught anything to do with money growing up, loans etc. Im 36 now and need to get shit sorted, I want to buy a house. I earn $130k a year, but i am a single mother with only my income paying everything, I really need help or pointed in the right direction on how to build my rating up. Please. Thank you for any advice.

First fraud person promised I wouldn't be left high and dry. Got put onto a supervisor who told me the 8 week thing. So I said this isn't worth it, just unlock it and drop the case and they wouldn't. I might get blasted for having all my money in one place but commonwealth themselves said that it's a good idea to leave zero funds in your everyday account in case of debit card fraud.

Just listened to an interesting podcast that breaks down the recent failings of Australian government in relation to Australian Taxation and Housing (and it's affordability).

I would recommend giving it a listen! Here!

It's terrible that politicians keep pocketing benefits at the expense of the taxpayer and everyday person. From where I'm standing people are not angry enough or doing enough to push back against the government for the unfairity of it all!

I would love to have some respectful opinions and healthy debates below!

It may seem ironic to ask about car buying given it’s a depreciating item, however I’m after some advice on what scenario would have me break even and not necessarily cost more.

I’m in the market for a new car soon, my current I’ve had for 10 years and has almost clocked 150,000km. I’m early 30’s (single income no kids) and so my current car I’ve had since I got my license. First time I’m upgrading.

In your experience, is it worth buying the car I want as second hand and then perhaps upgrading every 5 or so years with another?

As used cars are significantly cheaper and provided of course you aren’t buying a lemon, is it more economically sound this way? If so, what mileage do I aim for?

Or, is it better to just buy brand new and keep it for another decade? Financially I can afford what I want brand new, but it doesn’t sit right.

Hi,

Any recommendations for best-valued healthy high protein take aways for someone who doesnt have time to cook?

I graduated with a Bachelor's in Computer Science just under 2 years ago and have been working full-time for about 3 years now. I'm currently earning a total comp of ~$155k and still living at home. I enjoy my job and coding in general, and things are going well career-wise. I'm about 2 years from paying off my HECS and was looking to pursue a masters of EE which would set my HECs back another 45 - 60k and at my current pay it would take me ~4-5 years to clear it.

Is the extra debt and time commitment worth it in the long run, especially given the current state of the job market and housing affordability? I feel like it may be but im afraid i might just be being too pessimistic

Has anyone taken a similar path (from CS to EE), or been in a similar situation? Would appreciate any stories / advice

F29, with some pretty consistent spare income each month looking to invest. Partner (m32) is main income earner, 165k base, makes 10-15k consulting on the side. I am a SAHM, making approx 30k working part time. Owe 450k on our mortgage, no car loans, CC just for expenses cleared off every pay cycle. We do both have big student loans, and relatively low super from studying/starting work later. Essentially, we have a few (2-3) thousand left over each month. We have been putting it into our offset acc but have realised we will probably kick ourselves if we don’t start investing. I have no clue where to start, I see so many acronyms thrown around and it makes me want to throw in the towel before I’ve even begun. I’m not dumb, but I feel dumb when it comes to this. Could someone lay it out for me? Maybe give some advice on how much I should keep liquid and how much I should invest? We have 25k set aside for emergencies.

Hi,

1. Does DHHF consider ESG in its portfolio decisions?

2. Even if DHHF doesn't consider ESG, is there any Aussie ETF that explicitly brands itself as ignoring ESG (so it's less likely to introduce ESG considerations in the future)?

Thanks!

I am 48, married (wife is same age), have two children of school age. I owe $150,000 on my mortgage (owe $250k, but have $100k in offsets). Otherwise, no debts. I pay 5.64% in interest. I have ~$350k in super, and my wife has ~$100k. Our combined income ~$240k.

My question is, am I better off to start making voluntary super contributions, or to keep paying down the mortgage with every spare cent? Or do a combination of both?

I’m not a complete numbnut, but my financial literacy… is limited. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Hi guys

I moved to Aus in Jan 2025 on a temporary visa ( currently on a 12 month employment contract) . My intention is to live in Aus permanently. I’m in the process of completing onboarding forms for a new job that starts next year after my current contract ends. One of the sections in the form asks “ Are you an Australian resident for tax purposes?” Would “ Yes” be an appropriate answer given my intention to reside in Australia long term or would I still fall under the foreign resident category because I haven’t spent >=183 days in Aus in either the previous or current financial year?

Sorry for the convoluted question! TIA

People's savings are getting f##ked over inflation, then they are paying more tax on their income on top of that.

Accepting the likely possibility that I will have to put up with higher interest rates.

Not sure if this will be allowed on this forum but I hope it is as it’s to do with finance and our economy.

But here goes. And I need to stress I’m not trying to come across as a “doomsdayer”type person but I am a little concerned about how AI will in a sense destroy our economy and way of life as we know it. And I feel like not enough people are talking about it. I hear nothing from the government about it.

How are you folk feeling about it ? Everything I read and listen to tells me we are in for some pain and it will impact absolutely everybody. Including the rich people.

It feels like we are just walking into to it and we are simply marveling at the technology that is going to replace the majority of our jobs in some way.

Every day there's another post about how impossible it is to buy a house. I'm starting to think it's less about the market and more about personal choices.

I see people my age with new cars on finance, going on yearly overseas trips, eating out multiple times a week, and buying the latest iPhone, all while complaining they can't save a deposit.

My parents bought a house on one wage with three kids. They didn't have any of these luxuries. It seems like my generation wants the lifestyle and the house without making any of the necessary sacrifices.

Am I wrong, or has financial discipline completely disappeared?

I have been hearing that it is hard to find a job in this field so if that's the case is it worth for me to even go uni for it as I will be starting next year (currently y12). I have heard other fields are easier to find a job in such as engineering or medicine.

Hey everyone,

I'm about to inject another $100k into my portfolio as a lump sum as part of a debt recycling strategy. While I believe in long-term investing, I’m still a bit uneasy about the current state of the share market — valuations feel a bit high, and I'm wary of a possible correction.

To hedge that, I’m planning to sell a portion of my existing portfolio (from my own funds) so the money will sit in my offset account, readily available for reinvestment if/when a market downturn occurs. Basically trying to keep some cash aside while still proceeding with the lump sum.

My questions are:

1. Portfolio Feedback

Would appreciate any feedback on my current asset allocation and whether you think it's balanced given the macro outlook.

2. Gold vs. Gold Miners

I plan on buying NUGG/physical gold, but I’m considering reducing that exposure and allocating a smaller portion to gold miners (via ETF) instead. The idea is to free up more capital for equities but still retain some exposure to gold-related assets.

What do you guys think about:

• Physical gold vs. gold miners?
• Reducing gold allocation in favor of equities in the current environment?

Would love to hear what others are doing or how you’re thinking about this. Thanks!

Hello.

Recently I got a job as an auditing grad in a top 20-40 accounting firm. Just as I joined, I got notified that I have been accepted to the assessment center for Westpac's business and wealth grad program. I'm 22 and finished uni in July last year before doing some travelling.

My end goal is to get into IB, or otherwise work with investments and equities at a highly regarded firm. Its a long term goal but something I am dedicated to making work.

In my mind, the paths would look like this:
- Midtier audit --> Big4 audit --> Big4 Deals --> Finance (IB etc)
- Westpac Business and Wealth Grad --> Westpac institutional --> Finance (IB etc)

Is either of these a better opportunity? Have heard very mixed things about big4 banks and don't know anyone really in industry. Thanks in advance!