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It’s important to do your research before investing, no matter how big or small the investment may seem. We’ve listed some factors to consider before taking the investment plunge.
Income
It’s vital to not only think about how stable your current income is, but the length of time that you’re planning to invest. You might be able to afford the investment now, but if you’re working casually or have a short-term working contract, you need to objectively consider whether your investment will put you in any financial hardship in the future. If you’re going to spend a significant amount of money on something that will increase in value in the long-term, you need to be confident that you won’t be forced to sell it before the value starts to increase enough for any return to be made.
Risk
Risk tolerance can vary for each person and also depend on personal life circumstances. You won’t always be able to eliminate risk altogether, so you need to be comfortable with the risk you’re taking. Some risks can be protected against, such as by taking out involuntary unemployment, income protection and illness and injury protection. Other ways that you can mitigate your risk is to keep track of the performance of your investments and to know where your money is invested. Keeping aware of potential market fluctuations is important too. Our Senior Financial Planners can help with risk appetite and finding the right product for you. Email us or call 1300 654 193.
Tax
Many investments can be used as a tax deduction and it’s important that you understand how tax will affect your investment so that you don’t end up paying more tax than you need to, or have to pay any missing tax at a later date. The Australian Taxation Office website contains in-depth information about investing and tax, available at ATO website.
Extra costs
Some investments may involve many extra costs, while some will have none at all. For example when buying a property, you need to factor in upfront costs such as stamp duty, legal fees, insurance and building and pest inspections. Buying shares is an example of an investment that you can make with a small amount of money, whilst paying no extra costs.
Emotion
Removing the emotion from your investment decision goes without saying. It can be beneficial to get third party advice before investing, rather than spending your money investing in something because some of your friends or family have done so. It can help to objectively assess when to let go of an investment too, rather than have sentimental attachment to an asset that was once performing strongly but has now not been providing any value for an extended period of time. When thinking about whether to hold onto an investment or sell it, one question you could ask yourself is “would I buy it today?”.
