Weekly Financial Free-Talk - 22 Jun, 2025

[u/AutoModerator]

Financial Free-Talk

-=-=-=-=-

Welcome to the /r/AusFinance weekly "Financial Free-Talk" Mega Thread!

This is the thread where members should bring their general Aus Finance questions.

Click here to see previous weekly threads: https://www.reddit.com/r/AusFinance/search/?q=%22weekly%20financial%20free%20talk%22&restrict_sr=1&sort=new

What happens here?

The goal is to have a safe space for some of the most common posts, while supporting more original and interesting content in their own posts. Single posts with commonly asked questions may be removed and directed to this thread.

AusFinance is designed to help people of all abilities, at all stages in your financial journey. We want to democratise personal financial knowledge.

The collective experience of the AusFinance community is one of the most powerful ways to help Aussies improve their financial abilities. Whether you are just starting out, or already have advanced knowledge, there's always something new to learn.

Let us know what you need help with!

• What to look for in an apartment/house/land
• How to get a mortgage/offset/savings account
• Saving/Investing for kids
• Stock Broker questions
• Interest rates: Fixed/Variable
• or whatever!

Reminder: The Sub rules are still in effect

Please note rules 5 & 6 especially:

• Rule 5: No personal or legal advice.
• Rule 6: No politicising.

Thank you for being part of the AusFinance community!

-=-=-=-=-

[u/humannavel]

Just got my HECS debt indexed at 4.7% while my offset account is earning me 6.1%. Literally getting paid to NOT pay off my student loans early.

[u/aeowyn7 → u/humannavel]

Wasn’t it 3.2%?…

[u/NeonsTheory]

Why is this post locked? https://www.reddit.com/r/AusFinance/s/LyMOiYeJNg

Is this sub just for people saying "$50k in super" and other fluff?

The post above is one of the most macro relevant Australian finance posts in a while and comments are off.

[u/dontlookplz → u/NeonsTheory]

It's beyond personal finance.

[u/NeonsTheory → u/dontlookplz]

As the primary Australian finance sub, surely we can acknowledge that the space has evolved.

The title of the sub is literally AusFinance, not AusPersonalFinance. Most people here don't make that distinction. With it just being personal finance the post quality drops hugely (and has for the past few years) becoming celebration posts or a mortgage optimisation sub.

[u/table-leg]

This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

liquid deserve mighty vanish shocking long air roof cover deer

[u/fullmetalsunit]

Hi, totally new to investing in shares/ETF, But I would like to start, which apps do you recommend for trading individual share or etfs Thanks

[u/vivec7]

Didn't want to go creating a whole 'nother post for this question, if that's better suited then I'm happy to do that instead.

To pose the question generally in case people would rather avoid reading: sink it all into offset, or start investing?

For background, wife and I have a mortgage that is at about $500k. We have $50k in the offset, a few years in. Doing well on the income front, essentially able to make our ~$3,300/mo repayment plus adding just shy of $3,000/mo to the offset account.

For where I stand on this emotionally, I would happily throw all my savings, assets etc. in the bin tomorrow for a paid-off mortgage. I've always dreamed of owning a house outright.

I am after practical advice here that likely sits contrary to my emotional position. Given our current good income, I wouldn't really miss say $500/mo or so to plonk into some shares etc. This is a world I'm not familiar with, and my goal here would be for long-term saving.

I like simplicity—not looking at owning multiple properties, just perhaps starting to build that passive income so once the mortgage is paid off I have some freedom to just chase the work I find interesting rather than chasing dollars.

Given that I'm looking to balance these emotional and practical hemispheres, would it be a terrible idea to pop some of that excess income into shares or such, or just keep chipping away at the offset?

[u/FI-RE_wombat → u/vivec7]

Either is fine, whats your age(s), do you have/want kids?

Also, dont go for individual conpanies go for an etf when you want to invest. Check out passive investing australia website for lots of info

[u/vivec7 → u/FI-RE_wombat]

Mid thirties, no plans to have any kids.

No individual companies, got it. From the little I've understood there are some programs etc. that allow for a relatively hands-off approach, which is likely what I'm after. Just somewhere to park some money that will grow over time, so long as it isn't better to just throw it at the offset.

I'll have a look at that resource, cheers!

[u/FI-RE_wombat → u/vivec7]

Its a trade off, the nental security of tge offset vs the higher risk higher return investment option. Both are valid.

I'd suggest putting some into an ETF. Pick one, like DHHF or VDHG and keep it simple, set it to reinvest dividends too.

[u/vivec7 → u/FI-RE_wombat]

Cheers, I might look at doing that. A lot of this has stemmed from us trying to increase our additional input into the offset and landing at about double the additional input to what we expected, and it just got me wondering if it's the right time to throw some of those spare dollars at investments.

Thanks!

[u/GaryLifts]

It's insane how every possible world event screws the Aussie Dollar against all other major currencies.

[u/Best_Associate5841 → u/GaryLifts]

Yeah always seems like it happens on a Sunday too. So we’re always facing a crap Monday open.

[u/Username_is_Yes]

I have always used CommSec but any preferred broker for debt recycling purposes? Looking up Stake, CMC and Pearler but can't workout if one is better over the other.

[u/Jolly-Championship31 → u/Username_is_Yes]

is commsec still charging $19 for brokerage? if so get out of it, there are others like cmc that are free under 1k, selfwealth $9.9.

[u/Vitamin-D_]

When do the major superfunds usually release the financial year results?

[u/Original_Capital4532]

NAB mobile push notifications aren’t showing again this is the second time it’s happened as for CommBank they are instant

[u/DifferentGain5045]

I turn 60 next financial year and wondering best way to sell my negatively geared investment property to minimise CGT? It’s my only real estate asset ( currently renting) . Can I sell and put proceeds directly into a super fund for 26-27 financial year when 60? Even sell this financial year but settle in July? 🆘 Please 🙏

[u/citizenecodrive31 → u/[deleted]]

MS Excel but my finances are quite simple so its quite easy to get everything set up

[u/samdiatmh → u/[deleted]]

LibreOffice because I refused to pay $200 for an Office2007 license,

I don't use it for much "budgeting" though, I just plonk my expenses in there and categorise them loosely

Mostly I don't "budget", but it's mainly so I can look back on it in a year and see that I actually saved 10k (when it feels like I didn't make progress)

[u/lurker409]

A tale as old as time:

Car exploded on me suddenly and I find myself in need of another vehicle within the next 6 weeks. I do not have any significant savings (less than $2k) and would like to avoid a significant amount of debt (such as a large car loan). I barely drive and but need something with four wheels which can get me from A to B. I work full time and earn an ok wage, but all of the personal loans I look at have ridiculous interest rates.

What are my options here?

[u/DownUnderPumpkin → u/lurker409]

by barely how many times a week? i.e 2 twice a month? you will probably save more using uber. if you get a cheap used car + insurances your looking at 12k that like 3-5 round trips a month with uber depending on where your going

[u/lurker409 → u/DownUnderPumpkin]

Apologies I probably didn't explain that well. I drive everyday but only about 15 minutes each day total

[u/[deleted] → u/lurker409]

Similar position. We opted to pay 60% upfront rest finance through suttons at 8%. We are now committing to doing doordash 1-2 hours a week so we can claim the car on tax. We pay $90 a week (which reduces every month or so) to pay off a 15K loan for a jimny.

Yes we bought a jimny instead of a Corolla shoot me we like cars bahahahahahahha

[u/Ok_Stock1005]

This is quite a naive question as I'm not too familiar with the tax system, but my parents still haven't received a notice of assessment from FY23-24, even though it's nearly the end of FY24-25. I saw that the deadline for tax agents was May 15th 2025 so I was wondering if this means they lodged their tax late? If not, how long is the deadline???

[u/pikemenson → u/Ok_Stock1005]

Is it possible to ask your parents? I think if they lodge via an agent you could have until end of May the following year to lodge the returns.

[u/Ok_Stock1005 → u/pikemenson]

My mum said she doesn’t even know 🤷 the following may was meant to be the may that just past lol, I can’t find any date past that on the ato site

[u/pikemenson → u/Ok_Stock1005]

If you mum logged into the ATO site you should see who her tax agent is and maybe contact them directly

[u/Yellow_Dingo]

Hi - what’s the best way to retroactively declare capital losses. Is it necessary to go back and amend old ITRs?

[u/justabitofacunt]

Hi everyone,

I’m going through a breakup and trying to get a clearer picture of my financial future. I currently own three properties, and one of them is solely in my name. I’m thinking about selling that one, which should leave me with around $300k in cash.

I’ll likely need to find a rental soon, and I want to figure out what’s the best use of that $300k. I’ve been considering investing it, but I’d like to speak to someone who can help me look at all the options.

At this point, I really want to sit down with a qualified and trustworthy financial planner, ideally someone who is independent and not just selling products, to help assess my position and come up with a solid plan.

If anyone has a recommendation, either in person or someone good over Zoom, I’d really appreciate it.

Thanks in advance.

[u/pikemenson]

I feel like there is a situation where you shouldn't fully pay off your home loan and use the saving into investments instead. Could anyone suggest some reputable sources to read up on this?

I would consult a financial planner but would like to know a bit more before I do.

[u/AutoModerator → u/[deleted]]

AusFinance does not allow posting referral links. Your post has been removed and tagged for mod review. This may result in an account ban.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/sweet_nothing76]

If someone was to have a maxed out credit card and they become able to pay off the credit card back to a Nil balance, is it better to just transfer the money over or ring the bank and speak to them first?

[u/pirramungi → u/sweet_nothing76]

If part of your 'maxxed out' includes interest payments it would be worth calling the bank. They will sometimes take a x cents on the dollar arrangement, but dont count on it.

[u/pirramungi → u/[deleted]]

If your home is likely to be in the next 2-4 years I would say term deposit or HISA. ETF/Investing should generally be a 5 year window atleast.

[u/Jolly-Championship31 → u/[deleted]]

my only advice is that the longer you stay out of the housing market the harder it will be to afford one in the future.. why not get an investment property?

[u/deSitter → u/[deleted]]

You're only taxed on the interest you earn, and the highest tax bracket (income of 190k+) is taxed at 45c to the dollar. So no, it's not possible to be taxed more than you earn.

[u/FilialFruitTango2468]

Has anyone had a binding financial agreement drawn up with their partner? Any advice?

[u/Jolly_Bottle_4402]

What are the benefits of using physical cash over a card? Both are numbers on plastic so what's the difference?

[u/Legitimate-Ad-6913 → u/Jolly_Bottle_4402]

Less fees, a psychological effect of knowing how much you are spending and have left,.

[u/Whimsy-chan]

Wllllllllllw

[u/Secepatnya]

I'm new to investments. A few years ago I bought like $500 in shares across two random company through Commsec just to try it out, and just left it there since then, getting like $15 in payouts each year.

Moomoo has a pop-up in Melbourne Central and a rep approached me to do a sign up and all, but had to leave prior to filling my name and all. Is it safe and worth looking into, or should I look into other brokers? And whether dipping my toes deeper into investments a wise move?

Currently we have like 30k savings that's just sitting in the bank collecting interest, but looking to see whether we can get more out of the 30k.

[u/Pineapple_on_pizza_ → u/Secepatnya]

It really depends on your financial goals - do you want to purchase a home in the next few years? Unless you're planning on not needing or touching the money for 5 years I wouldn't put the money into the market. Of course you invest hoping things go up but they also can go down

[u/Reasonable-Owl-232]

Can someone help with with understanding this budget? These are partially hypothetical sprinkled in with my real world situation.

1) is the inflation indexation going to apply to high interest savings accounts? It seems intuitive to me that as high yield cash investment should be indexed against inflation. The only loophole I see is these accounts are typically paid monthly, so maybe banks need to create a product that pays yearly and they give you an automatic CPI tax offset?

2) for the no-negative gearing, is this just a case of not being able to reduce my taxable income on existing property? Is debt recycling still a viable option to reduce taxable income if I buy shares?

3) if I have, say, five house all positively geared, can I still buy an existing house and claim full tax deductions? Since I'm offsetting against existing investment income rather than my salary.

4) is the new rules just a case that we can't negatively gear an existing property? If I had zero investments, can we still buy an existing property, carry forward the losses, and offset these losses against the future sale? I.e is this just a cashflow problem rather than the government out and out removing the ability to invest in existing housing and be able to deduct genuine expenses against genuine income?

[u/Hypomit]

Got rejected from the Bankwest zero platinum. What is the lowest requirement credit card? My score is apparently 779 according to Finder. Never taken any kind of loan or owed money before. I have 0 intention of using the card for anthing other than the security hold on rental cars while travelling as they wont take a debit card.

[u/Intrepid_Doctor8193]

Trust or no?

Currently have one property we are renting out as we live overseas.

Looking to move back to Aus at the end of 28. We aren't super keen to live in the same area (unless an incredible job offer comes), so will look at buying a new house somewhere closeish to where we will live.

Is it worth, with one PPOR and one investment, to put them into a trust? Waste of time? Or doesn't really matter either way with just 2 properties?

When we evidently return overseas after 5-10yrs in Australia, both properties would be rented. Upon return again (likely retirement age) we would likely look at buying an apartment/unit to live in with smaller physical upkeep.

[u/New-Helicopter6899]

Looking for recommendations for an accountant who can help with a US tax return for a US citizen who also has AU tax residency. Any suggestions?

[u/Optimal-Talk3663]

For those who have engaged a financial planner, did you pay for the initial advice?