The Money Puzzle

It does not take long for distressed sales to appear in a soft property market: In Sydney and Melbourne there is now clear weakness in inner-city apartment markets.But can an investor make money here? Louis Christopher of SQM Research joins wealth editor James Kirby in this episode. ------------ In today's show, we cover: * Soft spots in the metropolitan centres * Why Brisbane and Perth may hold up in 2025* Off-the-plan risks reappear * When one-bedroom units make sense  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Call it a surprise if you like: But the unexpected, highly irregular, badly drafted new super tax is off the agenda: What's more, it's unlikely to reappear in anything like its current shape.  Then again, a parliamentary logjam has also ensured the big breakthrough on financial advice - where super funds would come into the game in a major way - is also petrified in a political deadlock. At least we can start investing with a teeny bit of certainty from here. Aleks Vickovich of the Conexus Financial group joins wealth editor James Kirby in this episode. -------- In today's show, we cover * What happened to the new $3m super tax * Financial advice from big funds gets kicked into touch * How paying $5000 a year for financial advice makes sense * Should you be involved in private credit ?  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You can already use funds from an SMSF to buy an investment property. But what if you could use money from your Big Super fund to buy a home?  It's hardly a radical idea in an economy where you can take money out of super for cosmetic surgery! Simon Jones of HomeSuper joins wealth editor James Kirby in this episode. --------- In today's show, we cover: * The plan to tap Big Super for home buyers * SMSF opportunities in property * The government's Shared Home Equity scheme is ready to go* Are house prices really falling?   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Need some advice about advice? At The Australian, we have expanded our annual roll call of the best advisers: The List: Top 150 Financial Advisers is out this week. To mark the occasion I'm joined by an adviser who has managed to make the list every year since it was launched in 2017. Will Hamilton of Hamilton Wealth Partners joins wealth editor James Kirby in this episode. -------------- In today's show, we cover * How to find a top financial adviser  * What an adviser is looking for when they meet you * If the industry is thriving, why are there no new recruits? * Are all traditional ETFs the same ?    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Big Super funds are having a woeful run of high-profile cock-ups where customers have been let down by inept management procedures: Led by Cbus, the roll-call includes ART, Hesta and Unisuper. At what point do investors need to be concerned about failings in their super fund?  James Gerrard of www.financialadviser.com.au joins wealth editor James Kirby in this episode. ---------- In today's show, we cover  * Big Super's bad management * The realities of switching  super funds *  Commercial property triggers tough times for super sector*  Are property trusts really turning the corner?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Australian investors have flocked to Wall Street in recent times favouring the 'Magnificent Seven' big tech stocks - and Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway group. But Donald Trump's new regime looks set to favour old-school blue chips, not to mention oil and gas stocks. What to do? Gemma Dale, head of investor behaviour at nabtrade, joins wealth editor James Kirby in this episode. ----------------- In today's show, we cover: * How to play the share market under Trump* From Elon to Warren - what's going to change?* The ETFs for global exposure * Dollar cost averaging - don't ever forget it See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Many property investors never know if they will win or lose on a property until the day they finally sell it: In contrast, professional investors don't fly blind, instead they concentrate on their Internal Rate of Return. Here's how it works. Stuart Wemyss of Prosolution Private Clients joins wealth editor James Kirby in this episode. ---------- In today's show, we cover: * Assessing the Internal Rate of Return on your property * The secret of high-yielding investment property* Why homeowners win in the pension system * Land tax traps (especially in Victoria)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The average HECs bill is now $27,000 and many listeners will have bills that are higher than that: This week the government restructured the entire working of the student debt system - and threw in a universal 20 per cent cut on all existing HECs bills - how will it work? Hugh Robertson of the Centaur Financial Services joins wealth editor James Kirby in this episode. ------------- In today's show, we cover: HECs - The new deal Prioritising tax-deductible debt  Why Trump won't help your ASX shares  The ETFs to buy for the new US presidency  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are two classes of private investor in Australia: Everyday retail investors and legally certified sophisticated investors (defined by law as having an annual income of at least $250,000 or assets of more than $2.5m),Today we examine the sophisticated investor regime - how it works and whether you would gain anything from making the cut. Ray Tubman of Heirwealth joins wealth editor James Kirby in this episode  ------- In today's show, we cover: The great Australian $3.5 trillion wealth transfer The good and bad of becoming a sophisticated investor Property options for the High Net Worth brigade SMSF versus index funds inside Big Super  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

CEO scandals are flooding the share market: Qantas, Wisetech, MinRes...the list keeps growing. The thing is, each of those companies has a board that is paid handsomely for supposedly keeping the CEO under control.What could be done to change this risk?  Fund manager Roger Montgomery joins wealth editor James Kirby in this episode. In today's show, we cover: Coralling the larger-than-life CEO: A proposal The problem with independent company directors Is AI any smarter than a cat? Why can't we get after-tax returns from big funds? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.