Paul's Insights: Rate cut spells time to shop around
The Reserve Bank's decision to cut the cash rate by 0.25% to 1.25% sees interest rates falling to new historic lows. But long before the Reserve swung into action, plenty of lenders had taken their own hatchet to home loan interest rates, and there are some exceptional deals up for grabs.
Paul's Insights: Fifty bucks a year - Not much reward
If you've got a rewards credit card, chances are it's leaving you out of pocket. The freebies can be meagre, and they can come at a big cost.
Paul's Insights: Rate war benefits borrowers
The Reserve Bank may have kept the official cash rate on hold in May but behind the scenes, banks are taking the axe to home loan rates - and borrowers are the winners.
Paul's Insights: Three money danger zones to avoid
New research highlights three key weak spots that could damage our financial wellbeing.
Paul's Insights: New protection for super
It can be frustrating to have money sitting in super, only to find it gets eaten away by fees and charges over time. It happens all too often. But that's about to change.
Paul's Insights: Investments should pass the pub test
An investment doesn't have to be complex to be good, and if you're about to tip money into something, make sure it passes the pub test.
Paul's Insights: Household wealth tops $9.7 trillion
You may not feel particularly well-heeled, but the total wealth of Australians stacks up to a tidy $9,784 billion. The trouble is, we don't always make the most of that money.
Paul's Insights: Affordability plus rate cuts - good news for first home buyers
First home buyers have had a tough time in recent years as property values soared across a number of state capitals. But market conditions are very different today, and with values down in many areas, a new report by Aussie Home Loans and CoreLogic reveals Australia's cheapest suburbs to buy a home.
Paul's Insights: Growing super for longer
The 2019/20 Federal Budget has been handed down, and predictably, we saw some fine-tuning of the rules around super. But the news is all good - the latest changes will make it easier for older Australians to grow their retirement savings for longer.
Paul's Insights: The danger of stolen data
There was a time when crooks made off with television sets or jewellery - items that were easy to cart off and hock around town. These days, they focus on far more transportable stuff, like details of our personal accounts. And it's an all too lucrative business.
Paul's Insights: Super crimes and misdemeanors
Australia's 600,000 self-managed super funds (SMSFs) are collectively worth an estimated $755 billion. That's nearly one-third of total super assets. But it seems not all SMSFs follow the road rules.
Paul's Insights: Options for home equity worth exploring
Australia's retirees are sitting on an estimated $500 billion in home equity but the options for using this resource are tightening up.
Paul's Insights: Time is running out to save on health cover
Time is running out to get a better deal on private health insurance ahead of 1 April price hikes.
Paul's Insights: Millennials could spend their 30s fixing money mistakes
Today's 20-somethings could spend much of their 30s fixing up the financial mistakes they make today.
Paul's Insights: The future face of poverty is female
March 8 is International Women's Day, and in my books that's an opportunity to focus on women's financial wellbeing.
Paul's Insights: Do a Marie Kondo on your super
Japanese organisational expert Marie Kondo has made tidying up a hot topic, and it could be filtering through to our finances.