Budgeting

Quiz: Financial fitness for life


How well do I shape up?

When the subject of personal finance comes up, it’s easy to consign difficult decisions to the ‘too hard’ basket.

But often taking some basic steps can have a real and lasting effect on your financial health.

Try our financial health quiz to see how well you shape up.

Budgeting

What’s your usual monthly expenditure?
    1. My budget plan details my exact monthly outgoings in various categories.
    2. I have a rough idea from receipts and bank statements.
    3. I don’t have a clue – my spending varies so much, it’s difficult to keep track.

Borrowing

You owe $500 on your credit card and the payment is due today. But you’ve had your eye on an outfit costing a similar amount and it’s the final day of the sale. What do you do?
    1. Pay off the credit card and go without the new outfit.
    2. Buy the outfit and pay off the credit card using another card.
    3. Buy the outfit and worry about the credit card payment later.

Large purchases

You’re buying a new car and the salesman tries to interest you in finance. How do you respond?
    1. Decline the offer. I plan to pay in cash from my savings.
    2. Consider the offer but shop around for the best loan.
    3. Accept the finance and worry about the repayments later.

Financial protection

Your company is downsizing and you find yourself out of a job. How do you manage?
    1. My comprehensive insurance will protect my family until I find another job.
    2. Hopefully my savings will cover any shortfall.
    3. Not sure. I’ve never prepared for this scenario.

Retirement planning

What standard of living will you enjoy in retirement if you continue to follow your current savings plan?
    1. My superannuation and other investments are on track to provide us with a comfortable retirement via a combination of salary sacrifice and employer contributions.
    2. I’ve rolled over my super into one account and hopefully this will provide us with a modest standard of living.
    3. I’ve no idea how much I’ve got in my various super accounts.

Scams

A salesman calls you with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to invest in a managed fund offering a high rate of return. How do you respond?
    1. Decline the offer. It’s risky and I already have a diversified investment plan.
    2. Sounds interesting but I’d need to do more research.
    3. Take up the offer – no risk, no reward.

Mostly As: You’re in robust financial health but there’s no room for complacency.
Mostly Bs: You obviously try to stay on top of your finances but there’s still room for improvement.
Mostly Cs: You’re in the financial equivalent of intensive care and radical surgery is required.

Whether you’re a savings Olympian or little leaguer, it pays to talk to your financial adviser about ways to improve your fiscal fitness.

Budget calculator

Before talking to your adviser, it’s worth taking the time to complete our budget planner, which enables you to work out your regular incomings and outgoings before earmarking potential areas of saving.

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