I’m not sure if I have everything I need financially

[tsw613]

I’m a 25 year old woman. I’m not rolling in money but I have the following:

Superannuation: $51,040

House deposit: $20,000

Investment acct: $15,770 - started 3 years ago.

Emergency: $4,200 - I’m working toward $10k because that’s 6 months worth of my expenses eg. rent, electricity, household, investing, food.

I’m also three months ahead of rent.

Should I also have another account with just money in it and call it personal savings? It would be there just to make me feel safe and secure even though I already have an emergency account.

 

[_%D7%A1%D7%AA]

@tsw613 what do you mean by being 3 months ahead of rent? Have you prepaid your landlord for 3 months? If so I'd consider not doing that and keeping it in your savings instead.

 

[_%D7%A1%D7%AA]

@tsw613 yeah don't give them the interest benefit!

 

[saskatoon1]

@_%D7%A1%D7%AA I actually stuck a deal with my landlord. Pay in advance for a discount on rent which worked out to be more then the interest id receive

 

[d50m1dx7]

@_%D7%A1%D7%AA TBH , it’s good for landlord as well. Particularly when prepayment is across financial years. It takes out a larger advantage of depreciation benefit etc.

 

[lws403410768]

@tsw613 What 'investments' do you currently have? And you are doing well for your age and income, well done.

Once you stop giving your landlord free interest, and have your ~$10k emergency fund;

• If you are looking at buying a home sometime in the coming years, you can add concessional contributions to your superannuation. Income above $45k is currently taxed at 32.5%, $15k of your current income. Anything you put in super is taxed at 15%, resulting in a tax back. You can withdraw $50k for a home deposit under current schemes. You put in $5k to super, you'll get $875 tax back.
• Medium term savings (outside of 50k for home in super, emergency fund, and holiday/slush fund) can all go in stocks. Would recommend finding an ETF to suit you. Yes they can go down, but not likely to drop significantly. Can always withdraw within a business day if you need some liquidity. Best to have medium and long term assets working for you .

 

[katieac3]

@lws403410768 I am not sure of this but is there ever a possibility that the govt. might not allow taking money out of super for down payment?

I’m not an Australian citizen yet and I’m not very sure the rules here atm.

 

[lws403410768]

@katieac3 Yes, I can only comment on current programs, can always change.

With the housing crisis however, I wouldn't expect it to be removed. Owning a house is probably statistically a pretty safe retirement system, so if the purpose of superannuation is to lessen the burden on government pension, using for a house deposit is a pretty good idea.

 

[angelluve]

@_%D7%A1%D7%AA Why's that? Just curious.