Retiring Age in Australia

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Retiring age in Australia

In my role as a financial planner i am often asked questions about the retiring age in Australia. There is no simple answer – the age differs according to where your focus is – superannuation, tax or government age pension income support. Here’s a quick look at different versions of the retiring age in Australia.

Pension Deeming after 1 January 2015

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pension deeming deadline

D-Day for pensioners is approaching With important new deeming rules coming into effect on 1 January 2015, now is the time to review your superannuation and pension arrangements to ensure you don’t miss out on valuable Social Security entitlements.  Pension deeming after 1 January 2015 will change Account based pensions have generally been given favourable … Read more

Talking money in a new relationship

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Money and relationships

“Darling, it’s time we talked about money…” In my financial planning experiences, talking about money early in a relationship is incredibly important. Even more important is making sure you talk about money honestly and openly. When a couple start working on a budget, one of the last areas usually tackled is their differing attitudes to … Read more

Is this really the biggest scam in the history of mankind?

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biggest scam in mankinds history

“Scam” is an evoactive word. It conjures up images of this or that injustice, criminal or immoral act. Looking at scams can help us clarify the ethics of what is right and what is wrong, especially when we are talking about money. So here’s a look at a video that i was sent recently, in which the … Read more

What if you could save 1% more each year?

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Savings are the start of every geat investment plan. Here’s a New York Times page with a very simple “slider” calculator that helps to work out how much your savings could grow to. It’s based on putting aside a percentage of your income – you enter the rate of return and the number of years to invest.

The power of compound interest is vividly demonstrated. i like the emphasis on savings, as so much of mainstream media focus is on investment – which can’t happen without savings.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/03/24/your-money/one-pct-more-calculator.html

i’d be interested in your feedback…

Michael