Articles & Questions
Every week I publish a fun new article on a money topic I think you’ll find interesting. I also answer a handful of reader questions. Subscribers to my newsletter get to see everything first — but you can browse some of my past articles & questions on this page.
My Best Articles
Not sure where to start? Below I’ve handpicked a few of my favourites. And if you like what you see, don’t forget to subscribe to my free newsletter to get new issues before anyone else!
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We’re Hitting The Open Road
We want to leave our comfortable life and travel for the next four years. My hubby wants to sell the house and invest that money into an index fund. He says it will be safer than leaving our property with tenants and will be one less worry and cost while we are gone.
I Tried CommBank’s New App
A mate of mine is a fireman … so his kids get to ride in his fire engine and even get to blast the siren.I’m a finance guy, so my kids get to … beta-test the new Commonwealth Bank app for kids.
You Prick, Barefoot
So for the last 10 years all I have heard is ‘Barefoot this, Barefoot that’.
After Midnight We’re Going to Let it All Hang Out
I have owned a small coffee shop for eight years, but since Covid started I just haven’t been able to catch up. I’ve been taking on credit cards to keep suppliers off my back, and also for wages.
Your biggest financial worry right now
My long-suffering editor, Wally, loves to joke that you can tell the financial pulse of the nation from a glimpse at my inbox. After all … thousands of people of all ages, from all across the country, write to me about what’s stressing them out.
Help! The Tax Man is Beating Up My Kid
I have a very hardworking 13-year-old who has amassed quite a bit of money: she has saved up $200,000!
My Son-in-law … Is an Abuser
Our daughter has just left an emotionally, verbally and financially abusive relationship. Her husband is busy cashing in their assets and spending or hiding their money.
The Hyperfund
Some colleagues at my work are retiring quickly in their thirties and forties after investing money into Hyperverse. They are trying to sign everyone up to it and they are earning anywhere from $150 to $1,500 a day just in the Hyperverse that was originally called the HyperFund. Any help would be muchly appreciated.
Mojo, Baby
Last Friday night I was driving home with a niggling feeling in my stomach about how I was going to pay our kids’ latest medical bills. You see, they have both been diagnosed with extremely rare cancers and their outpatient scans are not covered by a Medicare subsidy – we pay full price. Then, like a bolt out of the blue, it hit me – we have Mojo!
What’s Wrong with My Index Fund?
I followed all the advice in your book – cleared everything, saved up, paid off my mortgage and invested a lump in a low-cost index fund. And since August 2021 it has gone backwards and I’ve lost $4,000. They are down 2.96%. Is it just my fund or are they all doing badly?
The luckiest guy around
Today I want to talk to you about a hero of mine. His name is Steve Edmunson and he’s a famous American fund manager.
You’re Talking Out of Your Backside, Barefoot
I enjoy your columns, but I was a little concerned about last week and the ‘cold stethoscope to your nether regions’. A stethoscope is a listening device, and for the life of me I can’t think of a reason to listen to one’s crotch. Bowel sounds, yes, but that’s as far south as it should go. I think your doctor might be taking advantage of you.
Budget Warning
I’ve just watched the Budget, and I reckon people need to be warned about these 5% deposit government schemes. I am old enough to remember the 1960s and early 70s when I was working in conveyancing.
30-year-old Girl has No Interest
I’m a 30-year-old married Muslim woman living in Sydney. Being Muslim makes it very challenging to buy a first home. I am sure you are aware that Muslims are prohibited from dealing with interest. I am ready to take all the Barefoot Steps but I don’t know how I can do so without dealing with interest.
Dirty Money
On Sunday nights my wife and I have a ritual. We turn on the telly and begin searching for something we both want to watch. Problem.
I Loaned My Friend $500,000 … He Hasn’t Paid It Back
About four years ago I trusted a long-time friend enough to lend them over $500,000 to renovate and sell his house. After renovating, he and his partner had a contract signed to sell the house, but it fell through.
My Aussie Boyfriend Should Pay For Everything
I have a boyfriend of a few months who is Australian (I’m Indian) and in my culture it is customary for the man to pay for dinner, or at least ‘do the dance’ and insist that he pays.
Revenge of the Maths Nerd
Following the steps of the Barefoot Investor, I have turned crippling financial anxiety into a point of personal strength.
Someone call the doctor
I opened my mail and felt a cold stethoscope to my nether regions: My health fund was giving me a tickle. It happens every year. Over the past decade, consumer prices have grown 20% … but health insurers have jacked up their premiums by 54%.
My Parents Have NO IDEA
All my life I was under the impression my parents were wealthy. My father was a partner in a law firm, and there were always extravagant annual overseas trips, fancy cars, beautiful houses, antique furniture, etc. They are now 70, retired, have no super left, are on the pension, and have $120,000 of debt ($80,000 credit card, $40,000 car loan). They used up almost every last bit of their savings, and all of their super, to buy their current home outright once my dad retired.