NEXT ZERO

There is this strange myth that for foreigners, doing business or investing in Australia is something only big corporations can pull off. As if you need a head office in Melbourne, a tax team in Sydney and a few million in spare change before the country even looks your way. Not true. The rules are…

Let’s be honest. You don’t need me to explain finance as you’ve already got Google plus that one friend who read half a blog post and now hands out loan advice like it’s insider trading. However as an accountant who knows a bit of finance and a mortgage broker who knows a bit of business,…

If you have ever wondered how a functioning adult becomes slightly unhinged at the airport, you are not imagining it because the moment you walk through airport doors urgency, quietly replaces logic. You suddenly feel underprepared. You check your pockets for your passport while holding your passport and you assume your wallet has vanished even…

Nothing says “well done” in Australia quite like the moment the Australian Taxation Office suddenly takes an interest in your life. You make a profit, you finally get something right and before you can even enjoy the feeling, they appear politely to claim their participation trophy. You sell a property, offload some shares, maybe cash…

You turn on the TV a few minutes early, expecting the usual pre-match rhythm. The toss, the commentary, that slow settling in before anything actually happens. Instead, before a single ball is bowled, you are told to gamble. “Bet now. Odds just updated. Win big today.” It barely registers as unusual anymore. The ad comes…

As 31 December approaches, NSW land tax assessments are now looming. If you own land in NSW that is not your principal place of residence and the total land value creeps past the threshold, congratulations! You have unlocked a recurring subscription fee to the state. Cancel anytime by selling the property or moving into it….

Over 25 year ago, in the year leading up to 2000 while Australia was busy preparing for the Sydney Olympic Games, there was another event quietly unfolding behind the scenes and one that is almost forgotten now. It was called Y2K or as dramatically known back then as the Millennium Bug. For months, the experts…

It is human nature for business owners to compare and the moment you hear what someone else paid on their BAS, you cannot help wondering how yours stacks up. You might see another business making similar money, maybe even boasting about record sales, yet somehow their GST bill is half of yours. Before long, you…

Cricket fans know the pain too well. You fly in or drive across the borders, you pay for the ticket that costs more than anything you have purchased recently, you line up for overpriced chips, find your seat, the national anthems play and then play finally starts. Then the drizzle and then heavier drizzle. Then…

We have all been there. Waiting at home for a delivery that might arrive between 9 to 5 or holding off on making calls because a builder, doctor or banker was suppose to call at a particular time. The delivery is “on its way” so you hover near the door and start hearing the sound…