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Raewyn Williams

Portfolio diversification: when a free lunch can cause indigestion

Investing across many different managers may not deliver the expected portfolio diversification if managers invest in the same way. Watch for diversification redundancy.

Why is factor investing a ‘thing’?

We hear a lot about 'factors' but what are they? Both retail and wholesale investors are ploughing billions into these new ETFs and managed funds. Do they have a role alongside passive and active funds?

The other problem with volatility

There are many ways to hedge against volatility, but often at a cost to the overall return of the portfolio. At what point is a smooth journey worth the impact on the destination?

Investment objectives: are you max return or min risk?

The benefit of setting investment objectives is most apparent in times of market turmoil, but at any time, defining a preference for maximum returns or minimum risk will help to achieve the right outcome.

Multi-manager diversification or tax efficiency or both?

Often with multi-manager funds, each manager acts autonomously, unaware of what the others are doing. Funds that adopt a centralised approach can eliminate unnecessary trades and reduce tax inefficiencies.

Choosing managers should not ignore tax impact

Choosing a fund manager who outperforms the market on a pre-tax basis is good, but if you also consider the tax effect on that performance, you really start to identify who the best managers are.

Latest Updates

SMSF strategies

Division 296: the initial moves to make before the windows close

What if the best superannuation strategy isn't about earning more, but acting before your options disappear? Several overlooked planning windows are narrowing, with consequences that can last for decades.

Planning

Avoid unnecessary CGT with this estate planning clause

A simple estate plan can create a ticking time bomb. One overlooked clause can pit spouses against children, delay inheritances, and potentially leave a family facing an unexpected tax bill worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Exchange traded products

The hidden trade-off in fixed income ETFs

Some investment trade-offs are immediately visible. Others are embedded in the way a portfolio is constructed. Understanding the difference may explain why similar-looking investments can produce surprisingly different results.

Retirement

The mortgage free retirement is fading

What happens when a generation reaches retirement carrying obligations previous generations largely avoided? New research suggests we may need to rethink both how much we need in retirement and what life could look like.

Retirement

The key question to inspire a confident and purposeful retirement

Most people spend decades planning for retirement. Far fewer plan for what happens when they get there. The difference may explain why so many find the transition harder and less fulfilling than expected, despite careful preparation.

Latest from Morningstar

Making the case for a 'good enough' portfolio

Some investors spend years chasing the perfect strategy. Others choose a path that’s simply good enough and move on. Which approach is more likely to deliver both better outcomes and a happier financial life over the long run?

Investment strategies

Is the US market as expensive as CAPE says?

Many investing ideas survive for decades. But that does not make them right. A famous valuation measure implies that US shares are dangerously expensive, but the evidence may point to a very different conclusion.

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