Stay up to date with what’s happened in Australian and global markets over the past month. Our July update video takes you through key economic indicators so you can understand how the Australian economy is faring as we recover from the COVID-19 induced recession of 2020. Please get in touch if you’d like assistance with […]

As the new financial year gets underway, there are some big changes to superannuation that could add up to a welcome lift in your retirement savings. Some, like the rise in the Superannuation Guarantee (SG), will happen automatically so you won’t need to lift a finger. Others, like higher contribution caps, may require some planning […]

The Federal Budget on October 6 was the start of a pivotal month on the economic scene. Budget estimates released later in the month revealed a deficit of $132.5 billion in the year to September. While the deficit is expected to peak next year, there are also some positive signs emerging. The ASX200 finished slightly […]

Building a bridge to recovery In what has been billed as one of the most important budgets since the Great Depression, and the first since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic dragged Australia into its first recession in almost 30 years, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said the next phase of the journey is to secure Australia’s […]

In a rapidly evolving response to the spread of COVID-19, the Federal Government’s second support package announced over the weekend has flicked the switch to more income support for retirees and workers. Between the first $17.6 billion package announced on March 12, and this latest $66.1 billion package, the emphasis has shifted from stimulus aimed […]

It’s been a long time coming, but up to 630,000 retirees could soon enjoy a small but welcome increase in their Age Pension payments following a cut in deeming rates used for the pension income test.i Under the Age Pension income test, you are ‘deemed’ to earn a certain rate of interest on your savings […]

Super is a long-term financial relationship. It begins with our first job, grows during our working life and hopefully supports us through our old age.    Throughout your super journey you will experience the ups and downs of bull and bear markets. So it’s important to keep your eye on the long term. The earlier you […]

It’s been a decade since the market crash known as the Global Financial Crisis rocked the investment world. At the time investors could only watch in disbelief as 50 per cent was wiped off the value of their shares. Arguably, the actions those investors took are still reverberating today. Which begs the question: what are […]

If you’ve got super, chances are you’ll have some default insurance included and the option to buy more at an attractive price. It’s a cost effective way to get a basic level of cover, but holding insurance inside super does have some downsides.  Forms of super insurance There are three types of insurance you can hold inside super: […]

From time to time a Self Managed Superannuation Fund (SMSF) is really not necessary. The discussion comes up as to whether to close the fund and move it back to retail super. Be warned, this is not as straightforward a process as it was moving from retail to SMSF in the first place. Consider this before […]