This week's Chart of the Week comes from the State of Retirement Income Report 2024. It looks at where asset allocation and retirement withdrawal rates meet. What's a safe amount to take out of your retirement pot each year to fund your life?
Read MoreThe surviving spouse has a lot to think about when a member of an SMSF dies. While it pays to understand the options quickly, often they’re best served by moving a little more slowly before making final decisions.
Read MoreThe intergenerational wealth transfer will see many assets bequeathed. Most of these assets won’t be cash. Share portfolios are a common way that beneficiaries will receive assets – especially when the owner is an income investor that is living off dividends without drawing down on the capital of the portfolio.
Read MoreMark, Director of Personal Finance Morningstar Australia, answers a reader question about investing outside of super. Mark answers a reader question about investing outside of super.
Read MoreThe regulations implementing the Legacy Pension Reforms have now been registered and are effective on and from 7 December 2024. This means that the five year commutation window has now commenced and will cease on 6 December 2029.
Read MoreEstate planning goes beyond just preparing a will – it's about wealth and assets being protected, preserved, and passed down to your loved ones the way you intended.
Read MoreThree things to consider when planning for an early retirement. Few of us go through our entire careers without at least thinking about the prospects of retiring early. Perhaps it is after a difficult period at work. Perhaps after a special vacation.
Read MoreAddressing retirees' fears of running out of money is essential for enhancing their quality of life. One of the biggest fears for retirees is running out of money during retirement and the impact this may have on their quality of life. With this in mind, many retirees only draw down the minimum of their account-based pension and lack the confidence to spend their retirement savings. They later regret being overly frugal in their early years of retirement. This is called ‘Regret Risk’.
Read MoreSuperannuation remains a highly tax-effective way for most Australians to save for retirement, offering concessional tax treatment of contributions and favourable tax rates on earnings within the structure. However, the proposed superannuation Division 296 tax on earnings of balances above $3 million1 requires careful consideration when developing financial planning strategies.
Read MoreUntil recently, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) stated that the average yearly self-managed super fund (SMSF) running cost was $13,900—a figure hotly contested by practitioners.
Read MoreI recently wrote an article on how much you need to save to have a comfortable retirement. I thought I would turn this around and look at the return side of things. This is my attempt to figure out what return is required to have a comfortable retirement at different savings levels.
Read MoreMost Australians don’t realise they are being charged up to six different types of fees on their superannuation. These fees can be opaque and hard to compare across different funds and investment options.
Read MoreUsing the family home to fund aged care can be a complicated decision, with many interdependent factors to consider.
Read MoreFrom 20 September 2024, the maximum rate of the Age Pension has increased by $28.10 (single rate) and $42.40 (combined rate) per fortnightly instalment period. The Age Pension is increased each 20 March and 20 September.
Read MoreThere are four steps which must be completed to successfully claim a tax deduction for your personal superannuation contributions. If one or more steps are missing or not completed, the Commissioner of Taxation has no discretion to overlook those missing or incomplete steps.
Read MoreIf a pension commences as a non-reversionary pension can that pension be made reversionary without stopping and restarting the pension? The answer is a simple and definite “Yes” if the pension is an account style pension (such as account based pensions and transition to retirement pensions) and the governing rules expressly permit pensions to be varied.
Read MoreWhether considering options for yourself or deciding how best to help someone close to you, residential aged care can be a complex area requiring careful thought. The uncertainty surrounding where to move, how much it will cost and where the money will come from can be overwhelming and stressful.
Read MoreNew research finds that customers with a guaranteed lifetime income product often have an easier time transitioning into retirement and have a better quality of life once doing so.
Read MoreIt is not possible to backdate the commencement of a pension. However, if the trustee and the member have informally agreed that a pension would commence from a particular date in a financial year (typically, 1 July for obvious reasons) and, in fact, pension payments are made in that financial year and the aggregate of the pension payments
Read MoreThere's been little debate on how spending changes as people progress through retirement. Yet, it's a critical issue as it can have a significant impact on the level of savings required at the point of retirement.
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