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A 5m 19s phone call to my bank earnt me an extra $497.73 Term deposits can be a good way to save. They often pay more than saving accounts if you are able, and willing, to lock away money for a fixed amount of time. Specials Most banks will have a 'special offer' on one of their term deposit rates. For example the 7-month term deposit might have a far better rate than most other lengths. Seems like a good deal. The Catch At the end of 7 months the default option is to re-invest for another 7 months. But hang on - what if the 7 months rate is now terrible and the 9 months rate is really good? Doesn't matter. The default will be to invest for 7 months at the new terrible rate. It's a bit like the lazy tax I mentioned before. Big money for little work When your term deposit comes due, take notice. Check out the interest rates for different term lengths - if term deposits are still your preferred option. A branch visit or a phone call is enough to switch you to

Netflix causes mass dumping. Here's an alternative. January is usually a big month for physical donations to charity. In 2019 it's been over-the-top (literally) as charity donation bins have been overflowing with items. The Netflix series "Tidying Up" by famous declutterer Marie Kondo (see her book ) has inspired many to declutter their homes. But in the process they've cluttered the streets. What's so bad about donating? When the bins overflow the extra items are thrown away. Having been in the weather, the rain and on the ground, they are classified as contaminated and cannot be sold. To make it worse, much of what fills the bins is not good enough to sell, and is also dumped. Bad donations hurt charities 13 million dollars. That's how much it costs charities to deal with all the junk we dump on them - 60,000 tonnes a year. Lifeline says half its stores have stopped accepting donations. We might think we're helping, but that's a lot

Make sure your munchkins become money-smart grown-ups. Barefoot Investor helped adults sort out their finances. Scott Pape's new book The Barefoot Investor for Families: The only kids' money guide you'll ever need helps parents raise kids who understand how money works, and how to make the best of it. Do we want our kids to be normal? Scott says normal (for an adult) is $4,200 in credit card debt, working a job we resent, to make payments on stuff we regret buying. Doesn't sound like a great future for a kid. What if our kids' lives could be better than normal? Less debt, less resentment and less worthless stuff? The Barefoot Ten After some introductory pocket-money advice - a great simple method - Scott outlines the "Barefoot Ten". Ten things he reckons your kids should do before they move out of home. Everything from cooking their own food (a great money-saver) to opening their own savings account and promising to never get a credit card. Ea

Pope Francis has encouraged people in developed countries to live more simply. At Christmas Eve mass the Pope encouraged people to live "not by devouring and hoarding, but by sharing and giving". He continued: "Let us ask ourselves: Do I really need all these material objects and complicated recipes for living? Can I manage without all these unnecessary extras and live a life of greater simplicity? "For many people, life's meaning is found in possessing, in having an excess of material objects. An insatiable greed marks all human history, even today, when, paradoxically, a few dine luxuriantly while all too many go without the daily bread needed to survive." It certainly makes me think. We do spend a lot of money on relatively meaningless things while so many of our fellow human beings have so little. News source: BBC World News