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8 May 2024
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In December 2022, the Federal Government introduced star ratings for aged care homes with the aim of providing simple, reliable information about the quality of care. Unfortunately, the ratings system isn't up to par.
The rules to age successfully include, 'the unexamined life lasts longer', 'change no more than one-eighth of your life at a time', 'nobody is thinking about you', and 'pursue virtue but don’t sweat it'.
Do what you want with your estate but there can be challenges in a court. Older people are vulnerable and they can tell people what they want to hear, but carers can also be successful over family beneficiaries.
Pre-retirees should ‘trial run’ their retirements. All those things you want to do - play golf, time with the family, a hobby, write a book - might not be so appealing in reality, but you might discover other benefits.
Appointing an enduring Power of Attorney is one of those administrative tasks we often overlook, but it becomes increasingly important as we age. Make sure the attorney understands your needs.
It's laudable for government to fund important research but for it to really make a difference, industry participants and researchers need to engage and collaborate with the other. Research on ageing is a case in point.
Relevancy, as long as we maintain it, is rewarding on almost every level. But what happens when we lose it? As we get older, we need to master irrelevancy, the exact opposite of what we’ve spent a lifetime pursuing.
Depending on your own situation, 60 might be the new 50 or the new 70. When it comes to making decisions about retirement, aged-based rules might not be as useful as once thought.
If we expect government policies to deliver implausible growth when a demographic tailwind has become a headwind, we'll have temporary ‘growth’ with debt-financed consumption, with longer term adverse consequences.
After the age of 65, most people will spend over half of the rest of their lives with some disability or high level dependency. If ever you needed an incentive to save more and stay fit for your retirement, that has to be it.
The super industry has struggled to develop suitable post-retirement products to cater for increases in life expectancy. How would your own investing change if you knew you would live another 30 years after retiring?
Retirement often receives bad press, but whether or not you enjoy this life phase usually depends on the choices created. It's a nuanced and diverse experience and many welcome the sudden freedom.
The ATO has released all the superannuation rates and thresholds that will apply from 1 July 2024. Here's what’s changing and what’s not, and some key considerations and opportunities in the lead up to 30 June and beyond.
Life has radically shifted with my brain cancer, and I don’t know if it will ever be the same again. After decades of writing and a dozen years with Firstlinks, I still want to contribute, but exactly how and when I do that is unclear.
How useful are the retirement savings and spending targets put out by various groups such as ASFA? Not very, and it's reducing the ability of ordinary retirees to fully understand their retirement income options.
Australia will have 3.7 million more people in a decade's time, though the growth won't be evenly distributed. Over 85s will see the fastest growth, while the number of younger people will barely rise.
Investor disgust, consolidation, de-listings, price discounts, activist investors entering - it’s what typically happens at business cycle troughs, and it’s happening to LICs now. That may present a potential opportunity.
The $3 million super tax will capture retired, and soon to retire, public servants and politicians who are members of defined benefit superannuation schemes. Lobbying efforts for exemptions to the tax are intensifying.