Sunrise host David Koch has copped a roasting from viewers for claiming any ordinary Australian can earn an extra $10,000 in just 20 days.
There was no shortage of critics when the Sydney finance expert’s new program ‘How To Make $10k In 20 Days’ premiered on Channel Seven on Wednesday night.
Taking on the ‘sprint saving’ challenge were engaged couple Tim and Jana from the Gold Coast who earned $150,00 a year between them – and Sydney parents Mick and Rebecca Adamson who rely on one $83,000 income.
The three-week challenge took its toll on the couples as they slashed their grocery bills in half, took on extra jobs on the side such cleaning toilets and gardening, decluttered their homes of unwanted items and put their properties on Airbnb.
Sydney parents Mick and Rebecca Adamson (pictured) rely on one $83,000 income
They are all tips Koch insists can earn Australians an extra $500 a day.
But angry viewers were not convinced by the money-saving tricks, with many saying the couples on the show were not deemed as the ‘average Australian’.
Many slammed the young couple – who were living off a total income of $150,000 – for living the ‘high life’ while trying to save money for their wedding reception.
‘Seriously a couple earning more than $150,000 combined… why do they need to go on a show like that?’ one commented.
Another said: ‘I found the show ridiculous. The young couple have fancy breakfasts every morning and complained when they had to have Vegemite on toast. Spend $300 a week or fortnight on dining out and drinking. And they love their shopping. They aren’t struggling for money. They just spend it all on so many unnecessary things… Why not get a couple on the show that’s actually struggling with money.’
One wrote: ‘Yeah sure, young couple earning $150,000 a year sounds like they really need the help… How about helping families who are actually doing it tough, not the ones earning $3,500 per week.’
‘Rubbish, how can you save up with prices of bills, rent and petrol, these topics are just far from reality,’ another woman said.
One added: ‘People need to live and in order to do that money is spent more than it is saved. Big words from a man who earns six figures.’
And one said: ‘Don’t pay your rent/mortgage, don’t pay your internet, phone, water, power, rates, rego, fines, fuel, tolls, school fees, food, tyres, car service, don’t shop at Kmart… yep reckon it can be done.’
Gold Coast couple Tim and Jana – who earn a total income of $150,000 – had to make sacrifices to save for their dream wedding
The online roasting continued throughout the program, where many viewers questioned how the tips applied to ordinary Australians.
‘The couples chosen for this show are highly selected like the family with $$$ worth of baby products and a couple with high value clothing and expensive surfboards. Not helpful for the average Australian,’ one viewer tweeted.
One said: ‘Surely the idea of halving your grocery bill is to still eat nutritiously while not starving yourself?’
‘This show has such a lot of “black holes”, it’s almost laughable,’ another said.
Others didn’t find the program helpful in their efforts to save.
‘So we have zero clutter, don’t eat out, so please tell me how to do this. Oh and we budget shop at Aldi once a fortnight,’ one woman tweeted
Another said: ‘Easy too make money when you already have it.’
David Koch’s new program How To Make $10k In 20 Days premiered on Wednesday night
Some eagle-eyed viewers questioned why the important details were left out.
‘You promote Airtasker as a quick fix for cash by doing small jobs. You fail to mention that you must place a bid and the person posting the work has to accept your bid from the hundreds of others… and that is if they don’t just let the ad expire! Plus the Airtasker fees. And you give false hope by showing them being paid in cash, which doesn’t happen,’ one viewer tweeted.
Another viewer asked whether the $250 the Adamsons made on a ‘rainy day’ at Blacktown Markets included the $40 fee required to hire a stall.
But some viewers defended the show, saying they found the money-saving tricks handy.
‘Watching your show on budgeting and saving I so need this help financially,’ one woman tweeted.
Another said: ‘Wow look at the comments section full of excuses about why you can’t take the principles and ideas and make them work for you. You are missing the point. You have to put in some effort to earn and save money and these people did it.’
While the Adamsons fell short by making $7253, they hope to add to the kitty in the coming weeks with a garage sale to sell the rest of their unwanted items.
They will put the money saved towards paying off their credit card bills and going on a ‘date night’.
Many viewers didn’t welcome the finance advice offered on the program
Tim and Jana managed to reach the $10,000 goal towards their dream wedding after Tim reluctantly part way with his beloved boat which was sold for more than half the amount.
Koch said the key to making fast money comes down to three simple steps: sell, earn and save.
‘Most think it’s impossible, but there is a way to get ahead and I’m looking forward to showing Australia how to do it,’ he said.
He also says families can save $20,000 in ‘less than an hour’.
‘If you have a home loan, ring your bank or lender and ask for a discount on the interest rate,’ he said.
‘The average Australian mortgage is $385,000, so a reduction of just a quarter of a per cent will save $20,000 over 30 years.’