Adaptability: the underrated skill for living a bigger financial life

Reflecting on surviving COVID-19 so far

It's August 2021 in Australia and we’re in the middle of learning to live in a global COVID-19 pandemic.

How are you doing today?

Are you considering asking a family member to become your Guarantor for a mortgage?

Here are some things you need to know and do- first

• One of the questions about home loans and mortgages we're regularly asked by older clients is, ‘Can a parent go Guarantor to a Mortgage to help one of their adult children?’
• Their adult children usually ask a variation on the same question,  ‘When can a parent go guarantor to a Mortgage loan?'
• The real question people want to ask is 'Should you ever become a Guarantor to a Mortgage?'

So how do you actually start setting financial goals?

By now you’ve had a chance to read the ‘thinking’ part of making financial goals and decisions, it's time to start the ‘doing’.

It's no secret the COVID19 pandemic has hurt many Australians and has either derailed many of us from our financial goals or has forced us to re-prioritise our current situation.

With historically unusually low interest rates, many Australians are now prioritising their debt and looking for strategies to consolidate and pay down credit card debt much faster than they previously had planned.

This is a great step, but how do we make sure it's just not just another stand-alone opportunity to take and miss the chance to pause and refocus our thinking about what we all actually want to be doing?

Are you part of the 30% of Australians who have remarried and now have adult children from a past relationship?

It's a common fact of modern life, people live longer and have more relationships.  It's not uncommon for many parents today to be part of a blended family and to each have older (and often soon to be adult) children from a former relationship.

And when it comes to making a Will, how can you be sure you're kids are not cut out of their inheritance by your new partner? Here's a strategy that might be what you're looking for.

How to leave an inheritance to your Grandchildren, but not your adult children?

The reasons why you may wish to leave an inheritance directly to a grandchild and not your adult children are as wide and varied as the motivation to do so.

Just leaving money via your Will for a grandchild to be held in trust until they reach 21 is fraught with risks; from of a challenge to your Will through to concerns of the effects of addiction, divorce and financial mismanagement.

So to help you better understand your options, here are three key phrases you need to understand.

Creating wealth and prosperity is extra hard work, and here’s why

Welcome to a New Year, and a New Decade 2020

Have you felt the fashionable pull to publicly commit to a New Year Resolution?

Has your social news feed been flooded with images of bottles of Champaign, Wealth and high Fashion photos that only makes you feel isolated, or even bad about yourself?

Welcome to the annual New Year advertising splurge designed to separate you from what's left of your money, before you can really think about it.

Welcome to a new year (and a new decade). Remember old habits don't usually take us to new places.

Hopefully this the year you’ve decided to set some family goals and get a little more proactive on achieving some saving goals. One of the challenges of a busy life can be we keep our ideas and hopes about our personal money goals locked in our head, rather than writing them down where we can see them, talk about them and maybe even ask about our progress to achieve them.

Do you still have Adult Children living at home?

It might be cultural, it might be essential, but it shouldn't put your ability to retire at risk.

If you have Adult Children still living at home with you while you’re getting ready to retire, have you ever thought about how much money that costs and the effect it will have on your retirement savings?

Not running with Scissors and Credit Cards

As a kid, I clearly remember the repeated warning about the dangers of running with scissors.

What I didn't hear was the dangers of running off with a credit card, and I wonder which one has caused me more damage in my life so far?

Can you relate?

Are you feeling sandwiched between looking after your adult children and elderly parents?

Maybe you find yourself facing financial demands from both your own young family and older family? You're not alone.

Welcome to the life of the Sandwiched Generation.

Do you get paid Super on your overtime?

Well, the answer is usually no, but also that depends.

Your superannuation is your forced savings for your retirement, so it’s important to understand these two key features:

• How much Super are you being paid?
• How is it actually calculated when it comes to commissions, bonuses, overtime and back pay?