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Do You Know What Makes Money, Money?

While privately-traded cryptocurrencies are becoming more well known, they are unlikely ever to be used as ‘money’ in Australia. To understand why, it helps to understand what makes money, money.

How Much of Your Wealth Comes From Housing?

This week we came across an interesting little read from Fidelity International, an international fund manager. Their article examined the composition of Australian household wealth as of the end of 2020, which is about as recent as the data gets when it comes to this kind of thing.

Maximise Your Wealth to Prepare for Your Children’s Financial Future

Most parents worry about providing for their kids’ future. The specific way in which you save for your kids’ future might vary, but the essential principle is the same: the best way to help your kids is simply to maximise your own wealth.

Ever Borrowed Money from the Government?

This week, we want to explore the concept or borrowing in retirement a little more fully by looking at a unique way of doing so – the Commonwealth Government’s Pension Loan Scheme.

Asset Rich but Cash Poor?

In recent articles we've explored the personal and general reasons why many Australians choose not to sell their family home as they move into and through retirement. In this article, we look at ways that make keeping a family home easier once you stop working.

Should We Downsize Our Home?

You will often hear it said that the family home is a tax-free investment. This reflects the fact that there is no capital gains tax paid on your principal residence when you sell it. But capital gains tax is only part of the story. There is more than one way for tax to be incurred, and an often-overlooked tax might be partly the reason for the current boom in house prices.

Am I Paying My Fair Share of Tax?

As the financial year draws to an end, there is still time to talk to your tax adviser about minimising your tax bill for 2020/21. As a way of reminding you, we thought we would spend some time looking at who pays tax in Australia – and how much they earn before doing so!

Financial Plan in Your 60s – Home, Super, Debts, Centrelink and Inheritance

We love reading those ‘Dear Abbey’ type letters to the newspaper. Especially the financial ones. Here is a classic we read recently about financial plan for a couple nearing retirement – and what we would do if this were our client.

Changes to Personal Income Tax and Small Business in the 2021/22 Budget

Last week we discussed changes to superannuation that were announced in this month’s Federal Budget. This week, we look at changes that have been announced regarding tax, especially for individuals and small business.

Changes to Super in the 2021/22 Budget

In years gone by, Federal Budget night could be relied on to pretty much re-write the rules on all things superannuation. Not so these days, with this year’s changes almost able to sneak past without anyone noticing.

Budget 2021

The world moved a little more back towards normal this week as Commonwealth Treasurer Josh Frydenberg delivered the 2021 Budget at the traditional time of just after Home and Away on the second Tuesday in May.

Organise your non-concessional super contributions by 30 June

Last week, we looked at concessional contributions – money that gets you an immediate tax deduction if you place it into super. Concessional contributions are just one of the two ways to voluntarily move money into super. Not very imaginatively, the other way is known as a non-concessional contribution.