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Gen Z and Millennials are ditching the professionals and turning to mum and dad for advice and financial help, according to the Great Southern Bank.
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Family preferred to accountants for money advice, survey finds
29 April 2024
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Less than one in five Australians have used an accountant within the past year, with Gen Z and Millennials increasingly turning to family and friends for financial advice, a survey has found.
Around 40 per cent of Gen Z and Millennials relied on advice from family, while 30 per cent relied on friends, according to the Great Southern Bank’s No Place Like Home report.
Only a small number of respondents sought professional help from an accountant (19 per cent), and even fewer used their bank (16 per cent), financial advisers (11 per cent). or mortgage brokers (11 per cent). Less than one-quarter had a current financial plan prepared by an expert.
“Generation Z and Millennials have very different attitudes to money compared to their parents and they are increasingly calling on family and friends for advice,” chief customer officer Megan Keleher said.
“While this is a great starting point, it doesn’t need to be the only source.”
The findings come from a survey of 1,991 respondents aged between 18 and 65 in a nationally representative sample, conducted between November and December last year.
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Respondents were asked questions about financial literacy and attitudes towards money management and home ownership.
The survey found financial literacy was linked to age, gender, and a respondent’s housing situation. “There is work to do to increase financial knowledge and confidence, particularly among younger Australians,” Keleher said.
Home owners rated themselves “very knowledgeable” with an average score of 6.7/10, higher than renters (6.2) but slightly below those who have paid off their home loan (7).
Baby Boomers reported the highest level of knowledge about their finances (7/10) while men felt “slightly more aware” of their money situation than women, according to the report.
Gen Z and Millennials, though less likely to seek advice from the experts, felt less confident about their ability to manage money, rating their financial knowledge an average of 6.1 and 6.5, respectively.
Among Millennials surveyed, only one-third sought out professional financial advice and one-third had a passive “set and forget” approach. Around two-thirds had a “saver’s mindset”, brought on by cost-of-living pressures, inflation, and higher savings rates.
Increasing house prices and deposit amounts also weighed heavier on the habits of the younger generation.
One-third of Millennials reported buying a property due to a “fear of missing out”, with 36 per cent requiring financial help from the bank of mum and dad to do so, a frequency over three times greater than Baby Boomers (11 per cent).
“The belief that increasing house prices and interest rates will make it harder to buy a property creates anxiety,” the report said.
Almost half of Gen Z also reported considering asking for help in the future, suggesting “this trend shows no signs of abating”, the report said.
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