Home
Search
thewest.com.au
BusinessChevron Right Icon

Personal Finance

The Reserve Bank of Australia plans to kill off surcharge fees on card payments.

Your MoneyCommentsPremium‘Screwed’: Consumers to wear cost of RBA card surcharge ban

Shoppers celebrating the end of surcharge fees on card payments have been warned they’ll end up covering the cost anyway, when retailers are forced to build-in the charge.

Cheyanne Enciso

Michele Bullock, governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia.

Your MoneyCommentsRBA’s hold keeps consumer sentiment recovery in check

Last week’s move by the Reserve Bank to hold fire on a third interest rate cut for 2025 has failed to dampen the spirits of Australian consumers.

Daniel Newell

The RBA found avoiding surcharges had become harder as consumers embraced card and digital payment methods over cash.

Your MoneyCommentsRBA flags blanket ban on all card surcharging to save $1.2b

The Reserve Bank has flagged an end to a bugbear of almost every Australian shopper — debit and credit card surcharge fees.

Daniel Newell

Former cafe staffer Mia McDowall urges young workers to fight for their minimum entitlements.

Remuneration'It's rife': Third of young workers report wage theft

One in three young workers report being financially exploited across the economy and there are concerns the true number could be much higher.

Rachael Ward

Am I better off drawing a lump sum from my super each year?

Your MoneyCommentsPremiumAm I better off drawing a lump sum from my super each year?

Q+A: Am I better off drawing a lump sum each year from the super fund, or transferring the money to a RI allocated pension — which converts super into a regular income — and then drawing from this account?

Nick Bruining

Funeral pre-payment has become big business for those in the funeral business.

Your MoneyCommentsPremiumHow to get Albanese to pay for your final send-off

Buried amongst a suite of changes to apply from July 1 is an increase in the amount of money you can pre-pay towards your funeral.

Nick Bruining

The only significant change to superannuation numbers that occurred on July 1 was a $100,000 increase in the transfer balance cap from $1.9 million to $2m. 

Nick BruiningCommentsPremiumThe big July 1 super change that affects your contributions

This change has the potential to affect how much you can contribute to super and how much ends up being completely tax free in retirement.

Nick Bruining

Penalties of 25 per cent to 75 per cent of the tax owed may apply for falsely claiming deductions. The more dishonest the claim, the higher the fine.

Honesty pays CommentsWhy cheating on your tax return is too big a risk to take

Penalties of 25 per cent to 75 per cent of the tax owed may apply for falsely claiming deductions. The more dishonest the claim, the higher the fine.

Robert B Whait and Connie Vitale 

P&N Bank says around one in 10 customers use post-pay services, with Gen Z some of the highest users. 

Debt TrapCommentsHow to save young Aussies from mounting debt as BNPL booms

Up against cost-of-living pressures, Gen Z and millennials are, concerningly, leaning heavily on low-cost credit models to support their spending.

Mark Smyth

Super is not simple. It is a complex set of rules that keep changing, sometimes getting better, more often getting worse.

Your MoneyCommentsPremiumDon’t treat super as a ‘set-and-forget’ ‘walk in the park’

One such piece on super appeared in another media stable recently. The piece was claiming super is an easy-to-understand system, where ‘payments . . . are set-and-forget’, with rules a ‘walk in the park’.

Bruce Brammall

Newly-weds Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez.

Your MoneyCommentsPremiumExperts reveal how to stay on budget when planning a wedding

If you’re planning on getting married anytime soon, you likely already know that your celebration is going to come with a big bill.

Ryan Ermey

Here’s how you could afford a new car at the age of 84 without sacrificing your home care.

Bruining Q+ACommentsPremiumSplurging on a new car doesn’t mean sacrificing home care

Q+A: Here’s how you could afford a new car at the age of 84 without sacrificing your home care.

Nick Bruining

‘Trust but verify’ financial advisers when it comes to your life’s savings.

Your MoneyCommentsPremium‘Trust but verify’ advisers when it comes to life’s savings

Former US president Ronald Reagan famously used the old Russian proverb of ‘trust but verify’, which we should all be prepared to apply when it comes to dealing with our life’s savings.

Nick Bruining

The new financial year may see you dip your toes into the world of financial advice.

Financial adviceCommentsPremiumLooking for a financial adviser? Can they pass these tests?

With the ATO clarifying a significant portion of the fees paid to a financial adviser are now likely to be tax deductible, the new fiscal year may see you jump into the world of financial advice. 

Nick Bruining

Capital gains tax is one of those areas where smart timing and strategic advice can make a massive difference.

Your MoneyCommentsPremiumTiming is everything when it comes to capital gains tax

Capital gains tax is one of those areas where smart timing and strategic advice can make a massive difference, especially for members of GESB’s West State Super. 

Raymond Pecotic

It is imperative that you correctly capture and classify any tax deductions you may be entitled to. 

Your MoneyCommentsPremiumThe tax-time deductions you don’t want to miss this year

As the financial year draws to a close, now is the time to start gathering receipts and making smart decisions to maximise your tax refund. Here are the most often overlooked or misunderstood deductions.

Robert Zammit

Under the gifting rules, an individual or couple can legitimately reduce their assets by a maximum of $10,000 each financial year with a maximum of $30,000 over a rolling five-year period. 

Your MoneyCommentsPremiumGive cash away ... then get it BACK as a bigger pension

Asset-tested pensioners can use the next 24 hours to boost their pension by up to $60 a fortnight — for life. Here’s how it works, and what you need to do ...

Nick Bruining

The start of a new financial year will usher in a raft of tax and superannuation changes, with almost every Australian affected one way or another. Here’s what changes from midnight.

Your MoneyCommentsPremiumJuly 1 changes to tax, super that affect you and your family

The start of a new financial year will usher in a raft of tax and superannuation changes, with almost every Australian affected one way or another. Here’s what changes from midnight.

Nick Bruining

Your position is unique, so please don’t take financial advice from your colleagues on site. Context is everything.

Your MoneyCommentsPremiumWork FIFO? Here’s your essential tax-time tool kit

For WA’s fly-in, fly-out workforce, EOFY isn’t just about ticking the tax-return box — it’s a golden opportunity to assess your financial strategy and set yourself up for long-term security. Here’s how.

Janine Leafe

With new regulations now treating buy now, pay later as a form of credit, many younger consumers are wondering: ‘Is BNPL wrecking my credit score? Or could it help build a stronger financial history?’

Your MoneyCommentsBuy now, pay later: Credit score monster or a money-mover?

With new regulations now treating buy now, pay later as a form of credit, many younger consumers are wondering: “Is BNPL wrecking my credit score? Or could it help build a stronger financial history?”

Sarah Wells

A couple on a full age pension can sell their home for $1.2m, bank $48,000 a year in interest, AND get $400 a month in rental assistance.

Bruining Q+ACommentsPremiumHere’s just how crazy the Centrelink system really is

Q+A: The quirks of the Centrelink system can be summed up here. A couple on a full age pension can sell their home for $1.2m, bank $48,000 a year in interest, AND get $400 a month in rental assistance.

Nick Bruining

Australia's superannuation industry holds more than $600 billion worth of US assets. (Dan Peled/AAP PHOTOS)

BusinessPremiumSuper funds spared multibillion-dollar US 'revenge tax'

The Trump administration says it won't pursue a contentious tax targeting foreign investors, after being lobbied by Treasurer Jim Chalmers and super funds.

Jacob Shteyman

Australian household wealth has ballooned on the back of strong property price growth. NewsWire / Nicholas Eagar

newsPremiumAustralians’ insane net worth revealed

Australians have added more than $125bn to their household wealth in just the first quarter of 2025 thanks to one thing.

Cameron Micallef

Not Supplied

newsPremiumAcknowledgement of Country sacking twist

A worker has beaten an inner-city council in a major employment case after he was unfairly sacked for objecting to an Acknowledgement of Country.

Duncan Evans