You may have read our recent blog on how having consumer debt can rob you of your future wealth.

For many people, paying off personal debt is a pivotal moment, once it’s gone, you’ll find yourself with a budget that suddenly has an extra few dollar or two left over each pay cycle.

And now that you’ve paid off your debt, you have created more opportunity for your financial future.

Only you can decide what that looks like? Does it look like you travelling more? Or maybe you want to secure your future by purchasing in your first home? Or maybe, you want to buy an investment as your first property!

Here are a few ways to harness the extra cash in your budget each month.

1. Finish topping off your emergency fund

By the time you pay off your consumer loans, you’ll hopefully have an emergency fund. Regardless of how much you earn, you should be saving a little for emergencies at the same time at the same time as paying off your consumer debt.

But, if you don’t have one yet, or don’t have a full six months’ worth of expenses saved, topping it off is an essential move before taking on a major debt like a home loan.

2. Start building your saving account

Gone are the days when lenders piled first home buyers with debt by giving them 100% of the purchase price as a mortgage. If you want to apply for a home loan today, you will need a minimum 5 percent of the property price as your contribution.

Whether you’re 21 or 35, having money in your savings account is essential if you want to buy property. And now that you have some freed-up cash, putting that money towards your home deposit could be a smart move long term.

3. Start investing outside of your super

Now that you don’t have a consumer debt and don’t aspire to buy a property to live in, let’s move into some wealth-building, cash-generating investments.

This could mean investing in real estate for rental income and as when buying a property to live in, you will need to contribute a deposit if you want get a mortgage. And if you fancy yourself to be a sophisticated investor, investing in property related stocks (REITs) could be an option.

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This article does not constitute advice; readers should seek independent and personalised counsel from a trusted adviser that specialises in property, a tax accountant and property design specialist.