This post is based on an interview we conducted with Oliver in November, 2021.
Real Money Talk is our series where we interview Australians from all walks of life about their personal finances. The views expressed are those of the interviewees, based on their experiences with money, and as such are not necessarily representative of Spaceship's views.
We have changed the name of the interviewee for their privacy.
Overview
Name: Oliver
Age: 27
Where do you live: Horsham, Victoria
Please tell us a bit about yourself.
I’m currently working in agriculture but hoping to transition into an electrician apprenticeship.
What is your current net worth?
$170,000
How does it break down? (shares, real estate, businesses, home, superannuation, etc)
- Shares: $91,000 ($85,000 in Spaceship Universe, $6,000 in Spaceship Earth)
- Cash: $5,000
- Car: $45,000
- Super: $50,500
Any debts? (including HELP from Uni)
HELP: $22,500
How did you accumulate your net worth?
A majority of my net worth was built through working multiple jobs in the agricultural sector. The past three years I’ve taken an increased interest in investing which led to me putting money in Raiz initially before switching to Spaceship. I’ve been really happy with the (unrealised) returns I’ve made so far.
(Spaceship note: past performance isn’t a reliable indicator of future performance. As share markets go up and down, so too can the value of your investment.)
Earn
Tell us a bit about your career:
I currently work as an Agricultural Researcher with the Victorian government. Before this role I worked in the private research industry as well as on my family farm.
Do you have income sources outside of your job? If so, how much do you earn from each and how did you develop them?
My only source of income outside of my job is my Spaceship account. I first opened my (Spaceship Universe) account in January 2020. Up until recently I’d been putting in $500 weekly, as well as opening up a Spaceship Earth account which had $100 dollars going in weekly. Currently my return is around $25,000 dollars, but I don’t plan on selling anytime in the near future.
What advice do you have for people who want to earn more money?
Start investing as early as you can. I was always interested in investing but too afraid that I might lose money in my early 20s. For retail investing, time in the market is your greatest ally.
What is your savings rate? And how has it changed over time?
I have a spreadsheet that I’ve been using to keep track of my net worth purely out of curiosity. I don’t know the exact figure but currently I’d guess around 80% of my income is saved or invested. In the near future I’ll be moving in with my partner while (hopefully) starting in a new role as an apprentice electrician. I realise this will have a strong impact on my savings so I’ll be investing less until I’m fully qualified.
Do you have a budget?
No I don’t, usually if there’s something I want I’ll just buy it. My expenditure has always been pretty low so I haven’t bothered to put a cap on it.
How much do you spend per year?
My main expenditure would be fast food, I don’t like cooking so I get it fairly often. I’m lucky to be staying with a friend that I only pay 50 dollars a week for rent. I’d estimate my yearly expenditure to be 10-15,000 dollars a year.
Do you make purchase decisions carefully, or are you loose with your money?
It depends on how valuable the item is. I recently upgraded my car and I spent a lot of time talking to dealerships and browsing online to get an idea of prices before finally making a purchase. Anything that is relatively cheap I don’t bother putting much thought into.
How is your work-life balance?
My work life balance is really good. My current role has so much flexibility and gives me opportunities to participate in a bunch of activities (mainly sport).
What is your favourite thing to spend money on?
I really love going to shows and AFL games when I get the chance.
Invest
How do you invest?
I have held shares in individual companies in the past, but now all my investment is in Spaceship Voyager.
What has been your best investment?
Spaceship Voyager.
What has been your worst investment?
When Covid first started I tried my hand at CFDs. I went into a sell position the day before the US announced their massive stimulus package and lost 700 dollars just about instantly.
What's been your overall return?
So far I’ve returned roughly 25,000 dollars on a $65,000 investment. These gains are unrealised though.
How are you building wealth?
By investing mostly. I’m also hoping that by switching industries into electrical from agriculture that it will provide a long term stronger income for me.
What are your main roadblocks? And how are you addressing them?
My main roadblock is my current role. To get a significant pay increase from my current role I would have had to complete a PhD. This is why I’m planning on switching into an electrician apprenticeship.
Do you have a target net worth you want?
No, as long as I have enough money to live comfortably and buy the things I want I’ll be happy.
Behaviour
When did you make your first significant behavioural shift towards wealth building?
I’ve always been an active saver. My family always had money issues when I was younger so I always wanted to make sure that I had enough money so that it wasn’t a stress in my life. When I was 24 I decided to start investing based on things I’d read online as well as the Barefoot Investor.
If you could start again, what would you do differently?
I’d tell myself to start investing earlier, and maybe take the leap into a new career sooner rather than being stuck in a position where I couldn’t grow.
What mistakes have you made along the way that others can learn from?
I think I’ve taken too long to change careers. I was too afraid of going away from everything I’d built in my current career instead of trying something out of my comfort zone and growing.
In terms of investing I realised that I should leave investing to the experts and let them invest on my behalf. It's made me less stressed than holding individual shares and trying to guess the best time to buy and sell.
Do you have any worries about retirement? If so, how are you planning to address them?
No, I don’t think I’ll have any issues in retirement.
How are you learning about building wealth? Is it from family, books, forced to learn as wealth grew, etc.?
I read and listen to various financial podcasts that interest me or are recommended by family or friends.
Do you give to charity? If you do, what percent of time/money do you give?
Not on a consistent basis, I donate sporadically to charities that I care about. Maybe 200-300 dollars a year
We want to hear your Real Money Talk
At Spaceship we’re big believers in sharing our money stories. We want to hear yours, too. In our ongoing Real Money Talk series, members of our community share what they’ve learned about managing money. We’d love you to take part. Here’s a link to our Real Money Talk survey where you can share your story.
