Let’s keep that chewing gum money. Please forgive us, Dr Cullen, and don’t take away our chewing gum tax cut! I know some of us have been scathing about it. As you said recently, “I have noted that people have said they don’t really think it’s worth having. If people say that, then of course they may find their wish has been granted. Be careful what you ask for, or you may get it.”
Q&As: Is compounding interest over-rated?; Credit cards v eftpos; How long is long-term? Returns on different assets.
Q&As: Couple reluctant to sell their shares in a takeover; Owning 19 shares is good, but it’s too soon to judge performance.
Views on negative gearing are poles apart. Negative gearing is like the death penalty. People feel strongly both ways about it, judging by reactions to my last column. In that column, I wrote that negative gearing — which occurs when a landlord makes year-by-year cash losses on a mortgaged property — is becoming more common. This is mainly because rents haven’t risen nearly as fast as house prices.
Q&As: Couple should spend less?; Wealth isn’t always money; How last week’s correspondent made his millions; Making extra payments on fixed mortgages without penalties.
Q&As: Man who has made $3 million from shares; How much risk for a 53-year-old?; How good is advice from banks?