by Erika Jonsson When Enzo Spangher’s family migrated to Australia from Italy in 1956, their experiences as a family had a strong impact on his attitude to money.
“Mum and Dad were migrants and the banks wouldn’t loan them any money,” he recalls.
“Dad worked two or three jobs; Mum made clothes and never spent anything on herself. They taught us to save and to only spend when we had cash – you could borrow for a house but that was it. I still remember buying my first block of land with cash!”
Enzo and his family lived in Broadmeadows and Bonegilla Migrant Camp before moving to Oak Park.
“I went to nine different primary schools – that makes you quite resilient and a bit more streetwise,” he says. “In grade 3, I had to speak to a real estate agent about the block of land my parents wanted to buy in Oak Park. I helped negotiate a cash discount! Streetwise and logic are the two best qualities you can have in life.”
Easy diversification of a SMSF
Enzo, who is a former Fellow of Chartered Professional Accountants, has a self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF) and invests a portion of his assets through Six Park.
“Because I have an SMSF and used to manage some share portfolios, I would attend the annual conference of the Australian Institute of Investors,” he says.
“There was a talk that I remember very clearly that addressed five reasons your SMSF might be underperforming. They talked about exchange-traded funds as a way to add diversification and potentially address underperformance.
“I understood the methodology of ETFs but I didn’t have enough research or knowledge to know which ones to go with. Six Park looks after that for me and provides the diversification I want.
“SMSFs are also usually good at buying and bad at selling – Six Park takes care of that so I don’t have to worry.”
Six Park as an alternative to children’s bank accounts
Enzo, who has three children, first invested with Six Park in September 2020 and has since opened an account for his granddaughter.
“Six Park provides a very good mechanism – a disciplined mechanism – and I’d recommend it to anyone to consider as an alternative to a bank account for kids in particular.”
“You need to make your money work harder than it does in the bank. Sure, you might get greater returns somewhere else, but you also take a lot more risk. The spread of investments makes everything less volatile and there’s less fluctuation.”
A hands-off portfolio
While Enzo says he loves to look at his portfolios regularly, he’s happy to be hands-off.
“I wouldn’t want to manage it myself. I’m very happy with the service – I get the right amount of communication without ever feeling hassled or hounded.
“Six Park feels like a family values business to me – the people in the team feel like they’re investing their own money, and that gives me a great deal of confidence. Exchange-traded funds are a very good way of opening up your portfolio, and I’m extremely happy with Six Park.”
