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Friday, 13 April 2012
Thursday, 12 April 2012
Saving for your Child's Home
Gone are the days where it was "we're saving for a home". Now you're more likely to be saying "we're saving for our child's home". Wow, forget trying to get your kid into a good pre-school, now you'll need a "home deposit fund" for them as well!
SEVENTY per cent of under 35s in Sydney will be excluded from the housing market, a UK housing expert says.
The figure makes up part of a new report, Homes for All, which found that Australia's housing market is in crisis, with only half of the supply needed to meet demand.
Co-author Dr Tim Williams says governments need to reconsider tax incentives and policies that encourage investors to push house prices higher.
"Seventy per cent of 35-year-olds and younger cannot afford to buy any kind of home at this point in time, on average," Dr Williams told AAP.
"At the same time we find 22 per cent of Australians own 55 per cent of residential development."
The Homes for All report is an action plan released by the McKell Institute, a new independent body that aims to develop policy ideas and encourage public debate.
It recommends that negative gearing and untaxed capital gains be reconsidered by the government in an effort to drive down house pricing for first-time buyers.
"We've been giving more and more money effectively to people who are in homes," he said.
"We're squeezing younger people out but at the same time we seem to be enabling people to buy two, three and four."
Mr Williams said Australians were building 14,000 to 15,000 homes a year when the figure should be more like 40,000.
"We're way off, tens of thousands behind. No wonder there's a pressure on prices," he said.
He said that about 30 years ago it took three times the median salary to buy a house in Sydney, whereas it now took nine times.
This is a higher ratio than London or New York, the report said.
"We're constraining supply, and shovelling up demand to people who already have money, and making it more difficult for their children to access home ownership," he said.
"No wonder people are staying home at 28; they can't afford to rent, let alone buy."
Dr Williams blamed a lack of supply in Sydney mainly on poor planning processes by the government, making it difficult to get planning approval for new developments.
He said compared to other cities such as Melbourne and Perth, Sydney was producing less than half the number of homes per 10,000 people.
"Sydney produces 43 homes per 10,000 people, while Melbourne produces 103," he said.
The report also cited the "knock on consequences".
"Rents in Sydney are rising four times faster than inflation," Dr Williams said in the report.
"The squeezed middle which used to be able to afford to buy now has to rent, pushing lower income renters to find the fewer remaining cheaper lettings and again further out of Sydney to places with the fewest jobs."
This adds to pressure on public housing waiting lists, with not enough money to house those is need - "let alone build enough new stock".
Dr Williams is advocating good public policy to fix the problem.
NSW Opposition Leader John Robertson said the state was in the grip of a housing affordability crisis.
"It's time for bold thinking and honesty about the supply and demand factors that lock so many people out of housing," he said.
"... No parent wants a society where children are forced to rent for the rest of their lives or be forced interstate, separating them from their grandkids."
Source
SEVENTY per cent of under 35s in Sydney will be excluded from the housing market, a UK housing expert says.
The figure makes up part of a new report, Homes for All, which found that Australia's housing market is in crisis, with only half of the supply needed to meet demand.
Co-author Dr Tim Williams says governments need to reconsider tax incentives and policies that encourage investors to push house prices higher.
"Seventy per cent of 35-year-olds and younger cannot afford to buy any kind of home at this point in time, on average," Dr Williams told AAP.
"At the same time we find 22 per cent of Australians own 55 per cent of residential development."
The Homes for All report is an action plan released by the McKell Institute, a new independent body that aims to develop policy ideas and encourage public debate.
It recommends that negative gearing and untaxed capital gains be reconsidered by the government in an effort to drive down house pricing for first-time buyers.
"We've been giving more and more money effectively to people who are in homes," he said.
"We're squeezing younger people out but at the same time we seem to be enabling people to buy two, three and four."
Mr Williams said Australians were building 14,000 to 15,000 homes a year when the figure should be more like 40,000.
"We're way off, tens of thousands behind. No wonder there's a pressure on prices," he said.
He said that about 30 years ago it took three times the median salary to buy a house in Sydney, whereas it now took nine times.
This is a higher ratio than London or New York, the report said.
"We're constraining supply, and shovelling up demand to people who already have money, and making it more difficult for their children to access home ownership," he said.
"No wonder people are staying home at 28; they can't afford to rent, let alone buy."
Dr Williams blamed a lack of supply in Sydney mainly on poor planning processes by the government, making it difficult to get planning approval for new developments.
He said compared to other cities such as Melbourne and Perth, Sydney was producing less than half the number of homes per 10,000 people.
"Sydney produces 43 homes per 10,000 people, while Melbourne produces 103," he said.
The report also cited the "knock on consequences".
"Rents in Sydney are rising four times faster than inflation," Dr Williams said in the report.
"The squeezed middle which used to be able to afford to buy now has to rent, pushing lower income renters to find the fewer remaining cheaper lettings and again further out of Sydney to places with the fewest jobs."
This adds to pressure on public housing waiting lists, with not enough money to house those is need - "let alone build enough new stock".
Dr Williams is advocating good public policy to fix the problem.
NSW Opposition Leader John Robertson said the state was in the grip of a housing affordability crisis.
"It's time for bold thinking and honesty about the supply and demand factors that lock so many people out of housing," he said.
"... No parent wants a society where children are forced to rent for the rest of their lives or be forced interstate, separating them from their grandkids."
Source
Wednesday, 11 April 2012
Travel Fund
A DYING woman who said she only has days to live and wants one final fling to a New Zealand tourist attraction was told her Australian superannuation cheque would take a month to clear.
Chrissy Wray, 54, of Hastings, who has terminal cancer, wanted to cash her $18,000 superannuation cheque - from working for 18 years in Perth - to pay for her funeral and for one final trip to see the Waitomo glow worms, the Dominion Post reported.
But her bank, Westpac, told her it would take a month to clear the government cheque because it had to be posted to Perth and back again.
"In this age of technology, why should it take a month? I can understand it taking five or seven working days maybe, but a whole month? It's just crazy," Ms Wray said.
However, after inquiries from the paper, Westpac spokesman Chris Mirams said that in light of Ms Wray's circumstances, the bank would put the money into her account.
"And we've obviously apologised for the frustration that this system has caused."
The cheque would still need to be verified on both sides of the Tasman, a process that applied to all international cheques, he said.
Consumer NZ deputy chief executive David Naulls said it was "amazing" that Westpac would need so long to clear a government cheque, given its links to both countries.
"You would have thought that, in this age of electronic communication and settlement, it would take place a bit faster than a month."
Thankfully this woman will get her trip away, and I have no opinion on her or her finances, but because I've been so diligent with putting money aside, I have a travel fund with a bit of cash in it. If someone in my family was placed in this position, I'd be able to lend them the money immediately. That makes me feel very satisfied.
Tuesday, 10 April 2012
48 Hours Logo
Fancy yourself as a designer? I just discovered 48 Hours Logo. I read through the FAQ and it seems quite legit. If you fancied yourself as a logo designer, this might bring a couple of bucks your way!
Monday, 9 April 2012
Taylor Swift's Prom Date
Taylor Swift is lovely to do such a charitable thing.
I often wonder about the cost of these things. I wonder if the recipients of such charitable events sometimes get stuck with out of pocket expenses that they weren't expecting? I wonder if they stuck with bills for things like room service, public transport, take-away, tipping. etc?
Here's hoping I never find out, but I've always wondered how the financial side of things works?
Friday, 6 April 2012
Compare Bank Fees
Most people have a savings account from one of the majors in this country and choose one that has no bank charges or fees, but I found this link that compares fees for savings accounts for all the different banks.
My bank accounts have no fees or charges but yours might need checking into?
Thursday, 5 April 2012
50 Fun & Cheap Date Night Ideas
When you have debt and no fun money to spare, trying to keep yourself entertained can be hard work. I read this post the other day on Centsibly Speaking about 50 Fun and Cheap Date Night Ideas.
If you did one date a week, that's a whole year of dates! I challenge someone to actually do this for a whole year and keep track of the cost - it would make for an interesting blog!
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