Why Financial Literacy is a Privilege — And How We Fix It

Hey, it's Jessie — let's talk money, the real way.

I grew up in a house where money wasn't a taboo subject. Both of my parents were self-employed; my dad was a commercial property developer and my mum was a hairdresser. Around the dinner table, my brothers, sisters, and I would casually listen to them talk about tax, insurance, investing, and properties. To us, that was completely normal.

It wasn't until I met my first husband that I had a massive lightbulb moment: that is not normal in every family.

Financial literacy, I quickly realised, is a privilege. If you aren't lucky enough to learn about money at the dinner table, where are you supposed to learn it? The reality is, the system is not designed to teach everyday Australians how to build wealth. And when people finally decide they need professional help, they hit a massive, expensive brick wall.

The Cost of Good Advice

As a financial planner, I see the reality of the "advice gap" every single day. The cost of professional financial advice in Australia has skyrocketed, driven largely by a massive supply crisis. In 2018, there were around 28,000 financial advisers in Australia; today, we are sitting at just 10,888.

With fewer advisers available to help a growing population, prices have surged. According to recent industry data, the median ongoing advice fee in Australia is now around $4,668 per year [1]. And the reality is, because of this severe shortage of professionals, the financial cost and burden on the consumer is only going to get greater.

For a high-net-worth individual, that fee is a drop in the ocean. But for a single mum trying to figure out how to invest her settlement money, or a young couple trying to buy their first home, dropping nearly $5,000 just to get a roadmap is entirely out of reach.

The statistics are alarming. Government research shows that four in five Australians aged 45 to 54 need financial advice but simply cannot afford it [2]. Furthermore, 74 per cent of Australians aged 18 to 34 have unmet financial advice needs [2]. We have millions of Australians who desperately want to make smart, strategic decisions with their money, but they are locked out of the system.

My Wake-Up Call

I know what it feels like to be on the other side of that gap. In 2020, after going through a divorce, I found myself as a single mum with three kids. We had investment properties and a big house, and suddenly I had my half of the settlement sitting there. I needed to be really smart and strategic about what I was going to do with this money, because honestly, it was scary.

I went into trading and liquidated myself a few times. I learned a lot the hard way. But I also did lots and lots of education, eventually pursuing a Masters in Financial Planning. I did it because information is power.

Through that journey, another lightbulb went off. The information needed to build wealth is out there. It is not a secret, and it is not overly complicated. It is just not shared with the right people in the right way.

The Solution Starts in Schools

If we know that professional advice is unaffordable for the average person, we cannot just leave them to fend for themselves or fall victim to "finfluencer" scams on TikTok. The solution has to start earlier. We need mandatory, practical financial literacy programs in Australian schools.

Currently, financial education in schools is incredibly inconsistent. A recent report by the Ecstra Foundation found that while programs like Talk Money are reaching over half a million students, 87 per cent of teachers believe the financial topics covered in these workshops would not otherwise be taught in their classrooms [3].

We teach our kids algebra and the history of the gold rush, but we are sending them into adulthood without knowing how superannuation works, how to avoid a bad car loan, or the magic of compound interest.

If we made financial literacy a core, mandatory part of the curriculum, we could break the cycle. We could ensure that every child—whether their parents are property developers or minimum-wage workers—graduates with the confidence to manage their money.

I make videos every day not to sell expertise, but because I genuinely believe that when people understand money, they get to live the life they actually want. They get to be confident.

We need to close the advice gap, and it starts with education.

Small steps, big results.

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References

[1] [18 pc jump in ongoing advice fees significantly outpacing inflation | Professional Planner](https://www.professionalplanner.com.au/2025/08/18-pc-jump-in-ongoing-advice-fees-significantly-outpacing-inflation-ardata/) [2] [Ensuring Australians can access safe, quality and affordable financial advice | Treasury Ministers](https://ministers.treasury.gov.au/ministers/stephen-jones-2022/media-releases/ensuring-australians-can-access-safe-quality-and) [3] [Demand grows for financial education in schools as literacy concerns mount | IFA](https://www.ifa.com.au/demand-grows-for-financial-education-in-schools-as-literacy-concerns-mount/)