Innholdsfortegnelse for August 2024 i Money Magazine

EDITOR’S WELCOME EDITOR’S NOTE In a move to counter cost-of-living pressures, more people are turning skills and hobbies into extra cash. Welcome to moonlighting by another name: the side hustle. In this issue’s cover story, we talk about the leading sources of income in the gig economy and how you can get started while avoiding the pitfalls of working multiple jobs (pages 34-43). If moonlighting is not an option, there are still plenty of ways to boost your income. On page 74 we explain how first-time home buyers can be $18k better off and on page 64 we reveal how to build a property portfolio without the landlord hassles. And for all our ardent Marcus Padley readers, you’ll enjoy this month’s ‘Stop, in the name of love’ column on page 80.…

IVAN COLHOUN OUTLOOK Over my long career in economics and markets, I have found the signals of two indicators of the Australian economy particularly reliable. They are useful at times such as these, when there are many cross currents impacting businesses (think the positive impact of the July 1 tax cuts and investment in renewables, artificial intelligence and infrastructure against the negative impact of high interest rates on housing and consumer spending). So, what are these ‘super’ indicators? Number one is the job advertisement series produced by the online marketplace SEEK, and number two is the measure of business conditions produced by National Australia Bank (NAB) as part of its monthly business survey. Both series (and further sectoral and State information) are available on the company websites. Now let’s look…

You know the drill. You’re woken middream at 3am by a text notification. A message from AusPost, OzPost or AuPost tells you there is an urgent problem with your parcel delivery and to click on the link for details. In your blurry-eyed state, you may follow the the instructions. Don’t. This is a scam. The real Australia Post reports that as many as 73% of us are receiving these fake package messages. Worse, more than half of the people initially believed one of these messages was legitimate and clicked before realising it was a trap. A far better way to track deliveries is to download the free Australia Post app from the Google Play or App stores or sign up to MyPost online. MyPost allows you to track your deliveries…

$1.3B The amount Australians lost to investment scams during 2023. Source: National Anti-Scam Centre ▶ MORE MONEY STORIES ON P44-58 Alerts save bank customers $100m Customers of one of Australia’s largest banks have reportedly avoided more than $100 million in suspect payments, thanks to warnings received while using the bank’s app or online banking. First rolled out in March 2023, NAB’s payment warnings are designed to help prevent investment, romance and other scams by flagging suspicious payments in real time and encouraging customers to review them before they’re finalised. Chris Sheehan, NAB’s executive for group investigations and fraud, says that while scam reports have continued to rise up recently, reported losses have declined. “Customer scam reports increased by around 10% between October 2023 and March 2024 compared to the same period…

Faced with decade-high interest rates and soaring repayments, a sizeable number of homeowners with a mortgage have switched from making principal and interest to interestonly repayments at some point in the past two years. That’s according to survey data released by comparison website Finder, which found that, overall, about 6% of borrowers are currently making interest-only repayments. Richard Whitten, home loans expert at Finder, says that it’s hardly a surprise that people are doing whatever they can to avoid falling behind on their repayments. “Such a large portion of people’s earnings are allocated to their mortgage, and spare cash has largely been extinguished,” he says. While moving to interest-only repayments may provide some temporary respite, the issue for borrowers is that they’ll likely pay a higher interest rate for the…

PAUL CLITHEROE Q&A Need Paul's help? Send your questions to: Ask Paul, Money magazine, Level 7, 55 Clarence Street, Sydney NSW 2000 or money@moneymag.com.au. Sorry, but Paul can’t personally answer your questions other than in the Q&A column. By submitting your question to Money, you consent to having your question and the response you receive from Paul published in the print and digital edition of Money. Alex has a $139k home loan with $130k in an offset account. Should I pay off the home loan or top up super? Q I am a 50-year-old single parent of a child in primary school. I work full-time and earn $97,000 a year. My super balance is about $217,000. I receive very little child support, perhaps $1000 a year. I have just bought…

QUAFF 2022 Chateau Tanunda Grand Barossa Shiraz $25 There’s heaps of tradition at Chateau Tanunda, blended neatly with first-rate, modern winemaking. Add the Barossa’s finest grape variety, shiraz, and a fair price and you have a winner. In 2022, this is ripe and fleshy, all redcurrant and red cherries, soft and supple with pleasing depth of flavour and good length. Drink now. SPLURGE 2021 Yalumba ‘The Signature’ Cabernet Shiraz $70 This has been a Barossa classic for more than 50 years, honouring a Yalumba stalwart each vintage. In 2021, it’s Chris Gerhardy, celebrating his 51 years in the packaging side of the business. It’s one of the finest examples of the Australian classic cabernet shiraz blend from the Barossa. There are brambles and blackberries on the nose, power and depth…

PAUL CLITHEROE PAUL’S VERDICT YOUR QUESTION H i Paul, I hope this email finds you well. I’m reaching out to you for some advice regarding investment strategies. At 51 years old, I find myself fully immersed in my career and increasingly aware of the importance of planning for retirement. While I’ve developed a keen interest in the stockmarket, I must confess that navigating its complexities as a beginner feels rather daunting. The sheer volume of information on trading and price analysis is overwhelming, leaving me unsure of where to even begin. With a monthly budget of $500 dedicated to investing, I’m eager to embark on this journey towards securing my financial future. However, I’m in dire need of guidance on the most suitable approach to take. I would greatly appreciate any…

Research by Finder shows one in three (32%) Aussies feels financially pressured to look for a second job in 2024. Nearly twice the number of women (41%) feel they need to work more than one job compared with men (24%). A side hustle can provide extra income, though it’s not for everyone. It takes time and money, at least initially, and there are no guarantees of success. Finder’s Rebecca Pike acknowledges that having a second job can be a big commitment. “Look at other ways you might be able to boost your bank balance,” she suggests. eBay, for example, reports that two in five (40%) Australians now try to buy most of their clothes pre-loved. It’s creating an opportunity to cash in on unwanted garments and accessories. Sure, it can…

Christopher Field has always had an interest in photography, though what was strictly a hobby has morphed into a side hustle and, ultimately, become his full-time job. It all started when a friend asked Field if he could spare a weekend to work as a photo booth attendant. “It wasn’t highly skilled work,” he says. “But it taught me how people react differently to having their photo taken. I realised part of the skill of the photographer is being able to help people relax and enjoy the moment.” From here, Field says his side hustle in photography developed organically. “A friend asked me to take photos of a party, and things grew through word of mouth. When I started thinking about the possibility of making a full-time job out of…

SUSAN HELY FAMILY MONEY My neighbours took their kids out of primary school, rented out their home, bought a camper and travelled around Australia for a year. They arrived back 12 months later looking transformed – so happy, relaxed and confident. It was a life-changing experience for both parents and kids. I wished I had even thought about going on a year-long road trip when my kids were little. Having just driven across the Nullarbor and around remote parts of Western Australia – without my grown-up kids – I can tell you that travelling families abound. Taking to the road in recreational vehicles, families are camping under stars, exploring spectacular landscapes and viewing Australia’s unique wildlife. They are active: hiking, fishing, swimming, surfing and often travelling with bikes and kayaks.…

Every weekend in suburbs around the country, prospective buyers, neighbours and stickybeaks converge on front lawns or footpaths to take part in what is, in essence, a form of local theatre: a real estate auction. For sellers, the emotion and competition generated at a public auction has the potential to drive up the price they’ll ultimately get for their property. If things go well, that is. For buyers, on the other hand, there’s always the possibility they could snag a home for a decent price. The auction process can be stressful, particularly for buyers who don’t have anyone to guide them through it. So, what should would-be buyers expect to face during an auction and what steps can they take to give themselves the best shot at success? Who sells…

The Fair Entitlements Guarantee (FEG) Recovery Program was set up in 2015 to improve employees’ chance of recovering their entitlements when their employer enters bankruptcy or liquidation. It has two parts: • It encompasses funding for liquidators to enable efforts, including legal proceedings, to recover FEG advances liquidators would not otherwise have the resources to pursue. • It seeks to minimise or prevent FEG claims from arising, increase returns to the Federal government and positively influence outcomes in liquidations through early intervention and actively monitoring insolvencies.…

ZACH RIAZ MANAGED FUNDS During the past 12 months, investors and economists have vigorously debated the prospect of, and assigned various probabilities to, an imminent recession in the US, an economy that is critical to the global growth outlook. Since 2023, the market narrative has slowly shifted from a hard landing to a potential soft landing to the current likely soft landing (a shallow recession). Over this period, economists and market strategists have quietly kept pushing out their recession start date – from the first half of 2024 to the second half of 2024 and now to some point in 2025. Here I want to highlight data that suggests 2024 is unlikely to see a US recession. In fact, US equities could finish the year much higher than they are…

Investigate the construction methodology. Not all are built the same. Ask yourself: • What’s in and what’s not? • What are the calculation inputs – price, dividends, liquidity, capitalisation, number of shareholders? • Are there weightings and float adjustments? • How often is the index rebalanced? The ASX has adopted the Global Industry Classification Standard, which allows investors to analyse and compare the Australian market with its global peers. See the ASX website. Standard & Poor’s (S&P) is ASX’s index partner. Its website contains fact sheets, news and research, and performance information about its 40 Australian indices.…

SCOTT PHILLIPS BEST IN BREED SECTOR DEFENSIVES Investing, thy name is volatility. Okay, so I’m not Shakespeare. But, also, I’m not wrong. If you’ve owned shares for any length of time at all (or have even just read Money regularly), you’ll know that share prices can rise and fall like the tides, especially over short periods. Yes, it’s true that the market as a whole tends to go up – strongly – over time, but it can be hard to keep that perspective when your portfolio is being buffeted by the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune (there I go again) or just other investors’ moods. It’s for these reasons – and a general preference for more stability and less uncertainty – that many investors gravitate towards so-called ‘defensive’ shares –…

Allan Fels The list of the AO recipient’s achievements is long, but it was his stint as the inaugural chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) that saw him become a household name. He is also the former chair of the National Mental Health Commission. Prof Fels is currently a Professorial Fellow at the University of Melbourne. Q Tell us about your early years. Did you grow up financially secure? What were your formative money/finance experiences? I grew up in Perth in a loving, middle-class family with small business interests. My career ambitions moved through being a bus conductor, a cricketer, a novelist and a teacher. Never did I think I would be a regulator, nor did I even know what one was. In 1953, my mother won…

Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) 1800 812 798 (outside Sydney) 9264 9300 (Sydney) superannuation.asn.au Australian Communications and Media Authority 1300 850 115 acma.gov.au Australian Competition and Consumer Commission 1300 302 502 accc.gov.au Australian Energy Regulator aer.gov.au/consumers/making-a-complaint Australian Financial Complaints Authority 1800 931 678 afca.org.au Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) 1300 300 630 asic.gov.au Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) 131 279 asx.com.au CPA Australia 1300 737 373 (within Australia) +61 3 9606 9677 (outside Australia) cpaaustralia.com.au Do Not Call Register To reduce telemarketing calls 1300 792 958 donotcall.gov.au/contact-us/contact-details Fair Trading/ Consumer Affairs ACT: 132 281 NSW: 133 220 NT: 1800 019 319 QLD: 137 468 SA: 131 882 TAS: 1300 654 499 VIC: 1300 558 181 WA: 1300 304 054 Financial Counselling Australia National Debt Helpline: 1800 007 007…

CALENDAR OF EVENTS Thursday, August 1 Balance of trade Tuesday, August 6 RBA interest rate decision Thursday, August 8 Westpac consumer confidence NAB business confidence Thursday, August 15 Unemployment rate Friday, August 30 Retail sales Gaming can improve financial skills, especially for young players Violent. Addictive. Isolating. Ever since video gaming entered the mainstream, the discourse around it – at least, in parts of the media – has tended to focus on the negatives. You don’t have to dig deep to find the positives, though. Research published by the UK’s Royal Society in 2021, for instance, found that rather than leading to addiction and poor mental health outcomes, there was a positive relationship between gaming and wellbeing. Separate research conducted by UNICEF also found that welldesigned digital games can provide…

MARK CHAPMAN TAX TIP To help you save for retirement, the Federal government has an incentive program that rewards you for making personal contributions to your super fund. If your total income for the year does not exceed $45,400 in 2024-25, the government will match your eligible super contributions by 50c per dollar up to a maximum of $500 a year. The super co-contribution phases down for eligible individuals with total income between the lower and higher income thresholds. It is tapered by a rate of 3.333c for each dollar of total income for the year that exceeds the lower income threshold. The co-contribution ceases once the upper threshold is reached. The upper threshold is $15,000 above the lower threshold, making it $60,400 for 2024-25. You may be eligible for…

Could companies do more to support employees struggling with heightened living costs? That’s the sentiment expressed by workers in a recent survey conducted by software research firm Capterra. It found that about threequarters of Australians have seen their work-related expenses rise in the past year, while a similar number reported that their wages haven’t kept pace. “With our research revealing that 71% of employees have salaries that do not keep up with rising costs, this reinforces that companies should study and consider providing support to their employees that can reduce financial burdens and increase productivity,” says Laura Burgess, an analyst at Capterra Australia. As a result, workers would like to see their employers bear more of the burden. For instance, 74% of on-site workers believe that the cost of any…

▶ MORE INVESTING STORIES ON P70-77 $1.7T Bitcoin’s market cap at July 10, 2024 Source: CoinMarketCap At last, Bitcoin ETFs hit the ASX It’s been a long time coming, but the Australian Securities Exchange has welcomed two Bitcoin exchange traded funds in recent weeks. The first was the VanEck Bitcoin ETF (ASX: VBTC) launched in late June, which the investment firm says is designed to track the price of the cryptocurrency and give investors exposure to it without having to hold it in their own digital wallets. According to VanEck, there has been real interest in Bitcoin ETFs. Its research found that 76% of advisers had clients enquiring about Bitcoin, while a third of advisers said they would add a Bitcoin ETF to their clients’ portfolios if it was available on…

It’s easy to see why the market threw a tantrum at RPM Global recently. At one stage, the mining tech provider’s stock was down 20%, all because EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation), previously expected to be $22 million for the full year, was confirmed at $19 million – before management incentives, by the way. Note to RPM management: your bonuses are real costs. You don’t get to exclude them. We would prefer to hear about operating profits that include all operating costs, but there is no doubt the business has made enormous progress since we first recommended it in 2018. As software sales grow, more revenue is dropping to the bottom line. There will be less profit than we expected this year because, according to management, timing…

Three places to visit 1. Whakapapa Ever skied or snowboarded on an active volcano? You’ll have the chance at New Zealand’s largest ski field, Whakapapa. Spread across 550 hectares on the northern slopes of Mount Ruapehu in the heart of the North Island, Whakapapa offers plenty of terrain for both intermediate and advanced skiers and boarders, but it’s perhaps best known for the gentle beginner slopes in its Happy Valley area. Getting there: 90-minute drive from Taupo or four hours and 30 minutes from either Auckland or Wellington. Prices: Day passes (weekdays) from $39 (children) and $59 (adults). 2. Treble Cone The largest ski field in the South Island, Wanaka’s Treble Cone provides a more remote, uncrowded destination for boarders and skiers of all levels. Its abundance of off-piste terrain…

Health and wellbeing Minitailz & PetPace What is it: One to keep on your radar… smart collars for dogs. For those who want to combine their love of dogs and cutting-edge tech, there is now a whole new product category: health wearables for canines. American companies such as Minitailz and PetPace are producing lightweight waterproof dog collars that monitor a range of animal biometrics including vital signs (temperature, pulse and respiration) as well as behaviour and location. Because they are consistently monitoring, they can also alert you (or your vet directly) to potential problems via text notifications. Although they are not yet available in Australia, we thought you’d like to know they soon will be. Cost: In the US PetPace costs $US99 and MiniTailz costs $US99 plus subscription costs. For…

Thanks for asking, Derek – all is well with me, despite peering at my 70th birthday next year. That is a bit alarming! Interestingly, at your age I had similar plans, not so much about retirement, but about financial independence and what steps were needed to achieve that. Yours is a really interesting question. It takes us much deeper than more mechanical questions such as asset allocation, gearing, what shares or property to buy and so on. Philosophically and practically, financial independence is a really sound goal. Our own view of financial independence will be different from everyone else’s, but we should all aim for it. We humans are funny things, but one thing that does seem to work, whether it involves a trip or a new car, is a…

Move over Melbourne and step aside Sydney. GoDaddy’s Venture Forward research reveals Canberra is Australia’s number one city for side hustles. The nation’s capital has a whopping 32 online microbusinesses per 100 residents. That puts Canberrans ahead of Londoners in the side hustle stakes. “This data suggests that right now our capital, Canberra, is the heart of a thriving online microbusiness community,” says Suzanne Mitchell, GoDaddy’s head of Australia. As the table (opposite page) shows, regional areas such as Queensland’s Gold Coast are also punching above their weight for side hustles.…

Investors should look for companies and funds that safeguard assets from long-term systemic risks such as climate change and social inequality. Here are six key areas: • Policies. These are usually accessible online. Annual reports provide insight into ESG activities and compliance. Look for sustainability reports, modern slavery statements and reconciliation action plans. From 2025, mandatory climate reporting will make it easier to tell if an entity is aligned with the Paris Agreement. • Portfolio holdings. There are many ESG options on the market, and you can’t always rely on the label. Check the fine print. Super funds must disclose holdings. • Transparency. Many greenwashing cases result from mislabelling or miscommunication. Check if your fund uses external fund managers and what guidelines and/or underlying indices they follow. • Ratings agencies.…

There are several thousand homeschooled kids travelling around Australia. Many families maintain inspiring blogs, having saved hard to live their dream: taking to the road, staying in caravan parks, national parks and free sites, and experiencing the wonders of nature. Bec and Justin Lorrimer, parents to Jack, Billy and Charli, have written a book, Trip in A Van, also the name of their website. The family has travelled 242,528 kilometres, visiting 412 beaches and 1183 destinations. Their guide is something they wished had been available when they started travelling seven years ago. It includes a budget covering such costs as campsite fees, fuel, groceries, technology, insurance and car maintenance. It takes about $1000 a week to travel this way. Bec also explains how she homeschools her kids. The eldest, Jack,…

• Cooling-off period. The period during which buyers can cancel a sale contract, though financial penalties can apply. Generally, there is no cooling-off period at auction. • Passed in. If a property is passed in at auction, it means that the reserve price hasn’t been met. Typically, the highest bidder can then enter negotiations with the seller. • On the market. If bidding reaches the seller’s reserve price, the property may be announced as being ‘on the market’ and it will be sold to the highest bidder. • Reserve price. The minimum price that the seller will accept for the property. Generally, this is confidential and it’s set in writing before the auction. • Vendor bid. During the auction, an auctioneer may place a bid on behalf of the vendor…

CASE STUDY Robyn Paterson, who shares her three-bedroom home in Frankston, Victoria, with her daughter and grandson, electrified her home with All Electric Homes in May 2024. “My daughter and I had been wanting to go all-electric for some time as a way to save on power bills and find a more economical way to run the energy inputs on my home,” says Robyn. With government rebates, Paterson paid around $13,000 to transition from gas-ducted heating, gas instant water and a gas cooktop to a reverse-cycle split system air-conditioner, a heat pump hot water system and an induction cooktop, backed by a 6.6kW solar power system. With her previous dual-fuel set-up, Robyn was paying around $3800 a year for gas and electricity. Based on her previous and current energy usage,…

VILA PALESTRANT SUPER Today’s first homebuyers face enormous challenges as rocketing property prices outstrip their ability to save for a deposit. One option that may provide a leg-up is the First Home Super Saver scheme (FHSS), with its tax advantages and good earnings rate. The earnings are based on the 90-day bank bill rate plus 3%, which is better than most savings accounts. And if the sharemarket tanks, you aren’t hurt by the volatility. You can contribute up to $15,000 a year, up to a total of $50,000. Only extra contributions are counted towards the scheme, not your employer’s compulsory 11.5%. By salary sacrificing before-tax contributions, you can reduce the tax you pay on your income. If your partner is doing the same thing, you can save more than $100,000…

GQG Partners Global Equity Fund The investment process evaluates each business with a focus on financial strength, sustainability of earnings growth and quality of management. The resulting portfolio seeks to manage the downside risk of equity investments while providing attractive returns over a full market cycle. VanEck MSCI International Small Companies Quality ETF (ASX: QSML) Gives investors a diversified portfolio of 150 international developed market small-cap quality growth securities. The diversified portfolio contains some of the world’s highest-quality small companies based on three key fundamentals: high return on equity, earnings stability and low financial leverage. Man AHL Alpha Fund Employs a systematic, statistically based strategy to exploit technical or price-driven signals across a diverse range of global markets. The main strategy used is price trends (up or down) or repeatable…

MARCUS PADLEY THIS MONTH Stop losses are a discipline that allows you to let your profits run and cut your losses. But as anyone who has ever tried using stop losses will tell you, you get the logic, you think it’s a good idea, you start out with the best intentions, but after selling a few stocks that immediately bounce, or selling what you consider to be long-term investments in the short term, only to see them continue to trend up in the long term, you lose your resolve. The reality is that stop losses will involve getting stopped out of some share prices that do immediately shoot up. It’s inevitable. Sometimes. And those are the ones you remember, and those are the ones you tell everyone about. Stop losses…

It’s important that we don’t take other people’s words for what is and isn’t defensive. After all, there have been some so-called ‘blue chip’ companies that ended up being anything but. Instead, working from first principles, we might think about software companies whose products are a functional part of their customers’ workflows. We might include supermarkets and other non-discretionary retail outlets. Lastly, we might think about some of the remaining (successful) conglomerates that boast internal diversification and strong track records. It’s from that last group that this month’s Best in Breed company comes. We could have chosen Wesfarmers, but for a longer history, a better track record, a dividend history that is the epitome of ‘consistent’, and a management team that’s hard to beat, we’re going with investment company Washington…

ANTHONY O'BRIEN Contributor My first real job while at university was with the now-defunct BT stockbroking, earning the princely annual sum of $13,000. I started as a runner, couriering stock scrips and settlement cheques across the Sydney CBD. These were precomputer days with floor trading at 20 Bond Street, just before the October 1987 crash. The biggest challenge was delivering cheques and scrips to and from clients on time, avoiding the wrath of the settlement and accounts clerks. Read Anthony’s column on late payers on page 58. ROSE MARY PETRASS Journalist My first foray into the working world was at the Taste of Tasmania food festival peddling fancy water bottles. The commission-only arrangement for a 13-year-old was certainly not above-board (child labour laws and all). It was a deep dive…

Imagine you’re an 18-year-old retail worker. You can vote, drink and join the army. You are considered an adult by the law. Except you’re paid $16.26 an hour while your 21-year-old co-worker with the same job and role gets $29.04 an hour. This is the reality for thousands of young workers in Australia who, even though they are considered legal adults, are paid junior rates in 75 awards, in industries such as fast food, retail and hospitality. This isn’t just unfair; it’s exploitation. So much so that despite possibly supporting themselves or others, an 18-year-old retail worker will need to work more than 50 hours a week to earn a full-time adult wage. If you look overseas for a comparison, this is not the case. For example, most parts of…

BOOK OF THE MONTH YOUNG, DUMB & FINANCIALLY INDEPENDENT by Taj Pabari (The ASE Group Publishing, RRP $25.95) Young adults starting out in life will find this book very useful. Think of it as a map to help you navigate the maze of tax terminology, investment options, and other money matters that we all need to deal with at some point in our lives. Education about money in your younger years can set you up for a more secure financial future. Want to know how to start investing in the stockmarket or even something as basic as understanding the difference between debit and credit cards? This book covers all those important money topics that most school curriculum overlook. Ten readers can win a copy. In 25 words or less, tell…

Gold has enjoyed a strong start to the year, outperforming many other major asset classes, according to a mid-year analysis produced by the World Gold Council. While it retreated slightly from the record highs reached in April, gold ended the first half of the year trading at $3492 an ounce – 15% higher than at the beginning of 2024. The World Gold Council says gold outperformed developed and emerging market shares, cash, bonds and other commodities. In fact, the only asset class that returned more was US shares. The strong performance has been driven by a range of factors including buying from central banks, investment flows from Asia and geopolitical uncertainty. But can it continue to shine? “Like the global economy, gold appears to be waiting for a catalyst,” says…

It may not have felt like it at the time but losing her job in 2013 was the best thing that happened to Jen Bishop. Without it, The Interiors Addict, the blog she had started 18 months before as a place “to keep track of all the little bits and pieces I loved” might have remained a hobby. Instead, she has grown it to become one of Australia’s best-loved home and interiors websites with a loyal following of more than 150,000 readers, and in the process built a successful career she could tailor around the needs of her young family. “My whole world came crashing down the day I was made redundant,” says Bishop. “I was editor on a business magazine – a job I loved – and my boss…

To celebrate our 25th anniversary (and to keep you going strong), we have a Withings Body Comp scale to give away. The Body Comp Scale ($359.99) allows you to measure body composition metrics such as water, fat, muscle and bone mass. It also completes a cardiovascular risk assessment, and can detect certain early signs of diabetes-related complications. To be in with a chance to win, enter online at moneymag.com.au/win or send your entry to Money, Withings scale giveaway, Level 7, 55 Clarence Street, Sydney, NSW, 2000. Entries open on July 29, 2024, and close on August 28, 2024.…

These companies have been selected by ESG specialist Erica Hall from the S&P/ ASX 300 based on outcomes and their ESG commitment. Key elements in common include lower than average ESG risks, comprehensive reporting to international standards, intentional incorporation of ESG into their businesses via policies, board oversight and executive remuneration linked to ESG objectives. Greenhouse gas emissions are measured and assessed in three ways: Scope 1 (direct), Scope 2 (from energy) and Scope 3 (indirect). 1 Basic materials VULCAN ENERGY (VUL) The lithium and renewable energy producer has big ambitions that include decarbonising lithium production. It is dual-listed on the Australian and Frankfurt stock exchanges. Its aim is to become the world’s first net zero integrated lithium and renewable energy provider. 2 Communication services SEEK (SEK) The largest global…

PHIL SLADE MIND GAMES Sitting on Kings Beach at Caloundra in Queensland on a beautiful morning is, to me, one of the simple joys in life. The other day when the surf was particularly large, I noticed a swimmer struggling to navigate the crushing waves and a surfer delighting in the incoming swell. One was being pummelled by nature while the other was harnessing it. It struck me as an interesting metaphor for navigating life after the loss of a business. As a young teenager, I have a clear memory of my mother and father huddled over the dining room table staring quietly at some papers. Their parent company had just declared bankruptcy, triggering a snowball of events that meant they, too, were facing bankruptcy. What I saw was a…

ANTHONY O’BRIEN SMALL BUSINESS Making a sale is one thing. Pocketing the revenue can be an uphill battle. A study by Intuit QuickBooks Australia has revealed that small business owners are struggling to manage unpaid invoices. According to the research, small businesses spend more than 1.5 hours every week chasing late or unpaid invoices. Almost two in five businesses dedicate between one and three hours a week to the task. It can mean some business owners spend 150 hours a year chasing invoices. This isn’t just a time waster. When invoices are slow to be paid, it puts pressure on a business’s own cashflow and can incur additional charges through overdraft interest. At the far end of the spectrum, slow payment of issues can be a sign of financial woes…

PAM WALKLEY REAL ESTATE Investing in property can be a great way to earn extra income, but direct investing – such as buying an apartment – is costly. You need to save a deposit and then borrow a large amount to buy your asset. Not to mention the hassles of being a landlord. Investing indirectly, such as through Australian real estate investment trusts (A-REITs), unlisted property trusts and mortgage funds, means you can earn income – and in some instances enjoy capital growth – without high entry costs and landlord responsibilities. But indirect investing is not as easy as it sounds. You need to choose carefully what you invest in, investigating not only the real estate and tenants but also the quality of the management. You also need to take…

Tracking down lost super – super contributions made by your employers that you’ve misplaced – is a relatively simple process. Recovering unpaid super, however – super contributions that you missed out on because your employer went into liquidation or bankruptcy – is a different story. Until now. Thanks to a change on July 1 to the Federal government’s Fair Entitlements Guarantee (FEG) Recovery Program, unpaid super can now be claimed, with a little help from the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). Former employees of businesses that went into liquidation or bankruptcy have been able to claim unpaid wages and entitlements through FEG since 2015. But superannuation has not historically been part of this program, leaving many employees of failed companies out of pocket. The change, which took effect on July 1,…

Brian and Emily are saving up to buy their first home. Brian is an IT consultant earning $125,000 a year and Emily is an allied health professional earning $120,000 a year. Super guarantee contributions made by their employers are 11.5% of income and they each have a concessional contribution cap of $30,000 a year. They decide to each contribute an extra $15,000 to super every year for the next four years using a salary-sacrifice arrangement with their employer. The money will be subject to a 15% contributions tax, which means their net annual contribution will be $12,750.* Because they’re using pre-tax income to make their contributions, their actual loss in take-home pay will only be $10,200 a year. Their employer’s compulsory rate will increase to 12% on July 1, 2025,…