Tag: financial pressure

Two-pot savings and South African Revenue Service (SARS) became a crucial topic when taxpayers realised they cannot access their savings without settling tax debts first. South African taxpayers withdrawing from their two-pot savings must first settle any outstanding tax debt unless arrangements exist with SARS.

The world has largely opened up again after COVID-19. Now it’s time to roll up our sleeves and get down to the business of educating South Africa’s children. And while technology is going to play an important role in helping us overcome the backlogs caused by the pandemic, it’s not a silver bullet that will miraculously transform our education system.

Property subletting is becoming popular in South Africa, largely because of aggressive interest rate increases and the high cost of living. Many people look for subtenants to help them pay their rent, while others seek to sublet if they’re moving elsewhere and can’t get out of their current lease.

In a world where we face mounting financial pressure, it becomes increasingly difficult to stick to the confines of our budget and keep our spending in order. Rising interest and inflation combined with skyrocketing fuel costs have knocked the finances of South Africans, leading to a rise in debt as consumers increasingly turn to credit to make ends meet.

The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to significant shifts in the residential property market. In the beginning, many were scaling back to clamber back on costs, however, as interest rates continued to dip between 2020 and 2021, many started to upgrade their homes and invest in bigger spaces.

We take out insurance for the unpredictable things in life – a burst geyser, a cracked windscreen or stolen household items. But what about the inevitable? A lot of people avoid talking about death – which is somewhat strange as this is something we cannot escape.

Despite being in the business of risk mitigation, insurance firms themselves are often subject to risk in the form of insurance crime. Last year, the Association for Savings and Investment South Africa (ASISA) found that South African life insurers detected 4,287 fraudulent and dishonest claims worth R787.6 million across the board.

Businesses and consumers alike have had to weather several shocks over the past two years. In this article, I advise how businesses can make 2022 a year for rebuilding and taking advantage of new opportunities. During 2020, 42% of small businesses closed during lockdown, according to financier FinFind.

As the economy opens up, following the slow phasing out of the nationwide COVID-19 lockdown, many businesses are returning to work. For small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), who have lost out on eight weeks of trade, the process of reopening their doors and scaling up production is going to be difficult.