Things get harder to do as you get older. Muscles and joints hurt more, you run out of puff earlier, and you don’t always remember things as easily as you did in the past. Staying connected with friends isn’t always easy either. People retire, become ill, shift away. The older you get, the more people[…]
What price peace of mind? Its unpleasant to discuss but the older you are, the greater the chances you may suffer an illness or perhaps an injury. And to put it bluntly, there is nothing more certain in life than our eventual death. When either of those things happen, someone will need to make some[…]
Some people have a plan to stop work completely at a particular age, while others prefer to ease into retirement by reducing their work hours or days allowing them to work until they are a bit older. Financial independence arrives when you replace the income you earn from employment, to income from assets that you[…]
Yes, the old saying “home is where the heart is” is true. Your current home is more than just a house. It’s the place where you have celebrated many happy times with friends and family. It’s likely the place where you brought up your children and you have probably done a lot of work to[…]
From an individual’s perspective, one of the greatest obstacles to financial freedom, and one of the greatest financial burdens felt by most households is debt. Most of us need to borrow to purchase a home, and generally a car. Unfortunately, too many of us also borrow to purchase other things such as furniture, electrical appliances,[…]
Too many people pay too little attention to the effects of inflation. We are lulled into a false sense of security by commentators talking about our current low inflation environment. We forget however, that this years cost increases are added to last years, and so forth. The compounding effect of inflation is very scary over[…]
The happiest retirees are those that live a life full of purpose and meaning. Retirement gives you the opportunity to do and see all of those things you have been putting off for years, however its important you also consider how you will fill your days when you are home. The happiest retirees are those[…]
When you invest money there are really 3 broad categories of assets that you can own. Shares, Property, and Cash & Fixed Interest. If you understand how these assets classes operate on their own, and how they interact together, it will make it easier for you to understand how you should put together your investment[…]
In the last edition we discussed that the number one secret to financial success is to spend less than what you earn. It doesn’t matter how much you earn, what level of education you have or what or who you know, it matters what you do. In this edition of Money Matters, we discuss step[…]
More than 35 years ago I started talking to people about their financial plans and goals. Broadly speaking, when it comes to matters financial, there are two distinct groups of people – those who are comfortable with money, and achieve their financial goals, and those who always seem to struggle financially. I am not making[…]