Investopoly

Stuart Wemyss

Each episode, about 15 minutes long, is packed with concise tips, strategies, research, methodologies, case studies, and ideas to help you safely and effectively grow your wealth. Stuart Wemyss, a qualified financial advisor, accountant, tax agent, and licensed mortgage broker, delivers holistic advice. With four authored books, including "Investopoly" and "Rules of the Lending Game," Stuart shares his insights through a weekly blog, which is replicated on this podcast.

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Top 10 Investopoly Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Investopoly episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Investopoly for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Investopoly episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

Super: What are your options when you retire?

Investopoly

03/15/22 • 18 min

Even though its compulsory to invest money in superannuation, many people do not understand their options once they retire.This blog provides a summary. However, of course, everyone’s situation is different. Some super funds have different rules and there may be exceptions to some rules, so it’s important you receive personalised advice from an independent financial advisor.When can you access your super?The rules that govern when you can access super are contained in the SIS Act and they are called the ‘conditions of release’. There are three ways you can access your super benefit:1. You have reached your preservation age, which is age 60 for most people (or sooner if you were born prior to 1 July 1964), you have ceased employment and have no intentions of becoming reemployed in the future;2. If you have reached your preservation age but are younger than 65 and still working, you are able to commence a Transition-to-Retirement Income Stream (TRIS) pension; or3. You are 65 years of age, regardless of employment status.These minimum rules apply to all super funds. Super funds are permitted to impose tougher rules than outlined above, so it’s important to check with your super fund.You have two optionsWhen you retire you generally have two options:1. Withdraw your full super balance as a lump sum; or2. Start an income stream pension.If you are a member of a defined benefit fund, you may have additional options such as commencing an indexed lifetime pension.If you opt to take your benefit as a lump sum, some of your benefit (i.e. the “taxable – untaxed element”) may be taxed at a rate of up to 17% and the “taxable – taxed element” will be tax-free.Given the tax advantages of leaving your money in super (outlined below), most people are much better off to opt to start an income stream pension.Consequences of starting a pensionYou can start a pension by rolling over your accumulation account into a pension account. You can roll over up to $1.7 million into a pension account (this is a lifetime cap – called the

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IMPORTANT: This podcast provides general information about finance, taxes, and credit. This means that the content does not consider your specific objectives, financial situation, or needs. It is crucial for you to assess whether the information is suitable for your circumstances before taking any actions based on it. If you find yourself uncertain about the relevance or your specific needs, it is advisable to seek advice from a licensed and trustworthy professional.

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Investing in Commercial Property: Part 1

Investopoly

02/01/22 • 19 min

I believe that most people would be well-served by investing in various asset classes, including shares and property. I do not believe that any one asset class is superior. They all have their pros and cons which you can balance out in a diversified investment portfolio, which could include commercial property.Commercial property does have some wonderfully attractive attributes but it’s important to introduce it into your portfolio at the right time (stage of life) and of course, invest in the right asset using the right methodology.I will explain this in a two-part blog. This first part will provide an introduction to commercial property. The second part will consider how to successfully invest in this asset class.Attraction to commercial propertyMost investors are very familiar with residential property as an investment option. As I have highlighted in this blog many times, residential property is a growth asset because it provides most of its total return in the form of capital growth and proportionately very little income.One of the main attractions to commercial property is that it typically provides a higher level of income, which may be particularly attractive if you are close to retirement, or you already own a few residential investment properties.Types of commercial propertyCommercial properties can have a varying array of attributes and no two properties are likely to be identical. That said, there are three broad categories of commercial property:§ Office: An office building is usually a multi-level building that has multiple tenants. These buildings are typically situated in central, well-established locations (CBD or suburban hubs), which adds to their scarcity and tends to drive capital growth.§ Retail: this includes retail shops in suburban shopping strips, mixed-use premises, and specialised properties such as service stations and restaurants. Because these assets are typically located in high-demand locations, they tend to generate lower rental yields.§ Industrial: this includes industrial sheds, bulky goods centres (bunnings) and the so on. These assets tend to be located in outer, fringe locations and as such may offer higher rental yields.How does commercial differ

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When to not invest: 5 questions to ask

Investopoly

07/13/21 • 15 min

There are a number of factors that I consider when contemplating an investment on behalf of my clients or for me, personally.I think it’s very important to consider a vast array of investment opportunities (or appoint an advisor to do it on your behalf). But it is even more important to discount most of them. Being diligent, setting a high bar and having the discipline to stick to sound fundamentals is critical for success.This blog sets out the important factors that I always consider.Will it materially improve your financial position 10 years from now?It is often tempting to invest in ideas or opportunities that may promise to provide quick investment returns. Doing so appeals to our desire for instant gratification (reward). One of my favourite quotes is from Howard Schultz (billionaire and founder of Starbucks); “short term profit rarely creates long term value”. It’s very true.A quick profit is nice, but it’s not the solution to building long-term wealth, unless you can consistently pick the next short term opportunity. But that is impossible to do. The problem is these ‘quick profit’ opportunities tend to be inherently risky (so many don’t work out well) and provide a one-time return only.Instead, you are much better off to invest in assets that provide predictable returns over very long periods of time. Investing in an asset that provides an average return of 7% p.a. over the next 30 years will magnify its value by 7.6 times.Asking yourself whether the investment you are considering will materially improve your financial position in 10 years’ time, forces you to think long-term. It helps you avoid the shiny objects (i.e. opportunities that trick you into believing they’ll deliver quick profits).Ironically, the older we become, the easier we find it to make long-term decisions. Or maybe we just get more comfortable with delayed gratification. Either way, it requires discipline and patience.Do you understand what’s driving the expected returns?Don’t invest in anything you don’t understand.You need to understand how the investment will work. How will the returns be generated? It must make sense.For example, if you are investing in a property i

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It's a perfect time to sell dud investments

Investopoly

02/12/20 • 17 min

With share markets at an all-time high and sentiment in the property market recovering, it is a great opportunity to divest of any underperforming (dud) investments.Not all investments perform as expected. Therefore, it’s important you regularly review them. This review should be completed without any influence of emotion – it’s all about the numbers.Let’s first discuss why now might be a good time to do this.The US share market is high, very highOver the past 11 years, the US share market has increased by an annual compounding rate of over 14.5% and is now trading at an all-time high. To put that in context, $50,000 invested in 2009 (in the S&P 500 index) would be worth over $220,000 today!The chart below which has been produced by Advisor Perspective records four commonly used valuation metrics for the US share market since 1900. This chart doesn’t need any commentary from me – it is obvious valuations are high! Probably, too high! In fact, the last time they were this high was in the early 2000’s during the dot-com bubble. Most of us know how that turned out – the market fell by around 40% between 2001 and 2003.The Australian market is high tooThe Australian market hasn’t risen anywhere near as much as the US market. It has increased by a compounding average of 6.9% p.a. since 2009 (compared to 14.5% p.a. for the US market). Looking at the CAPE Ratio valuation measure, the Australian market looks slightly overvalued (CAPE is currently 19.3 compared to presumed fair value of 17.6), but certainly to a much less extent than the US market.In a rising tide, all ships riseThe rising domestic and international share markets tend to drag all stocks with them, good and bad ones alike. Irrationally exuberant markets tend to ignore investment fundamentals.US electronic car manufacture, Tesla is a case in point. Its share price has risen from $450 per share to over $1,150 per share in the past year. Its market capitalisation is now nearly $200 billion yet it has never recorded a profit. In fact, it burns th

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Will the banks stop you from building wealth?

Investopoly

06/15/18 • 9 min

Over the past couple of years there have been many changes that have dramatically reduced your borrowing capacity. The Financial Services Royal Commission, government has put pressure on the banks to reduce investment lending and a directive to tighten lending standards just to name a few. If you are unable to borrow then your only alternative is to invest your after-tax income/savings... and that is a much slower path to wealth.But don’t despair. You can still leverage your assets and income to build wealth. It’s just that some of the rules have changed.Be more proactive and plan aheadGone are the days when clients would buy an investment property on the weekend and ring us on Monday requesting us to organise a new loan. It just too risky to do that these days (then again, arguably, it’s always been too risky). It is important to plan ahead as credit is much tighter these days and credit polices are changing regularly. This will help you project your future borrowing requirements thereby allowing your mortgage broker and you to work out the best time to make any required applications. You must be more strategic.You must maximise borrowable equityIn a constantly changing credit market it becomes even more critical to maximise your borrowable equity. Borrowable equity is the amount of unused loan facilities that you have access to. Maximising your borrowable equity requires you to proactively increase your credit limits to 80% of your property/s current market value.The three common benefits of maximising your borrowable equity include:(1) To fund future investment(s) and/or other uses such as home upgrade, renovation, etc.(2) To maximise your loan buffers in case of any unforeseen changes or expenses – the more access to credit you have, the lower your overall risk as you have adequate financial resources to weather most storms.(3) In case your borrowing capacity changes in the future e.g. start a family and go down to one income, change employment, move overseas, property values decrease, credit policy changes, etc. We never know what is around the corner.Watch this 5 minute video that I recorded last year to learn more.Start early and don’t waste time

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Why you don't need a financial plan

Investopoly

03/20/18 • 6 min

It stands to reason that not everyone needs a financial plan or relationship with a financial planner. There might be various reasons for this. However, perhaps the best way to answer this question, i.e. “who doesn’t need a financial plan” is to discuss what’s involved in a plan and then you can draw your own conclusions.
In this podcast I discuss:
• what’s involved in the financial planning process i.e. what outcomes will you enjoy
• how to set the two most important goals
• how to map out an action plan
• what a financial planner will do ongoing (each year).
This will give you enough information to decide whether its for you or not.
For more, check out my video here.

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Mastering a successful mindset... 5 fears about money

Investopoly

09/14/21 • 20 min

Over the past 20 years, the US share market has risen 5-fold, the Australian share market 5.4-fold and Australian property 4.2-fold. That means if you invested half a million dollars 20 years ago, in either shares or property, it should be worth between $2 and $2.5 million today. You’d have even more money if you added some gearing.This observation raises an interesting question. That is, why aren’t more people independently wealthy? I suspect the answer lies in their actions, or more correctly their inaction.We make emotional decisions not logical onesIt is a widely accepted fact that we make decisions based on our emotions (how we feel) and then rationalise these decisions with logic. Often, we do this unconsciously.We’d like to believe that we are logical and rational animals. But the truth is that we are not. Our decisions, particularly about money, are shaped by our beliefs, upbringing, our peer group, past experiences and culture. We tell ourselves stories about money. And then we use confirmation bias to validate those stories.Self-awareness and reflection are probably the greatest gifts as they help you recognise how you think, so you can stop allowing emotions influence your financial decisions.Building wealth requires a logical, pragmatic and rational approach. Emotions are not only unhelpful but can be dangerous.Common fear # 1: Paying attention will be painfulSometimes it feels easier to stick our head in the sand and ignore a (potential) problem. For example, most people know that it’s not financially prudent to spend all income on lifestyle expenses. They probably realise that they should be investing/saving some of their income. But to do that, they will have to admit to themselves (and maybe others) that they have been doing the wrong thing in the past. It feels less painful to ignore the issue and “get to it one day”.The problem with ignoring financial misbehaviours is that they magically don’t disappear. They compound. Just like good financial decisions compound, so do bad one

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Lending update: interest rates and borrowing capacity improvements

Investopoly

09/30/20 • 19 min

The government made an important announcement last week. This change could substantially increase your borrowing capacity in the next year. It is perhaps the most significant change that has occurred in the last decade and will further fuel property price growth.I also wanted to update you on interest rates, particularly in light of recent expectations that the RBA will soon cut rates again.A positive change for investors and the property marketIn 2009, the government re-wrote the laws governing the provision of loans. This required mortgage brokers and lenders to ensure that any new loans provided to borrowers were ‘not unsuitable’.The background is importantSince the introduction of this new legislation, the government (ASIC) has been gradually tightening the laws, particularly over the last 3 to 4 years. In October 2018, I compared the loan application process to a forensic investigation (see below). This was not an exaggeration.A few months ago, even the Governor of the RBA agreed that the tightening of credit rules had gone too far. There have been many examples of banks trawling through bank statements questioning small ($20) expenses. This pedantic approach added very little to the quality of the credit assessment.Your current spending tells me little about your ability to repayPerhaps the most significant recent event was Westpac’s success in defending an action initiated by ASIC regarding its alleged non-compliance with the credit laws. This case is now referred to as the 'Wagyu and shiraz' judgment. That is because Justice Perram said "I may eat Wagyu beef everyday washed down with the finest shiraz but, if I really want my new home, I can make do on much more modest fare...”.When faced with the decision of whether to go out to dinner or make a mortgage repayment, almost everyone will make the right decision. To some degree, a high level of discretionary spending is arguably strong evidence that you ha

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Federal Budget 2020: Overview & analysis

Investopoly

10/06/20 • 19 min

This year’s budget was definitely aimed at business rather than individuals, and it needed to be. The main goal of the federal budget is to create jobs to repair the damage that Covid has done to the economy and Australian community.Therefore, if you already have a job, there’s not much good news for you in the budget. However, there is plenty of good news for the Australian economy which will probably enhance the share market and property investment returns.What’s in it for individuals?The major benefit contained in the budget for individuals was income tax cuts. These tax cuts are backdated to begin on 1 July 2020. The table below sets out the tax savings (second column from the right) that you may enjoy.The budget also included some other miscellaneous benefits, which are listed below.Improving the super industry and performanceThe government will direct employers to pay super into existing accounts (as advised by the ATO) to avoid opening a new account with a new super fund when you start a new job. This will avoid workers unknowingly accumulating multiple super accounts.The government will also take measures to improve the accountability and transparency of super funds, which is a problem I have written about previously. This includes building a MySuper website which will allow people to rank investment returns and fees. Any improvements in this space are long overdue.Interestingly, the government did not announce that it would postpone the increase to the compulsory super contribution rate from 9.5% to 10% p.a. At this stage, this is still set to begin on 1 July 2021.Granny flat arrangementsGranny flats will now be exempt from CGT where a formal written agreement is in place.Relaxing the paid parental leave qualification criteriaParents will qualify for parental leave payments if they have worked in 10 of the last 20 months, instead of 10 of the last 13 months, preceding the birth or adoption of a child. This is to accommodate the impact of Covid.Additional government

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Case Study: Financial freedom through property and super: a 15-year success story

Investopoly

06/10/24 • 9 min

In this case study episode, Stuart and Frencham unveil a compelling 15-year journey towards financial freedom through property and superannuation. Beginning with a modest net worth of $2.4 million in 2008, their client's portfolio has surged to nearly $10 million today. Through strategic property investments, including homes in desirable locations like Hawthorn and Toorak, and optimising superannuation investments, they've achieved remarkable growth.
Key insights reveal the importance of aligning property investments with long-term goals and having a clear strategy for homeownership without debt. The success story underscores the pivotal role of superannuation in wealth accumulation and the value of professional guidance throughout the journey.
Tune in to discover how prudent property investments and smart superannuation strategies can pave the way to financial independence and long-term prosperity.

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FAQ

How many episodes does Investopoly have?

Investopoly currently has 368 episodes available.

What topics does Investopoly cover?

The podcast is about Super, Retirement, Wealth, Tax, Entrepreneurship, Property, Investing, Podcasts, Financial Advice and Business.

What is the most popular episode on Investopoly?

The episode title 'Focusing on rental income could cost you $1m in lost wealth' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on Investopoly?

The average episode length on Investopoly is 16 minutes.

How often are episodes of Investopoly released?

Episodes of Investopoly are typically released every 7 days.

When was the first episode of Investopoly?

The first episode of Investopoly was released on Feb 11, 2018.

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Investopoly

Stuart Wemyss

Top 10 Investopoly Episodes

FAQ

How many episodes does Investopoly have?

What topics does Investopoly cover?

What is the most popular episode on Investopoly?

What is the average episode length on Investopoly?

How often are episodes of Investopoly released?

When was the first episode of Investopoly?

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