Five Steps To Financial Health

Giving a little time and attention to your finances can yield huge monetary benefits, according to Money magazine editor Effie Zahos.

- Genevieve Gannon

1 Be super attentive

The Royal Commission has underscored what we’ve long known: if you’re with an under performing super fund you can lose tens of thousands of dollars. Women in particular need to be diligent about monitoring retirement savings, Effie says, because the gender wage gap and taking time out to raise a family put them at a disadvantage.

“Super is (for most of us) one of the most tax-effective wealth creation strategies for the future,” Effie writes in her book, A Real Girl’s Guide to Money.

Most people are in a balanced fund, but there is a big difference in returns within that category. “Fees can range from 0.6 to over two per cent and that means a lot to your end balance,” Effie says. Ask yourself, what’s your fee? What are you paying? “You shouldn’t be paying more than one per cent.”

When comparing super funds look at performance, Effie says. Make sure you compare performance over a period of at least five years, not just the past year.

“If you had $100,000 in the worst performing fund you’d be worse off by $60,000 over a 10 year period,” Effie says. “That’s a comfortable life for one year.”

2 Clean up your home loan

Home loans are a big chunk of your household budget, so negotiating a better rate can potentially increase your monthly income by a few hundred dollars.