On Thursday I conducted a webinar in which I addressed the top three types of financial decisions that are on your mind, as submitted in the recent survey.
Almost all respondants said that they think about these things daily or a few times a week. That is a lot of time and energy consumed on money [...]
With two interest rate rises already under our belts more people are asking me if they should be fixing their rates. Read on to discover the pros and cons and if fixing your interest rates may be right for you.
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Have you ever thought you are not getting as far ahead financially as you think you should, but are not sure why? Then maybe one or more of these three behaviours may be the cause.
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Today is Stress Down Day, to raise funds for Lifeline. As part of their promotion of Stress Down Day Lifeline conducted a Newspoll to discover what was stressing Australians.
The Newspoll found that two thirds of Australians are stressed about money, second only to being stressed about work. Does that include you?
The Lifeline poll reminded me [...]
As I recently rode around a nearby lake with my daughter I noticed a Find Thirty logo painted on the pavement.
The Find Thirty campaign encourages us to complete 30 minutes of physical activity each day as an investment in our physical health.
Imagine the possibilities if we also found thirty minutes for wealth?
Imagine how financial literate [...]
Many people overlook personal insurance thinking tragedy will never happen to them. Then a friend or family experiences tragedy and they get a wake-up call. The latest research released yesterday by Lifewise/NATSEM reveals that it can and probably will happen to you at some time during your working life. More than one in five families will be impacted by an insurable event in their working lives.
Over half the people I speak to professionally list “self-employment” as one of their life goals. If you too dream of going out on your own or starting a business then I strongly recommend that you read “The E-myth Revisited” by Michal E. Gerber before you quit your job. Preferably you need to read The E-myth before you succumb to what Gerber calls ‘the Entrepreneurial Seizure’. Read my full review of this essential book.
Zurich have published this graph showing the average duration of Australian bull and bear markets from 1970 to December 2009. The index used is the ASX200. Download the graph here.
Average Australian Bull Market
Average Bull Market Duration: 38 months
Average Annual Bull Market Return: 30.8%
Average Australian Bear Market
Average Bear Market Duration: 15 months
Average Annual Bear Market Loss: -31.1%
Interesting, but don’t put [...]
Certified Financial Planner professional Matt Hern is quoted in this article published in The Examiner newspaper, February 18th, 2010.
Download and read the full article here.
I am often asked by clients and seminar attendees how I changed careers and how I found my passion for financial education and planning. In this article I share some of my story and recommend two resources for identifying your passion.
“Did I just read that right?” I thought as I put down my coffee and twice re-read this paragraph:
‘Consumers are still cautious about the debt they build up on credit cards. An analysis by card operator Mastercard shows that only 70.8 per cent of the total $46.9bn in credit card debt is accruing interest, which [...]
There is such a myriad of ideas for how to manage you money it is very difficult to know where to start and what is appropriate for you.
In one of my regular interviews on Wake Up! WA we discussed money tips for young people, including students. IN the later half of the interview we also [...]
Have you been watching the investment markets recover over the past year and wondering if you should be getting back in, or just in at all?
If so you may be interested in this perspective published by AXA Australia today called “Reading the Signs. A guide to investment markets in 2010.”
The guide is easy enough to [...]
Private health insurance is one of the valuable tools that you can use as part of your lifestyle safety net.
One of the big benefits is access to a private hospital and avoidance of lengthy public waiting lists if you ever need surgery. (Of course deep pockets also gives you such access.)
The private health system in [...]
This article is reproduced courtesy of the author LawCentral.
If you have a self managed superannuation fund (SMSF) it is essential that you as trustee regularly review the deed to ensure it is up to date. One benefit is that an up to date deed will give you access to the latest strategies as they become [...]
Owning your own home is one major goal for many young Australians. But with property prices so high a first mortgage may appear out of reach. In this interview on Wake Up WA, Certified Financial Planner professional Matt Hern shares three strategies that first home buyers (especially young people) can use to save up to [...]
In the life planning step of my “Save For The Significant” process one of the common goals is a dream wedding.
Parents often list a goal of wanting to contribute to their children’s weddings. And independently minded young couples often want their dream wedding without the “suggestions” from their well-meaning parents – thus they want to [...]
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