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mark-bristow

Mark Bristow

Personal Finance Editor

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Mark Bristow is RateCity's Home & Personal Finances Editor, and an experienced analyst, researcher, and producer. While primarily focused on Australian mortgage and home loan expertise, he has experience across energy, home and travel insurances. Mark has been a journalist and writer in the financial space for over ten years, previously researching and writing commercial real estate at CoreLogic. In the years since, Mark has worked for the Winning Group, Expedia, and has seen articles published at Lifehacker and Business Insider.

1027 articles written by Mark Bristow

Bank Accounts

ANZ gives power of ATM cards to smartphones, smartwatches

ANZ customers already get access to pretty much every smartphone wallet under the sun, and now they can do something else: give you physical cash.

mark-bristow

Mark Bristow -

18 Sep, 2018 -

2 min read

Credit Cards

Working from home? ATO says to make your tax work right

Tax time doesn’t mean you can claim anything and everything to reduce credit card debt. If you’re working from home, you’ll want to check those claims carefully.

mark-bristow

Mark Bristow -

13 Sep, 2018 -

3 min read

Home Loans

Which Aussie regions saw dwelling values rise or fall?

While much of the buzz around Australia’s housing markets has been focused on the capital cities in the eastern states, the nation’s regional areas have also experienced slowdowns in dwelling value growth.

mark-bristow

Mark Bristow -

12 Sep, 2018 -

2 min read

Superannuation

New initiative to automatically consolidate super funds

If you haven’t yet got around to consolidating your old superannuation funds, a new initiative may end up taking care of it for you, potentially saving you hundreds of dollars per year in duplicate fees and insurance premiums.

mark-bristow

Mark Bristow -

11 Sep, 2018 -

3 min read

Bank Accounts

New $50 notes to hit streets in mid-October

Get your wallets ready for a fresh batch of the folding stuff – Australia’s new $50 notes are rolling out from 18 October 2018, as part of a strategy to foil counterfeiters.

mark-bristow

Mark Bristow -

06 Sep, 2018 -

3 min read

Home Loans

Declining dwelling values herald harder spring selling season

With tight access to mortgage credit limiting the number of active buyers and investors in the Australian housing market, a CoreLogic report showing national dwelling values declining for the eleventh consecutive month may not bode well for this Spring's selling conditions.

mark-bristow

Mark Bristow -

04 Sep, 2018 -

4 min read

Savings Accounts

Aussies spending more on Father's Day than on Mother's Day

How much did you spend on a present for Dad this Father’s Day? Probably more than you spent on your last Mother’s Day gift, according to the Commonwealth Bank.

mark-bristow

Mark Bristow -

31 Aug, 2018 -

2 min read

Home Loans

End of volume-based commissions to encourage mortgage brokers to put customers first

The way Australia’s mortgage brokers get paid has changed, with the broking industry ending volume-based bonus commissions, to help encourage unbiased home loan recommendations.

mark-bristow

Mark Bristow -

30 Aug, 2018 -

2 min read

Home Loans

What is mortgage insurance?

The idea of mortgage insurance is a fairly simple one – if circumstances mean a borrower can’t afford their mortgage repayments, an insurance policy can be used to help cover the costs.

mark-bristow

Mark Bristow -

29 Aug, 2018 -

5 min read

Superannuation

The right and wrong reasons to set up an SMSF

Thinking of setting up a self-managed super fund (SMSF)? You may be doing it for the wrong reasons, according to the Australian Tax Office (ATO).

mark-bristow

Mark Bristow -

28 Aug, 2018 -

3 min read