Michael Clapham
Federal Budget 2022-23 Summary

Expanding eligibility to downsizer measures: Legislation has been introduced to reduce the downsizer eligibility age from 60 to 55. This measure will take effect from the first quarter after passing into law, which is expected to be 1 January 2023.

Federal Budget 2022-23 Summary
Michael Clapham
Shares sliding again – what’s driving it and is ...

Share market pullbacks are healthy and normal - their volatility is the price we pay for the higher returns they provide over the long term.

Shares sliding again – what’s driving it and is there any light at the end of the tunnel?
Michael Clapham
Six steps to building good financial habits

But adopting good financial habits isn’t always as easy as it sounds, start building good financial habits with these six steps.

Six steps to building good financial habits
Australians, Government, Superannuation, Budget
Michael Clapham
Federal Budget 2020 Snapshot

The Government has announced that it will bring forward stage two of the previously legislated tax cuts that were due

to take effect from 1 July 2022 by two years.

Federal Budget 2020 Snapshot
Boosting Finances, Lifestyle, opportunity, Saving Money, Wealth Creation
Michael Clapham
Your money goals and how to reach them

Not all financial goals are achievable or can be done in the timeframe you have set for yourself. Don’t trip yourself up before you start by being over ambitious or impractical.

Your money goals and how to reach them

Global

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An Introduction to Investing E-Book

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An Introduction to Investing E-Book

With its rewards, however, investing can also be challenging and confusing. Whether you dream of a new house or an investment property, money for your children’s education or the comfort of security and freedom in retirement – understanding the principles of good investing is the foundation of achieving your financial goals. Achieving these goals shouldn’t be luck. It requires commitment, research and patience, to ensure the outcome will be anything but uncertain. And, as with most things, you should plan ahead before you start.

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Market Volatility An Overview

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Market Volatility An Overview

Why do markets move so much?

Markets are influenced by many things – industrial, economic, political and social factors can all have an impact. For example, consumer and business confidence affect spending and therefore company profits. Global trade and production naturally affect economic growth.

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How to stay focussed in volatile markets

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How to stay focussed in volatile markets

So the market just fell. You’re reading headlines claiming billions of dollars of value have been wiped off the stock market in a matter of hours, days. You check into your account and see that your investments have also been affected. What will you do?

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2017 Long-term Investing Report

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2017 Long-term Investing Report

1. Rear-view mirror investing
Making investment decisions based on past performance is a high-risk strategy at the best of times, and we never recommend it.

2. Lack of portfolio diversification

As this Report shows, all asset classes are vulnerable to the vagaries of the market. Having a narrowly
focused portfolio by putting all your eggs in one or two asset classes exposes investors to a lot of
unnecessary downside risk.

3. Reliance on residential property

The only way to avoid the considerable downside risk of single-asset investing is true diversification across asset types.

4. Investing in over-priced traditional assets

The potential benefits of greater diversification and active management become all the more meaningful the lower the expected market returns.

5. Setting and forgetting

Instead of a ‘set and forget’ approach which relies on a steady-state, unchanging market environment,
investors faced with volatile markets will require a nimble approach, shifting between asset classes and sub-asset classes in real time as market conditions change.

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Global Real Estate Bubble Index

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Global Real Estate Bubble Index

UBS published its latest global real estate “bubble index” on Thursday, listing the major cities most at risk of housing bubbles.

Concerns over asset bubbles have regained steam as improved world economic growth, low unemployment and ultra-low interest rates have pushed up asset values

"Bubble risk seems greatest in Toronto, where it has increased significantly in the last year. Stockholm, Munich, Vancouver, Sydney, London and Hong Kong all remain in risk territory"

UBS noted that Toronto and Vancouver weren’t “dragged down” by the global financial crisis, as a weaker Canadian dollar cushioned the blow. “Overly loose monetary policy, for too long, in addition to buoyant foreign demand, unmoored their housing markets from economic fundamentals—and both markets are now in bubble risk territory.”

“A strengthening Canadian dollar and further interest rate hikes would end the party,”

UBS Global Real Estate Bubble Index