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2 May 2024
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Treasury's consultation into the retirement phase of superannuation is generating a lot of interest. This submission to the consultation outlines the key financial risks to an individual’s standard of living in retirement.
Amid falling markets, it’s natural for retirement savers to feel depressed, not just about the present but also about future prospects. Here are some strategies to cope with this downturn, and possibly the next one.
If we knew we'd live to 100, we’d pace ourselves differently. Instead of 'learn-earn-burn' where the young study, the middle-aged work, and the old volunteer or rest, life’s path would have on-ramps and off-ramps.
Risk tolerance is highly personal, and is only truly tested when markets are under stress. Even the popular theory of loss aversion is now challenged, so you need to find the balance between risk and sleep.
Super funds will soon be required to offer retirement income strategies for members in decumulation. With uncertain returns, uncertain timelines, and different goals, it's possibly “the hardest, nastiest problem in finance".
Don Ezra's article on retirement spending was highly popular, and here he responds to some of the many comments. As he says, no plan will ever work out perfectly, but the work in the plan will help you to adapt.
What happens when a superannuation expert sets up his own retirement portfolio using decades of knowledge? He finds he can afford much more investment risk in his portfolio than conventional thinking suggests.
There is a spectrum of retirement investment strategies ranging from ‘business as usual’ to more complex ‘income layering’. They allow for varying degrees of personalisation in managing retirement risks.
As savers move from accumulation to decumulation, their views on risk will change. Retirees must take measured investment risk by balancing desired returns and protecting capital.
A mid-pandemic survey of over 1,000 people near or in retirement found three in four are not confident how long their money will last. Only 18% felt their money was safe during a strong economic downturn.
In retirement, we still want to reduce stock volatility while generating cash flows. The two needs have not changed, but the reward expected in the old days from interest payments has gone. What should we do?
A new survey of over 1,000 people near or in retirement found three in four are not confident how long their money will last. Only 18% felt their money was safe during a strong economic downturn.
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.