- 81 percent of respondents reported facing some level of financial stress over the past six years?
- One in three households in the Sydney metropolitan area was anxious about their ability to meet expenses for the coming year
- Four in ten households in the Sydney metropolitan area would be unable to draw on their savings or redraw on their mortgage if faced with an unexpected one off expense of $2000
- Almost 15 per cent of households would find it difficult or totally impossible to meet a regular increase of $40 per week in household expenses such as rent or mortgage increases.
- Keep a diary of spending patterns — a little notebook will do.
- Always write a shopping list and stick to it.
- Prepare a comprehensive budget, taking into account all living costs and repayments.
- Don’t rely on credit to buy gifts — if it’s not in your budget you won’t meet repayments.
- Don’t rely on the minimum credit card payment — use credit only if you can afford to pay it back quickly
