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HELP US KEEP THE BIG BANKS HONEST Articles
Here are some Articles Mr Home Budget has published to help our readers find out what they need to know about home budgeting. We cover a range of topics from Credit Cards to saving money on your daily expenses. If you would like to hear about a specific topic please email us on info@mrhomebudget.com.au
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January 31, 2012How To Survive The Middle Class
How To Survive The Middle Class The middle class—what a way to live! While we live in relative comfort, but we still need to compete to keep our heads above water. The world is a… read more -
December 19, 2011Are You Not Respecting Your Money?
Are You Not Respecting Your Money? "Respect, just a little bit" ... is what Aretha Franklin sang out at the top of her lungs in her hit song. Come on, you know the words. But… read more -
December 09, 2011A Get Rich Slow Lesson
A Get Rich Slow Lesson Here are two fictitious classes; you guess which one is true. Hello class, my name is Professor Conventional Thinking Today we are planning to talk on the subject of how… read more -
December 06, 2011But What Are You Planning To Do With The Money?
But What Are You Planning To Do With The Money? I don't mind listening to talk back radio from time to time. And here at least in Adelaide we have some very vibrant stations and… read more -
December 02, 2011Joe DiMaggio Vs MC Hammer On Home Budgeting
Joe DiMaggio Vs MC Hammer On Home Budgeting Joe DiMaggio is known as one the world's best ever baseball players. He had a 56-game hitting streak and achieved a record which still stands to this… read more -
December 01, 2011Cut Back or Pay a Fortune
Cut Back or Pay a Fortune We drive a pretty hard bargain in our house and we cut back on everything we can when we can, including our utilities. No lights are left on when… read more -
November 25, 2011Can You Afford To Smoke In The Future?
Can You Afford To Smoke In The Future? This tale is strange but true, 100% true as I will use real facts and figures. John Smith takes up smoking on his 18th birthday (which happens… read more -
November 09, 2011An Open Letter To Qantas Employees
CEOs In Australia Have Got It Really Good A new report in Australia has found that while average wage earners wages continue to lag, CEOs are making a fortune on their wages. But not only… read more -
November 07, 2011A Great Position To Be In
A Great Position To Be In Most people reading this would still have a home loan or be saving for a home loan deposit. So you would know the huge chunk of money each and… read more -
November 05, 2011Get On the Front Foot with People You Owe Money To
Get On The Front Foot With People You Owe Money To Remember this saying: “The creditor will always have a better memory than the debtor”. To sum up, the people you owe money to are… read more -
November 02, 2011Who Are You Trying To Impress?
Who Are You Trying To Impress? Humans haven't changed much as time has passed. We are still trying to fit in and belong to a group. Years ago in England, people who were rich used… read more -
November 01, 2011Are You Cent Smart But Dollar Foolish?
Are You Cent Smart But Dollar Foolish? How many of us know a person who has to buy something because it's on sale. They will tell you smugly: "I got a great deal on this… read more -
October 31, 2011Online Supermarket Versus Coles And Woolworths
Online Supermarket Versus Coles And Woolworths Ok we have all seen the new online supermarket discount stores. But has anyone really done a full investigation to see if they are cheaper than Coles or Woolworths?… read more -
October 24, 2011How To Avoid Lazy Money
How To Avoid Lazy Money We have all seen news stories about people who have been gardening in their backyards and found glass jars full of money. Obviously these jars were left by the previous… read more -
October 19, 2011Do You Love Your Credit Card?
Do You Love Your Credit Card? If you do, you may want to click away right now. There is one argument we get from people over and over again who love their credit card; people… read more -
October 13, 2011How To Get Rich For Only $10 A Day
How To Get Rich For Only $10 A Day My wife and I often take our 18 month old son for walks in his pram. Last week quite out of the blue, an older lady… read more -
![](/modules/mod_raxo_allmode/tools/tb.php?src=/images/Articals_Photos/better_2.jpg&w=90&h=90&zc=1 "Don't Play The Game "I Can Better That"!")
September 14, 2011Don't Play The Game "I Can Better That"!
Don’t Play The Game “I Can Better That”! Working in an office environment you can really people watch. See how they talk to one another and interact. There is a certain type of person who… read more -
September 07, 2011The Carbon Tax, How Will It Affect You?
The Carbon Tax, How Will It Affect You This site is politically neutral. We don’t make calls on politics. But if you agree or disagree with the carbon tax, it will affect your home budget.… read more -
September 06, 2011Council Rates Through The Roof
Council Rates Through The Roof I received a letter which nearly knocked me off my feet last month. My council rates were due and they had increased from $1040 per year to $1160 a year.… read more -
September 03, 2011There Are Always Cheaper Ways To Do Things
There Are Always Cheaper Ways To Do Things Every Saturday, Renee and I would treat ourselves to a sausage roll and soft drink at our local bakery. A harmless treat to end the week we… read more -
August 28, 2011The RBA Appeal
The RBA Appeal Mark Bouris, have you heard of him? He owns Yellow Brick Road Wealth Management. If this doesn’t ring a bell he used to own Wizard Home Loans and he was the Australian… read more -
August 11, 2011Don’t Just Write A Shopping List; Write A Cheap Shopping List
Don’t Just Write A Shopping List; Write A Cheap Shopping List The importance of a shopping list is second to none, if you want to save money on food. However even the best-written list can… read more -
August 07, 2011Property Rates Are Going Down But Council Rates Are Going Up
Property Rates Are Going Down But Council Rates Are Going Up Just in the last few months we have been hit with a bunch of news stories about property prices going down in Australia. It… read more -
August 03, 2011Three Years On, Have Supermarket Prices Gone Up Again
Three Years On, Have Supermarket Prices Gone Up Again Each year for the last three years at Mr Home Budget, we have been tracking 66 products from our local Coles supermarket, BWS bottle shop and… read more -
July 08, 2011Are Australians Addicted to Credit?
Are Australians Addicted to Credit? You know this is an interesting question because there are many different ways to think about it. Plus many different debts e.g. credit card, home loan, personal loans, and interest… read more -
July 07, 2011How Would You Like To Save 10 Percent Plus At The Supermarket?
How Would You Like To Save 10 Percent Plus At The Supermarket? When my wife and I say we want to save money, we mean it. We take examples of saving money from anywhere we… read more -
July 06, 2011Credit Card Points Systems— What A Joke
Credit Card Points Systems— What A Joke We here at Mr Home Budget hear many reasons why people can’t give up their credit cards. “We need it for security.” “Credit cards are much easier than… read more -
July 05, 2011Your Biggest Asset Might Not Be What You Think It Is
Your Biggest Asset Might Not Be What You Think It Is If you needed to name your three biggest assets what would they be? 1. 2. 3. Now I can’t see what you have written,… read more -
July 01, 2011Have You Got The Upgrade Syndrome?
Have You Got The Upgrade Syndrome? There is a disease out there, so bad it could cost you thousands of dollars without even realising it. At some point in your life you would have had… read more -
June 15, 2011What A Difference Just 1 Percent Can Make With Compound Interest!
What A Difference Just 1 Percent Can Make With Compound Interest In Australia there are four major banks. They all offer slightly different products, services, and rates of interest. Many people will just stay with… read more -
June 12, 2011It's Just A Cup Of Coffee A Day
It's Just A Cup Of Coffee A Day We have all heard the saying, "It's on adverts all the time." They usually are trying to make the point that whatever they are selling is no… read more -
June 10, 2011Eight Quick Things You Can Start Right Now To Save Money
Eight Quick Things You Can Start Right Now To Save Money! Why not automate your finances? Back in the 1960s, computers were the size of whole rooms. Well, lucky for us those days are over.… read more -
June 07, 2011New Cars Do You Need Them?
New Cars Do You Need Them How often do you upgrade your car? Yesterday while waiting for a train, I got talking to someone who buys a new car every two years on the dot.… read more -
June 05, 2011Pepsi Story
Pepsi Story The other day my local deli was running a special of $2.00 for a two-litre Pepsi. Even for a supermarket this is an extremely good price. After paying for my bread, milk, and… read more -
June 04, 2011Do You Act Your Wage, Or Do You Act Below Your Wage
Do You Act Your Wage, Or Do You Act Below Your Wage One of the big things we have talked about time and time again is image. A lot of people get themselves into debt… read more -
June 03, 2011Insurance The Silent Killer
Insurance The Silent Killer Each and every year you, like me, expect costs to go up. Insurance, telecommunications, electricity, council rates and gas. Of course, we also expect our pay to increase each year to… read more -
May 04, 2011Save Hundreds Of Dollars A Year; Not Just This Year But Every Year
Save Hundreds Of Dollars A Year; Not Just This Year But Every Year If you are reading this article, you probably consider yourself a thrifty person. You might look out for cheap fuel, buy two… read more -
May 03, 2011Insurance Puts A Price On Housework
Insurance Puts A Price On Housework This month a new insurance company started offering a service to stay-at-home parents. They have valued their insurance so that a parent unable to do their weekly stay-at-home tasks… read more -
May 01, 2011Ten Questions To Ask Yourself To Diagnose How Good A Budgeter You Are?
Ten Questions To Ask Yourself To Diagnose How Good A Budgeter You Are? In school we were graded on every subject. You knew from term to term how well you were travelling by the teachers’… read more -
April 03, 2011Are You Saving For Something Big?
Are You Saving For Something Big? What’s your next big purchase? Is it a new car, holiday or boat? Regardless of what you are saving for you have many options open to you. Why don’t… read more -
March 21, 2011Mobile Phone Companies, Don’t Expect That Loyalty Counts For Anything
Mobile Phone Companies, Don’t Expect That Loyalty Counts For Anything Mobile phone companies must think we are stupid. We never hear from them until our contract runs out. However in the last month of the… read more -
March 15, 2011You Have To Fight For Your Right To A Refund
You Have To Fight For Your Right To A Refund November 2010, we purchased a hard drive device to tape television shows. We got it from a very large retail outlet in Australia and paid… read more -
March 14, 20115 Top Myths About Debt And Money
5 Top Myths About Debt And Money Here are five questions we always get here at Mr Home Budget. They are the ones we hear time and time again. 1.Why should we try and get… read more -
February 15, 2011We Have Some Extra Money To Spend
We Have Some Extra Money To Spend This is something we have never really tackled at Mr Home Budget. However what about for whatever reason you have come across some additional money. Not sure where… read more -
February 03, 2011Is It A Good Idea To Get A Personal Loan To Pay Off My Credit Card?
Is It A Good Idea To Get A Personal Loan To Pay Off My Credit Card We get a lot of emails from people who are really up to their eyeballs in debt. One question… read more -
January 29, 2011Thinking Of A New Car, Think Again
Thinking Of A New Car, Think Again Apart from Enron, One-Tel or HIA shares there is nearly nothing as bad as investing your money into a new car. The moment you drive the car off… read more -
January 09, 2011There`s Nothing Free About Interest Free Offers
There`s Nothing Free About Interest Free Offers How many times have we seen the adverts? You know the ones "buy today with no repayments until 2014". It makes it seem so easy. You can own… read more -
January 04, 2011New Year’s Home Budget Resolutions
New Year’s Home Budget Resolutions Yes a new year is here again; happy 2011 everybody. Now is the perfect time to think about trimming back on the budget. Here are eight New Year’s resolutions you… read more -
January 02, 2011A Whole Year Of Saving Tips - 52 Tips On Saving Money
A Whole Year Of Saving Tips - 52 Tips On Saving Money As it is the start of a New Year, why not come up with a saving tip for each week of 2011? Enjoy!… read more -
December 17, 2010How To Haggle Your Way To Big Savings
How To Haggle Your Way To Big Savings OK it's time to tell you the secrets on how to haggle your way to additional savings. This article is written to try to get savings on… read more -
December 09, 2010To Skype Or Not To Skype, That Is The Question
To Skype Or Not To Skype, That Is The Question If you have ever read a book from the 1950s about what it would be like in the year 2000. We are all flying around… read more -
December 04, 201010 Tips To Save Money On Water
10 Tips To Save Money On Water: Do you use lawn fertiliser? Most fertilisers need water to be applied to them right after spreading on the lawn. Scott's lawn company make a fertiliser that you… read more -
December 03, 2010Water Bills Are Killing Me?
Water Bills Are Killing Me Do you dread opening up your bills nowadays? It seems each year prices and fees have been going up and up. This brings me to my water bill! My family… read more -
December 02, 2010Here Are Ten Ways To Save Over The Christmas Period
Here Are Ten Ways To Save Over The Christmas Period Merry Christmas Everyone: Let me assure you, we have never been to a Christmas party, which didn't have leftovers. People who host parties normally have… read more -
November 30, 2010Can You Hold Off On New Technology?
Can You Hold Off On Technology?: Let me tell you a story. In March of 2008, my Dad purchased a 46 inch Sony LCD television. He went for a full high definition at $3200. Last… read more -
November 27, 2010Kids And Money
Kids And Money How long could you survive if you lost your income tomorrow? A year, six months or like the 48% of people in the USA, around 30 days. It is a startling statistic… read more -
November 03, 2010McDonald's vs International Roast
McDonald's vs International Roast Hot drinks are somewhat of a rarity in my house. We don't normally drink them. However the other day, whilst driving, I had an overwhelming craving for coffee. I gave in… read more -
October 30, 2010The Credit Card Funeral
The Credit Card Funeral:On the 9th of October we held our credit card funeral. I would like to thank everyone who came down to see it. Plus we had A Current Affair do a story… read more -
October 17, 20104 Quick Money Saving Ideas For Buying In Bulk
4 Quick Money Saving Ideas For Buying In Bulk Buying in bulk at wholesale supermarkets is extremely underrated. What is a wholesale supermarket, you ask? Have you ever wondered where your local deli or milk… read more -
October 02, 2010Stop Gambling
Stop Gambling Now my wife and I don't gamble much at all during the year. However on grand final day and the Melbourne Cup we will put money down. It just so happens that this… read more -
October 01, 2010The $21 Dollar Cooking Challenge
The $21 Dollar Cooking ChallengeLast month we ran a competition to win a $21 dollar cookbook. All you had to do was send in your favourite money saving tips. Here are the top five in… read more -
September 22, 2010Seven Quick Ways To Stay Entertained On The Weekend
Seven Quick Ways To Stay Entertained On The Weekend! It's Saturday night and you feel like doing something fun. There are literally 100s of options open to you. And most of these options cost quite… read more -
September 19, 2010Lainie Anderson Is Right On The Money
Lainie Anderson Is Right On The Money For those of you who don't know her, Lainie Anderson is an Adelaide radio host and a newspaper columnist. In fact around a year ago she did a… read more -
September 03, 2010How To Make Your Own Cleaning Products!
How To Make Your Own Cleaning Products! 8 Great Tips To Save You Money At The Supermarket! We all hate cleaning. However at least you can save some money at the same time. These quick… read more -
August 13, 2010Nine Ways To Crush, Kill And Destroy Your Credit Card
Nine Ways To Crush, Kill And Destroy Your Credit Card Here are the ways you can really get your credit card out of your life. Of course at Mr Home Budget we are trying to… read more -
August 11, 2010Pay Down Bills Right Away
Pay Down Bills Right Away Paying bills is not the most fun thing in the world. In fact, some people have described it as going to the dentist with no painkiller. How do you pay… read more -
August 10, 2010The 33% Rule In Home Ownership
The 33% Rule In Home Ownership In chapter 8 of my book we talk about the 33% rule when buying a house. To sum up this rule in one sentence: you should never ever commit… read more -
July 15, 2010One Year On, Have Supermarket Prices Gone Up!
One Year On, Have Supermarket Prices Gone Up? Last year in Oct of 2009 we did a story called “What is inflation and how does it affect you?” If you missed the story or need… read more -
July 13, 2010Fred the Bus Driver
Fred the Bus Driver Let’s take the example of Fred. Fred is a bus driver who took up his job on Jan 1st 2000. This was at a starting salary of $35,000. Fred is a… read more -
July 01, 2010
A Credit Card Funeral And You’re Invited
A Credit Card Funeral And You’re Invited Let Australia’s Debt Revolt Begin OK here is something a bit different. On Friday the 8th of Oct we will be holding Australia’s First Credit Card Funeral. Yes,… read more -
June 15, 2010Telstra’s Taking Advantage Of Increased Prices vs Yearly Inflation
Telstra’s Taking Advantage Of Increased Prices vs Yearly Inflation Let’s look at a real example of companies’ charging more for something. In 1999, every person in Australia with Telstra was charged $9.95 for their line… read more -
June 14, 2010Watching Your Bills Closely
Watching Your Bills Closely Every year as householders we expect bill costs to increase. Insurance, telecommunications, electricity, council rates and gas. As the costs of everything rise each year we expect a pay rise from… read more -
June 12, 2010Inflation And Taxes Are Silent Killers, Eating Your Investments
Inflation And Taxes Are Silent Killers, Eating Your Investments Let’s take Mr Smith. He has $100,000 saved at the start of July 1st 2008. Not knowing what to do with the money, he finds a… read more -
June 01, 2010Why Is Standby Cash So Important?
Why Is Standby Cash So Important In my book we talk about the 5 steps. And as you would know, step 2 is to save $2500 in standby cash. Then step 4 is to add… read more -
May 17, 2010Woolworths The Fresh Food, Debit Card People
Woolworths The Fresh Food, Debit Card People Australias attraction with the credit cards is in decline. Infact more and more of us are switching from credit cards to debit cards. Debit cards give you a… read more -
May 03, 2010Keep Australian Sports Free
Keep Australian Sports Free Many many countries around the world have to pay to watch sports. Ask any English people and they will soon tell you about the cost to watch their much loved soccer.… read more -
May 01, 2010Qantas Taking Advantage Of Their Passengers?
Qantas Taking Advantage Of Their Passengers The internet has changed alot about our lives in one way by making the way we purchase things much more simple including purchasing flights. You no longer have to… read more -
April 15, 2010Credit Card Shifting A Road To Riches Or A Bad Idea?
Credit Card Shifting A Road To Riches Or A Bad Idea? By now you should know that my wife and I hate credit cards. In our opinion they are ticking plastic timebombs just waiting to… read more -
April 09, 2010A Zero Dollar Weekend
A Zero Dollar Weekend Have you ever gone one weekend and not spent one dollar? And if so how long ago? Sometimes we tend to “work for the weekend”. Sometimes we tend to think of… read more -
April 05, 2010Up And Down Interest Rates, Are We Being Taken For Fools?
Up And Down Interest Rates, Are We Being Taken For Fools Let me talk about my home loan. While we are using examples from my home loan, I would suggest your home loan is similar.… read more -
April 03, 2010Home Loan Interest Rates Rise; How Can You Soak It Up?
Home Loan Interest Rates Rise; How Can You Soak It Up? OK on the 3rd of March the RBA put up interest rates by 0.25%. This leads to interesting questions. What does that mean for… read more -
March 27, 2010The Big Three To Eat Away At Your Wage
The Big Three To Eat Away At Your Wage There are three things that eat into your wage more than anything else. However these three things sometimes are not easy to see even though they… read more -
March 10, 2010Australia - The Final Straw On Debt
Australia - The Final Straw On Debt On the 27th of Dec. 2009 Australians were in 1.2 trillion dollars of debt. This is credit cards, personal loans and mortgages. This works out to be $56,000… read more -
March 07, 2010
Australia’s Food Prices - You Must Be Joking
Australia’s Food Prices - You Must Be Joking November last year there was a report from the OECD, informing us that Australia’s food prices had increased by 41.3% since the start of the year 2000.… read more -
March 03, 2010Train vs Car
Train vs Car The other day I was talking to a friend who has just got a job in Adelaide. He has started working in a call centre in the middle of the CBD. Knowing… read more -
February 08, 2010The Top 5 Tips In Saving When Going To The Supermarket
The Top 5 Tips In Saving When Going To The Supermarket 1 Write a list, write a list and write a list. It’s funny once you see it. Someone walking aimlessly around a supermarket looking… read more -
February 06, 2010What Car Are You Driving?
What Car Are You Driving Recently I met up with an old friend from high school. He asked me to come over and help him with his continuing debt and budget problems. In fact his… read more -
February 03, 2010Don’t Be A Sucker; Stay Away From Credit
Don’t Be A Sucker; Stay Away From Credit On January the 28th, a credit agency called Dun and Bradstreet released results of a survey. This survey indicated that 4 in 10 Australians are resorting to… read more -
January 17, 2010Westpac Tries To Explain Rate Rise
Westpac Tries To Explain Rate Rise If you were an unlucky Westpac home loan customer, you would have had your home loan rates increased by 45 basis points. This is while the RBA only raised… read more -
January 12, 2010Scams They Are Real
Scams They Are Real Have you ever read something too good to be true? More often than not, it is. We have scams presented to us every single week: *People emailing us telling us that… read more -
January 03, 2010Scared To Death Of Another Interest Rate Rise?
Scared To Death Of Another Interest Rate Rise In May of 2008 a friend called me up wanting advice on a home he and his partner wanted to purchase. The home he was looking at… read more -
December 15, 2009Additional Savings Tips 4
Additional Saving Tips 4: Ok, here is something to get into the habit of. Back in my bad days of spending I would always purchase something for myself when I paid for fuel. It might… read more -
December 02, 2009Bushfire Ratings vs Credit Card Interest
Bushfire Ratings vs Credit Card Interest The Victorian bushfires earlier this year were an awful thing. They really shocked my family and me, along with the whole country. It would have been extremely hard for… read more -
November 17, 2009Money To Pay Your Bills
Money To Pay Your Bills Someone in my family told me about a fee that they were charged for paying a bill. At first I thought that they must have been joking. However, they were… read more -
November 07, 2009
Additional Savings Tips 3
Additional Savings Tips 3: My Dad reads the paper every single day. He has done this for as long as I can remember. However around 6 six months ago while I was staying there (our… read more -
October 20, 2009
Additional Saving Tips 2
Additional Saving Tips 2: OK the world economy is a mess at the moment. One of the industries that have been hardest hit is the banks. They have had to take losses from customers who… read more -
October 16, 2009Let’s get Christmas Organised Part Three
Let’s get Christmas Organised Part Three As we talked about in the last issue, we are getting our Christmas shopping done now. And you’re along for the ride to see our savings. If you don’t… read more -
October 15, 2009Inflation In Bank Accounts?
Inflation In Bank Accounts Let’s pretend you have saved $100,000 on Dec 31st 2007. You want to put it in a term deposit bank account to earn some interest. You find a one year term… read more -
October 15, 2009What Is Inflation And How Does It Affect You
What Is Inflation And How Does It Affect You? Inflation is something that affects every single country around the world. It is not necessarily a bad thing, but it is something you need to know… read more -
September 10, 2009
Let's get Christmas Organised Part Two
Let's get Christmas Organised Part Two As we talked about in the last issue we are getting our Christmas shopping done now. And you're along for the ride to see our savings. If you don't… read more -
September 02, 2009Pay Tv What Is It Really Costing You
Pay Tv What Is It Really Costing You Let’s look closely at pay TV in Australia. Pay TV is just that, “Pay TV.” So in saying this, “is it a good idea to get it?”… read more -
August 03, 2009
Let’s Get Christmas Organised Part One
Let’s Get Christmas Organised Part One “Save your way to a happy Christmas” You know as I get older, time seems to go by quicker and quicker. Years in my opinion, seem to be getting… read more -
July 15, 2009
Additional Saving Tips
Additional Saving Tips This is a really good one that somebody told me about the other day. Their yearly car insurance contract was coming to an end and they were looking to renew. They wanted… read more -
July 02, 2009X Lotto (Sorry, The Odds Are Against You)
X Lotto (Sorry, The Odds Are Against You) As I sit at my desk wondering what to write about, a radio advert is playing in the background. This week the radio shouts out, $90 MILLION… read more
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