Blog

Ever thought about the role of buffers in good financial planning?

The Governor of the Reserve Bank Phillip Lowe recently recommended that home borrowers ensure that they have a ‘buffer’ against the time when interest rates inevitably rise. Interest rate buffers are not the only type of buffer in good financial planning. Buffers are used in many areas, but the need for buffers always comes from the same source: understanding that the way things are now is not likely to be the way things are in the future.

Does Your Life Insurance Policy include Covid-19?

If you hold a life insurance policy in Australia, the good news is that your policy will almost certainly not exclude health events that are caused by Covid-19. This is especially the case for policies that pre-date 2020, but is also almost always the case for policies that you took out before you became or become ill with Covid.

Identifying Goals And Objectives To Improve Your Personal Financial Situation

The upcoming new year offers a new beginning and for many, this is as good a time as any to look at your own financial goals. Take this time to reset, perhaps put the past behind you and set yourself some goals and objectives and a plan to achieve them.

Would You Walk Out on a Bad Movie?

You have paid $100 for gold class movie tickets. About a third of the way through, you realise that this is the worst film you have ever seen. Do you leave now or do you stay until the bitter end? Your answer might have big implications for your financial future.

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.