Keeping you informed and up to date.

Budget 2016: Blueprint for an election Treasurer Scott Morrison promised it would be no ordinary budget but instead an ‘economic plan for jobs and growth’. With the federal election to be called as early as this week, the focus has shifted from an earlier emphasis on debt and deficit under Prime Minister Tony Abbott to…

At its meeting today, the Board decided to lower the cash rate by 25 basis points to 1.75 per cent, effective 4 May 2016. This follows information showing inflationary pressures are lower than expected. The full statement from Glenn Stevens, Governor:Monetary Policy Decision below: The global economy is continuing to grow, though at a slightly lower pace than…

How to minimise the Health Insurance Hike The dreaded 1 April increase is coming and this year, Australians can expect a hit to the hip pocket with an average increase to health insurance premiums by 5.59%, adding approximately $200 a year to the cost of the average family policy. For those who aren’t watching closely…

Australians are wasting more than $500 million each year by not switching to a better deal on items such as banking, groceries, internet, mobile phone and utility providers just to name a few, according to research released from the Queensland University of Technology. The national research found more than half of Australians had seriously considered…

The Australian Taxation Office reveals that as of the end of 2014, over 14 million Australians had a super fund account. Approximately 45% of these people have more than one super account. WA’s highest average balance is in the postcode 6907 – being the University of Western Australian Area – near Curtin having an average…

After criticism that his first budget was too tough and unfair, Treasurer Joe Hockey has used his second budget to restore the confidence of ordinary Australians and shift the focus to jobs, growth and opportunity. Gone is the talk of a budget emergency. Instead, the Coalition government has unveiled nearly $10 billion in spending initiatives…

Health Insurance premiums are on the rise and on 1 April, Australians can expect a hit to the hip pocket with an average increase to health insurance premiums by 6.18%, adding approximately $200 a year to the cost of the average family policy. With over 13 million Australians now having some form of private health…

It might not seem as serious as the more traditional form of cheating, but financial infidelity can lead to all the same feelings of betrayal and anger – and end up in divorce too. So, what exactly is financial infidelity? Often, people only think of the obvious culprits – overspending on the credit card and…

Co-founders Stephen Degiovanni and Olivia Maragna have been awarded a place on the Nations Most Trusted Adviser List. Both Stephen and Olivia have been benchmarked, examined and tested to emerge on the prestigious list of only 33 advisers named across the country, an achievement in itself that two advisers from the same practice have made…

Personal finance editor John Collett and financial planner Olivia Maragna discuss strategies for parents to help their children establish good savings habits.

Olivia was interviewing on ABC Radio on some new changes starting on 1 July 2014. Listen here – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdFSFLP-mHw   Source: ABC Radio

With more than a 26 per cent growth in four years and more than $560 billion dollars in assets, the Self-Managed Super Fund (SMSF) industry has hit an incredible milestone – 1 million members. With an average balance of more than $543,000 per member, the growth of SMSF’s has continued with another 6374 net establishments…