Australian personal finances lacking long-term vision
Long-term investments have made Australian households nervous, according to ING DIRECT's Financial Wellbeing Index that shows investors are least comfortable with this aspect of their personal finances.
Over half of all households lack any assets or investments outside the family home - 55 per cent up from 47 per cent in Q2.
However, the index reached a two-year high overall, with household confidence improving for five of the six financial indicators.
Household savings, a historical sore spot, have risen to their highest level since Q1 2010, with the median savings levels having grown to $9,735, according to the index.
Australians were still taking a cautious approach to money management, bolstering confidence in respondents' household finances which were at their highest level since Q2 2010.
The index showed that households' focus was on reducing debt - 88 per cent were now comfortable with their credit card debt and 93 per cent with their home loan.
Median outstanding credit card debt had improved as households continued to pay down balances, ING DIRECT said. It dropped to $1,470, its lowest level since Q1 2010.
Respondents drew the most comfort from their mortgage repayments, with 47 per cent reporting being ahead on their loan.
Comfort with income levels improved 10 per cent from Q2 to reach 83 per cent, while 6 per cent of households said their income was insufficient to pay immediate bills, down 4 per cent since Q2.
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