Did you know that there is a kind of tax that is great to pay? It’s called a capital gains tax and it’s great for one simple reason: you only pay it when you make a capital gain! A capital gain means you sold an asset for more than you bought it for. That is always better than the alternative, which is selling an asset for less than you paid yourself.
Last week we discussed how the Governor of the Reserve Bank Phillip Lowe recently recommended that home borrowers ensure that they have a ‘buffer’ against the time when interest rates inevitably rise. Interest rate buffers are not the only type of buffer in good financial planning. Buffers are used in many areas, but the need for buffers always comes from the same source: understanding that the way things are now is not likely to be the way things are in the future.
This week, we saw another version of the tug of war at play in Australia’s residential property market. APRA is trying to pull prices in one direction while other arms of Government strive for the opposite result. Time will tell whose arms are stronger, but people wanting to buy homes should be barracking for APRA. A win for APRA would save people years of hard work.
This week we came across an interesting little read from Fidelity International, an international fund manager. Their article examined the composition of Australian household wealth as of the end of 2020, which is about as recent as the data gets when it comes to this kind of thing.
This week, we want to explore the concept or borrowing in retirement a little more fully by looking at a unique way of doing so – the Commonwealth Government’s Pension Loan Scheme.
In recent articles we've explored the personal and general reasons why many Australians choose not to sell their family home as they move into and through retirement. In this article, we look at ways that make keeping a family home easier once you stop working.
We love reading those ‘Dear Abbey’ type letters to the newspaper. Especially the financial ones. Here is a classic we read recently – and what we would do if this were our client.
Rising house prices are great news for people who already have a home, but not so good for those yet to buy. This week, we look at ways that families can work together to make buying a home a reality.
When it comes to paying tax, our family homes have something quite important in common with Buckingham Palace.
Last week, the Commonwealth Government announced the latest of its economic stimulus packages – the HomeBuilder program. Grants of up to $25,000 are available to eligible recipients and is designed to ensure that residential construction work planned for between now and the end of the calendar year goes ahead in as many cases as possible.
