Australians still not saving money

While 70 per cent of Australians think they have complete or good control over their finances, almost one third are living pay cheque to pay cheque, according to BT Financial Group.

BT Financial head of financial literacy and advocacy, Bryan Ashenden said many Australians were also in debt, regardless of their salary band.

“No one is immune, we all have worries about our money from time to time and what can make a difference is to put steps in place so that we worry less,” he said.

Ashenden said the research also showed that contrary to general consensus, Gen Y were the most responsible and financially prepared cohort, with 49 per cent stating they always or often work to plans to achieve financial goals, ahead of 39 per cent of Gen X respondents. Despite good financial intention however, Gen Y was most likely to spend beyond their means.

“The first step is to encourage open conversations about money matters with our loved ones,” Ashenden said.

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“From there we can start to build a picture of what our finances look like and put steps in place to better manage our money.”

A total 32 per cent of Australians (up two per cent from 2015) struggled to make ends meet between pays, while 30 per cent were concerned about meeting minimum debt repayments each month.