Kmart planning Big W takeover

WATCH out Big W — Kmart is planning to roll out more than 50 stores over the next five years and is eyeing off sites currently leased by the rival store.

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10 Australian start-ups to watch

THE topic of innovation is on everyone’s lips thanks to Malcolm Turnbull today. Here are some start-up success stories you can’t ignore.

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‘They’re burning from the inside out’

THEY are pictured thrashing about and desperately trying to escape. This, activists claim, is the price we pay for bacon.

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10 Australian start-ups to watch

THE topic of innovation is on everyone’s lips thanks to Malcolm Turnbull’s announcements today. Here’s some start-up success stories you know about, or will soon.

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Dick Smith staff ‘hoard bargains’

DICK Smith says it is investigating reports that staff “hoarded” sought-after items such as TVs during its fire sale, leaving customers out of luck.

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Safety concerns over cut-price IVF clinic

WOULD-BE parents are flocking to a new bulk billed IFV clinic, the second of its kind in Australia. But experts warn cost-cutting may compromise safety.

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Ashley Madison cheater’s spectacular meltdown

THOUGHT the fallout from the Ashley Madison data breach was over? Nope. A school principal could face jail over this spectacular post-hack meltdown.

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The new real-world test for cars

FINALLY some good news out of the Volkswagen scandal: popular cars sold in Australia will have their fuel economy and emissions tested in the real world.

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PM’s plan to lure clever Aussies home

ENTREPRENEURS will be encouraged to start new businesses in Australia through a $1 billion package of reforms.

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Almost Half of Millennials Experience Chronic Stress Over Money

From a ballooning student-loan bubble to a depressed job market, millennials have plenty of reasons to worry about money. And according to the “Better Money Habits Millennial Report” by Bank of America and USA Today, that’s exactly what they’re doing.

After analyzing the survey of 1,320 adults age 35 and under, the report concluded that a full 41% of respondents felt chronically stressed about money — as in, all the time.

• Related: Dealing With Money Stress

Further, far too many millennials reported feeling less than confident about their financial situations, with 27% feeling “anxious,” 22% feeling “overwhelmed,” and 13% feeling “scared.”

But are millennial money fears unfounded?

With the national media sharing stories of millennial doom ad nauseum, it’s easy to see how the under-35 demographic would be worried about their economic fate. However, comparing common money stressors to the reality of their situation paints a grim picture for the younger generation.

In most cases, millennials are scared about their finances because they should be.

Four Millennial Money Fears That Make Sense

In other words, they don’t know everything, but they know enough to be afraid. Here are a few examples to consider:

Money Fear No. 1: According to the report, 43% of millennials who worry about money stress over the fact they’re not putting enough money into savings.

Reality: The Wall Street Journal reported reported that millennials had an average savings rate of minus-2% in 2014. Yes, you read that right.

Money Fear No. 2: The Better Money Habits report showed that 30% of millennials with money stress worried they were spending too much.

Reality: A recent study by TD Bank painted millennials as the first “super-saver generation.” However, when asked, 69% of millennials reported indulging on impulse purchases.

Money Fear No. 3: Based on the Better Money Habits survey results, 27% of millennials who worried about money were stressed over their student loans.

Reality: Millennials are right to worry when it comes to student-loan debt. According to recent debt estimates, the average 2015 graduate will need to repay $35,000 after college.

Money Fear No. 4: The report showed that 24% of millennials were stressed due to their lack of planning when it comes to saving for retirement.

Reality: Earlier this year, a survey conducted by nonprofit Investor Protection Institute (IPI) found that fewer than two out of every five millennials were saving for retirement.

Why Millennials Worry Over Money

You get the picture. In almost every case, money-stressed millennials are probably right to lose sleep over their lack of saving, liberal spending, or lack of education on all things personal finance.

Further, the lack of education on money matters may be the root cause of worry in the first place, and by young people’s own admission. As the Better Money survey showed, millennials felt more knowledgeable about a wide range of topics than they did about personal finance. While only 17% of respondents reported having expertise in financial matters, 34% felt more comfortable with social media, 33% felt confident in their knowledge of cooking and dining out, and 26% felt rather versed in technology.

• Related: 10 Ways Real Millennials Are Able to Save Money, Even in Big Cities

In short, young adults by and large have a better grasp of Facebook, Instagram, and P.F. Chang’s than they do of personal finance fundamentals such as budgeting, saving, and investing. With statistics like that, it’s no wonder that nearly half of millennials are in a state of constant worry about their money.

But what can we do?

How Millennials Can Stop Stressing Over Money

When it comes to finances, millennials have a tougher hill to climb than any other generation in the last 50 to 60 years. After all, their journey into adulthood occurred during or right after the Great Recession, which was one of the worst economic calamities to befall Americans in recent history.

This quote from the Pew Research Center pretty much sums it up:

Millennials are also the first in the modern era to have higher levels of student loan debt, poverty and unemployment, and lower levels of wealth and personal income than their two immediate predecessor generations (Gen X’ers and boomers) had at the same stage of their life cycles.

Unfortunately, millennials are stuck with the same financial tools as the rest of us — even if they face greater challenges than everyone else. Paying down student loans, saving for the future, and building wealth are accomplished through the same means no matter how young — or how old — you are.

Money and financial stress aren’t anything new, but with the right set of tools, they could be a thing of the past. The key to stop stressing over money is living within our means, creating a budget that works with our lifestyle, and getting serious about saving for retirement and the future.

• Related: Not Investing Yet? Here’s How to Get Started

And right now, those are areas where millennials are failing just as miserably as other generations. And until that changes, nothing else will.

Are you a millennial who is stressed over money? What is your biggest money fear?

The post Almost Half of Millennials Experience Chronic Stress Over Money appeared first on The Simple Dollar.

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Money Isn’t Everything: 6 Reasons You Shouldn’t Take That Higher-Paying Job

You’re offered a job that pays you significantly more than what you currently make. What do you do?

Your first thought is to probably take it. Making more money solves a lot of life’s problems, after all, and lets you buy a lot of nice things.

But every job comes with positives and negatives. Sometimes, the negatives are enough to outweigh the value of that bigger paycheck.

So think carefully before saying “yes” to that offer, and look over this list of six reasons to turn down a higher-paying job.

You might say “no” to this opportunity if…

1. You’ll Face a Longer Commute

The average commute in the U.S. is 26 minutes, which means 52 minutes is spent going to and from work. Almost five hours per week!

If you take a job farther away you’ll tack on more time to your commute. Is it worth it?

Apart from time is the cost: CNN reports U.S. workers spend an average of $2,600 commuting. If you double the distance, for instance, you might lose much of what you thought you were gaining.

Compare the offered job to your current position by calculating what you’ll make from each one after all expenses, including commuting costs. Divide that by the total time devoted to working, including commutes.

You may make more per year with the new job, but not much more for each hour you’re away from home.

That’s the time and money equation. But there is the health issue as well.

A Gallup poll found the longer the commute, the lower people score on well-being and emotional health indexes, and the more likely they are to be obese.

In other words, long commutes are just plain bad for you.

2. You’ll Work Longer Hours

Long commutes are bad for your health, so it isn’t surprising that long hours are bad for you too.

Here’s what the National Institutes for Health reports from a study on long working hours and health:

Women who worked long hours had increased odds of subsequently experiencing depression. Moving from standard to long hours was associated with unhealthy weight gain for men, with an increase in smoking for both men and women, and with an increase in drinking for women.

In addition to the potential health hazards there is the question of your quality of life: Do you really want to work more hours?

3. You Don’t Enjoy the Work

Consider carefully whether the actual work offered is something you’ll enjoy, and how long you’ll be doing it. A larger paycheck might make work you don’t like doable, especially if it’s temporary. But if you don’t enjoy the work you probably won’t be satisfied long-term.

Here, too, you run into possible health issues. A meta-analysis of studies on job satisfaction and health concluded “the relationships found suggest that job satisfaction level is an important factor influencing the health of workers.”

4. It’s in the Wrong Location

It’s possible the new job will be far away, maybe even in one of the places covered in my post on the best cities for jobs. Some places have better employment opportunities than others, which could mean you’ll have the cost and trouble of moving.

More importantly, being a “good place for jobs” doesn’t mean it’s a good place for you. To feel happy about where you live you might need mountains, a beach or a large city.

Thinking about the totality of your life and lifestyle, do you want to live where that job is located?

5. The Office Isn’t Right for You

Even if the job is a short commute and you love the work, hours and location, you should consider the work environment.

My post on how to research a job explains how to find employer reviews on websites like Glassdoor (for jobs in the U.S.) and RateMyEmployer.com (for Canadian employers).

Visit the workplace too, if possible. You don’t want to spend your days in a workplace that’s toxic — physically or psychologically.

6. It Doesn’t Fit Your Goals

Some jobs are just a good way to pay the bills while you figure out what you want to do with your life. But if you already have solid goals in place, be sure the job offered fits with your plan.

A detour into a job that makes you a little more money might set you back years on your more important goals. If this is the case, than that’s one of the best reasons to turn down a higher-paying job.

Your Turn: Have you ever turned down a higher-paying job, and if so, why?

Steve Gillman is the author of “101 Weird Ways to Make Money” and creator of EveryWayToMakeMoney.com. He’s been a repo-man, walking stick carver, search engine evaluator, house flipper, tram driver, process server, mock juror and roulette croupier, but of more than 100 ways he has made money, writing is his favorite (so far).

The post Money Isn’t Everything: 6 Reasons You Shouldn’t Take That Higher-Paying Job appeared first on The Penny Hoarder.

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Double whammy for home owners

MANY banks have hit customers with a double whammy in 2015 by failing to pass on the two cash rate drops in full and by hiking rates in recent weeks.

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