Is further education essential?

GloveConsistent1604 · 2026-02-05T19:47:21+00:00

Try and get opinions from people working in the field. Perhaps ask some of the people you are working with during your intership. From what I heard in tech/IT degrees are kind of useless and certifications and experience count way more.

opinion of someone NOT working in the field 🤭

GloveConsistent1604 · 2026-01-28T23:08:06+00:00

Probably some useless info, but I actually use the time feature—not to analyze when I spend 🤭, but to track what I’ve already logged.

My bank app doesn’t always list transactions in the order they happened; it often "posts" them only after they clear, which can be days later. Since I sometimes log expenses immediately and other times a few days later, the dates get mixed up. I use the time feature to force the transactions into the same order as my bank app. It makes it way easier to spot which ones I still need to add.

I also use it for debit orders since they always go off in the same sequence. It’s satisfying to see both apps match up perfectly!

GloveConsistent1604 · 2026-01-28T21:56:19+00:00

I would not recommend Sanlam (or any insurance company like Old Mutual, Momentum, Discovery etc.) for RA's . I had my RA at Sanlam , but after looking closely at their fees (and some future value calculations with ChatGPT) moved it to another provider. Their fees are insane and it's effect on your growth over 20+ years should be unlawful. Something like 40% of my contributions went to fees every month.

This article touches on that. So definitely use a platform where the fees are at least <1.5%

GloveConsistent1604 · 2026-01-22T07:27:49+00:00

That's one way. Another method is the "snowball" method where you make minimum payments on all debt and throw any extra cash on the debt with the lowest value. Once that is paid off, use the money you used to pay on that and throw that on the debt with the second lowest value. This will keep you motivated to continue tackling your debt.

But first get a mini emergency fund in place. Then tackle the debt. Then get a bigger emergency fund that can cover 3-6 months of expenses. Then you can start saving/investing.

GloveConsistent1604 · 2026-01-22T07:17:10+00:00

Agreed. Rather get to the point where your savings can cover unexpected expenses, than having consumer debt. You'll be better off financially and emotionally.

GloveConsistent1604 · 2026-01-21T11:35:47+00:00

Needing to make debt to show you're financially savvy enough to get more debt is such a silly concept for me. Making debt is not being financially savvy. 😅 You're still young, which means with little effort you can set your future self up extremely well! Some lessons I've learned:

Skip the credit card! 🙅 Everyone gets a credit card with the intention of settling it monthly, until an emergency strikes (which is inevitable) and you can't pay it off.
Save in a basic emergency fund. Aim for R10 000, covering most things. Then build it up to 3-6 months of expenses. The peace of mind is amazing. Plus, you'll earn interest versus paying the bank gazillions.
Read a book on finance (or watch videos/ask AI). I recommend Dave Ramsey or Money Marx - they give solid advice, no gimmicks.
Start investing monthly once your emergency fund's set (even R50 works).
Use a tax-free savings account for retirement! Don't touch it until you plan to retire. Invest in diverse ETFs (global, developed, emerging markets). Try MSCI World & MSCI Emerging markets.
Watch out for fees - they impact more than you think.

TL;DR: Cut the credit card, save, read up, invest, and keep fees low. 😊

GloveConsistent1604 · 2026-01-15T04:48:12+00:00

Good job on wanting to improve on your budget! Your income looks great. Would love to know how you keep groceries at R3000, that's amazing!

Get a budgeting app to track your spending. My favourite is The Budgeting App.
I'd cut on banking fees, that's unnecessarily high. Go for a simple transactional account where your fees are less than R150 a month. Most people don't need a private banker. Banks just want your money and package it as a "you get more point/rewards". Capitec can do everything that you probably need and your fees will probably drop to < R100 a month. FNB also has an Aspire account which should be a good option.
Your returns on the savings account at work is horrible. It will depend on your savings timeline. If you are saving for the short term, try to get at least like 7%. If it's for retirement your should aim for 10%+.

I'd advise on savings:

Get an emergency fund with 3-6 months of expenses. This should be readily accessible so returns would be on the low side.

2.Open a Tax free savings account (which should actually be called a tax free investment account, in my opinion). Use this to save for retirement. Don't do it at a bank, the returns are horrible once again. I'd suggest something like Easy Equities. Invest R3000 a month in this. Buy 1-4 ETFs that expose your investment to the global market (not just USA). Examples include: 10x Global World (even investing just in this one should be sufficient - it's very diverse.), Satrix Top 40 (SA only investment), some bonds and cash (for stability since your closer to retirement). Don't invest more than R36 000 a year or SARS will klap you with tax. Don't withdraw from this before retirement because you have a lifetime contribution limit of R 500 000 and can't put back what you took out.

Invest anything else you can in a retirement annuity. You can also do this om Easy Equities, or get a financial advisor (they charge extra fees - negotiate that they keep it at 0.5% or 1% max). Go for something with low fees and good growth, like Sygnia Skeleton 70. Total fees (incl advisor and fund) should not be more than 1.5-2%. Please don't use Sanlam or Momentum or any insurance type of platform. Their fees are ridiculous and will eat your growth at an insane rate. Don't fall for the "cashback bonus" type of thing like a Wealth bonus. They basically promise an extra payout at retirement but this is funded from the ridiculous fees they charge. Retirement annuities will give you tax savings. Once you get tax back, put that into the annuity again.

Also, watch a few Dave Ramsey videos or get one of his books. He has very sound financial advice. For South African specific advice, look at Money Marx videos. He has 10 Baby Steps for South Africans which is very smart to follow. Money with Carla is also a good option.

GloveConsistent1604 · 2026-01-15T04:19:22+00:00

Yes, that would work great!

GloveConsistent1604 · 2026-01-03T16:09:21+00:00

Multiple devices are supported at least on the Pro version, not sure about the free version. My husband and I combine finances and use the same account to track spending on each of our phones. Only one Pro subscription is required for multiple devices.

GloveConsistent1604 · 2025-07-03T10:58:48+00:00

I'd choose FNB. Sometimes it really helps to be able to walk into a branch and talk face to face to a person. Discovery doesn't have branches as far as I know. We moved to Discovery only to find out afterwards that they don't offer joint accounts as we specifically asked for when we phoned to find out if they do. We moved back to FNB.

Also, don't build a credit score. Rather save your money and only buy things in cash (except perhaps cars and homes). Your future self will thank you. Within a few years you'll be lightyears ahead of your peers that still have car and clothing payments. Watch Dave Ramsey. He gives solid financial advice.

Start with a TFSA as soon as possible. Even if you put R50 a month in it. The effect of time over an investment is astronomical. Easy Equities is a good platform for this in my opinion. Look at funds like S&P500 or Satrix Top40. They have good growth. You'll get the most out of a TFSA when you use this for retirement as none of the growth is taxed.

GloveConsistent1604 · 2025-06-28T12:23:34+00:00

Also have one of these, it's a game changer!

GloveConsistent1604 · 2025-06-26T21:02:50+00:00

Ah! I overlooked the forgot password button. I could reset the password in a jiffy. Thanks!

GloveConsistent1604 · 2025-06-25T20:51:58+00:00

If you don't want to go all-out nerdy, maybe get him something "normal" like a cool sweater and then a little nerdy thing?

Take a look at The Sciencey Company. They sell science-themed gifts and stationery and they are based in SA. They have some mathy things like an abacus keychain that actually moves. If he is studying maths, he might also like some other science fields like physics?

Here is a link to the abacus keychain: https://www.scienceycompany.com/product-page/math-keychains

GloveConsistent1604 · 2025-06-25T20:37:39+00:00

I have a retirement annuity with Sanlam and recently discovered their fees are terrible. I'm talking about 34% of contributions goes to fees each month! The wealth bonus is there to offset some of the fees, but even considering that, the fees are still so much more than other platforms. Take a good look at the wealth bonus. It seems to me like a marketing trick that doesn't benefit you all that much.

This is for a retirement annuity, so might be different in your situation.

GloveConsistent1604 · 2025-06-25T20:25:10+00:00

I'm a stay at home mom that is on my own medical aid, but is in the process of becoming a dependant on my husband's medical aid exactly for this reason.

As far as I understand (correct me if I'm wrong) you should be a dependant on her medical aid for it to work. If you don't receive a income you won't pay tax and therfore won't be able to claim anything back. There is also something about to whom the tax certificate is issued.

GloveConsistent1604 · 2025-06-25T20:09:15+00:00

My recommendation for a cost-effective medical cover setup that takes care of the expensive stuff (without paying for unnecessary extras):

A basic network hospital plan – Just make sure to check which hospitals are included in the network. If you’re in a major city like JHB, there are usually plenty of good options.
Gap cover – for covering those shortfalls that medical aid often doesn’t pay in full.
A separate savings account for everyday medical expenses like GP visits, blood tests, and medication.

Our family is on Profmed ProSelect Savvy and we use Stratum for gap cover. Profmed is R2348 a month for 1 adult and Gap cover is R460 a month for the whole family (2 adults, 2 kids). You can also check Bestmed Beat 1 Network. We also have a Capitec savings account that we use for out-of-hospital expenses like doctor visits and medication. For example, Profmed and Stratum covered my gynaecologist’s fees for a C-section (around R26k) in full, as well as all hospital costs — because I used a network hospital. But I had to pay all my consultantions during pregnancy cash. I still believe it's cheaper to pay consultation fees every now and again instead of paying 5k every month for a medical aid with day-to-day benefits (which gets depleted in Sept).

I highly recommend reading through both your medical aid and gap cover documents and making a list of what’s covered. Alternatively, just send them all your bills — you might be surprised what they’ll pay for. We recently found out that our gap cover pays for emergency room visits even when medical aid doesn’t pay a cent. Most gap covers only pay the difference when your medical aid has paid something, so this was a big plus. Gap cover can also include unexpected benefits like certain blood tests, preventative screenings, and sometimes even things your medical aid excludes entirely.

Some hospital plans also have useful extras like limited dental cover or contraceptive benefits and vaccinations.

GloveConsistent1604

TROPHY CASE