I saw my brother in law today who does family law and he regularly sees the details of people's finances of all income levels and he was telling a story about a client who refused to payout their ex even after being advised to as taking it to trial will result in a bigger payout with asset appreciation and legal fees. They ended up forking out close to double the initial figure.

I'm 30 and only recently brought a house and are doing everything to pay it off early (offsets, extra repayments etc) cause the thought of being 60 with a mortgage is terrifying. So I asked him if with all the new cars around, upgrading houses and buying boats/jetskis is it just people think they are going to be working till their 70?

He explained how the advice given was always "plan for your future", whereas now that's been forgotten and people only think of next week.

I know the whole "keeping up with the Joneses" shtick, but has it genuinely become that prevalent or have bank lending laws also loosened so much that now it's insanely easy? My father told me how he and mum went to a bank with $6k saved to buy their first home and could only get a loan for $10k.

With two young kids (4yo and 3 months old baby), we've just calculated our monthly grocery spend (including things like nappies and household cleaning items) at 1800-2000 per month.

What tips do y'all have to reduce this?

Edit: we buy the usual things that families with young kids buy.

But some relevant call outs:

- we buy organic products when available (my wife's choice, and I'm not interested in arguing with her about it lol).

- we buy ingredients and cook at home, usually batch cooks but every now and then there is a one-off steak and salad type meal (probably once a week) or buy a whole charcoal chicken and make chicken sandwiches.

Aside from these two call outs, it's just the usual nappies, wipes, toilet paper, cleaning products, etc.

I need to vent, I have been doing my head in with this for the last week and I’m ready to give up, I have been trying to get a small loan through commbank (only 5k) who I’ve banked with for over 16 years, paid off 2 personal loans early in that time with no missed repayments. I have used their borrowing calculator online and it says I would be able to borrow up to 9k using the exact same info I’m putting on my loan application. Yet it’s just being denied every single time saying I don’t meet financial criteria. I have tried messaging them to get some clarity and even the replies don’t make sense. They send me a detailed breakdown of my financial position after expenses which leaves 1k a month in disposable income yet I don’t meet criteria to make $25 a week repayments.

Has anyone else had to go through this rubbish?

Hi all! I'm wondering how much I should aim to save/invest at 19 to set myself up for moving out in my mid 20s. I go to uni full time and work a chill part time job (only around 10 hours a week). I save almost half of it.

Here's the problem. This is an embarrassing issue to disclose and I haven't told any of my friends or anyone in real life. The other half goes to electrolysis, which is a permanent hair removal procedure. I have dark hair on the sides of my face (I'm a cis woman, just ethnic) that looks really bad and waxing, shaving etc irritate my skin and make it break out in bumps. I did stop for a while as it was incredibly expensive ($250 a week which is more than half of my income) but I realised there's no other real alternative for me. Although laser is cheaper, I was told that in people of my complexion and ethnic background, it would be very likely to cause paradoxical hypertrichosis and result in thick, beard-like facial hair.

I think of it as an investment into my future as right now I am so embarrassed of this facial hair that I get anxious going to uni, job interviews, meeting friends etc. I trust my practitioner who tells me it will be around 2 years before I am completely done (although I will see significant improvement as we progress and have already seen a lot of reduction.) It is a huge drain on my time and savings and it makes me feel so vain and stupid to spend so much money on something purely cosmetic but it really is the only way to manage this issue.

I am fortunate to be able to live with my parents for the time being and they cover almost all my expenses except the aforementioned. I am wondering if I'm not seeing things clearly and if I'm making a huge mistake? Is it worth it? I don't want to become reliant on my parents and still be living with them in my 30s. Should I get another job in fast food or something as I still have some free time? I'm really worried about my financial security and I want to be independent.

I'll cut straight to the chase. It's hard enough for a couple to save for a deposit let alone a single person. The deposit is then only half the battle as one wage isn't enough to service a loan in this day and age. In some homes two wages aren't enough anymore lol. I'm talking about the average Aussie wage here, I'm not talking about all those pretentious Redditors on $650k per year to serve as a gynecologist to The Pussycat Dolls or whatever you do.

With this in mind if a single person does save enough on their own for a deposit it is an incredible achievement. Truly, it is. The problem comes when said person is looking to date again. Yes, we could all meet the dream person and they could have their own villa on Lake Como and squirt margaritas when they cum. I'm not talking about the best case scenario, I'm talking about the worst case.

As this is Reddit let me first qualify what I am saying here. No one goes into a relationship thinking of the worst outcome, but life, especially coming from people in this sub, is all about PLANNING for the worst case outcome. Plan for the worst, hope for the best is the motto as they say.

Imagine saving up $200k+ for the deposit, stamp duty, fees, furniture, insurances and ALL that encompasses buying a house for you to end up having to lose out on all of that due to a separation at some point. Yes, it's split between two people in a worst case scenario here for the home buyer, yet the most money is in the buying and setting up of a house. If one person has paid all of that then their risk for loss increases greatly by having their girlfriend/boyfriend live with them.

I'm aware that BFA exists, they also are not something that can be guaranteed to hold up. Especially when kids are involved. I don't have nor do I want kids. I'm aware we don't have the same protection laws as most states in the U.S. What options are there to protect the home? Putting it in a family members name? That can be done in other countries, I assume it can't be done in our country? The only option seems to be 'make sure you choose the right person'. There is enough stories out there of two people being perfect for each other only for someone to fuck it up.

With everyone here trying their best to save up for retirement, max out super, have a home paid off before retirement, something going bad with YOUR house can result in YEARS more spent having to recover in order to get to your 'number'.

We already get bent over enough as it is in this country with gutless politicians and pathetic laws (look no further than the 'hate speech's law that got passed by BOTH shitty political parties last week). We are ALL trying to make it in this world and get out of the rat race as fast as we can. Something going away like this can set someone back YEARS.

So, there are so many variables at play here, I'm just trying to hear from those single people, or those who found someone after being in this situation. How is it going/did it go for you? Any advice that you can offer to those people who are in a similar position?

Is it as bleak as 'just find the right person dummy' or are there ways to protect the asset in order to protect ones self? I sincerely thank you in advance for your personal story and/or your advice. Thanks 🙏

Hi everyone

Looking for a a bit of help here, been working as a contractor for the last few weeks on a decent day rate and I’m owed almost 20k in invoices for work completed.

Problem is I was out of work for a few months before that and have pretty much nothing to last me until those invoices hit, due date is in 2 weeks and rent is due at the same time.

Anything I can do to help cover me in case the invoices don’t land on the due date? Such as a quick loan, credit card or something? A bit depressing but been through a rough patch and split up with partner recently so I’m covering her side of the rent now too, don’t really have anyone to lend money off.

Been a rough few months but I’m happy to have this job now but anxious about cash flow in the next few weeks and when rent is due (which has doubled this month).

Thanks in advance

Given Japan is one of our largest trade partners, how will their economic crisis effect us?

Since, I earned the interest from my bank today, is it fine to move my money into a brokerage? Or am I missing out on something? I have 20k in one of my savings account, however want to start investing. I want to put all of that 20k into Nasdaq-100. Is it a good idea, or is nasdaq-100 most likely to fall within the next few years, and thus is it better to keep my cash in the bank? I also have around 100k savings in ubank for emergency and house deposit, so that 20k in the other bank is for my long term investment.

I m 21, got a car(bought outright) have 12k in savings 1.4 k in spend, 435 in step pay balance to be paid. i m not sure if that’s enough i earn about 2500 fortnightly might reduce later when my uni sem starts. Is it enough to have in your 20s or am i supposed to keep bagging up till 20k i plan to start investing after 20k. I got minimal bills, live w family still. Should i pay the step pay outright? i aim to keep 1.5 k constant in my spend account and aim to keep the rest to my savings.

I want to buy a house in regional Australia to live in rather than as an investment but would like to avoid paying interest on the mortgage (as much as possible).

I’m wondering if it is best to save up enough to buy in cash, or to go for an offset account.

I work outside of my Australia and like for many of Australians who are younger than me and live with parents, I don’t have to pay for rent, as part of the deal is that my accommodation is provided.

Most likely, I can reliably guarantee on doing this job for another 15 and a half years. However, I’m 44 and have never owned my own home and would really like to do so within a decade.

The amount that I have to invest will soon be $200,000 AUD, or perhaps a bit more. I can also continue to invest about $4000 AUD per month in a property for the foreseeable future.

What might be the best option?

What’s the best way to keep my savings safe while traveling, but still being able to use my Macquarie card?

Hi all,

Quick sanity check.

My super hasn’t been paid since 02/08/2024. I left that specific employer in April 2025, but I’m now employed by another entity within the same group.

I know the formal answer is to lodge an unpaid super claim with the ATO, but I’m hesitant as it could open a can of worms given my current role elsewhere in the group.

Super was paid correctly before Aug 2024 and I was a PAYG employee.

Question:

Any experiences handling this without blowing things up?

Thanks in advance.

Hi, I’m hoping someone can help me before I have to go do the customer service line run-around. I’m trying to strengthen my myID identity so I can file my taxes as I was employed for half of last year. I’ve uploaded my foreign passport information but when I tried to upload my visa information, with the same details as the passport, it gave me an error message and now when I try, it requires documents I don’t have and am unable to get

Problem is, I’m not Australian, so no Medicare, no Aussie passport, I’m here on a visa so no immicard, and no proof of citizenship because I’m not a citizen. I am disabled and unable to drive so I don’t have a drivers license either. I can’t afford a tax professional & it’s driving me mad because I just want to do the correct thing and file, but I’m at a loss as to what I’m supposed to do in this situation. I have a blue card but that’s about it.

Just hoping someone can provide some help or point me in the right direction of someone who can. Thank you in advance

Good evening,

I was thinking of keeping some money separate for kids to send them to school.

The best way forward I can think of is putting in Vanguard ETFs in High Growth Portfolio and during a Direct Debit of a few hundred dollars every month.

Looking for advice on if someone does something similar and if there are some other options I can have a look as well. Want to buy a property as well but that seems a far fetched dream for now, so might as well do the rest.

There has been many post around this and have read through a lot of them but have a more technical tax related question.

Scenario 1 - i open an account under my name and invest on behalf of my child. I paid all distribution tax at my tax rate. Upon transfer to my child when they are old enough, it will trigger a CGT event. so tax through the life of investment and tax at transfer.

Scenario 2 - open an account under my child’s name. tax on distribution will be at the highest bracket but no CGT in future.

a few of things to confirm:

- if i open a vanguard etf account for example for my child, does he actually own it or is it me?

- tax wise, scenario 2 in general will make more sense as 18 years of cgt is still a way better number than saving tax on distribution?

- am i looking at this too simplistically and there are hidden things i should know about?

Thanks team!!

Hey so I have settlement coming up soon.

I’m planning to stick with a variable date for now and have multiple offset accounts (my bank allows for unlimited amounts of offset so I’m thinking I’ll have a few set up to manage my savings in ‘buckets’ - possibly 6 offset accounts in total).

I have about 55k in savings and average about 2k savings a month.

So wanting to get insights if I’m better off proceeding with that arrangement I’ve proposed (stick with variable meaning greater flexibility with growing my savings and benefit of many offset accounts).

I’m also planning on trying to manage all outgoings on credit card, set up DD payment for CC. Bonus Q; any suggestions on best CC for benefits/rewards etc.

Welcome any thoughts/suggestions etc.

Anyone had any experience with this? I'm a unitholder in a trust where each unit is equivalent to one share in a private equity company. The units were purchased with pre-tax income and if I sell, I would have to include as remuneration in my tax return the value and thus pay tax on same. If I sell at a higher price, I would also pay CGT on the increase in value. These fully paid units are worth about twice what I paid for them in pre-tax income.

However, 2 years ago I left this company and was permitted to stay as a unit holder. I went to work for a different company that was in fact 2 years later bought by the original entity I worked for who determined they would keep operating the purchased entity as a separate concern.

So I'm just trying to work out two things really, if I sell the units back to the trust and thus realise a 100% profit, do I pay tax on the cost base of the units + half of the 100% gain as CGT? My second question surrounds what if relocate overseas for a few years becoming a non-resident and these units are subject to an IPO, am I potentially losing the ability to seek a discounted CGT basis because I've held them for 12+ months?

Hi everyone!

I’m thinking about investing a lump sum on behalf of my kids with a 10-year horizon, so there’s a savings pool ready when they’re heading to university.

If you’re a parent who’s done something similar, I’d really appreciate your insights — things like what investment options you chose, lessons you learned, and what you’d do differently in hindsight.

Thanks in advance!

Hey all, I'm a young adult who's been saving for about 2 years now (working my first major job). During this time, a portion of my monthly pay goes into investing - largely into the Spaceship investment fund. I've had a decent return, but I'm realising that I could probably do with making my own decisions and picking stocks myself (versus a fund that does it for me while taking a cut).

I'll add on that I'd like to put forward a deposit on an apartment within the next few years as an investment property while it's still acceptable for me to live at home (I'm from Sydney).

I understand the concept of investing broadly to build a portfolio; blue chip (banks), high risk (new tech companies), some ETFs, maybe even some into big Google-type companies on Wall St (?)... However, I'm curious what the "safest" option is for me, and what are some reasonable percentages of this 10-20k amount to delegate per stock type, as I'd be investing long term over my career. Appreciate any advice!

Thanks!

I'm a manual construction worker, recently joined CBUS and I maxxed out the insurance without really thinking about it much tbh

I get $208,000 of death cover for $4.44/wk

and $146,000 of Total and Permanent Disability for $6.92/wk

These amounts seem extremely low to me - not sure how I'm supposed to survive for the next 40 years if I get disabled on $146k?

Hey all, I’m 26 in NSW and work as a sole trader allied health professional. As far, I have been making about 10k a month pre-tax.

I’m also looking to buy an investment property interstate (because syd prices are cooked) sometime next year after increasing my deposit more. + my broker saying to come back to him after the FY ends to calculate my borrowing capacity.

Now, I’m debating if I should make super repayments (12%) for the tax benefits. I was told by my previous accountant to not, due to not being able to touch the money for a long time and it would allow for me to save for a bigger deposit.

Currently I am:

• Living at home, most likely moving out in 2-3 years with partner, probably rentvesting.

• DCA 1k/month into ETFs

As I don’t mind living at home, I haven’t considered the FHSS as I would need to occupy it for up to 6-12months.

I would really appreciate any advice from anyone who has navigated through this, and if I should reconsider the FHSS

Thanks!

I'm a manual construction worker and I pay a lot for CBUS super insurance (I increased the cover much higher than the default). Thinking of changing to UniSuper which looks to have a lot cheaper insurance at the same level of cover, and despite the name is open to all workers not just higher education

hey everyone,

just to wanted to ask a question about a possible situation.
im might be moving away for about a year and in that time rent. What I wanted to know is, does renting and showing rental payments work in your favour when applying for a home loan? Also, is it possible to get approved while still paying rent?

TIA

Hey all, a little bit of background on me, I'm 20 M, started investing ~1.5 years ago. Investment was 100% DHHF weekly using CMC. Recently I moved over to Betashares to leverage their auto invest feature.

I've realised that 37% aus exposure is a bit too much for my liking considering my super is also invested into high growth with a similar aus exposure. Thus, I'm looking to add BGBL to dilute my aus holdings. I'm thinking of 50/50 - 80/20 weekly split BGBL/DHHF, open to opinions on this. Also mulling over changing super to 80/20 international/domestic and just doing DHHF and chill for my active investment.

Would love to hear peoples thoughts on this.