While a new bill will give a life partner the same legal rights as a spouse, the precise definition of a life partnership still remains uncertain. Later this year the Judicial Matters Amendment Bill will come into law. The Bill will give partners...
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Yima: a website to track scams
As technology improves, including artificial intelligence (AI), it is becoming easier for criminal syndicates to hoodwink people. Enter Yima, a tool to try and help stem the tide. At a fraud summit recently held by the Southern African Fraud...
Stress and cancer claims on the rise
Liberty's claim statistics for 2022 indicate an increase in cancer claims as well as claims related to mental health issues. The statistics reveal concerning trends about South Africans’ health, as well as their state of mind. While death claims...
Listen: The link between tears, trust, and investing
How your biology affects your financial behaviour In this fourth episode of our "Emotions and Money" series, Maya and Paul Nixon, head of Behavioural Finance at Momentum, discuss the impact of our biology on our financial decision-making, and how...
A financial plan for raising a special-needs child
How do you provide for a special-needs child who might be dependent on you not only for the rest of your life, but for the rest of theirs as well? My son was diagnosed with high functioning autism at the age of six. The condition has an impact on...
Counting the cost of loadshedding
Earlier this year the Reserve Bank estimated that the cost of loadshedding to the economy is as high as R900 million a day. Apart from the impact that loadshedding is having on the economy's ability to grow, the cost of loadshedding is being felt...
Caught up in a debt cycle
As people struggle to make ends meet in an environment of rising inflation, households are increasingly being caught up in a debt cycle. Over the last few weeks, I’ve been speaking to South Africans from various walks of life as part of the...
When the cure kills
Will higher interest rates do more harm than good? Rising interest rates appear to have had little impact on inflation, but higher interest rates are placing South Africans under significant financial pressure. The current interest rate cycle has...
Listen: Has SARS made it harder to invest offshore?
On 24 April 2023, seemingly out of the blue, SARS updated its "Manage Your Compliance Status” webpage and announced a “new enhanced” Tax Compliance Status (TCS) application form. This new process might make things quite a bit more complicated for...
How much life cover do I really need?
When you have people who depend on you financially, life cover becomes a crucial part of your overall financial plan. But thinking about these issues at a young age can be a little overwhelming, and it's difficult to figure out the right level of...
Previous Articles
Buy a home or replace my car?
Many people are wondering whether now is the right time to buy a home for the first time, given the high interest rates. It is a common question I receive from readers. One reader wrote: "I am looking to buy a home for the first time but am concerned about the high...
How to start an investment club
An investment club is a great way to learn about investing. You can give different members the responsibility to each research a different topic, and then educate the group on it at regular meetings. Members could even go to a seminar on behalf of the group and report...
Handle Black Tax Like a Pro
Black tax is not so much about money as it is about boundaries, says Ndumi Hadebe, author of Handle Black Tax like a Pro. In ten relatable stories that range from absent fathers to siblings’ expectations, self-leadership coach Hadebe explores the boundary issues that...
Listen: What makes a successful investor?
In the third episode of a six-part podcast series entitled “Emotions and Money”, Maya chats with Paul Nixon, head of behavioural finance at Momentum Investments, about the key behaviours that make a successful investor. They also look at the impact Covid has had on...
Where to stash your short-term savings
When we think about investing we typically think about our long-term goals such as retirement. But what are the options for short-term savings, where you will need the money in less than five years? This could be for a deposit on a home, saving for a holiday, or just...
“Agreed value” for your car insurance?
It’s always a good idea to shop around for the best-value car insurance, but it’s important that you understand what you are paying for. One of the big differences in the cost of the premium is whether you are insured at retail value, market value, or a third,...
Teaching a student how to budget
If your kids ask you to increase their allowance, rather take the opportunity to teach them how to budget. My youngest started university this year and is living on campus. We gave him an allowance to cover his various expenses including additional food (18-year-old...
Is “cash stuffing” a good idea?
Many years ago, when I was trying to pay off my debts and get my finances under control, I used the technique of “cash stuffing” (in those days, we called it “the envelope method”). This was essentially a way of going back to cash and avoiding using my credit card or...
Listen: How your personality traits affect your relationship with money
In the second episode of a six-part podcast series entitled “Emotions and Money”, Maya chats with Paul Nixon, head of behavioural finance at Momentum Investments, about the different personality traits and how your personality could be affecting the way you manage...
How the Discovery WELLTH Fund works
Discovery Health is offering members a once-off additional benefit called the WELLTH Fund, to be used to cover additional costs incurred in preventative screening. Research by Discovery Health Medical Scheme (DHMS) found that general health checks were down 50% at the...