The International Monetary Fund (IMF)
has sharply upgraded the growth forecast
for Australia, along with leading Asian
economies. It is predicting that the Australian
economy will experience growth of 3 per
cent in 2010 and 3.5 per cent in 2011.
This means that Australia is going to
be one of the handfuls of countries leading
the global recovery.
Once again we are the Lucky Country.
Once again we dodge the bullets, and keep
on growing, even as traditional leaders
Europe and the USA battle to regain their
feet.
How do you feel about living in such
a country? A country that has made its
way through the GFC virtually unscathed,
an amazingly resilient economy that is
amongst the leaders in the world in terms
of economic prospects and outlook?
How do you feel about your personal circumstances
compared to, for example, people in Greece?
They get a 115bn Euro loan from the IMF
and strikes in the streets. We get a 20
per cent increase in property prices,
rising growth rates, and unending mineral
exports. And we have a lifestyle and beaches
that make the Greek Islands jealous!
According to CommSec, wealth held by
Australians in property, shares and other
assets is again approaching record levels.
CommSec estimates that the average Australian
has wealth equivalent to just over $253,000,
around $7,500 below the high set two years
ago.
The average Australian may have lost
on average just over $21,000 in 2008,
but they made it back with interest in
2009 with wealth rebounding by just over
$29,000 per person.
Does our national good fortune make you
feel more confident about the future and
more inclined to feel positive about participating
in the opportunities that are on offer?
In contrast to the United States and
many countries across Europe, our position
as a country, and as individuals, seems
so much stronger. When an opportunity
such as this amazing good fortune we are
experiencing arises, what are you going
to do? Are you going to let it pass by,
or are you going to take advantage of
it?
House prices have grown by a whopping
15 to 20 percent since the beginning of
2009. How do you feel about the way the
value of your family home has increased?
Imagine if you had another two or three
growing in the same way! Perhaps it’s
time to start turning this into the start
of your wealth creation strategy. One
obvious solution for doing this is turning
the equity from your family home into
the deposit for your investment property,
so you can get a foothold in the market
to start growing your portfolio.
Here’s an extract from Julius Caesar,
by William Shakespeare, spoken in Julius’
tent:
"There is a tide in the affairs
of men.
Which taken at the flood, leads on to
fortune;
Omitted, all the voyage of their life
Is bound in shallows and in miseries.”
We think we are very fortunate to live
in Australia, and to have so many king
tides, while other countries are struggling
in the shallows.
To carry the metaphor further, with a
bit of license,
“If living in Australia won’t
float your boat, what will?”
If you would like to learn more and discuss
how McCarthy Group can assist you, click
here.
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