Aussie Firebug

Today my guest is a legend in the Australian personal finance space. Noel Whittaker has been educating Aussies in money management and investing for over 50 years. He’s probably most famous for his international bestselling book "Making Money Made Simple" which has sold over a million copies worldwide!Some of the topics we cover in today’s episode are:Noel’s upbringing and first investments (00:02:19)What made Noel become an author? (00:13:41)Noel’s investment choices and experience (00:18:08)Noel’s thoughts on Australian Superannuation (00:26:50)Annuities in Australia (00:42:46)The big issue with Lenders Mortgage Insurance (00:48:37)What’s happened to the financial planning industry and how would Noel fix it? (00:50:38)LinksWebsite - www.noelwhittaker.com.auBook - Making Money Made SimpleBook - Retirement Made Simplewww.aussiefirebug.com/podcast

I have an interesting episode for you guys today and I think you’re really going to like it. My guest today is Scott O’Neill. Scott bought his first investment property in 2010 with a $60K deposit after saving for 5 years. Just 8 years later, Scott and his wife had 28 properties generating $300K of profit each year plus around $7Million of equity. And Scott is very adamant that he didn’t receive any financial help, gifts, inheritance, living at home rent-free until his late 20’s etc. He’s self-made and agreed for me to dive deeply into exactly how he managed to do it.Some of the topics we talk about today are:Scott’s background. What type of socioeconomic situation did he come from? (00:06:24)How did Scott come to be an investor? (00:11:41)The schools Scott attended and what type of career he had once he graduated from uni? (00:14:13)A timeline of Scott and his wife’s salary and savings rate during those 8 years from 2010 to 2018 (00:17:15)How did the banks let him and his wife load up on that much debt? Especially during the APRA crackdown in the early/mid-2010s. (00:42:04)How much of their success does Scott attribute to timing and luck vs skill and hard work? (01:00:26)How much he personally draws from his buyer agency business even after reaching financial independence? (01:13:39)LinksWebsite - Rethink Investingwww.aussiefirebug.com/podcast

Today I’m chatting with chemical engineer/home energy advisor Tim Forcey. He’s probably known best in the FIRE community for creating the extremely popular Facebook group, My Efficient Electric Home (MEEH) which currently has over 65,000 members.I’ve always said one of the most common traits in FIRE community is hyper efficiency of everything we spend money on, so I was very excited personally to have Tim on the show, especially with energy prices creeping higher and higher.Some of the topics we cover include:What made Tim become a home energy advisor? (00:02:25)What are the low hanging fruits to make our homes more energy efficient? (00:08:42)Is it true that electric air-conditioners are cheaper to run than gas systems for heating your home? (00:11:07)What is the “thermal envelope” and why is it important? (00:25:06)Building regulations in Australia and what Tim would mandate if he were in charge (00:37:46)What are heat pumps, how do they work and why has gas heating been so popular? (00:44:21)Tim’s thoughts on solar energy and home batteries (00:52:12)The story behind “My Efficient Electric Home (MEEH)” Facebook group (01:00:50)LinksWebsite - timforcey.com.auFacebook group - My Efficient Electric Home (MEEH)YouTube Channel - RenewYouTube - Heat Pumps - Part 1 - Hot WaterYouTube - Heat Pumps - Part 2 - Space Heatingwww.aussiefirebug.com/podcast

Today we’re talking about two popular career paths - starting out at one of the big four or going into a government role. The Big Four is the nickname used to refer collectively to the four largest professional services networks in the world. These include Deloitte, Ernst & Young (EY), KPMG, and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).Joining me in this discussion is my old schoolmate Jeremy who did a cadetship at Deloitte where he worked for 6 years. Jeremy explains the interview process, culture, work-life balance and salary during his time at one of the big four.I’m going to be representing starting out in government as I spent the first 8 years of my working life in the public sector.Some of the topics we cover in today’s episode are:What is the process of landing a job and what were the interviews like? (00:05:18)How does a cadetship actually work? (00:14:51)First year experiences (00:18:44)Salary progression (00:21:36)Big Four workloads and expectations (00:24:25)Government experience, expectations & work culture (00:35:12)The pros and cons of both career paths (00:48:28)Dealing with burnout (00:56:49)Finding meaningful work that brings purpose (01:00:25)LinksWebsite - Small GiantsBook - The Second Mountain: The Quest for a Moral Life - David Brookswww.aussiefirebug.com/podcast

Today we’re talking about succession planning with the one and only Terry Waugh.This is a pretty big topic but we’ll be focusing in on areas such as:What is succession planning and why should we care? (02:22)What are some of the available options for succession planning? (04:19)Wills (07:06)Testamentary trusts (13:31)Succession planning within companies (20:52)Superannuation - who gets it when you die? (24:15)SMSF - what are the key differences? (28:42)Life insurance inside superannuation (39:30)How to protect your kids in case you die (31:01)How much do these structures cost? (33:27)LinksPodcast - 46. Terry Waugh - StructuringWebsite - Structuring Lawyers Pty LtdPodcast - The Structuring PodcastFacebook - Aussie FIRE Discussion GroupForum - Property Chatwww.aussiefirebug.com/podcast

Have you ever been ripped off by a financial advisor? Today’s podcast is all about identifying the tactics financial advisors use that put their interests ahead of yours. Joining me in this discussion is Phil Harvey. He’s an independent financial advisor and one of the founding members of PIFA which stands for the Profession of Independent Financial Advisers.Some of the topics we cover are:Who is Phil Harvey? (05:41)Phil's personal experience with financial advisors in 2010 before the royal commission (08:01)What motivated Phil to help start PIFA? (11:20)What is an independent financial adviser? (13:29)Fee structure differences between independent and non-independent advisors (15:25)What percentage of all financial advisors are independent? (22:09)Red flags when vetting financial advisors (36:15)Phil’s tips on avoiding being ripped off by a financial advisor (55:11)LinksWebsite - PIFA (Profession of Independent Financial Advisers)Website - Construct Wealth - Independent Financial AdvicePodcast - Are Financial Planners Worth the Money? feat. Paul Bensonwww.aussiefirebug.com/podcast

My guest today is Matt Ridley, a British science writer, journalist and businessman who holds a PhD from Oxford in Biology. He’s worked for many famous publications such as The Economist, The Wall Street Journal and The Times (London).Matt is probably best known within the FIRE community for his award-winning book, The Rational Optimist, published in 2010.This is one of the best books I’ve ever read that offers a counterpoint to the prevailing pessimism of our age and proves, however much some people like to think to the contrary, that things are getting better.Some of the topics we cover are:How did Matt come to be a writer? (08:18)As a scientist, what attracted Matt to economics, business and politics? (14:17)The relationship between evolution and human innovation (16:39)Why did Matt write The Rational Optimist? (20:25)Matt’s famous TED Talk – “When Ideas Have Sex” (24:56)How much better are we living in the 21st century compared to our ancestors? (30:03)Is the 24/7 continuous flow of information good or bad for humanity? (36:27)Matt talks about his new book – “Viral: The Search for the Origin of COVID-19” (50:50)LinksBook – The Rational OptimistTED Talk – When Ideas Have SexAnimated version of essay – I, Pencil – Leonard E. ReadBook – Viral: The Search for the Origin of COVID-19Website – mattridley.co.ukwww.aussiefirebug.com/podcast

In this episode we’re not talking about money or investing but rather touching on the sustainable side of the FIRE movement. Today my guest is Anthony Broese van Groenou, a sustainability expert, environmental scientist, PhD researcher and the co-founder of the Good Car Co. This company's goal is to accelerate the uptake of Electric Vehicles in Australia by offering second-hand EVs at an affordable price.Some of the topics we cover are:Who is Anthony Broese van Groenou and what is the story behind the Good Car Co.? (03:24)What options are there now for Australians who want to purchase an EV? (07:11)What is the price range in Australia for second-hand EV’s atm? (12:44)One of the most exciting features of EVs in my opinion is the two-way charging capabilities. What does this mean and what are the benefits? (20:27)How much can an average Aussie expect to save on fuel and maintenance costs with an EV? (30:10)How long does an EV battery last and what is the replacement cost? (31:46)What about EV battery warranties - do they get passed on to the second-hand car owner? (34:54)Do EV’s actually lower CO2 emissions when you factor in everything it takes to actually make the car and the battery? (44:20)LinksGood Car Co.www.aussiefirebug.com/podcast

Today I’ve invited Terry Waugh back on podcast to talk about a topic that’s very popular in the Aussie FIRE community. I recently published an article about how we (Mrs Firebug & I) are Debt Recycling and have received a lot of questions from the community about the details of how it all works. Terry is one of the most knowledgeable people I know on this topic and he has kindly agreed to join me to answer as many questions as we have time for.Some of the topics we cover are:What is Debt Recycling? (02:28)What are some of the ways you can DR and how does it work? (03:48)What happens if you need to sell some shares due to an unforeseen event? (21:26)What happens if you don’t have a lump sum to invest? Can you DR with dollar-cost averaging? (23:04)Are there any products on the market that make DR any easier? (26:42)Can you explain your tip “Repayment needs to be done once in full”? (28:30)Can you use a fixed loan with DR or does it have to be variable? (29:30)Is DR more or less effective if the interest rates were to rise? (31:27)Can you still claim the interest if you redraw the money to increase leverage on a marginal loan to maximise purchasing power? (33:59)Does the loan need to be in your name to get the total deductions? (35:37)What happens if you refinance? (37:40)What happens if you sell the PPoR later down the track? (41:07)What happens if you convert the PPoR to an IP later down the track? (43:59)Can you sell a chunk of your portfolio in order to pay down the loan, redraw it back out and then buy the exact same shares as before? (47:15)What happens if the income from the trust is not enough to cover the interest on the loan? (49:14)If your PPoR loan is P&I do you have to structure the loan agreement to the trustee as P&I as well? (51:06)Can you DR with a trust if both the borrower and the trustee are the same person? (52:53)Debt Recycling an investment property (54:03)LinksDebt Recycling articleTax Tip 2: Debt RecyclingUsing AMP’s Master Facility to Debt RecycleTax Tip 13: Simple Loan Structuring StrategyIncorporating a Trust into a Strategy Recycling DebtStructuring Lawyers Pty LtdThe Structuring Podcastwww.aussiefirebug.com/podcast

This episode is a follow up on my previous conversation with Vijay Boyapati about Bitcoin.Today Mark Monfort joins me to talk about other Crypto currencies, Web3 and DeFi. Mark has worn many hats in his career working as an equities and macroeconomic analyst in Melbourne and London and also spent time in sales at the ASX. Mark is a TradFi native turned DeFi convert and is passionate about building communities in Web3.Some of the topics we cover are:How did Mark get involved with Crypto? (07:45)What is Web3? (10:00)Why use blockchain technology and what problem is it solving? (13:40)What is DeFi? (22:01)Bitcoin vs all the others. What is there to consider? (31:43)What Crypto currencies does Mark “invest” in? (41:54)Energy concerns about Crypto currencies (44:18)Proof-of-Work vs Proof-of-Stake? (53:50)LinksNotCentralisedAustralian DeFi AssociationTradeFlowsETFtrackerNew Era Analyticswww.aussiefirebug.com/podcast