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The One Question Every Tech Professional Has Gotten Wrong for 14 Months Straight
I take notes in every meeting I have with my clients. Whenever something important comes up, I put a red box around it. This helps me see what really matters to them. Every three months, I go back through all those red boxes to spot patterns and understand the real pain points tech professionals are dealing with. It helps me serve them better.
One thing became a running joke in my conversations.
I sit down with a senior engineer, a tech lead, a staff-level specialist… someone earning $300k, $450k, sometimes $600k with RSUs.
We get through the usual warm-up.
“How’s family and work?”
“Yeah, market’s a bit shaky.”
“Lots of meetings today?”
Then I ask few questions to understand the lay of land. Then the question that can instantly tell me everything I need to know: “So, what’s your tax-minimisation strategy?”
And every time, without fail, I get one of three things:
- Silence.
- “None.”
- Or the classic: “Haha, that’s why I’m talking to you.”
For 14 straight months, not a single $300k+ tech professional has given me a real answer.
Not one.
But occasionally, I get the “improved” answer.
- “I’ve got two cars on novated leases.”
- “I’ve got two investment properties that are positively geared now.”
And if you want my honest take on it? These are the answers that worry me most.
Because they sound like strategy while they are not. They feel clever. But they’re not.
At $300k+ income, these approaches don’t just fall short they actively work against you.
Let’s break them down, as bluntly as they deserve.
1. Novated Leases: The Most Popular Non-Strategy in Tech
If you’re earning $300k or more and your “tax plan” is two novated leases, let me be straight with you:
You don’t have a tax strategy. You have a shopping habit with a salary-packaging wrapper.
Here’s what I mean.
Real Example: A Senior Dev on $340k With Two Novated Leases
He proudly tells me he’s “already doing tax optimisation.”
Two novated leases: A $78k EV and a $92k SUV.
Total deductions? Sure, they look nice on paper.
But once we broke it down we identified 2 main things
1- Very high monthly repayments.
2- These assets will be nothing in 5 years time.
And the big surprise was his answer when I asked: If you don’t have novated lease, do you need those cars and would have bought them?
He replied: I wouldn’t have bought either car without the “tax benefit.”
Net position after tax savings?
He was still down $17,800/year.
For what?
To feel like he was “doing something smart with tax.”
A novated lease isn’t a tax strategy. It’s prepaying lifestyle. And if you need two to feel like you’ve cracked the ATO code, you’ve doubled the mistake.
2. Investment Properties: The Comfort Blanket That Stops Real Wealth Building
Now, let’s talk about property, the sacred cow of Aussie finance.
I hear this weekly:
“My properties are negatively geared. I’m doing well.”
No. You’re doing okay. But “okay” is not a tax strategy, and it’s not a wealth plan. it's an investment property strategy that comes with some short term tax deductions.
Here’s the problem:
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Properties = Capital accumulation strategy and rarely an income strategy
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Cash flow might be positive, but tax position is often inefficient
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Growth is lumpy and unpredictable
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And most importantly: You have tied up hundreds of thousands of dollars in an asset that has no relationship to your long-term retirement runway
The strategy should be to acquire a high-quality asset that appreciate in value and generate income that does not attract more tax.
Real Example: A Staff Engineer on $420k With Two Positively Geared Properties
He was certain he was “set.”
After all, both properties were bringing in a combined $12k/year in passive income.
But once we ran the numbers inside my Confident Choice System:
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His tax bill remained above $120k/year
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The properties added risk but barely improved retirement modelling
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Debt levels were high relative to his emergency buffer
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Concentration risk was off the charts
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And his RSUs were completely unprotected with no structure, no plan, no derisking strategy
The biggest shock?
When we mapped his actual retirement age with his current setup, he was on track for 67.
He thought he was heading for 55.
He wasn’t even close.
The properties weren’t the problem. The belief that they were a strategy… that was the problem.
So Why Are $300k+ Tech Professionals Getting This Wrong?
Three reasons.
1. Nobody teaches high-income earners how to think about tax strategically
So, they default to popular tactics: leases, properties, deductions, claims.
Tactics without a framework is simply noise.
2. Tech professionals are busy
Slacks and Teams pinging at 10pm ( labelled as work life balance). Infra issues on weekends. A sprint that magically doubled in size overnight. There’s no time to sit down and design a $30–$50k/year consistent tax saving plan. they just scrap the drawer for their latest laptop invoice or travel expense at tax time.
3. High income creates a false sense of security
“If I’m earning well, I must be doing well.”
Not true. High income without a strategy is just a high-speed treadmill. Moreover, it's not sustainable and everybody in the tech industry knows it. I wrote about this in the last issue of Wealth Bytes.
This Is Why I Built The Confident Choice System
Most high-income tech professionals don’t need more assets. They need a system. A system that works for them while they focus on what's important to them. Whether its career growth or more time with the family or even hiking.
My system fixes the three biggest financial pain points I see in tech professionals life:
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Sky-high tax bills
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No coherent long-term strategy
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Not knowing who to trust
It’s a 9-step roadmap that moves you from:
Stability → Clarity → Options.
We work through cash flow, debt elimination, RSU de-risking, investment structures (trusts, SMSF), financial protection, estate planning all the stuff that determines whether you can choose to work or step away at 50–55.
Most clients find an average upside of $54,543/year once we bring their financial life into alignment.
So here is some food for thought
A lease is not a strategy. A negatively geared property is not a retirement plan. And silence… well, silence is the most expensive answer of all. because it's a proxy for inaction and as you know: Inaction compounds.
If you're earning $300k+ and don’t have a tax and wealth system, you’re already leaving tens of thousands on the table every year to the tax man.
If you want the blueprint that works, book your Financial Clarity Session with me and I will help you to draft your early retirement strategy.
If now is not a good time - all good
Whenever you're ready, here are a few ways I can help you read on where you stand, the fastest levers to pull, and whether property is your engine or your anchor. No fluff. Just clarity.
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Listen to my Podcast — real financial strategies for tech pros, no boring jargon.
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The Wealth Byte Newsletter — quick, no-fluff emails twice a month.
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Follow me on LinkedIn — over 3,000 tech pros already do.
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Wealth Bytes - You Tube— bite-sized videos on investing, equity, tax strategies, and building real wealth.
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Work 1:1 with me — build a strategic, work-optional financial plan to retire early on 10-20k per month.
I hope you found this Wealth Byte beneficial. I’m Mo Shouman, a financial adviser with 20 years of experience helping professionals save on tax and grow their wealth. Book your financial clarity meeting below and discover how you can take your finances to the next level. I’m proud to be the only adviser who provides a detailed assessment of your financial position—whether you decide to work with me or not!