I don’t know about you but Christmas is always a bit of a crazy time for our family. The lead up is busy with shopping, end of year school and work stuff and catching up with friends. Then we have Christmas itself and then summer holidays are in full swing. It’s a time of year that I absolutely love but it can also be [...]
If you want to buy a home but you’re struggling to get your dream off the ground, it’s really important to stay focussed, keep your eye on your goal and turn down the volume on all the negatives. There are always ways to make things happen and sometimes you just need to think outside the box. The important thing is to get into the [...]
Have you written your Christmas budget yet? If you haven’t, now is the time to start! It’s such an easy time to overspend which then puts a whole dampener on it afterwards when you find yourself with a credit card balance you can’t pay off or struggling with cashflow for months to come. My tips: Write a list of Christmas gifts you need to [...]
If you want to buy a home before Christmas, you'd better get your skates on! With the standard 6 week settlement, this weekend is shaping up to huge for auctions with home owners wanting to move in before Christmas. Just as importantly, you really need to have your finance in place because lenders (and brokers) just can't make magic happen overnight. Some banks have [...]
How did it get to be November already? I feel like I've blinked and almost missed 2021. Are you feeling the same? Maybe it's a good time to slow down, take a breath (or 5), and make the most of the rest of the year - because it's about to speed up again. I've just had a weekend away with my husband, without the kids. [...]
To say that I'm thrilled that my business won bronze in Service Business of the Year for the Roar Awards is a massive understatement. 2020 was a huge challenge for all of us. Like many of us, I had to make a decision whether to pull back, reduce everything and go into survival mode to make sure we were OK or take a risk [...]
When you’re buying a home, it’s important that you take into account all the “other” costs so that you don’t have to live on noodles or baked beans (or fresh air) for the first few months . These costs include: stamp duty - talk to your broker about any exemptions or concessions that may be available building and pest inspection - we always recommend [...]
If you’re selling your home, it’s always great to invest a little into styling your home so it presents in its best possible light to potential buyers. The real beauty is that a fresh pair of eyes is looking at your home in the way a buyer would, and they know what they’re usually looking for. But if that’s out of your budget or [...]
We all know that having a plan is a better way to achieve success than just winging it, and this is especially true of a financial plan. Whether you're just starting your career, midway through, or heading towards retirement, it's important to have a well thought-out financial path to follow so you know where you're heading, what you're working towards and the steps needed [...]
Do you have a “fun money” allocation in your budget? In my experience, this is the secret to successful budgeting. Fun money is an amount allocated every month to nothing - or anything - with no accounting for it. You can spend it on whatever your heart desires without guilt or explanation. You can save it for a few months and buy something ridiculously [...]
