‘Almost went bankrupt’: Aussie reveals how she almost lost everything

An Aussie woman has revealed the moment she realised she lost everything after earning $500,000 a year and owning 10 properties.

Anissa Cavallo was drinking a glass of wine during the daytime in a Melbourne restaurant in 2018 when she finally admitted to herself that she’d lost everything.

She was 43 years old, a single mum with two children, and knew she needed to move back in with her parents.

Three years before, she’d been working in financial services, earning $500,000 and owed 10 properties. On the surface, she looked like she had more than everything.

“I almost went bankrupt,” Ms Cavallo told news.com.au.

“The business started to go under. I had two young kids. I wasn’t in a great mental space. It was just hard.”

Ms Cavallo said her financial situation had been going south for a while. She was an emotional spender, not managing her money properly, and investing in properties without thinking it through.

“I was spending money to feel good. My self-worth was tied into it. I thought if I didn’t own heaps of properties, people wouldn’t like me anymore,” she said.

Anissa Cavallo explained that she almost went bankrupt. Picture: Supplied

She moved back in with her parents. Picture: Supplied

Ms Cavallo, who is now 49, said that she was stuck in an addiction cycle with spending money.

“I would have lots of remorse when I spent money. I’d splurge to feel good and then I’d feel remorse,” she said.

That was okay when her business was thriving. She made enough money to cover her poor financial decisions, but once the business suffered, she lost everything.

At first, she was in denial.

Even though she offered people financial advice for a living, she couldn’t think clearly and started making rash decisions when she started losing money.

After losing her 10 homes, she had $30,000 left in the bank and, rather than move in with her parents or rent somewhere cheaper, she tried to invest back into the property market.

“I tried to buy another house because of my pride. It was all for show,” she said.

Ms Cavallo approached an owner privately who was selling a home for $3 million and offered him $30,000 upfront and a 12-month settlement.

She figured she’d have enough money to buy the home by the time settlement came around.

Twelve months later, she still didn’t have the funds.

She had lost the $30,000 and the house and was left with nothing. She felt like a massive failure and said the experience was “harrowing”.

She said the experience was harrowing. Picture: Supplied

The mum of two had to sell her properties. Picture: Supplied

It was 2018 when the reality finally sunk in that she’d lost everything. She went for a walk and ended up at that wine bar.

“I’d ordered wine … and I was thinking nothing. My mum was trying to find me, and she came and sat next to me and said, ‘You know you’ve got to come back to us’,” she said.

“It was a realisation I had nothing, and it was the first time I admitted I had nothing.”

Ms Cavallo moved back in with her parents, and decided to start again, but it wasn’t a simple turnaround. She can remember refusing to get out of bed on her birthday because she felt like a failure.

Her parents came into her room with her favourite dessert in an effort to rally her and, for some reason, it was in that moment that something clicked for her.

“I kind of realised, hang on a second, you’ve got everything,” she said.

It was the reset she needed. It didn’t happen overnight, but she switched her approach to money.

She became less obsessed with how much she earned and more obsessed with creating security for herself.

“I’d always make money and lose it. I can make money now and keep it,” she said.

“It isn’t enough to earn good money until you change your relationship with money. You can have every opportunity and you can still end up with nothing.”

She changed her approach to money. Picture: iStock

Ms Cavallo said she started taking the advice she was giving her clients and using it for herself. She stopped relying on other people to manage her money and started taking accountability.

It might sound simple but emotional spending and not trusting your instincts are really common money mistakes.

“I lost everything because I still had a bad relationship with money. I was good at making money, but the way I handled it was wrong,” she said.

The 49-year-old explained that the difference in how she manages her money now is less about the details and more about the approach.

“I respect it and I can manage it and understand it. I needed to understand that I was financially independent and I could look after myself,” she said.

Part of that was focusing less on cash flow and more on capital growth. She realised she didn’t need fancy shoes; she wanted long-term financial security.

“Income is wonderful, but capital growth is what makes you accumulate wealth. I had to be less obsessed with money in order to make money,” she said.

She now runs Eda Property, a financial advice firm, and owns 17 properties. She’s amassed a property empire worth millions and has solid cash flow.

It took years to get to this point again and Ms Cavallo explained that the only reason she got here is because she changed her relationship with money.

Originally published as ‘Almost went bankrupt’: Aussie reveals how she almost lost everything