Aussie Finance Blog

Australian personal finance news, tips and advices.

Choosi Dollar Report Provides Insights on Aussie Money Management

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Personal finance isn’t a very fun topic to discuss at dinner parties. However, consumers need to be financially literate if they are to thrive. The Choosi Dollar Report 2019 researched the spending habits of Australian citizens and their understanding of financial issues.

A number of important issues were highlighted in this report. The key points are listed below. 

Are Australians Stressed About Money?

Australians have become more uneasy about their financial situations in recent years. The report shows that half of Australians experience concerns about their money on a weekly or even daily basis. The majority of Australians are unable to maintain the same standard of living, as inflation erodes the value of their paychecks. The survey showed that 62% of Australians said they were unable to keep up with cost of living increases. It also showed that 44.6% of Australians feel anxious about their debt at least most of the time, if not all of the time. ... (read more)

What are Credit Card Instalment Plans?

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Several different credit cards let cardholders pay off a portion or some of their outstanding balance through an instalment plan. These payment options break down your balance into monthly instalments spread over a fixed time or predetermined rate. For example, if you had a $1,000 balance and set up an instalment plan over ten months, you’d pay $100 per month instead of paying it all off at once. This is a basic calculation used as an example only, it does not include the addition of interest to the amount borrowed. ... (read more)

6 tips to save on your mortgage interest

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Taking out a mortgage is the largest financial commitment that most Australians will make in their lifetime. If you invest in a property you could be making repayments for the next 30 years. This article will focus on a number of tips that can help you save interest on your mortgage and pay off the debt on your home at a faster rate.

1. Pay large sums into your loan

Rather than spending any large lump sums you receive, pay them straight into your loan. Think of larger windfalls as an excellent opportunity to reduce the overall interest on your loan and therefore the overall cost of your mortgage. Unexpected windfalls can include: ... (read more)

What to look for when deciding on a super fund

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Apart from buying a house, superannuation is likely to be one of the biggest investments that you will make in your lifetime. Understanding your options and making the right decision can make the difference between scraping by or having that well-deserved, worry-free retirement.

In 2005, new legislation was introduced that put the power of super firmly in the consumer’s hands and gave many Australians like yourself the power to choose which fund your contributions would be made into. ... (read more)

Tips on How to Save Money in Sydney

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Breathtaking landscapes and seascapes, vibrant urban life, laidback lifestyle—these are what pull people to Sydney. However, Sydney is not just the biggest city in the country, it is also the priciest. In fact, the UBS ranks Sydney as among the ten most expensive cities to live in. Basic expenses alone already cost around $2,500 for a family with one to two children. Ten years ago, a 2010 survey by the Sydney Business Chamber indicated that half of the survey respondents believe they need $100,000 or more per year to live comfortably. ... (read more)

How to Be Frugal in Australia

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Living a frugal lifestyle in the era of social media, where everyone flaunts what they have and where they’ve travelled to, can be quite challenging—but there’s nothing great about living paycheque to paycheque either.

If you aren’t conscious about your spending, you might end up accumulating credit card debt. It will only eat away at your limited earnings as well as the money you’ve set aside for emergencies. As a result, it can easily compromise your financial future. ... (read more)

TransferWise Review: Money Transfers at True Mid-market Rates

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Picture this: You just land a great job, but it’s in a different country. You make the necessary arrangements, and you move there. Problem is, you need to send money back to your country regularly, maybe to pay for a mortgage, a phone bill or your family’s expenses.

Come payday, you calculate your budget and come up with the money you need to send before visiting the bank, only to find out that you lose a significant chunk of money to the bank by sending it. This is because banks do not follow the mid-market rate. ... (read more)

What Personal Loans Are Easy to Get Approved For

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Anyone who has ever borrowed money knows it can be hard to pay back at times. However, borrowing is a bridge most of us need in order to quickly get ahead in life. Personal loans are the fastest means of acquiring funds for a range of purposes, but the first criterion is your ability to make the loan repayments on time.

If your earnings or income are high and you have a clean credit history, a personal loan will usually be approved. People on lower incomes need to tailor their approach to repayments that are make-able. You will need to provide evidence of current and ongoing expenses, revealing enough disposable income to furnish the loan and thrive . There are other stipulations, including Australian residency requirements, that will affect the application.

Also in the last few years, it has become difficult to get loan approval from banks that you have no account with. The loan approval rate for non-customers is notably lower than for customers with years of historical data.

What makes personal loans so popular is their versatility. The most obvious loans, and the ones most likely to be approved for, are for expenses that are often beyond the reach of the immediate purse-strings. A personal loan can help you create and maintain your dreams.

Popular Personal Loans Include: ... (read more)

How to Choose an Air Purifier for Bushfire Smoke

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Over 20 lives lost. More than a hundred bushfires still raging. Thousands of homes destroyed. Millions of hectares burned. NSW alone has lost five million hectares and 1,300 homes. These are the dismal statistics we read about the direct effects of bushfires that have been burning for months now in different parts of Australia.

But aside from these, Australia is severely affected by smoke that’s blanketing the country. There have been instances of asthma, breathing difficulties and other respiratory ailments in Sydney and other cities. People have been advised to stay indoors to avoid exposure to bushfire smoke. But while commercial buildings are equipped with HVAC systems that have filters, homes aren’t always equipped with such systems that protect family health. This is why home purifiers have been in high demand for most people lately. ... (read more)

How to choose the best mask for bushfire smoke

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Smoke mask is not a topic I would normally write about but given the circumstances (large bushfires in Australia), I think it’s important that we talk about the risks and options we have to protect ourselves and our family (including our pets). Scroll down if you are interested in the smoke masks only. I also found a smoke mask for dogs.

Protect Your Family from Bushfire Smoke

It is nearly the holiday season and the end of 2019 is just around the corner. But with dozens of bushfires raging all across the country, Australia is in a state of crisis. South Australia has shut down more than a hundred schools due to a Catastrophic Fire Warning and even those further away from the actual flames are suffering from the effects of wildfire smoke. ... (read more)