“Starting Early Reaps Rewards” by Steve Marsten

I was talking to some 20 some things this week who admitted that they really don’t like paying for financial advice. That said, when I queried them further - they really weren’t sure what a financial advisor could really offer them.

Now this couple still lived at home with mum and dad and didn’t really pay board but occasionally “chipped in” from time to time - seemingly at their own discretion. What a great deal! Both had jobs and apart from a car payment there was not much else they were paying for other than entertainment, clothes and cosmetics. Interestingly, they didn’t really know where all their money went.

The first thing we worked on was measuring where the money went. So we established a Xero file to get the figures up to date. You can’t manage what you don’t measure!

Then we put the plan together. Firstly, they needed to get over the shock that 47% of their income went on entertainment! This largely included alcohol as well. They came to the realisation that they may have overspent in this area – I didn’t need to tell them this. By the end of the session we had smashed out the action sheet which concluded that they could actually save nearly 40% of their earnings. They valued their relatively “free” accommodation; had a super plan assisted by the Government; had a plan to build on their super; had a plan to obtain health insurance before they turned 27 and worked out they would have a healthy deposit for the next stage of their lives over the next 18-24 months! We also agreed that we would meet for 30 minutes in 3 months to ensure that the plan was on track.

The value of financial advice is always debateable, however good advice should add value immediately.  When you are in your twenties, if there is a regret that I had, it was not starting with a plan sooner. Bringing health to your wealth starts with people who may not have many assets now but at least have a desire to start somewhere. At Sothertons we encourage “Early Planners” to get the ball rolling with an initial consult to flesh out the real goals and objectives. The sooner the plan starts, the sooner the rewards arrive – call Sothertons on 07 4972 1300 to commence your plan.