Were you one of the lucky taxpayers who received a tax refund from SARS after submitting your tax return? Take a moment to think about what you did with your tax refund last year, or the year before. Do you even remember? What should you be doing...
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Feenix: fund your education without debt
By using crowdfunding platform Feenix, students can fund their education without taking on debt, and funders can benefit from a tax deduction. Many black professionals carry the costs of educating the next generation. The upside of this commitment...
Listen: The step-by-step investing plan
Want to invest, but don’t know where to start? Whether you have R500, R5 000 or R50 000 to invest, the principles remain the same. In this discussion, Maya (@mayaonmoney) and Mapalo (@womanandfinance) are joined by personal finance blogger...
Set achievable goals for 2020
An accountability partner will help you stay on track and overcome challenges. With every new year comes the sentiment that “this year, things will be different”. We get excited and dream big. We often set New Year’s resolutions to get out of debt,...
Video: Debt relief
The National Credit Amendment Act (NCA) was signed into law in 2019. The Act included provisions for debt relief. This is not a way to avoid your debt obligations and you need to understand what it really means. This is a free debt review process...
Financial tools to keep you on track in 2020
Still using Excel or some other rather rudimentary means to keep track of the household budget? Ditch them now! It’s so easy to keep track of your finances and achieve your savings goals with these smartphone apps, websites and online financial...
Listeners’ questions: Retirement, take the cash & run? How to reach financial freedom?
This week, Maya (@mayaonmoney) and Mapalo (@womanandfinance) answer readers’ questions about retirement: when to take the cash and run or when to buy an annuity, how much you can draw of your capital and why good advice is worth paying for. They...
True wealth requires patience
One of the greatest sources of wealth is getting your money to work harder than you do. This is achieved through the power of compounding. The problem with compounding is that it only works with time – there is no get-rich-quick scheme involved....
Video: Joint life insurance
A recent survey found that middle-class households are cutting back on insurance and medical cover as their budgets come under pressure. However, if you have a family, life insurance is essential to provide for them if something happens to you. If...
When to use “budget” on your credit card
One of the things that really annoys me when I pay with my credit card, is the way I must often select to pay “straight” rather than “budget”. There are grocery stores that have budget payment as the first option – which is ludicrous. That said,...
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Listen: Grow your net worth in 2020
In this first podcast edition for 2020, Maya (@mayaonmoney) and Mapalo (@womanandfinance) discuss their own strategies to grow their net worth and how to set SMART goals. They also share the apps and tools they use to manage their money.
An end to excessive fees on garnishee orders
A landmark ruling by the High Court has found against the excessive over-charging of debt collection fees on garnishee orders. The judgment will not only have a significant impact on the amount lawyers may charge for legal fees on outstanding debt, but could result in...
How to approach 2020
At the beginning of December there was some cautious optimism about the prospects for 2020. However, the commencement of load shedding and the realisation that Eskom’s problems are far more serious than we have been led to believe, changed sentiment significantly....
The real cost of death
Funerals are big business in South Africa, with an estimated R10bn a year spent on funerals and related services. Insurance companies have found a lucrative product offering in funeral policies, with around 15 million such policies currently held in South Africa. A...
Not all R5 coins are equal
You may have noticed a new R5 coin in circulation celebrating 25 years of democracy. While it may be a fresh new design, it does not have any value as a collector’s item – despite what coin stores may tell you. Mr Pradeep Maharaj, Group Executive for Currency...
Video: Beware balloon payments
Balloon payments are a way for consumers to buy a car they cannot really afford, and the real cost is seldom understood. A balloon or residual payment is a portion of the selling price that is payable at the end of the agreement. A dealership may offer this option as...
Video: How to compare interest rates
Comparing interest rates is not simple, especially when comparing interest on maturity with annual compounding interest and nominal interest rates. Take for example an advert for a five-year fixed deposit with 13.3% interest on maturity. In this case the annual...
TymeBank adapts for growing client base
TymeBank has announced that after nine months of trading, they have onboarded one million customers. Of these customers, approximately 45% (450 000) transact once or more a month. Although the bank’s main customer focus has been lower-income earners, nearly half of...
Video: Teach your kids the value of money
A woman asked me recently why she should give her children pocket money as she can afford to buy them what they want – unlike her upbringing where her parents were struggling, and she had to save for the things she wanted. Yet by not giving her children pocket money...
Escape the festive season without debt
If you do just one thing this festive season, plan for those 40 days to the next paycheque. As we approach the end of 2019, I could write a long list of all the things you need to do to get your finances in order for next year – but that can wait until January. Right...