One in five young adults are saving to start their own business

Ever dreamed about telling your boss to “shove it” and starting up your own business? Well, there’s been a big jump in Millennials and Gen Zs who are saving up to do just that (well, maybe except for the “shove it” part!).

There’s something romantic about the notion of starting your own business.

You know, opening up a hole-in-the-wall cafe or little alleyway bar, growing a loyal band of merry locals, and waxing lyrical with them into the wee hours of the morning.

Of course, as any small business owner will attest, the realities of running a business are very, very different.

That won’t stop our next-gen though!

Say one thing for the Millennials and Gen Zs of the country, and that is that they’re an entrepreneurial bunch who won’t let something like a once-in-century-pandemic get in the way of their business aspirations.

According to a ME Bank survey of young Australians with no children, 18% stated their current financial goal was “investing in their own business”.

That’s up from just 4% six months prior!

To put that into a bit of perspective – compared to some of the other 15 options they could choose from – the top response was “paying off a mortgage” at 34%, while 19% of respondents were aiming to “save enough to buy a property to live in”.

So, not far behind the top two responses at all!

If you need help funding your dream, get in touch

What a lot of young Australians don’t realise is that you don’t have to bootstrap your way into starting up a business.

There are finance and funding options we can help you explore to accelerate your launch – and they’re not as scary as they might sound (5-in-6 businesses don’t find it difficult to pay back their business loans).

So whether your financial priority in 2022 is starting your own business, or trying to buy your first home, get in touch with us today. We’d be excited to help you take that first step.

Disclaimer: The content of this article is general in nature and is presented for informative purposes. It is not intended to constitute tax or financial advice, whether general or personal nor is it intended to imply any recommendation or opinion about a financial product. It does not take into consideration your personal situation and may not be relevant to circumstances. Before taking any action, consider your own particular circumstances and seek professional advice. This content is protected by copyright laws and various other intellectual property laws. It is not to be modified, reproduced or republished without prior written consent.

Your suburb’s 2021 property report card is in

With all the talk of record-breaking property growth throughout 2021, do you know how exactly your suburb and property type performed? Today we’ll show you how to find out in just a few clicks.

You’ve probably heard all the talk of national housing values soaring in 2021 – by 22.1%, to be exact.

But that doesn’t really tell you much about how your particular neck of the woods fared, does it?

Well, you can find out a bunch of important property information about your suburb’s houses and apartments, and those in surrounding suburbs, using realestate.com.au’s recently released PropTrack 2021 Suburb Report Card (desktop version, mobile-friendly link).

What the PropTrack interactive tool can show you

Ok, so the two main functions of the PropTrack tool are the ability to select “suburb” and “property type”, which is broken up into houses or units.

This is important because PropTrack data shows house prices grew 26.8% nationally in 2021, much more than the 13.4% growth in unit prices.

Also worth noting is that you can see how much change in demand there was for your suburb and property type, and even how many “highly engaged buyers” there were throughout 2021.

Other important insights you can check out include “average estimated value”, “average weekly rental value”, “rental yield” and “median days on market”.

How does your suburb compare to your state’s best suburbs?

While using the tool, you can immediately see how your suburb compares to its immediate neighbouring suburbs.

But if you also want to see how your suburb stacked up against your state’s best, you can do so via the below direct links.

Just click the > button at the bottom (or top) of each linked page to scroll between the national and state tables.

– Suburbs with largest growth in average estimated house value.

– Suburbs with largest growth in average estimated unit value.

– Suburbs that were most in-demand in 2021.

– Suburbs with largest growth in demand in 2021.

– Suburbs with shortest median days on market in 2021.

Planning on making your move in 2022?

With house prices having just experienced their fastest pace of growth since 2004, it’s as important as ever to find a finance option that’s right for you.

This is especially true as the finance market is starting to go through a shift, with more and more economists predicting the RBA will increase the official cash rate this year.

So if you’re a keen homebuyer who wants to explore what options are available to you – whether that be upgrading your home or buying an investment property – get in touch today to discuss your borrowing capacity. We’d love to run through it with you.

Disclaimer: The content of this article is general in nature and is presented for informative purposes. It is not intended to constitute tax or financial advice, whether general or personal nor is it intended to imply any recommendation or opinion about a financial product. It does not take into consideration your personal situation and may not be relevant to circumstances. Before taking any action, consider your own particular circumstances and seek professional advice. This content is protected by copyright laws and various other intellectual property laws. It is not to be modified, reproduced or republished without prior written consent.

Borrowing soars: average loan up almost $100,000 in 12 months

How much do you need to borrow to buy a typical Australian home these days? Well, the average loan size has increased dramatically over the past year – up almost $100,000.

The national average loan size for owner-occupier dwellings rose to an all-time high of $596,000 in November 2021, according to the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics data.

And the national average has been going up (and up and up) in recent months.

In October it was $571,000, while in November 2020 it was $503,000.

And with wages not growing anywhere near as fast, it’s more important than ever to have a professional like us in your corner when it comes to securing finance for your next home purchase.

State by state breakdown

Average loan sizes reached new highs in all states and territories in November 2021, except Western Australia (which only dropped a smidgeon below its October record high).

Here’s a quick state-by-state breakdown as of November 2021, compared to November 2020.

NSW: $769,000 – up from $644,000 (in November 2020)

Victoria: $619,000 – up from $499,000

Queensland: $514,000 – up from $440,000

South Australia: $422,000 – up from $384,000

Western Australia: $440,000 – up from $417,000

Tasmania: $446,000 – up from $373,000

Northern Territory: $433,000 – up from $380,000

ACT: $586,000 – up from $527,000

So what can you do about the rapid rise in home loan values?

Here’s the good news – especially for first home buyers.

Most of the average loan values listed above still fall below the state and territory property price caps for a number of federal government schemes, such as the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme and New Home Guarantee initiatives.

These two schemes allow eligible first home buyers to build or purchase a home with only a 5% deposit, without forking out for lenders’ mortgage insurance (LMI), which on average helps people purchase their first home 4 to 4.5 years sooner.

That’s right – 4 years sooner!

Another factor working in your favour is that the RBA’s official cash rate is at a record low and interest rates are also very low as a result (which helps when it comes to your borrowing capacity).

Speaking of which, one very important step you can take is to get in touch with us so we can help you assess your borrowing capacity.

This way, you can work out whether that property you have your eye on is a goer, and if not, identify steps you can take to help bring it within reach.

To find out more, give us a call today – we’d love to help you explore your borrowing options.

Disclaimer: The content of this article is general in nature and is presented for informative purposes. It is not intended to constitute tax or financial advice, whether general or personal nor is it intended to imply any recommendation or opinion about a financial product. It does not take into consideration your personal situation and may not be relevant to circumstances. Before taking any action, consider your own particular circumstances and seek professional advice. This content is protected by copyright laws and various other intellectual property laws. It is not to be modified, reproduced or republished without prior written consent.

What was Australia’s top-selling vehicle in 2021?

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Some of us buy cars for work, others for play. So it’s no surprise that the top two cars in 2021 can do both. But which vehicle took the crown? Well, it was super close, so let’s have a look.

Ok, let’s cut straight to the chase.

Taking out pole position in 2021 was the Toyota HiLux with 52,801 new vehicles sold, very closely followed by the Ford Ranger (50,279 new vehicles sold).

And get this: with 1,049,831 new vehicles sold across Australia in 2021, those two particular models made up almost 10% of all new vehicles that hit the road over the past 12 months, according to Australia’s peak body for the automotive industry, the FCAI.

While the HiLux took out the top spot, it must be noted that the Ranger is closing the gap – in 2020 a total of 40,973 new Rangers were sold, compared to 45,176 Toyota HiLuxes.

So it’ll be interesting to see what happens in 2022!

Utes vs SUVs

While light commercial vehicles, including utes, have dominated the top two spots in recent years, far more SUVs are sold across the board.

In fact, a total of 531,700 SUVs were sold in 2021, compared to 253,254 light commercial vehicles.

The highest selling SUV in 2021 was the Toyota RAV4 (35,751), which came in at 3rd place overall.

Rounding out the top five was the fourth-placed Toyota Corolla (28,768) and the Toyota Landcruiser (26,633) in fifth.

And yep, as you might’ve noticed, Toyota impressively took out four of the top five spots.

The top 20 new vehicles sold in 2021

Below is a full list of the top 20 models sold in Australia throughout 2021, including the number of vehicles sold (got your eye on anything below?).

1. Toyota HiLux – 52,801 (new vehicles sold)
2. Ford Ranger – 50,279
3. Toyota RAV4 – 35,751
4. Toyota Corolla – 28,768
5. Toyota Landcruiser – 26,633
6. Hyundai i30 – 25,575
7. Isuzu Ute D-Max – 25,117
8. Mazda CX-5 – 24,968
9. Toyota Prado – 21,299
10. Mitsubishi Triton – 19,232
11. MG ZS – 18,423
12. Kia Cerato – 18,114
13. Mazda BT-50 – 15,662
14. Nissan Navara – 15,113
15. Mitsubishi ASX – 14,764
16. Mitsubishi Outlander – 14,572
17. Hyundai Tucson – 14,194
18. Mazda3 – 14,126
19. Nissan XTrail – 13,860
20. MG MG3 – 13,774

Want to explore your finance options?

If you’re thinking of purchasing a new vehicle and want to explore your finance options for it, then please get in touch.

Taking out a loan for a vehicle is much more common than you might think. In fact, recent research shows 52% of car buyers took out a loan for their vehicle purchase in the past decade, with an average loan size of $25,000.⁣⁣⁣

And just like using a broker to finance a home purchase, using our services when purchasing a vehicle also comes with a number of advantages, which we’d be more than happy to run you through.
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So to find out more, please get in touch with us today – we’d love to help you hit the road in a new set of wheels.

Disclaimer: The content of this article is general in nature and is presented for informative purposes. It is not intended to constitute tax or financial advice, whether general or personal nor is it intended to imply any recommendation or opinion about a financial product. It does not take into consideration your personal situation and may not be relevant to circumstances. Before taking any action, consider your own particular circumstances and seek professional advice. This content is protected by copyright laws and various other intellectual property laws. It is not to be modified, reproduced or republished without prior written consent.

Homeowners nearly four years ahead on their mortgage repayments

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Australian homeowners are loading up their offset accounts in record amounts, so much so that the average household is now almost four years ahead on their mortgage payments.

Quick question: do you have an offset account (or several) attached to your mortgage?

They’ve become quite popular in recent years, especially since the RBA’s official cash rate has hit record low levels and impacted the amount of interest you can earn in savings accounts (which we’ll explain in more detail further below).

But first, how much have offset balances increased?

Research from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), provided to The Australian, shows the average balance sitting in offset accounts is now nearly $100,000 – up almost $20,000 since the pandemic kicked off in March 2020.

In total, $222 billion was in offset accounts across the country as of September 2021 – up almost $50 billion from $174 billion in March 2020.

In fact, in the September 2021 quarter alone, offset account balances increased by 10%.

All of this has helped contribute to mortgage holders now being, on average, 45 months ahead on their repayments – up from 32 months prior to the pandemic.

In terms of the various ways Australians have gotten ahead, 57% of prepayments came from offset accounts, 40% via available redraw balances, and 3% through other excess repayments.

So what’s an offset account?

Basically, an offset account is a regular transaction account that is linked to your home loan.

The advantage is that you only pay interest on the difference between the money in the account and the mortgage.

Some banks allow you to have 10 offset accounts attached to your mortgage, too, with cards linked to them that you can use for everyday spending.

How exactly does it work?

Say you owe $350,000 on your mortgage, and have $50,000 in a savings account.

If you move that $50,000 into a full offset account, you’ll only pay interest on $300,000 (which is the loan value minus the amount in your offset account).

The offset account can then continue to be used for all your daily needs, like receiving your salary or withdrawing cash.

So why would you consider an offset account over a savings account?

With the RBA’s cash rate at record low levels, the interest rate you’ll receive on the balance in your bank’s savings account is also at record low levels too.

Say for example that you had a savings account with a 1% interest rate and a mortgage with a 2.2% interest rate.

By allocating money into your full offset account, you’d save more money on interest than you would earn in your savings account.

Additionally, interest on your savings accounts is subject to tax, whereas the interest-saving on your mortgage isn’t.

Is an offset account for you?

Of course, there are additional factors you’ll want to consider, such as account keeping fees and the minimum amount needed in the account to make it useful.

And obviously, savings accounts and offset accounts are not the only two places you can park your hard-earned money. Depending on your risk appetite, there are other options you could consider that might yield a higher return.

The long and the short of it is everyone’s situation is different, but if you think an offset account might be for you, get in touch and we can help you explore your options.

Disclaimer: The content of this article is general in nature and is presented for informative purposes. It is not intended to constitute tax or financial advice, whether general or personal nor is it intended to imply any recommendation or opinion about a financial product. It does not take into consideration your personal situation and may not be relevant to circumstances. Before taking any action, consider your own particular circumstances and seek professional advice. This content is protected by copyright laws and various other intellectual property laws. It is not to be modified, reproduced or republished without prior written consent.