![Nicolas Butcher,Olivia O'Neill, Lucinda Chismon, Matthew Slate.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/u/m/c/l/image.related.wideLandscape.940x529.gvti8x.12uqus.png/1493353222852.jpg)
Money features
![Megan Blandford and husband Steve and children Abbey, 8, and Iris, 4 live in Beechworth, Victoria.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/w/8/t/t/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvw8ve.png/1493621191113.jpg)
I developed a fear of debt at the age of 10
A fear of debt can either serve you or hold you back – here's how to know whether you need to overcome it.
![Finance Minister Mathias Cormann said the government would respond to the external dispute review on budget night.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/b/a/9/v/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvvvqy.png/1493604248579.jpg)
One-stop complaints scheme for banks and insurers tipped in federal budget
The budget will make it easier to complain about banks
![Electro Optic Systems, which supplies technology to the aerospace and defence markets, is the best-performing stock tip ...](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/l/5/t/c/g/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvueo0.png/1493348332900.jpg)
The only racer in the black takes line honours as four-week race ends
Fairfax journalist Phil Baker wins the four-week shares race after making modest gains from a good portion of his 10-stock portfolio.
![By now, your New Year's financial resolutions are probably a distant memory along with the festive fireworks.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/0/g/m/r/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvtgzh.png/1493340705210.jpg)
Get rich by focusing on process not outcome
Succeeding in the long-term takes belief and perseverance.
![If you're investing in property, you're probably better off buying it in your personal name than your self-managed super ...](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/b/g/f/z/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvt6ke.png/1493249063492.jpg)
Buying property with your super fund has drawbacks
Whether or not the government removes the ability of self-managed super funds to borrow to purchase property or other investments, the implications for investors are relatively minor.
![A-REITs have done very well, including ALE Property Group, which owns pubs.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/d/z/4/1/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvoh7d.png/1493132815358.jpg)
The best-performing asset class of the past five years
The best-performing asset class of the past five years are the listed trusts that own commercial property.
![Chasing returns in super is almost always the wrong thing to do.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/l/u/3/u/9/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvr12s.png/1493002109574.jpg)
Chasing returns in super usually a losing bet
Most people don't realise their super fund is likely to have about half their money invested in shares.
![Vendors will potentially pay less tax if the hammer falls after June 30.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/p/g/y/v/u/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvrbrv.png/1493131711651.jpg)
You'll lose 2 per cent of your taxable profit selling before June 30
There's nothing like a forewarned tax change to distort behaviour.
![As BrickX chief executive, Anthony Millet heads a fintech start-up that offers a different way to invest in residential ...](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/s/g/9/d/5/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvr7e2.png/1493159122470.jpg)
How to protect yourself from housing bubble downside
When looking at investing in property, you need to build in a buffer to help you withstand any dramatic changes.
!["Complex" rules put public servants in danger of getting burned:
Canberra financial advisor Dan Blackman.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/k/y/m/z/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvkicp.png/1493269007371.jpg)
Public servants face big super slug
Public servants could be hit for hundreds of thousands as government curbs tax breaks.
![Receiving a windfall can leave us confused about how to make best use of the money.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/1/m/w/c/y/6/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvob5v.png/1493016962204.jpg)
How to put a financial windfall to good use
Receiving a financial windfall can leave most of us in a pickle on what to do with the money.
![Spaceship founders Paul Bennetts, Andrew Sellen, Dave Kuhn and Kaushik Sen.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/r/e/x/t/7/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvq2s2.png/1493611681495.jpg)
Super funds own $45b in bank shares, $13b in tech stocks
Industry super funds love to criticise the big banks, but they are also closely entwined.
![Mineral sands producer Mineral Deposits is the best-performing stock so far.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/1/0/7/h/x/b/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvpaq2.png/1492743583039.jpg)
Tipsters lose ground as share prices fall across the board
It's been a tough week for our tipsters, with all of them slipping in week three of the four-week Shares Race.
![Leverage magnifies both losses and gains.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/s/h/k/u/e/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvppku.png/1492751651408.jpg)
Margin loans are bad for your financial health
Borrowing to invest. The idea is almost as old as investing itself.
![The regulator wants to take the heat out of the housing market, especially in Sydney and Melbourne.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/q/3/9/z/1/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvodp7.png/1492733462481.jpg)
Banks pressuring customers to shift from interest-only
The regulator wants fewer interest-only loans to take the heat out of the housing market. So banks are trying to meet their target by pressuring existing customers.
![Equal pay](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/p/h/4/8/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvog5x.png/1492656539865.jpg)
Why fixing the pay gap is easy if you try
How can something as seemingly intractable, stubborn, complex and multifaceted as the pay gap be fixed?
![The continued presence of millionaires who escape the Medicare levy while spending more than $1 million each on their ...](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/k/0/9/d/i/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvnkxh.png/1492670930994.jpg)
Meet the 48 millionaires who pay no income tax
A million dollars' worth of tax advice can cut your tax bill to zero.
![Monique Kinerson with her partner and child, outside the house they bought with cash.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/m/i/7/6/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvk6cb.png/1492595133014.jpg)
Meet the couple who bought their house with cash
These Australians paid for their house in cash and have two years of wages in the bank.
![Dividends play a huge role in the returns of shareholders.](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/1/e/n/j/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvm01x.png/1493362206897.jpg)
More to a share investment than just juicy dividends
It's difficult to overstate the importance of dividends for Australian investors.
![Illustration: Simon Bosch](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/n/2/h/k/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvn0sq.png/1492834275483.jpg)
A universal age pension is a win for younger generations too
Millennials and Baby Boomers are often cast as natural foes fighting in some kind of economic Hunger Games. But what if I told you that economic and social policy doesn't have to be zero-sum?
![<p>](/web/20170501072737im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/m/i/i/8/image.related.landscape.120x80.gvmiel.png/1492521929369.jpg)
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.