Financial guru Melissa Browne joined The NSW Property Show to share practical tips to help you save for a home deposit.
If you missed the first instalment of this article, we shared financial expert Melissa Browne’s understanding of the mindset behind saving for a home deposit, as explained on the NSW Property Show. Now it is time for some practical advice.
Time to save
So you have your goals in order and you know how long you are willing to put other priorities aside in order to save for a home. But how do you actually grow your savings for a home deposit?
Melissa has a number of tips:
- Learn about finances and investing: This is the first tip because several of the others rely on you having some background knowledge of how the world of money works. The best way to make money is to understand your finances and invest. There are plenty of books and guides to finances and investing (Melissa has one here), so dig in.
- Diversify: Invest broadly and let your money work for you. The more investments you have, the more the likelihood of growth.
- Financial challenge goals: Set yourself regular goals. For example, “This month I will find X amount outside of my regular income to put towards my home loan.”
- Create multiple income streams: You don’t have to earn from one job and pay off your mortgage as quickly as possible. Find as many ways as possible to have money flowing in. (Pro tip, have a look at Melissa’s blog post as a starting point)
- Match what you spend: Melissa has a personal method where, for every dollar she spends on indulgences, she invests an equal amount and donates an equal amount. This has the triple whammy of making you think twice before you spend, helping to grow your investment, and giving back to society all at once.
- Shopback and Cashrewards: Apps and websites like Shopback and Cashrewards can bring in money while you spend. Melissa takes the earnings she gets from apps like Shopback and immediately adds it to her investment portfolio.
- Make financial habits that are right for you: It’s already been said but it’s worth reiterating, make it right for you. Create savings habits that work for you and who you are as you work towards a home deposit.
Melissa’s journey
It always helps to have practical examples. Melissa kindly shared some of her best and worst financial decisions.
Mistakes
“I think that’s a good thing.” Melissa says, “For people to be aware that I’m an ex-financial advisor and I made bad financial decisions myself. We’re not all immune. It’s how we recover from that and how we learn from it.”
Melissa’s mistakes include selling investments too early and failing to diversify. In her early investment days, Melissa had too many eggs in one basket. “I got too excited about the mining sector. When Julia Gillard made her announcement about the mining tax my shares halved overnight.”
Another mistake involved an overly emotional decision that left her with no money. She made a poor, knee jerk decision influenced by an emotional situation in her life and ended up nearly destitute. “Now my suggestion to anyone going through an emotional time,” Melissa says, “Is to have someone that they run those decisions past because if I’d run that past a good friend, they would have said maybe sit on that for a while.”
Wins
Melissa says her best financial decision has been backing herself. “’I’ve always backed myself and I’ve always started and run businesses. Less than 5% of females will have a seven-figure business but I have founded three. So I think that makes me a unicorn.”
Along with backing herself, Melissa says her other best decision has been listening to and acting on good advice. Sage advice has led to significant income over the years. Thanks to the advice of trusted friends, Melissa says, “I was able to concentrate on creating online courses and this has led to significant income.”
Visit Melissa’s website for more financial advice, courses, and lots of freebies.
And when you’re ready to make that purchase, get in touch with Thorpe Conveyancing.