Welcome back to Ben’s RBA and Economic Update where this month's announcement could mark a “turning point” for Australia... Will the Reserve Bank of Australia finally end the country’s 11-month rate hike or is the inflation genie still out of the bottle?! Ben unpacks this momentous decision and what it means for Australia’s future (can we expect more rate rises?!). Plus, we’re diving into the latest market data which sees the country recording its largest drop in retail spending – ever (out...
Apr 04, 2023•59 min
Last week we sat down with one of our Mortgage Brokers and well, they shared a client’s story which completely shattered our hearts and became the driver behind today’s show... You see, this client had fallen for a common but sadly misguided lending myth which resulted in her losing THOUSANDS of dollars...😮🙁 That’s why, in this episode, we’ve switched things up to become Ben and Bryce, your Mortgage MythBusters!! From debunking the 8 most common mortgage myths to unpacking where these misconce...
Mar 30, 2023•1 hr 15 min
In our first Bonus Episode for 2023, (that’s also the fourth episode from the Talking Property Tax with Julia series), Ben is deep diving into the latest tax updates from across Australia! To help him, we’ve got Julia Hartman, Empower Wealth Chief Technical Advisor and Bantacs’ Founder 🧾👔📅 . Together they'll be unpacking... Changes to working from home Expense claims CGT affects most of your assets – even gifting jewellery! Renting a room out to an international students 2 Hectares &...
Mar 28, 2023•42 min
Given today’s unique and nail-biting economic environment, it’s no surprise that so many people are asking, “What is the next best move for me?!” And the sad truth is...there is no ‘one size fits all’! What we can give you contact~first.name, however, is the next best thing... Our insider's knowledge, skills, tips and tactics that we (and our advisors) use for our clients that helps them to optimise their journeys! Using real case studies from real clients, we’re unpacking everything from e...
Mar 23, 2023•1 hr
The ONE tax question we get asked all the time is... What name should I put my tax structure in?!? And, as Ben says, “It is a minefield.” To help you avoid getting into any tricky situations we’re unpacking everything you need to know about tax structures in 2023. Did we mention...We’ve got help from one of the best! Re-joining us in the studio (For the FIRST time in 2023 – which we’re BEYOND pumped!!) is Julia Hartman: Founder of BanTACS, Leading Tax Consultant at Empower Wealth and Tax structu...
Mar 16, 2023•2 hr 34 min
Humans are not rational creatures - especially when it comes to our finances. So how can we identify and navigate our natural human biases and emotions around investing and risk?! Folks, in Episode 433 we’re exploring all of this and more as we dive into the fascinating topic of behavioural finances with the help of returning podcast guest and ultimate money mindset guru, Evan Lucas! Author of the best-selling book Mind Over Money: Why understanding your money behaviour will improve your financi...
Mar 09, 2023•1 hr 27 min
Welcome back to another monthly RBA update and yet another cash rate hike. (No surprises here folks!). Tune in now to find out whether we’ve crept up another 25 basis points bringing the rate to 3.60%, or if the Reserve Bank of Australia has decided to jawbone consumers this month to curb spending. Overarching all this is the goliath question... If the economy is slowing (tick), unemployment is rising (tick), and wages are contained (tick), then why haven’t we seen interest rates pause!?! Listen...
Mar 06, 2023•58 min
It’s sad but true, we’re back covering yet ANOTHER tax grab that’s set to take 62.5% of your earnings...The Windfall Gains Tax. 🤯 Welcome back to our first Q&A session for 2023 where we’re tackling this shocking tax grab, along with a line-up of fantastic questions like… 👉 Should I renovate and rent now or rent then renovate later?! 👉 Why buy Established over new housing?! (How much do you really benefit?) 👉 And if diversification is the key to growth, should one expand their investments...
Mar 02, 2023•1 hr 19 min
A mortgage is one the biggest loans most people will ever take out in their life. It’s a scary thought. Now here’s the only thing scarier than that... Being stuck in Mortgage Jail and not realising it. This sad truth is unfortunately what too many folks are facing, especially with rising rates. That’s why in Episode 431, we’re shining a light on why EVERYONE needs an investment-savvy broker to help them break out of Mortgage Jail and stop overpaying on interest – for good. To help us do this, we...
Feb 23, 2023•1 hr 9 min
Folks, we’re super excited to be welcoming a return guest to the couch that’s one of the greatest minds in the industry! Re-welcoming... Damian Collins, Founder and Managing Director of Momentum Wealth! He’s also the Chairman of Westbridge Funds Management , has been on the Council of the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia ( REIWA ) since 2011 and served as President of the Institute from 2018 to 2022 (phew!) An active property investor himself, Damian also owns 17 properties in Western ...
Feb 16, 2023•1 hr 15 min
Folks, it’s about that time of year again... We’re dusting off our crystal ball, crunching the numbers from the last Quarter and using our hard-earned experience from past market cycles to give you... Your ultimate Property Market Outlook for 2023! From the suburbs that are set to soar to when we can finally expect this record rate hike to end, we’re covering everything you can expect this year and answering: Is Australia headed towards a V or U-Shaped Recovery? And for those who are thinking of...
Feb 09, 2023•1 hr 24 min
Welcome back to a new year and Ben’s first RBA report for 2023! After a month’s hiatus, Australia’s economic landscape has changed rapidly. Will the board decide to mirror December’s 0.25 rate rise or is a larger rate hike in order? Tune in to find out, plus Ben covers the highs and lows of the domestic market from the ASX’s surprise positive results to falling unemployment and business sentiment. Of course, Ben also dives into the biggest news from around the world including the US’ “disinflati...
Feb 07, 2023•1 hr
Why do folks struggle with good money management? It’s a huge question. Now here’s an even bigger one... How can they overcome it?! Yep. We're kicking off February with some pretty big and bold content! With many new year’s resolutions fading into the background of life as January comes to an end, we’re aiming to give you an extra boost of motivation by diving into the 3 biggest causes of bad money management (do you fall into any of these?) and revealing how to tackle and triumph these cha...
Feb 02, 2023•1 hr 14 min
Folks, we're finishing our 2022/23 Summer Series with an unbelievably great episode... Meet Steph. Her first renovation was done on a shoestring budget. With her husband in between jobs, and Steph herself fresh out of university, there wasn’t much money to play with. Then, they received some advice....and made the life-changing decision to sell 🙁. But this isn’t the end of this couple’s story. In fact, it’s just the beginning... During their next renovation is when they had THE penny-drop ...
Jan 26, 2023•1 hr 10 min
Today’s special Summer Series guest didn’t have a typical childhood. Growing up with a scarcity mindset, Maryanne and her siblings lived in an environment where food was scarce and at a young age, were placed into foster care. Then, at just 14 years old, she started making her own way in the world. If you can’t tell already folks, today's Summer Series story is an incredible tale of breakthrough and deciding “It's not where you’re from, it’s where you’re going”. From developing her own...
Jan 19, 2023•57 min
Growing up on a rice and cattle farm that would later sell due to Bankruptcy ... The circumstances that Dale, today’s special Summer Series guest, grew up in are drastically different to the financial outlook he has today. With 6 investment properties under his belt (with more to potentially come) and an early retirement on the cards, how did he make this complete 360, mind-blowing transformation?? From buying his FIRST share at the age of 15 (yep. You read that right!) to the pivotal point wher...
Jan 12, 2023•1 hr 17 min
We’ve all had big nights out where the next morning…we cringe, sigh and peek at our bank account with a feeling of dread. But what happens when this is your life every weekend?! This was sadly the story of David, today’s awesome Summer Series guest. Once a “weekend millionaire” who funnelled all his money into living for the weekend and getting bailed out by the bank of mum and dad, it wasn’t until he went across the world and had some life-changing experiences that he had his “a-ha” moment. Tun...
Jan 05, 2023•1 hr 13 min
Have you ever had just $336 to your name? Half of today’s Summer Series duo has. As our last episode of 2022, we’re closing out the year with a seriously phenomenal Summer Series Story. Meet Mathew and Olivia – our first and only couple in our 2022/23 Summer Series!! Raised in two very different backgrounds, this couple had 2 very different expectations around money management and investing... With one a spender and the other a reformed saver, tune in to discover how this couple has settled thei...
Dec 29, 2022•1 hr 11 min
As our LAST Episode before Christmas, we’ve got a super heart-warming money transformation in store! 🎄🎅🎁 Meet Jack: a 29-year-old teacher who grew up on Sydney’s northern beaches. From happily living at home, spending his days teaching and his spare time surfing, his world was turned upside down at the age of 25. As this special Summer Series Guest says, “I felt like I'd lost my safety net.” Suddenly with no backup plan and no clarity about his financial future, he knew he had to make a ...
Dec 22, 2022•1 hr 8 min
“I worked hard my entire life and I had nothing to show for it...” Folks these are the words from today’s super special guest before she began her complete financial and self-described personal transformation. Born into an amazing family with terrible money management...Jessica learned the value of being financially independent of a young age. So how did she end up selling the first house she built...with multiple debts...and “walking away with nothing...”?! Tune in to find out now and discover ...
Dec 15, 2022•1 hr 10 min
“Some days, I had to choose between feeding the kids and driving them 27km to school...” Folks, some stories are just so insanely awe-inspiring and jaw-dropping that it's hard not to listen to it twice (or three times!). The story that today’s Summer Series Guest is sharing with us, is one of them. Meet Mandy: a champion mum from the remote town of Forbes. Growing up with absolutely NO money conversations around the table, she was constantly in “the bottom percentile” at school and at just ...
Dec 08, 2022•1 hr 24 min
As we start to close out the year that was, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has just released its last official cash rate for 2022! As global economic outlook shifts to a more “positive” note with the US and Australia seeming to have escaped a recession, have we just received another early Christmas present from the RBA? Tune in to find out if the cash rate has been paused for the first time in 7 months, plus these 3 other key themes in this month’s economic update: The slowing of interest r...
Dec 07, 2022•49 min
It’s finally here folks. It’s the time of the year we’ve all been waiting for (that’s almost better than Christmas 😉). Today we’re kickstarting the VERY FIRST episode of our 2022-23 Summer Series!!! And boy do we have a FANTASTIC lineup of guests for our 5th Summer Series, each with their own absolutely amazing, jaw-dropping stories which are all about this year’s theme… What Drove You To Act? From their origin story to their darkest-before-dawn moments to their “rising from the ashes”, we’re k...
Dec 01, 2022•1 hr 15 min
“Property is a voting machine in the short term and a weighing machine in the long term.” Folks, these words form the beginning of one of our most important episodes (and also our LAST formal episode for 2022!! But don’t worry, we’ve got an AMAZING Summer Series coming at you next week. But back to this week…) In light of the rising housing values, we’ve heard SO many people say, “Surely property prices can’t go up anymore?!?” And this is exactly what we’re speaking to when we’re divulging… What...
Nov 24, 2022•2 hr 46 min
Saving for a home deposit. With high housing values and a steadily rising cost of living, saving for that first big leap onto the property ladder can seem daunting to some and impossible to others. Here to part the sea of confusion and simplify home deposits, we’ve got a fantastic number of guests on the couch (In fact, this is the MOST guests we’ve had on at a single time ). Free Stuff Mentioned… Want help with your home deposit? See how our award-winning team, Empower Wealth can help! Book a f...
Nov 17, 2022•2 hr 32 min
Property is a game of finance just as much as it is a game of bricks and mortar. But what happens when this bricks and mortar – and the cost to put it all together – starts to cost too much?! From rising labour costs to widespread material shortages, we’ll be exploring why the industry has ended up in its current state, when we can expect things to “normalise”, and answering the BIG question… Should you delay building?! And if you’re already building….what should you do to ensure the best result...
Nov 10, 2022•1 hr 13 min
We’re back with another mega-exciting Q&A Day that speaks to the Psychology of Investing, especially in an environment with rising costs and interest rates . From the common mindset blocks that investors face (like loss aversion and sunk cost) to how you can carve a path for yourself when you just don’t know what to do next. We’re unpacking why investing isn’t for everyone, the Quality of Living trade-offs, how and why you’d want to split your variable and fixed rates and tons more wisdom! F...
Nov 03, 2022•1 hr 11 min
While the race that stops a nation will have the eyes of Australians everywhere today, another decision drawing just as much interest has been released. In the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) November release – which happens to coincide with Victoria’s Melbourne Cup Day – Ben breaks down our seventh consecutive rate hike from the data behind this decision to how can we, as consumers, can curb interest rates. And, of course, it’s not a monthly RBA update unless it’s jam-packed! We’ll hear Ben e...
Nov 01, 2022•52 min
One of the biggest derailers for any investor is… Procrastination . So how can you avoid falling into this trap?! Folks this week we’re back with another super-exciting, real Case Study about Annabelle & Jamie (Pstt – These are fake names!). Tune in now to discover the sequencing that Annabelle & Jamie can take to still make this dream a reality, and the frameworks and property plan that’ll stop them from falling into the procrastination trap (or from making more costly mistakes) ever ag...
Oct 27, 2022•1 hr 9 min
Passing on interest rates to tenants. Updating property plans. The future of price growth and… Restructuring your mortgage (is Line of Credit still the best?!) Yep. Folks, we’re back with another ultra-packed Q&A session that’s all about being smart with your money in an unpredictable market. Give it a listen now to get the facts and cut through the noise! Free Stuff Mentioned… Want to be on The Couch? We’re calling all potential 2022/23 Summer Series Guests! If you’d like to share your stor...
Oct 20, 2022•1 hr 2 min
