Dollars & Making Sense

“There are three kinds of lies: Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics” — has been attributed toMark Twain, who himself attributed it to British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, who might never have said it in the first place.
Today we chat with Andrew Inwood, Global CEO of Coredata, a leading provider of market information and research to the financial markets. Is there a "special sauce" or AI tool that will make you rich? Tune in to find out.

Stage 3 tax cuts have now been legislated and given Royal assent - yes "L-A-W" as one very famous ex PM used to say. This week we chat with Frank Drenth, tax specialist from the Institute of Financial Professionals Australia (www.ifpa.com.au) to work out how much extra you're going to get (and yes everyone does!), and some strategies to save on taxes this financial year and next. Dollars and Making Sense a weekly show about finance, money and investing.

We welcome back Natasha Panagis, Superannuation subject matter expert from the Institute of Financial Professionals Australia (www.ifpa.com.au) to discuss a raft of changes to superannuation law that comes into effect from1 July 2024. Contributions caps, forward payments, NALE, Div296 and everything in between. IFPA's recent annual conference is a gold mine of information now available and as always, if you're not sure, contact your tax accountant or your authorised financial adviser.

Does your superannuation need a health check? Well EOFY is a great time to plan for that check (yes - the end of the financial year), and we're joined by Natasha Panagis, super expert at the Institute of Financial Professionals Australia (www.ifpa.com.au) to work though an easy to understand check list of things you can do to make your super work harder for you, and ensure you retire with the best possible situation for you and your loved ones. Tune in to learn about concessional and non-concessional contributions and the super guarantee so you guarantee a secure and comfortable retirement.

It's never too early to start planning for the EOFY (end of financial year), and we're joined by specialist Natasha Panagis from the Institute of Financial Professionals Australia (www.ifpa.com.au) to discuss an easy to understand checklist of things to help be ready for the close of the tax year, and also make the most of the tax incentives and opportunities to manage your tax compliance, here on Dollars & Making Sense.

What's the difference, debt is debt right? Maybe not so. This week, Victor Lagos from Lagos Financial, a registered mortgage broker and holder of an Australian Credit License joins us to discuss what is good debt and what is bad debt. Are we stealing from ouselves or are we saving for ourselves. Great notions to ponder when you are looking at that purchase and deciding whether to wait and save, or buy now pay later? Is borrowing against your future always the best option. And what does it take to step up and move into your first home or apartment.

20th Marchhas come and gone and many of you may notice there's an increase in your rate of pension. That's because Services Australia has applied the increases to payments, including pensions, which have been indexed by the Department of Social Services, like they do on20 Marchand20 Septembereach year.When the rate of pension goes up, that changes the income and assets limits for the pension meaning some people might become eligible when they weren't before. Justin Bott, Community Information Office for Services Australia joins us today to discuss these changes and work through the income and assets tests that apply.

ASX listed company Annual General Meetings are a place of interest for any shareholder, and this week we meet one of the Australian Shareholders Association's key company monitor. Peter Gregory is a volunteer that monitors a number of listed companies and we discuss what that means, how its done, and why it is of incredible value to you as an investor and potential shareholder of these companies.

Philippa Hunt from Wise Girls Money Magic joins us this week to discuss budgeting. A timely reminder from a recent article that highlights the government's MoneySmart website and really helpful calculators and guides. Whether it be a piece of paper, or a mobile app, tracking the ins and outs of your budget can possibly make your life so much better, join us to find out how and why.Click on this link for MoneySmart's guide.

When investing in commercial projects, it is important to understand where your money sits in relation to payday. Depending on where you are in the "Capital Stack" varies greatly in relation to risk, returns and when you get paid if something possibly goes wrong. This week, Joe Christie, Exec Director of Capital Property Funds explores the "Capital Stack" and what it means when you have "equity parading as debt". All real estate investors, please take note!