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TPC Gold | Repairs vs. Improvements: What Every Property Investor Should Know

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In today’s bonus episode, Ben and tax expert Julia Hartman tackle one of the trickiest parts of property investment—tax claims.  

With a surprising statistic from the ATO revealing that 9 out of 10 property claims are incorrect, this episode sheds light on where investors often go wrong. 

Julia breaks down the key differences between repairs (which are deductible) and improvements (which are not), using practical examples like painting, tree removals, and kitchen upgrades.  

Plus, learn how to navigate insurance claims and why getting the details right can save you big during tax time. 

Listen to the full episode here 👉 2024: The Golden Year of Tax Planning 

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Knowing the Difference: Rental Property Repairs vs Improvements

Now that you know how to differentiate between property repairs and improvements, you’ll be able to handle your investment property tax claims better!  

For more tax planning tips, download our Free Fact Sheet and find out why 2024 is the golden year of tax planning. 

If all this talk of tax is doing your head in and you’re looking for an investment-savvy tax accountant who can help, head on over to www.thepropertycouch.com.au/tax.  

 

If You Enjoyed TPC Gold | Repairs vs. Improvements: What Every Property Investor Should Know, You Might Also Like:

 

Transcript

Ben Kingsley
Now, there’s a lot of misconception (around this) and something that the ATO released talked about (how) 9 out of 10 investment property claims are incorrect. And I think a lot of it has to do potentially with how we treat money that we spend on the property. I think a lot of investors just think that “I’m running a small business” so anything that I spend on that property has some form of tax deductibility for me, but it’s not always the case. There is definitely a distinction between improvements and repairs. And so can you just share with us why that distinction is so important in terms of whether it’s claimable or not claimable, Julia?  

Julia Hartman
Yes, well you shocked me when you said 9 out of 10 because we certainly don’t experience that.  

Ben Kingsley
No, it surprised me too.  

Julia Hartman
So the only thing I can think of where it’s a bit of a gray area and inexperience might make people vulnerable, is sorting out the repairs from the improvements from the replacements in its entirety. As you know, we have a particular worksheet that eliminates that. But if in some cases they may bring in to their accountant the whole bundle of receipts and say, yeah, I did the repairs, here you are. And they might just be put in. Or some people prepare a spreadsheet for their accountant and just list it as repairs. They say: That’s it, you know, trust me. So I can’t imagine anything other than that, but somewhere in there, the ATO is finding one little receipt or one receipt’s gone missing.  

But anyway, to explain the difference. So a repair, for most people…and this is the classic one, people say, “Oh but it needed repairing to bring it back to what it was when it was brand new”. But that’s not a repair. It’s only when you bring it up back to the condition it was in when you bought it. So if it needed painting when you bought it, that’s an improvement if you paint. So you can’t claim that as a tax deduction. Just pop that in your depreciation schedule and write it off over 40 years.  

But anyway, so did it improve the property beyond what condition it was in when you bought it? Then no, you don’t get a tax deduction for the thing. Now, if it was your home before…when you bought it and then later it needed painting but you went and rented it out for a couple of years and finally you painted it, well, just because it became necessary to do the painting in the year you lived there, it doesn’t matter. You owned it before it became necessary to paint it. So as long as it’s rented the whole year you paint it, you get the deduction for that painting.  

Okay, another thing is to use materials that are better than what was originally there, such as replacing a tin roof with tiles and stuff like that. But you are allowed to use (that) you wouldn’t go try to find old copper pipes instead of using PVC or something like that. You are allowed to use modern materials; you can’t improve it too much beyond that…just what the modern equivalent is. 

So the next one is another example of a tree; removing a tree. That’s a good example of a repair, isn’t it? So why are you removing it? If you are removing it because the leaves are clogging up the gutters, then no. It’s an improvement if the leaves have always clogged up the gutters, you’re improving it by removing the tree. If during the time of ownership, the roots got into the pipes, then you’re removing it as a repair. But if the roots were already in the pipes before you bought it, it’s an improvement to remove the tree.  

And so it goes on okay. But there’s some weird stories. And these are ATO rulings where they’ve said to remove the carpets and polish the existing floorboards was considered a deductible repair. Yet underpinning due to subsidence was considered an improvement. Yeah, go figure.  

Ben Kingsley
I’ll probably come back to what the house subsiding before you bought it and hence that continuation. The other one that’s also really important that you also like to share is the one about some part of the original component or structure being left behind. Can you talk to that story?  

Julia Hartman
Right, well, this is the issue about replacement in its entirety. So we’ve got to make sure it’s a repair, not an improvement, and it’s not a replacement in its entirety. So to replace something in its entirety. Yes, there’s nothing left of the original. You’ve got to have the original still there to have to repair it. So the walls of the house are part of the entirety of the building. So if you replace the whole roof, that’s all right. That’s a repair, assuming everything else. It’s not a replacement in its entirety because there’s no way that roof could exist without the walls to hold it up. Okay.  

Ben Kingsley
Makes sense.  

Julia Hartman
So the house is the entirety. But kitchen; the kitchen is an entirety in itself. You replace the whole kitchen, then it’s not a repair. And if you took the cupboard doors off the kitchen and put modern ones on, that’s a repair. You like that one, don’t you?  

Ben Kingsley
No, I do like those because I’ve seen both done and I’ve got a situation with one particular property at the moment where we’ve had a lot of hidden water get into the back and it’s rotted the sort of back parts of the frame and the cabinetry in the kitchen. So we’re going to have to obviously do an insurance claim and potentially to make it safe and for quiet enjoyment, we’re probably gonna have to rip the kitchen out and put a whole new kitchen in as an example because of that water damage that’s sort of been hidden from eyesight. But that’s an example where it’s obviously…I’m changing the whole kitchen unit. Is that a repair or a replacement because I’ve had water damage in that property?  

Julia Hartman
Well, you’re going to get an insurance claim you told me.  

Ben Kingsley
Yes, we’re hoping to get an insurance cut.  

Julia Hartman
So you’re going to undertake the repair.  

Ben Kingsley
That’s right. We’re not paying for it. It’s not a cost.  

Julia Hartman
Yeah. Well, that’s the trouble. If you’re replacing the whole kitchen, the insurance company is going to be paying for it. Get the insurance company to pay for the replacement. Don’t give you the cash because then you’ve got the problem. Right. So you don’t have to split hairs over this, just say to the insurance company: Go right ahead, get your tradies in, do what you’re going to do.  

Ben Kingsley
Yeap. 

Julia Hartman
Right. But also if you’re not going to do all of the repairs, you get the cash from the insurance company. And if they are repairs, like you’re saying about the boards at the back and that, that you’ve got to replace you say, I’ll claim a deduction of $10,000 for doing that. I’ve got $40,000 from the insurance company. I have to include as income only $10,000 to offset that because it’s recouped. The other $30,000 that I haven’t spent just comes off my cost base. So basically you’ve got the money sitting in your favourite place, the offset account instead.  

Ben Kingsley
Very nice. And in terms of the interest excess, sorry, the insurance excess, is that deductible if I have to pay an excess?  

Julia Hartman
Yes, if they’re going to replace it, you’d have to pay it. But when it comes to an insurance payout, they normally reduce what they give you by that. But yes, going back to the idea of getting them to replace the kitchen, yes, you would deduct the excess.  

Ben Kingsley
Okay, so a couple of ideas there that we’ve seen come out. Hope you liked that short TPC Gold, folks. I’ve always enjoyed chatting with Julia. By the way, the tax return deadline is 31st October, so get on it ASAP. If you have a refund, best to do your tax return soon, so any refunds can go straight into your offset account. But if you choose to engage a registered tax agent, you may be eligible for an extended tax return deadline. If you’re looking for one, go to www.thepropertycouch.com.au/tax. And of course, anything we’ve said on this podcast is general information only. But until next week…knowledge is empowering, but only if you act on it. 

 

511 | Transform Your Backyard into Profit: A Simple Solution to the Housing Shortage – Chat with Peter Kelly

By in Case Study, Podcast, Property Investment

With property prices continuing to rise and the dream of home ownership drifting further away for many, today’s guest has a ground-breaking solution that could be the antidote for these growing issues… 

Please welcome Peter Kelly, Co-founder and CEO of Little Fish Development, project management specialists in property development!

He also hosts the Little Fish podcast, which shares inspiring stories about human strength and knowledge.   

With more than a decade of experience, his novel solution is:  

Dual Occupancy.  

So, what is this innovative solution, and what are the financial and legal requirements needed to make this dream a reality?     

We cover all of this and more in this week’s episode! Tune in now 😊   

 

Free Stuff Mentioned…

  • FREE WEBINAR: Unpacking the 2024 PIPA Survey – Insights and Implications for our Industry
    12:30 – 1:30 pm AEST, Thursday 19 September 2024   
    Ben is sitting down with Nicola McDougall, Chair of The Property Investment Professionals of Australia (PIPA), to unpack the surprising findings from its 2024 Sentiment Survey. Register now >>  
  • 2025 Summer Series is almost here, and we need YOU!
    Let’s make money talk the norm. Hop on the couch, share your journey to financial freedom, and help inspire others along the way. Got a story? Send it our way now >> 

 

Timestamps

  • 0:00 – Transform Your Backyard into Profit: A Simple Solution to the Housing Shortage – Chat with Peter Kelly 
  • 1:49 – Free PIPA webinar & 2025 Summer Series  
  • 3:33 – Mindset Minute: Reaping belongs to the Planters!! 
  • 6:46 – Welcome, Peter Kelly!  
  • 7:36 – Why champion dual occupancy?  
  • 8:54 – Money Story: “We lived by the sword and died by the sword.” 
  • 11:45 – The family move that transformed his life   
  • 14:05 – How Pete hit the ground running with his first job  
  • 16:47 – Baptism by Fire: From the tools to real estate  
  • 21:05 – The path to property development  
  • 24:04 – How he and his wife bought their nest egg  
  • 26:12 – Defining dual occupancy and its benefits  
  • 29:07 – What you should consider before investing in dual occupancy  
  • 31:34 – TREND ALERT: Owner occupiers and investors 
  • 33:54 – First 3 steps before foraying into dual occupancy 
  • 36:39 – The Resource of Mum and Dad: Could benefit aging parents?  
  • 38:41 – Let’s talk Legalities: Preventing things from going south 
  • 40:56 – A Common Tax Strategy: Avoiding stamp duty while getting into a better suburb!  
  • 44:52 – The Key to Mastering Site Selection 
  • 48:22 – Who does Dual Occupancy suit?  
  • 52:00 – There is no substitute for this…  
  • 56:38 – Fairfield Case Study: Can you turn your backyard into a profit?  

And… 

  • 1:09:50 – Wow, what a fantastic guest. Thank you, Pete!  
  • 1:11:44 – Lifehack: Listening to respond vs. Listening to understand  
  • 1:13:43 – WMPN: VIC’s 7.5% levy introduced & NSW recoups $9M from first home buyers who “gamed the system.” 

 

TPC Gold | Chat with the Money Queen – Effie Zahos

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Today, we’re joined by the fabulous Effie Zahos—editor, speaker, author, and all-around finance guru!  

Effie dives into the emotional aspect of money management and how it’s more than just dollars and cents.  

She gets real about the challenges of curbing those late-night shopping sprees (we’ve all been there, right? 🛒💻) and how financial advice has shifted from freezing credit cards to tackling the psychology behind our spending habits. 

In this lively chat, Effie and the boys unpack the tricky relationship between financial literacy and behaviour. Spoiler: Even with all the money tips out there, people still struggle to get it right!  

Tune in and get inspired to take control of your financial story. 

Listen to the full episode here: Episode 235 | Money Hacks from the Money Queen – Chat with Effie Zahos 

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Following Up on these Words of Wisdom from Effie Zahos…

Did Effie’s advice resonate? Let us know! 

And if you’re keen to get your money management affairs in order, check out our bestselling book Make Money Simple Again. 

Featuring our proprietary MoneySMARTS system, you’ll learn how to trap and save more of your income, take control of your money, reduce stress levels and ultimately enjoy financial peace.

Best of all, the book is FREE! 

 

If You Enjoyed TPC Gold | Chat with the Money Queen – Effie Zahos, You Might Also Like:

 

Transcript

Effie Zahos
Yeah, that’s interesting because I do, I probably see more of the extreme. So in the role of editing a finance magazine or in my role where I actually do a lot of seminars and talks, I did one last night for Rotary and (it was a) young crowd, mostly females. And the first question was: “What’s your dirty little money secret?” They were quite open and it was exactly what you’re saying. One was saying that she tends to spend a lot online in the night after work, and that’s a given. I was reading once a while ago…the retail therapy. Friday night, nine o’clock is the biggest traffic for people to actually be spending money online.  

Ben Kingsley
Wow.  

Effie Zahos
You’ve finished work, you’ve had a hard week. Have a glass of red maybe. And you’re on there and you think: I deserve it. I deserve it. My week was tough.  

Bryce Holdaway
What’s your advice to people who would come to you and say hey. Are they asking how to overcome that or are they just seeing that as part of life? 

Effie Zahos
A lot of us don’t realize what we’re doing and I’ve kind of learnt that through the years as well. It’s easy for me to say now. Back in the 90s when we first started talking about money; I mean I think I was one of the first females on a commercial station to talk about money. Back then our tips were if you’re spending on your credit card, put it in the freezer. You remember that tip? Put the card in the freezer, so if you have to use it, it’s got to thaw. Probably put it in the microwave; would that have melted the plastic? I never tried it, clearly.   

I mean, at that time, that was probably the best tip that I could give, okay? I’ve grown up too. Now it’s more of a case of, well, you know, why is it, why do you do what you do with your money? And there’s a chapter in there where I said, you know you earn 150k, why the hell am I still broke? Whether you earn 150k, whether you earn 60k, whether you earn 50k, you’ve got to understand: Why do I feel broke? Why am I feeling the pressure? And then understand why do you spend? What are those triggers? And then try and get those fixes. A lot harder.  

It’s easy for me to say, stop using your credit card, cut it up. It’s like saying to someone who has an addiction, just put it away. You’re not going to put it away. And you actually need to really have those conversations with yourself if you’re going to move forward. And I really do feel for the younger generation coming through because there are so many distractors out in the marketplace that I definitely didn’t have. And you know, one question I’ll ask you guys is that we have so much financial literacy out there. Really, everybody’s on their cause in the institution.  

Ben Kingsley
There’s a report on you coming out.  

Effie Zahos
Yeah, let me turn the tables. Let me turn the tables. Why is it that we are still failing in financial literacy? So you look at say, the HILDA survey, which they had those five simple questions. I don’t know if you’ve had a go at those. I’m assuming you’re going to get five out of five. I hope you did. 

Ben Kingsley
No, I did. I remember that, yes.  

Effie Zahos
I thought they were fairly easy questions. Fairly easy. You know, like you had $100 in your bank account, interest rate was 2%, how much would you have by the end of the year? Things like that. Risk for return, diversification, so on. No matter what gender you are, both failed. So I think only 49.9% of men got the five right and as little as 35% of women got those five right. With so much financial literacy out there, why are we still failing?  

Bryce Holdaway
Well, I always think that if it was as simple as reading, you know, we’d all be billionaires because we’ve just got to go to the library with a free library card. I think money is simple and behaviour is hard, right? Because there’s zero complexity you know, clearly with the property bias, there’s no complexity on how to invest in property and how to build a portfolio. When it comes to shares, it’s pretty straightforward. 

But I always reference Tony Robbins’ six core needs. I think it’s the greatest contribution he’s made. I’m not sure if you’re familiar with that, but certainty, uncertainty, love and connection, significance, growth, and contribution. He says if you do something that gives you three or more of those things, you will become addicted. So think of Facebook, for example, that gives you the uncertainty of not knowing what’s coming next on the scroll. It also gives you certainty because when you’re lonely, you can get on there. It also gives you significance because you post a photo and people give you 100 likes, 200 likes, 300 likes.  

Effie Zahos
So the same applies I guess if you’re saving and just watching it. Good or bad.

Bryce Holdaway
And online shopping. It gives you a connection, gives you uncertainty, a sense of significance. It fuels those needs. 

Effie Zahos
But when you were saying it’s more the behaviour… Yes you can read everything. We’ve got so much financial literature out there, and it is more about behaviour and the thing that worries me moving forward (is) it’s a case where I think the institutions actually have to get on board. So you can give so much help to consumers but if the institutions aren’t playing fair, it’s not going to work.  

Ben Kingsley
The studies were done about how marketers could attract teenage girls. So they’re trying to work out how they can improve their sales and connection. Because they knew that they were going to get part-time jobs, so this is through the 80s, right? So girls were starting to work, and so the psychologists were corrupted by the marketers in the sense that it’s pretty easy, right? You’ve just got to make them feel inadequate. And that’s all they did. So if you look at all of the marketing that’s done for most people today, and now we’ve got Instagram and all these types of things and the people who follow the people the most are the rich and famous. And what do they do? They post their best shopping. Their store is amazing. Whether it be Louis Vuitton or this or that. And that preys on the inadequacies of people.  

And so to get to that, we’ve got to feel like we’ve got connection. And so when you separate that inadequacy and that connection, then you will drag them in. And that’s the problem. So when you talk about industry and business getting on board with that…that’s a challenge, right? I mean, they might do it on the fringes and they might say, look, look what we’re doing here. We’re contributing to this literacy program, and we’ve got our little brand down the bottom and that makes us feel good. But the reality is, you know, the banks make money out of trading debt.  

Effie Zahos
So it’s counteractive. You know, that’s a bad habit. But by the way, if you go down onto page 50, there is some literature there to help you with your spending.  

Ben Kingsley
So they don’t see they have this inadequacy and then they can’t see forward enough. So that’s the biggest challenge you’ve got with the consequences of that money decision right now. So what did that really do for you in terms of growing that nest egg? Because the nest egg grows too slow. And even if I’m committed for six months on a budget, something’s going to derail me. And it’s usually relationship disconnection, retail therapy they call it. That’s all about feeling adequate. And unfortunately, when that little, you know, those dopamines and all that pass, we look at what we did buy and it hasn’t really fixed us.  

Effie Zahos
No, that’s right.  

Ben Kingsley
You fix from within, and I think that’s the message.  

Effie Zahos
Good point. There’s one in the book I wrote, where a lady came up to me. I seem to have this situation because of who I am or what I do that people just open up. And it can be quite confronting sometimes. But I guess I do the same if a chiropractor’s in the room. I’m just: “Right there, I’ve got this back problem”. And she was saying that, you know, I’ve spent $60,000 on my credit card. I have a private PO box, it goes there, my statement, and we’re about to get a home loan. Will my partner find out about this? And that was quite confronting that, wow, the fact that there was a private PO box sent for the statements to go there. But when we got to the bottom of it, forget about the fact that you’ve got this debt and yeah, I did answer the question. Yes, of course he’s going to find out, of course the bank’s going to know.  

Why? Why were you doing this? And she wasn’t happy in her relationship and the spending made her feel good. So there’s always a reason why we do that. And one thing that I did learn out of the book, which you know I need to kind of remind myself is never ever be embarrassed of your financial status. Never be embarrassed if you can’t afford something. Open up more. Can’t go out this weekend girls, I’m saving up for this. Or school fees have come in, I really shouldn’t be fine dining this weekend or whatever your vice is. Never be embarrassed. And never be embarrassed if you can afford it. Be proud. Be really proud that: Yeah, I can afford that. I bought this. I saved for it, and I’ve got it. Because, you know, the grass may look greener on the other side, but chances are… 

Bryce Holdaway
People will find the authenticity refreshing. You too? And you feel brave enough to open up and say me too. 

Effie Zahos
Yeah, exactly.  

Ben Kingsley
Your true friends will. Those ones who you think are your friends, who you might be, you know, moving in a group of people. And if they challenge that… So take, for example, when I moved interstate and I had a big group of schoolmates. Half of them were like: Yeah, you go out there and have the career that you want to have. The others were like: Look at him. They want to belittle the fact that you’re moving on. So you’re declaring that and they’re saying, “no, no, don’t be worried about that”. They’re not true friends, right? They’re not the people who are going to be there. And they’ll admire you later on when you circle back. 

Effie Zahos
Well, they’ve probably got financial woes themselves. So don’t ever be judged. That’s why I like that. And that came out from a behavioural economist that I had in the book as well, that it’s reassuring. And you need to remind yourself, never be embarrassed of where you are. 

 

510 | From Dairy Farmer’s Daughter to Real Estate Empire! – Chat with Megan Rovers

By in Podcast, Property Investment

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What happens when you combine a passion for property, a background in law and a trailblazing drive to create a one-of-a-kind property experience in Australia’s fastest-growing corridors?  🏠📈⚖️  

The answer is Armstrong Real Estate!  

Folks, in this episode of The Property Couch, we sit down with Megan Rovers, co-founder of Armstrong Real Estate, who has built this real estate empire from the ground up since 2012.  

Tune in to hear:   

  • The business values and personal finance lessons she learned growing up as the daughter of a dairy farmer   
  • How she finished her law degree and built a flourishing business in Victoria’s largest continuous growth corridor  
  • Her unique property investing journey that has seen her flip five houses   
  • Why Geelong is where you want to invest next and so much more!   

Hear from an inspirational figure in the property industry who never saw the industry’s male-dominated “boys club” as a challenge. Listen now folks!   

 

Free Stuff Mentioned…

  • Free Property Report!  
    Our 39-page property report provides unique data into each suburb’s long-term growth, market cycle timing, and more to help you make the best decision. The best part? For our TPC community, it’s FREE. Download your free report now >>  
  • Join The Property Couch team!
    We’re on the hunt for a Marketing Content Coordinator! If you are a creative whizz in producing top-notch content (video, audio, graphics, you name it!) and want to hang out with us on the couch weekly, send us your resume!  
  • We love to educate folks!
    We’re not just passionate about providing free education on the couch; we love to help folks everywhere! If you have an event coming up and would like us to share our knowledge with your audience, contact us today!  
  • 2025 Summer Series shoutout!  
    Help us to normalise money conversations! Come on the couch, share your financial freedom journey, and help us inspire others. Send us your story now >>  

 

Timestamps

  • 0:00 – From Dairy Farmer’s Daughter to Real Estate Empire! – Chat with Megan Rovers 
  • 1:25 – Join The Property Couch team, 2025 Summer Series shoutout and Free Report Alert!  
  • 6:08 – Mindset Minute: The 2 differences between people who make their dreams come true and those who don’t. 
  • 7:55 – Welcome Megan Rovers!  
  • 8:46 – How did she create an incredible real estate empire from a background in law?  
  • 9:46 – Money Story: “If it was raining, we knew we could go on a holiday”  
  • 12:18 – What was it like growing up in a dairy farmer family?  
  • 15:24 – How did those business lessons shape her personal finances?  
  • 19:35 – The leap from law to loving real estate  
  • 22:15 – First experiences with Armstrong Creek: Buying with only 140 houses in the area?! 
  • 24:46 – The pivot from established to green field subdivisions  
  • 27:31 – From first jobs selling Off the Plan to building a real estate empire  
  • 31:48 – With no experience in real estate, how did Armstrong Real Estate flourish?  
  • 34:19 – Finishing her law degree while building an empire  
  • 39:22 – Juggling multiple hats: How did Megan navigate tough times?  
  • 41:51 – Breaking into the Boys Club: “I’ve never looked at it as a problem.”  
  • 45:15 – Building clients for life and a holistic service  
  • 49:29 – Megan’s “non-traditional” property journey: 5 houses to reach her dream home!? 
  • 54:23 – The buying demographic in Armstrong Creek  
  • 56:07 – Are interest rates impacting investors in this area?  
  • 58:44 – Why should people invest in Geelong?   

And… 

  • 1:02:36 – Thank you Megan! What a resilient and remarkable guest  
  • 1:05:14 – Lifehack: How to avoid pesky ads!   
  • 1:08:18 – WMPN: Corelogic’s September Hedonic Home Value Index 

TPC Gold | Investment Stock vs. Investment Grade: Which Should You Choose?

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In today’s bonus snippet, Bryce and Ben revisit a classic topic: investment stock vs. investment grade.  

This is in response to a question from a listener asking if the insights from Episode 8 (recorded all the way back in April 2015!), still hold up in today’s market. Spoiler alert: they do! 🎙️ 

Bryce and Ben break down the evergreen principles behind these concepts, emphasizing that while the market may evolve, the fundamentals of property investment remain timeless. 

Tune in to learn why investment stock, despite its name, isn’t always the best choice for investors and how investment grade properties continue to outperform over the long term. 

Don’t miss this deep dive into one of the core concepts that have shaped The Property Couch’s approach to successful investing

Listen to the full episode here: Episode 339 | “Man, Can Politicians Spend Money!!” – ft Property Q&A 

__________________

Find Out More About Investment Stock vs. Investment Grade

Ready to learn more about the fundamentals behind every successful property portfolio? 

Check out our FREE Masterclass on How to Retire on $2,000 per week. 

In six easily digestible episodes, Bryce & Ben reveal some of the critical lessons every (aspiring and current) property investor should know. 

Have a question of your own you’d like answered? Leave us a message here.

If it’s answered, we’ll gift you our Start & Build course (RRP $497)! 

 

If You Enjoyed TPC Gold | Investment Stock vs. Investment Grade: Which Should You Choose, You Might Also Like:

 

Transcript

Bryce Holdaway
This question is coming from The Property Couch’s Facebook Messenger. It’s from Al Knight Lewis and the topic is investment stock and investment grade. Question: Is it still relevant?

“Good afternoon. I’ve just started listening to your podcast and I’m finding them so interesting. Episode 8 talks about investment stock versus investment grade. And I’m wondering if the info in this episode is still current and relevant six years later. I’m looking for our first investment in Brisbane.”

So just to build up some context Ben, back in April of 2015, you and I recorded the investment grade versus investment stock, which is part of the vernacular now. I reckon it’s really embedded in the industry. There’s a lot of our peers who we’re very grateful and thankful that they listen to our podcast and incorporate (it) into their dialogues that they’re having with their own clients within their own businesses. But investment stock versus investment grade wasn’t that well known back then in 2015, so we spent a bit of time differentiating between the two.

And so the good news is that, well, I cannot remember what we said, I’ll be totally honest Ben, but what I do know is the principles that we talk about at a framework level are always (let’s throw a number) 98.3% evergreen, Ben. They are evergreen principles because we rarely talk about topics that are fads or Johnny on the Spot or not timeless principles. So the idea of there being investment grade and there being investment stock is still as relevant today as it ever was and will still be relevant going into the future.

So the good news that we can give Al Knight Lewis, and for everyone who’s listening, who might be in a similar journey where they’ve just started with us: Yes, the timeless evergreen principles that we talked about back in April 2015 still do exist. So like I said, I can’t remember what we said then, but I do feel 100% confident that the actual framework that we talked about is well and truly relevant today. So I just want to qualify that. I’m not dismissing that; I hope I’ve said the right thing. I just can’t remember word for word what we said, but I do know that the framework is absolutely still relevant.

Ben Kingsley
Yep, supply is the enemy of capital growth. Investment grade versus investment stock moves on the principle that investment stock is built on mass volumes of that homogenous stock, so there’s no point of difference. There’s no relevance to it. And our argument around investment grade is that combination of land, well-located land, because at the end of the day, it’s the land that appreciates but you can also get some improvements on that land that have high desirability, high emotional content. And that rings true anywhere.

Now, what we are seeing with low interest rates is that it means that the rising tide is again, lifting all ships. So the argument’s going to be is who gets the long-term income growth? And that will revert back to even some of those more important areas that I believe will still continue to outperform based on the desirability and the demand for those areas, as opposed to the investment stock. So it’s been proven; there’s some data that’s floating around now around what performs better. Old houses perform better than any other compounding return over a long period of analysis, and the most underperforming asset has been medium and high-density apartment stock. So it’s true to form and we think that will continue.

Bryce Holdaway
Two things: there’s a paradoxical thing, a paradoxical concept of investment stock is not good for investors. So let that land. It’s paradoxical. Hang on a second, you just said investment stock is not good for investors. That’s right, because as an experienced investor you want to chase stock that owner-occupiers like. We have documented that multiple times on this podcast. So circle back to that if you need to. So that’s number one.

And number two: where it has a slight difference is in the inner Sydney market, because a bit of that medium density stock has actually performed quite well for a lot of people. I’ve had a lot of Sydney folks go, hang on a second. Well, that city is probably the only city that actually has a little bit of a higher performance on some of that because it’s got such a huge population. The geography in Sydney is barriered by a national park south. They’ve got a mountain range to the side. They’ve got ocean and then they’ve got all these waterways. It just makes it so geographically tough so therefore it’s such a high density city.

But I still wouldn’t be loose in Sydney. I’d still go back to the fundamentals of making sure that if you are going to buy, (buy) in a proven performing block, not the massive high rises that are under enormous stress, both from a PR perspective, from an engineering perspective, from a body corporate perspective. So medium density stock works a bit better in that city. But I still would ignore the fundamentals that we talked about at your peril in that city.

Ben Kingsley
Yeah, in Sydney’s case, you get these mega designed density areas: Paramatta, the CBD, Willow Creek…where there’s just literally thousands that are going to be built over a period of time and they’re all relatively homogenous, (and) they underperform. So I think the context there that Bryce is saying is those 20 to 30 older blocks and the density there, they’ve actually delivered capital growth and our clients are also pretty happy about the ones that we bought for them during the times that we bought them there.

Bryce Holdaway
So I’m also talking about medium. I’m not talking about high density, I’m talking about medium density where you’ve just got slightly bigger apartment blocks that do have some of the facilities actually done okay, because Sydney has been through a boom since we went through that episode. And then obviously we’ve had this post-COVID.

So that could be a little confusing for some of the Sydney folk, but I’d still dive super deep in the principles that we talked about. So that if you are going to buy medium density, low to medium density in that city. Notice I didn’t say medium to high density, low to medium density in that city that you’re still leaning in on the fundamentals. Did that help Al? Let us know: go back to us on socials, send us an email, let us know, we’d love to know if that was helpful. And it’s obviously a good one to revisit for our community.

 

509 | Property Investing 2.0: Why Property Investors Must Think Like Small Business Owners

By in Podcast, Property Investment

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The first property investor narrative was about “mom and pop” investors: middle-income earners with one investment property who passively manage it in the background.  

In today’s episode, we’re introducing the Property Investor 2.0 narrative…  

Small Business Owners.   

There are seven critical reasons; can you guess them?  

  1. Managing A___ like a Business  
  2. Income G_____  
  3. Strategic P_____  
  4. R___ Management & C____ Planning  
  5. Understanding & Managing L____  
  6. Customer R____ Management  
  7. Marketing & B_____  

Discover why shifting this perception is so important and what we stand to gain by doing so. Listen now, folks!  

P.S. We also discuss the most important characteristic that predicts success and in “What’s Making Property News”, Ben uncovers the green shoots in the market.  

 

Free Stuff Mentioned…

  • We’re looking for talented folks to join our team!
    MoneySMARTS 2.0 is launching in October, and we’re looking for a Security Operations Manager. We’re also recruiting for roles in Marketing, Customer Service, and more! Interested? View current openings here >>  

 

Timestamps

  • 0:00 – Property Investing 2.0: Why Property Investors Must Think Like Small Business Owners 
  • 2:31 – Moorr Webinar Replay: A data-driven way to manage your portfolio
  • 7:51 – Mindset Minute: What is the #1 character quality that predicts success? 
  • 10:30 – Property Investing 1.0: Why is the “mom and pop” investor narrative now obsolete?  
  • 12:30 – “It’s coming from a place of ‘doing good’.”  
  • 14:06 – Why property investors are small business owners 
  • 18:45 – Rules of the Game: From guilt shaming to performing social good 
  • 24:47 – 1. Managing A___ like a Business  
  • 25:56 – 2. Income G_____  
  • 28:19 – 3. Strategic P_____  
  • 31:25 – 4. R___ Management & C____ Planning  
  • 33:44 – 5. Understanding & Managing L____  
  • 36:33 – 6. Customer R____ Management  
  • 42:48 – 7. Marketing & B_____ 
  • 45:40 – “At the end of the day, politicians want two things…”  
  • 48:49 – Why does the perception need to shift from part of the problem to part of the solution? 
  • 50:03 – How does it impact policy?  
  • 52:41 – Socialism vs. Capitalism: Growing the economic pie  
  • 55:33 – How do entrepreneurial mindsets bring economic benefits? 
  • 58:35 – The 4 ways we ALL win  

And… 

  • 1:05:40 – Lifehack: Use a fork…to hang your prints?!  
  • 1:06:53 – WMPN: Home Sales Rising: Which states drive the economic flywheel?  

 

TPC Gold | Types of Wealth – What Type of “Rich” Are You?

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In today’s bonus snippet, Bryce and Ben talk all things wealth. 💰 

Do you know what type of “rich” you are?  

Discover how understanding your current financial position can help you move forward with confidence, and why true wealth is measured in time, not money.  

Listen to the full episode here: Episode 335 | The Four Types of Wealth.

__________________

Types of Wealth & The Seven Grades of Financial Wellbeing

Now that you know a little bit more about the different types of wealth, it’s a great time to conduct a health check on your finanes.

These are the 7 Grades of Financial Wellbeing: 

  • 1 – Financial Turmoil 
  • 2 – Financial Survival 
  • 3 – Financial Consciousness 
  • 4 – Financial Stability 
  • 5 – Financial Control 
  • 6 – Financial Peace 
  • 7 – Financial Contribution 

Take the Financial Wellbeing Quiz now to work out what grade you’re in and how to move up a level!

Similar Episodes to TPC Gold | Types of Wealth – What Type of “Rich” Are You?

Transcript

Bryce Holdaway
In terms of financial wealth, we think there’s seven grades of financial wellbeing and it’s probably worth revisiting those Ben, because it’s been a little while since we covered this on an episode.  

Ben Kingsley
And it’s going to be more prevalent in the work that we do moving forward because we’ve done the fundamentals around asset selection and all those types of things, so the next part of the journey that we want to take the community on is: how do you then measure that? Because it’s going to be different for everyone – rather than putting a dollar value on it straight away, what we want to be doing is talking about just understanding where you sit in terms of your current position and how you take that forward.  

So your starting point is not financial turmoil, but that’s number one. If you’re in financial turmoil, you need to get some professional help. If you are at financial survival, it’s very clear you’ve made some judgment decisions that haven’t gone the right way, and so you’re in a bit of strife. The starting position is financial consciousness. So technically this is our benchmark. This is base camp where we start and then we want to try and move up the ladder and we get to financial stability. That’s really important. So all of a sudden we’re now starting to say righty-o, got a bit of a sense of what’s going on here, still more to learn. And then we move into financial control. And this is the big piece that we’ve been talking about on our podcast a lot is feeling on top of it all without necessarily spending too much time on it is our goal. That’s what MoneySMARTS is all about. 10 minutes a month, but just feeling like you’ve got that money control and now starting to lift your eyes to get into that investment space and making that money work harder for you. And then as you do that, you move towards financial peace.  

Now, what I love about these seven grades is that’s what we do every day. That’s our purpose in terms of why we get up and what we do in our business is move people into financial peace. Hopefully not from financial turmoil. Hopefully we’re getting them from financial consciousness or financial control, and then basically moving through that. And there (are) a lot of moving parts there but what today’s lesson about is we’re talking more mindset today than ever before in terms of the technical stuff that we talk about. But the one I really love and I’m glad we added it is because we do measure the progress of the clients that we’re helping towards financial peace. But when someone gets to a fairly significant position, we’re obviously in a great position to also have financial contribution. And from my point of view, that’s where you pay it forward. So if you’re in a blessed position where you can then set up a trust fund – maybe for the generation of children that are going to come through for education purposes, because education is everything. Or you can contribute to a cause or a purpose that you really have passion about.  

Bryce Holdaway
(Something) bigger than you.  

Ben Kingsley
It’s bigger than you and that doesn’t matter, that doesn’t have to be financial either, that could just be time because what financial peace gives you, the greatest thing it gives you is time and the choice of what you do with your time. So I think that’s important if you haven’t listened to a deep dive of that episode, it’s (episode) 275 that we did last March. I encourage you to do that. We also on the socials, I think on Instagram we have a nice little storybook around that and we have a downloadable on that as well. So I think there is something to do. So we’ll make sure that those are in the show notes. But that’s the scene setter for what we’re talking about.  

Bryce Holdaway
So let’s go through that again Ben, just to get that to land. So grade one was financial turmoil. Grade two was financial survival. Grade three was financial consciousness. Grade four was financial stability. Grade five was financial control. Grade six was financial peace and grade seven was financial contribution.  

Ben Kingsley
And we have some amazing things that we’re working on that are going to really bring this to life, hopefully at the second half of the year. So when I get back from my break, we’re going to be really focusing in on that. And we’ve got some exciting things to be sharing with the community in the second half of this year. So I can’t wait for that. That gets me out of bed every day.  

Bryce Holdaway
What I like about that too Ben is it shows us the first six are really a journey of the individual or of the family unit. And then grade seven becomes instead of just being about you and your family units, about how can you impact others and make a contribution? And obvious examples are Bill Gates and Warren Buffett who are benevolent.  

Ben Kingsley
Yeah, the Atlassian boys. You look at Mike Cannon-Brookes, he spent, you know, about over a billion dollars on renewable energy. He’s thinking there’s an amazing opportunity here for Australia for that. So we love stories like that. And again, that’s the stories that you see in the main press. But I mean, I don’t know whether you caught the Twinnies episode, the Australian story on the Twinnies. So there’s these girls in there. I suspect they’re probably in their 40s, maybe early 50s. They do damaged and injured bird life.  

And so they live in Queensland, and them and their mum and their dad basically put all of their money into looking after and recuperating these birds and then sending them back out into the wild. Now, talk about purpose, talk about contribution, talk about all of those things, right? It’s a charitable thing. So Jane and I watched that the other night and we were like, I’m so glad we watched that. That was such a cool little episode to see these people who are doing this type of work.  

So that’s also what we’re talking about. If you’re in a fortunate position or even (if) you say to yourself from a financial position, you’re not fortunate, but you want to dedicate your life to serve. That couple of ladies, a fascinating study on twins, but also a fascinating study on what they’re doing in terms of their contribution.  

Bryce Holdaway
Well sounds like that might be the balance. I don’t know if you’ve watched on Netflix Seaspiracy yet.  

Ben Kingsley
No I haven’t seen that one yet.  

Bryce Holdaway
For anyone who’s listening to this, I felt flat, significantly after that and it’s changed the way I (think) even if it’s 50% true.  

Ben Kingsley
So what is it (about)? Give us a little backstory on it. 

Bryce Holdaway
It’s talking about how the fishing industry is overfishing the ocean and the impacts of that, and the lengths that we’ll go to and how it’s not being talked about. So it sounds like you need to have that one for a bit of a balance. But a couple of things in financial wealth for this particular type, I mean, we’ve talked about it for six years. So we’re not going to do anything groundbreaking today that we haven’t talked about before, other than just a few key concepts around: it’s about passive income over active income. So everything we’re talking about to get to grade six, which is that financial peace is where, you get more passive income coming into your wheelhouse than your expenses. So then you are in a place where you can get type three back, which we’ll talk about shortly. And also just the concept that wealth is measured in time and rich is measured in money.  

Ben Kingsley
I love that, say that again.  

Bryce Holdaway
Yeah, the difference is really important because wealth is measured in time, whereas rich is measured in money. It kind of goes to the fact that rich is kind of a four-letter word on this podcast because it sounds dirty. In our industry it’s full of spruiker talk. But we’ve always talked about having meaningful wealth around being able to sustain a lifestyle that gives you the opportunity to do the things that you actually want to do.  

Ben Kingsley
There’s no race to the top. You know, we’ve talked about that before in terms of the richest person in the world. What do they really got? You know, how important is that? And will they ever stay there? And when you get there, so what? I think for some of those people, if they serve well and they’re successful in serving others, all power to them, right? Very empowering when you’re making a true contribution, and you’re rewarded for that contribution. But in terms of the whole idea of being mega wealthy or being in the billion-dollar club and all of that, it does lessen my respect or view of some of those people if that’s what they’re chasing, right? If that’s their motivation, (if) it’s purely around how wealthy they can be.  

Bryce Holdaway
Type number three is my favourite. It’s time wealth. And the reason it’s my favourite is because I get to spend more time with them.  

Ben Kingsley
Hope you liked that short TPC Gold, folks. And if you’re looking for the free download or the quiz, check out www.thepropertycouch.com.au/quiz-financial-wellbeing. The link is also in the show notes, so just swipe up on your podcast platform and check it out. Have a play around with the quiz and we hope you’ll be at the stage that you aspire to be. But until next week, knowledge is empowering, but only if you act on it. 

508 | Mid-Year Property Market Outlook 2024

By in Podcast, Property Investment

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🔮 We’re back with our mid-year property market outlook! 🔮

As we approach the end of 2024, staying informed is more important than ever.
That’s why we’re diving deep into the latest figures to provide you with a comprehensive analysis of the key trends driving the “markets within markets.”

So, where is the property market headed as we close out the year?

Here’s what we cover:

  • 2024 Market Predictions: What We Got Right and Wrong
  • Defying the Odds: Why Some Markets Are Showing Resilience
  • EXPLAINED: The Growing Crisis in Housing Supply
  • RBA Cash Rate Review and What’s Next?
  • Is a Hard Landing in Store with our Inflation Story?

Get a glimpse into the future (Thanks to Corelogic’s in-depth data) by listening in now! 😊

Free Stuff Mentioned…

 

Timestamps

  • 0:00 – Mid-Year Property Market Update 2024  
  • 3:41 – Watch this episode on YouTube! 
  • 4:11 – Moorr Webinar replay, PICA Sentiment Survey & Summer Series shoutout
  • 9:23 – Mindset Minute: Why don’t parents talk about money with their kids?  
  • 11:15 – Where are we today? Year-to-date growth 
  • 13:14 – Did we predict 2024 correctly?  
  • 17:38 – The base case: No recession incoming! Here’s why.  
  • 19:41 – RBA’s cash rate in review  
  • 20:34 – The summary of February’s supply: Surprising market resilience and overall stock  
  • 22:33 – New supply levels of property: Is Spring still the selling season with a 2.5% change? 
  • 26:32 – Total new listings: Is loss aversion creeping in?  
  • 31:27 – Building Approvals: A worsening undersupply and what caused the sharp upward spike?  
  • 35:36 – How much momentum can this positive story continue with?  
  • 37:07 – New financing: Reconciling THIS fascinating chart  
  • 39:31 – Where the market activity is based on total lending  
  • 41:16 – The Rental Story: Why are we seeing cooling markets across Sydney & Melbourne? 
  • 45:47 – Rental yields and average weekly costs  
  • 48:40 – February Recap: The Downside & Upside Story  
  • 50:04 – New August updates: Is a harder landing in store?  
  • 53:11 – Why we should be price takers, not price makers!  
  • 54:37 – Demand & Supply Ratio: Which state is sitting at a healthy 62%?  
  • 57:05 – Days on Market & Vendor Discounts (aka which markets are cooling?)  
  • 1:01:25 –  Market Sentiment: Why do most people expect house prices to continue going up?  
  • 1:05:21 – Where price activity is happening: “The seller has to meet the market”  
  • 1:09:04 – Rental demand and the yields story  
  • 1:11:24 – Recap 
  • 1:13:13 – Into the next 6 months: Rate rises, APRA’s buffer rate & which markets are finishing strong  
  • 1:22:51 – “Property is a big part of Australia’s DNA”    

And… 

  • 1:25:55 – Lifehack: Incentivise your kids…  

TPC Gold | Dumb Things Smart People Do With Their Money

By in Podcast

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Are you guilty of making dumb decisions with your money? 🤔💸 

In today’s bonus snippet, we dive into some of the dumb things even smart people do with their money. 

Join us as we explore some of these common financial mistakes and learn how to avoid these traps. Tune in for some laughs, self-reflection, and valuable insights on how to smarten up your money habits.  

For more tips on making better financial decisions, listen to the full episode here: Episode 72 | Dumb Things People Do with Their Money!  

__________________

Dumb Things Smart People Do with Their Money – What Next?  

Now that you know the top three dumb things people tend to do with their money, it’s the perfect time to take a closer look at your finances and make your cash work harder for you. 

If you haven’t yet heard about our simple 7-step MoneySMARTS system, claim your FREE copy of our bestselling book Make Money Simple Again now.  

Discover how to trap more of your income AND guarantee a surplus in your bank account every single month! 

Similar Episodes to TPC Gold | Dumb Things Smart People Do with Money

Transcript

Ben Kingsley
Well, we’re just going to talk about dumb decisions with money.  

Bryce Holdaway
Dumb things people do with money.  

Ben Kingsley
There it is, there’s the topic. 

Bryce Holdaway
Dumb things people do with money. Hey folks, we’re a property investment podcast largely, but if anyone has been listening to our podcast series, they’ll know that we place as much emphasis on the minutiae of detail of cash flow management as we do on buying investment properties. So all of our regular listeners will know that. So today we’re talking about pillar three or “C” (for) cashflow management. So mate, we’re going to kick off a few things and we’re going to see if any of our listeners can relate to some of these dumb things that people do with money. 

Ben Kingsley
Our listeners wouldn’t do these things, but it’s up to them to then pass that on to their friends and educate their friends on how to do that.  

Bryce Holdaway
So folks, if we say anything offensive, we’re not talking to you. We’re talking to your friends.  

Ben Kingsley
But if you’re starting to go red in the cheeks and something, well, then maybe that’s the one you need to jot down to take a look at.  

Bryce Holdaway
I’ve got to say to our listeners as well, I’ve done a heap of these dumb things myself. Important thing is I’ve corrected the ship and I’ve got back on track. But over the journey, some of these dumb things, I’m actually just talking to a mirror right now.  

Ben Kingsley
It is all education and ultimately these are our observations in terms of what they look like. 

Bryce Holdaway
So kick it off, mate.  

Ben Kingsley
Okay, well there’s a piece of paper in front of me. (Number one is) too many separate individual accounts. So when people come in, they fill out their online fact find. And then basically, you know, we go and have a look at all of their financial situation. And I’m looking at six or seven bank accounts and I go, “Why?” And they’re (going): “Well, you know, I’ve got a credit union…that’s sort of the slush fund…that’s the emergency buffer money. So I’ve got $1,000 in there and $500 in the ING saver account.” And I’m like, well, wait a minute, don’t you have an offset account? Like, what’s that lazy money over there doing? Get it back in. Tidy it up and get back to MoneySMARTS. So that one for me, you got something on that one? 

Bryce Holdaway
Yeah, bank fees on each and every one of those accounts is adding up. MoneySMARTS, if someone’s just listening to this podcast for the very first time today, we’ve talked about it a number of times. But MoneySMARTS for us is, you know, we’ve got a genius in the office here Ben, Michael Pope, who you’ve said it before, he is that fastidious and that…what’s the right word?  

Ben Kingsley
Well, he has measured every dollar that he has spent since the age of 19. Now, I’m not giving away his age, but he’s got grey hair. So, he’s been able to put three boys through private school, technically, when it was impossible. So, using these little tricks around, you know, paying in advance or paying utility bills, so I don’t want to jump ahead, but he’s just done a lot. So this guy knows everything about money management. We’ve got another former colleague here at work, him and his wife are amazing money managers and are very diligent about how they look after their money as well. So that is part of wealth creation. You’ve got to manage your money well and you’ve got to take yourself on that journey.  

Bryce Holdaway
Yeah, so he says that MoneySMARTS is simply interest rate optimization. Yeah, and so you’ve heard of tax optimization when you’re doing all these whatever strategies you put in place. This is optimizing interest rates, costs and pricing within your family household structure. So too many separate individual accounts. They should all be brought down to your loan account, your offset account, a visa debit and a –  

Ben Kingsley
Yeah, so the lifestyle account. The credit card gives us the interest free period. And that allows us to use the bank’s money for a period of time whilst our money’s saving interest on our mortgage. And that’s what we’re about.  

Bryce Holdaway
You see lots of situations where husband and wife have separate banking as well.  

Ben Kingsley
Yep, yep, I don’t quite get it if you’re in a union. Yeah, and they come in, and I’ve even had people come in, one party comes in and says, “I want to invest in property. My wife’s not so interested or my wife wants to do it.” I mean, I’ve had plenty of times where the wife actually comes in and says, “I want to get my husband involved in this, how can we do that?” Because the reality is if you’re not both on the same page, we would advise not to invest in property because it will cause so much anguish inside the family unit that you’ve got to both be on the same page. In fact, one of our questions when people come in is: “Are you here under sufferance?” We ask that between the two parties. The body language normally tells us, but when we’re interviewing people in terms of taking them on this journey and understanding their opportunity and potential, it’s amazing to know that if one of the parties isn’t fully on board, then ultimately it’s not going to work for them. And part of going on that education journey around cashflow management and borrowing power and doing a plan, is to actually understand your cash flow movements and that’s why we use our wealth simulator because it measures cash flow movements for 40 years by month. So people get a little bit more confidence that they’re able to do it because they put all of their expenditure in there, they put all their future plans in there, and then they can see that there is an opportunity there and they’re not going to break the bank – which is the biggest fear for most people. So it comes down to fear and obviously procrastination as well. 

Bryce Holdaway
Very good, so too many separate individual accounts is a dumb thing that we see people do with money. Number two, not wanting to change to a better loan structure simply because they’re used to their internet banking. They know their password, they’ve had it for 10 years, they know what the format looks like, they feel comfortable, and the change really worries them – despite the fact that the loan structure will save them thousands. The interest rate could save them hundreds and hundreds, purely because they like their internet banking portal, and they don’t want to change it.  

Ben Kingsley
Look, we’ve just updated our server and given everyone new computers and we’re going through it; some things I’ve never seen. Trust me, technology change sometimes gets me mad. So, I’ve had a couple of meltdown moments this week. 

Bryce Holdaway
No, I haven’t noticed.  

Ben Kingsley
I don’t know whether you noticed what we’re recording on today. That’s because one of our drivers has dropped off the server and we can’t work out why. So we’ve got the IT people trying to fix that. 

Bryce Holdaway
Back to basics. This is just recording on a smartphone today, folks.  

Ben Kingsley
So the reality is we don’t like change. So naturally it’s not easy for us to make that change. I mean, I know when they change the internet banking setups on the different banks, and they try and make it more dynamic and more digitally friendly and for the young people. I remember opening up one particular bank, it’s a new app. So the old app was great; I could understand, navigate, and they put this new app and I didn’t even know how to open it. I didn’t even know how to transfer. And then someone says, “just swipe”. And it’s like, so I’m automatically meant to know that? Like it wasn’t intuitive at all. So that is the challenge you obviously have around this, but it comes back to the point of, when you do make the change, you’re going to have a month of anguish. And that’s what I’ve sent out to all the staff today. I’ve said, give it a month and we should be able to iron out all the bugs and we’re going to be okay. That’s life.  

Bryce Holdaway
So that’s your message to the folks who don’t want to change their internet banking. Do it, give it a month, you’ll be settled in.  

Ben Kingsley
You’ll eventually work it out. You’ll write complaints like I normally do to the banking, to say, you know, like, this is ridiculous, it’s not self-explanatory, it’s not intuitive. You know, I’m not an IT geek, so, you know, make it for the common people. And then I saw them make a lot of changes because obviously I wasn’t the only one.  

Bryce Holdaway
Yeah, so keep your eye on the big prize here. We want to save money to trap more surplus so we can invest more. So that’s why we’re doing it. We’re not wanting to make your life feel anxious because you’ve got a different format.  

Ben Kingsley
So true.  

Bryce Holdaway
Another one, thinking credit card money is actually their own money.  

Ben Kingsley
Hope you liked that short TPC Gold, folks. Now everything we said in this episode is general advice only. Make sure to consult a professional expert before making any investment decisions. If you’re looking for an investment-savvy mortgage broker, check out Empower Wealth. They are an award-winning team and have saved $4,000,000 in interest just last financial year alone. And remember, knowledge is empowering, but only if you act on it. Bye for now. 

507 | “I Won’t Have Enough to Live Comfortably”: The 3 Greatest Generational Fears of All Time! – Chat with Mark McCrindle

By in Podcast, Property Investment

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What should property investors focus on as we prepare for Australia’s next population growth wave?  

Class division: We rarely think about it in Australia, but could it become our reality as the gap to enter the property market continues to widen? 

To help us unpack this and more, we’re welcoming back Mark McCrindle (who last appeared on the podcast in Ep 185), the social analyst and demographer expert who coined the newest demographic: Generation Alpha!  

Mark’s passion in life is tracking social trends across Australia and communicating these groundbreaking insights and generational analyses.

As a sought-after commentator and advisor to executive boards and committees across Australia, he is also the author of five books and the founder of McCrindle, a company that provides demographic data for pretty much any field!  

Today, we have the privilege of picking his brains on:  

  • How decoding generational trends is the hidden KEY to helping individuals make informed and strategic choices with their money and finances.  
  • The three greatest fears and aspirations each generation faces. 
  • Financial Stress: It’s one of the greatest causes of mental health issues and relationship breakdowns. So, how is it spread across different demographics?  

If you want to start making more strategic financial and investing decisions, tune in now!  

 

Free Stuff Mentioned…

  • MOORR WEBINAR: From Data to Decisions 7:30pm AEST, Tuesday 20th August
    Set yourself up for investing success with Moorr, your all-in-one money management platform. Discover how to efficiently run and manage your investment portfolio from one platform and uncover Moorr’s newest features, from the life-changing Property Cashflow Projection to its advanced Rental Analysis calculator.
    Register for it today >>   
  • PICA’s 2024 Annual Investor Sentiment Survey: Final week to have your say! 
    We want to hear your thoughts and experiences as landlords on issues across Australia’s property market. This data will protect property investors and their investments against negative regulatory changes. Share your thoughts today!  
  • Set specific financial goals with Moorr, your all-in-one money management platform for all your investments.  

 

Timestamps

  • 0:00 – “I Won’t Have Enough to Live Comfortably”: The 3 Greatest Generational Fears of All Time!  
  • 1:25 – From data to decisions, final weeks to complete the PICA survey and…Ben’s all for Freo?!  
  • 5:24 – We want to hear from you! Our 2025 Summer Series is fast approaching… 
  • 6:10 – Mindset Minute: “Your life is NOT margaritas on a beach in Jamaica”  
  • 9:15 – Welcome Mark!  
  • 10:14 – How can understanding generational trends help individuals make more strategic choices about their money and finances? 
  • 11:55 – Money Story: “There wasn’t any sit-down money.”  
  • 17:00 – Why learning in life is the key for Mark 
  • 18:41 – Record population growth: How long till Australia reaches 26M?  
  • 20:16 – Why Australia needs a managed migration program  
  • 21:53 – Where is the “sweet spot” for growing the economy?  
  • 24:18 – Melbourne’s population to overtake Sydney  
  • 26:21 – The Groundwork: Defining generation’s financial characteristics since 1945 
  • 30:37 – Why the Baby Boomers aren’t the “lucky generation” they’re pegged to be  
  • 35:21 – What matters MOST to each generation?  
  • 37:37 – “They’ve seen that the pension is not going to be universal”: Why has value in financial independence skyrocketed?  
  • 38:41 – Why has the nest egg historically been significant?  
  • 40:51– As debt builds, is the Great Australian Dream dying?  
  • 46:47 – The Three Greatest Fears of All Time – by generation  
  • 50:21 – Wealth vs. Income: “They can exchange that time for money at a higher rate than we’ve ever seen.”  
  • 54:29 – Workforce changes & financial literacy: Will AI help or hinder job opportunities for younger generations?  
  • 57:21 – The tipping point & where will Australia grow to?  
  • 1:00:44 – “At entry level, policy is not working”  
  • 1:02:53 – Why Australia is truly the lucky country  

And… 

  • 1:08:30 – What a fantastic guest!  
  • 1:12:25 – From iconic social markers to music players by generation    
  • 1:14:02 – Lifehack: Got a long car ride with the kids? Try this…  
  • 1:15:00 – WMPN: 67% of people with clearly defined saving goals feel more confident about their well-being in retirement. 

 

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