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Rick Cosier

Is your super fund adequately diversified?

The majority of super fund members in ‘balanced funds’ have sizeable allocations to bonds, global shares and listed property. SMSFs have over 60% of their assets in just cash, deposits and Australian shares.

The insurance essentials

Protecting your wealth and standard of living is just as important as building it in the first place. You are gambling with your financial future if you do not have adequate insurance.

The superannuation essentials

Superannuation was introduced to encourage people to save for their retirement, and this article explains that despite some recent criticism of performance, super remains a highly effective savings vehicle.

Will the new rules for financial advice make a difference?

From 1 July 2013, investment managers and platforms will be banned from paying commissions to financial advisers on new business. This should have happened years ago, but the industry’s tardiness has resulted in additional regulations on advice fees that are deducted from clients’ accounts.

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Planning

Testamentary trusts survived the trust tax. The drafting battle has just begun.

The fight over testamentary trusts looked settled. Then the draft legislation arrived. Hidden in a technical detail is a question that could force many families to rethink wills they thought were already future-proof.

Investment strategies

The new capital gains tax trap for your portfolio

Investors have long accepted one portfolio rule without much question. A major tax shift could change that calculation entirely, forcing difficult trade-offs between risk, discipline and an overlooked cost lurking beneath.

Economy

Population growth masks Australia’s productivity problem

For years, investors have benefited from a seemingly reliable growth story. But recent national accounts raise uncomfortable questions about what has really been driving Australia’s economy and whether that can continue unchecked.

Investment strategies

Why tomorrow’s winners may not be today’s index leaders

The stocks that built retirement balances over the past decade now dominate many portfolios. The new challenge is whether these companies can continue meeting the increasingly high expectations embedded in today's share prices.

Investing

What earnings surprises reveal about future returns

Sometimes the most important information in an earnings result isn't the number itself. It's the possibility that the market's assumptions have been fundamentally wrong and future earnings may look very different.

SMSF strategies

Individual SMSF Trusteeship directly liable for ATO fines

A rarely discussed detail buried in SMSF structures could dramatically change who wears the cost when something goes wrong. With penalties rising, a decision many dismissed as administrative may deserve a second look.

Investment strategies

The currency bet you didn’t know you made

Buying global shares means making two bets: on the companies and on the Australian dollar. Most investors consciously choose only the first. Last financial year, the second bet cost 8.5% in returns for many investors.

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