Stewart Financial

16/08/2026

Do many people in Australia Follow Dave Ramsey from America?

Step 1: Save $1,000. Put it under the bed. Emergency fund. Don't touch it. Step 2: Pay off your credit cards.

Step 3: Sell your car, get rid of the toxic car loan, buy a $5K car instead. Step 4: Save $10,000. Throw $5,000 of that into managed funds. Keep chucking in $100 a week.

Now you've got a safety net under you. You're at the table. Time to start building wealth.

This is where it goes sour for me.

Because the next bit of the advice is: never borrow money. And look — in a perfect world, he's right. Debt-free is the dream.

But how on earth are you meant to buy a house without borrowing?

My take: the only debt worth carrying is healthy debt. Comfortable debt. Debt you can actually breathe under.

And here's the bit that actually matters — this isn't a dig at baby boomers. They played by the rules they were given, and they played them well. Fair play to them.

But there's a structural problem underneath all this. You can only build so many houses so fast. You can only start so many companies to service growing needs. Assets compound. And when one generation starts out with wealth already banked, it inflates the price of getting in for the next one.

Think of it like a law firm bringing on a new partner. That partner doesn't get a slice of the business that's already been built. They get a slice of whatever growth happens from here — and they usually have to borrow heavily just to buy in.

Debt and borrowing are important tools. But at the levels we're seeing now, it's just not fair on the next generation. Not only ethically — it's a productivity problem too. When young people are buried under this much debt just to get a foot in the door, they end up less efficient and less willing to take the risks that actually build something.

Just my thoughts ☺️

15/08/2026

BHP & RIO — the "boring" AI play

I get a lot of questions about how to buy AI stocks. There are direct plays and ETFs for that. But people forget you can just buy boring old BHP and RIO — and chances are, they're already in your portfolio.

Both miners are tapped into long-term trends shaping the global economy:

BHP — its growing focus on copper puts it in a strong position to benefit from AI data centre demand, EVs, and sustainable infrastructure. Copper prices are up almost 50% since April last year, and BHP's share price has followed to record highs.

Rio Tinto — still a major iron ore producer, feeding China's ongoing demand for steel in construction and manufacturing.

The fundamentals stack up too. BHP yields 3.1% (fully franked) on a PE of 20 — not stretched for this market. Rio yields 4% (fully franked) on a PE of 16, a slight discount.

Neither is exciting day to day. But over the next 10 years, don't be surprised if these "boring" blue chips just keep doing what they do.

12/08/2026

What actually makes a good investment property?

I get asked this a lot. The honest answer? One that's $200k under market, low maintenance, and problem-free.

Yeah — a unicorn. Doesn't exist.

For normal people like me, here's a real example: a unit I bought in Palm Cove!

The numbers:

Purchase price: $415,000

Deposit (10%): $41,500

Stamp duty & other costs: ~$20,000

Total cash in: ~$61,500

Loan: principal & interest, 30-year term

Value now: $475,000

Here's the kicker — right now it costs me about $200 a week to hold. Once negative gearing on established properties is phased out, does that make it less attractive?

Not necessarily. You can still carry those losses forward until the property turns cash-flow positive — which happens faster on a lower-value, higher-yielding property like this one. Those carried losses (and holding costs like maintenance) can also offset the capital gain down the track. So the tax settings change, but the underlying investment logic doesn't fall apart.

Sure, over 20 years there'll be maintenance costs and the odd big-ticket item — roof, lifts, whatever comes up. But a well-built, well-maintained building should easily see out 50-100 years.

My plan: hold until I'm 60 — about 20 years from now — then sell and roll the proceeds into super. Being conservative, let's say it's worth $600,000 by then (roughly 1.9% p.a. growth — deliberately unspicy).

I'll also aim to sell in a year my taxable income is low, to manage the CGT hit.

So what's the actual return?

Because it's a P&I loan, every one of those weekly repayments is also paying down the debt — not just servicing interest. On a rough model — $200/week holding cost tapering to break-even as rents catch up, then modestly positive from around year 12, sale costs of ~2.5%, loan paid down over 20 years of a 30-year P&I term — the loan balance drops from $373,500 to around $201,700 by sale time, and the cash-on-cash IRR comes out around 6.7% p.a.

That's a decent result for a deliberately conservative growth assumption (~1.9% p.a. on the underlying asset), no tax perks after negative gearing changes, and holding costs baked in. Most of it comes from two things working together: leverage on the capital growth, and the "forced saving" of paying down the loan itself.

You might say this is not a great invest really? Well I have just used conservative figures. Along with Investing in Super and also an Investment account outside Super this forms more diversification and also just adds to the pot at retirement. You did not have $600,000 to start with did you?

This isn't advice — just a real, unglamorous example of how a simple, boring, well-bought property can still stack up over the long run, even without unicorn assumptions.

06/08/2026

Maybe I might live long enough to see the ASX reach 10,000? Has been having a great run this Financial Year.

04/08/2026

Brisbane listings are surging!!!!!!!!!!!!

Prices haven't caught up to that story yet — but I think they will.

The banks may be overestimating how far this downturn actually goes.

Listings across Brisbane have jumped hard over the past few months. But sellers aren't budging much on price — yet.

Here's the thing about a seller's asking price: it's an opinion. The market's opinion is what actually matters, and it takes time for those two to meet.

People don't sell for one reason. They sell because they're moving, divorcing, downsizing, dealing with a death in the family, under mortgage stress, or just ready for a change. None of those reasons care what the "right" price is — eventually, life gets in the way of holding out.

As more of these sellers hit the market over the next 6–12 months, expect the gap between asking price and actual sale price to widen. That's when you'll see the real correction — not a crash, but a proper re-rating toward where buyers are actually willing to pay.

Right now it's technically a buyer's market. But the biggest discounts haven't shown up yet.

If you're buying, patience might be worth more than urgency over the next year.

30/07/2026

Sad to see on 7.30 last night how everyday mum and dad investors have lost money through Capital Guard.

If you have a large amount of money to invest and limited investment knowledge, always speak to a professional. A one-off Statement of Advice fee — even at $4,400 — will be far cheaper than losing your life savings.

Do your research. Has this fund been around for a while? Is it a big, recognised name — Vanguard, Russell Investments, AMP, Perpetual, the list goes on? Just Google the fund. Better yet, send me a DM. I won't give advice, but I'm happy to let you know if a fund looks legitimate or like a one-trick pony.

Private investing is for the wealthy. Why? Because if you only put, say, 5% of your wealth into this type of investment, it won't clean you out if it goes wrong.

Happy investing — but always do your research and talk to people around you. Ask yourself: how liquid is this investment? If I invest tomorrow, can I withdraw my money next week? If the answer is no, ask more questions. It's common sense. With property funds especially, your capital is usually tied up — yes, you may receive income distributions, but you can't just sell whenever you please.

Not financial advice — always speak to a planner or investment adviser 🙂

26/07/2026

Copper, Zink, Silver and lead if you are interested 😂🙏

24/07/2026

Apparently Dinosaurs were here 🦕🦖🦕🦖

23/07/2026

Longreach was a reach to get to 🤣😇😇

22/07/2026

A good friend and client of mine in Marybrough was featured in an article on the Money Smart Website. It shows you you don't have to be on big money to be able to save money each year. Yes it is very hard to buy a House at the moment but it is possible to save $10,000 to $15,000 a year and compounded in a good Managed fund will still help you with long term financial freedom:)

Ross learned to make every dollar count while running a family farm. Read his story and discover the practical money habits he still relies on in retirement.