![Peter Cakarnis, 60, has seen the value of his credit card rewards diminish over time.](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/j/q/x/8/image.related.wideLandscape.940x529.gvk3e1.12uqus.png/1492249754472.jpg)
Money features
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The lower the yield, the higher the cost of fees
Several factors mean we shouldn't be so easily fooled about fees now – well, that's the theory.
![A few months ago the smartest people in finance were waxing lyrical on whether the Chinese landing would be "hard" or ...](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/s/j/a/x/m/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvm0if.png/1492391284698.jpg)
Motley Fool: What China collapse?
What's the greatest threat to the world economy and our economic prosperity?
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The benefits of capital gains tax
​Understanding the fine details of capital gains tax can improve investment returns.
![Afterpay, which lets retailers offer consumers a buy-now-pay-later service, was one of the best stocks in the Shares ...](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/y/y/2/9/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvkp5s.png/1492119327300.jpg)
Reshuffle of the racer ranks in volatile market
The Shares Race is still anyone's game.
![More of us are favouring personal loans over high-fee credit cards.](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/7/z/u/o/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvk7oq.png/1492251175437.jpg)
Personal loan applications surge as credit cards wane
Australians are shunning high-interest credit cards and turning to personal loans for large purchases.
![Save money by shopping your pantry first, and avoiding pre-packaged food.](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/k/k/a/m/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvk4q3.png/1492125578845.jpg)
Financial freedom through frugality
How to get rich, happy and save the world.
![A DHA Housing home in Townsville.](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/y/a/t/2/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvklx1.png/1492121622239.jpg)
Defence housing offers a defensive yield in low-interest times
The low-interest rate environment is driving rising numbers of private investors to put some of their money into housing for Australian Defence Force members.
![Hyenas rarely do the initial damage but once they swoop in, they can quickly become the problem.](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/r/o/s/z/o/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvk6oj.png/1492390251185.jpg)
Keep the shorting 'hyenas' in your peripheral vision
All investors and traders should keep shorting activity in their peripheral vision because it highlights stocks that have an issue.
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The real foe for Coles, Woolies
The big box retailer has big ambitions… and runs on the board.
![There are some fund managers with a track record of outperforming the market.](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/h/f/m/i/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvd6sa.png/1491953010731.jpg)
Top Australian share funds named
It was not all that long ago that some fund managers had star status with investors.
![Larger super funds tend to outperform smaller funds.](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/1/1/9/4/k/0/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvhfpt.png/1491803831216.jpg)
Most super funds with less than $2b not viable
Size does matter when it comes to super funds.
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Where to fill up the car before Easter road trip
Filling up the car at the right time and place slashes dollars from the long weekend road trip.
![Despite public concerns, Nant kept advertising its scheme of selling barrels of whisky and cattle.](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/m/n/v/b/h/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvhbpp.png/1491866365647.jpg)
Who's to blame when bad investments hit the wall?
Everyone has the right to be stupid and blow their savings – and then to complain bitterly about it afterwards.
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How to become exceptional
I see many people who tell me how unlucky they are when it comes to their finances.
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My blueprint for buying your first property – safely
My answers to the 'Hey Nicole' questions.
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How offline viewing for Netflix and Stan can save you hundreds
Watching just a handful of video streaming episodes on-the-go can quickly become expensive for your mobile bill.
![It's better to sell investments when you're no longer working to minimise the capital gains tax bill.](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/h/8/n/o/z/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvfeo5.png/1491470309752.jpg)
Why property investors won't take their profits
If you're working, contributing to super beats paying off investment debt.
![Money reader John Wyatt is backing renewable energy companies.](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/h/v/x/l/t/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvfnpo.png/1492071340560.jpg)
Money reader takes lead on clean energy and livestock feed picks
Money reader John Wyatt has opened a decent lead in week one of the new four-week Shares Race, helped by his clean energy picks – Carnegie and Infigen.
![GST will be charged on low-value items and digital products and services bought from overseas after July this year.](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/g/d/z/z/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvgcfb.png/1491690188636.jpg)
The $300m GST grab hardly anyone knows about
Australians will soon be paying GST on nearly all purchases from overseas websites, including low-value items and digital products and services.
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How to avoid squeeze of rising mortgage rates
Despite the Reserve Bank cutting the cash rate twice during 2016, lenders have been edging-up their mortgage rates over that time.
![Despite the criticism, DHA has many happy investors.](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/y/b/8/q/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvfzzc.png/1491558312733.jpg)
Investing in defence housing: do the numbers stack up?
Investment homes leased back to Defence Housing Australia for housing military personnel become a key part of many Australians' investment portfolios, and at first glance there is little not to like.
![Mark Bouris is not a fan of 'sledgehammer government responses to the property market' because they might fuel the problem.](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/b/b/i/u/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvfc9a.png/1491522570750.jpg)
Time to 'get serious' about interest-only loans
The longer the property boom in Sydney and Melbourne goes on, the more avenues we explore to put a cap on buyer exuberance.
![It's better to trim your sails than suffer mortgage stress or worse, a distressed sale.](/web/20170418030006im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/m/w/t/p/g/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvfdf3.png/1491868082616.jpg)
Banks are lending too much to property buyers
Real estate continues to dominate the headlines in tandem with speculation on the future of the housing market as APRA's crack down on interest-only loans begins to bite.