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Home / Author: Rick Cosier

Rick Cosier

Grandfathered commissions: what’s it about?

Financial advice commissions and grandfathering have become among the more contentious issues at the Royal Commission. Here's everything you need to know about where they came from but were afraid to ask.

Home ownership struggles will drive changes

Home ownership for Australians aged between 25 and 34 has fallen from 39% to 29% in the last 20 years, and government policies are doing little to make first home buying easier. What are the attitudes of younger clients?

Compulsory super not enough to avoid full pension

Australia's economy will struggle under an increasing age pension burden because the current level of compulsory super is inadequate to fund a comfortable retirement for most.

Real client experiences often differ from the headlines

In the financial and economic world, we use medians and averages to assess our position and make decisions about the future. But as each individual is different, aggregated statistics aren't always useful.

China beyond the myths and stereotypes

China is so complex and varied that few people can understand the whole picture, but on a third visit over two decades, it's possible to see changes, many of which are for the better.

Education not just legislation

Australians should be creating a comprehensive financial plan to live within their means. It may turn out badly unless we teach skills at an early age and incorporate financial planning into our education system.

Latest Updates

Back to the future - Why indexing CGT is a good idea

A return to indexation of capital gains would be a fairer way to compensate households for the effects of inflation than the current discount. Importantly, it opens the door to future, broader reforms to stop the taxation of inflation.

Australia has no death duties. Technically.

Australia may not levy formal death duties, but a growing web of tax measures is quietly shaping what wealth passes between generations. Now, the 2026 budget adds another layer.

Strategy

The folly of the Iran war

From oil shocks to fractured alliances, the Iran war carries the hallmarks of a historic policy misstep - one that could tip an already fragile global economy into crisis.

Taxation

Noel Whittaker’s take on the budget

Marketed as a fix for inequality and housing affordability, the latest budget instead delivers a tangle of tax changes that leave everyday Australians worse off.

Investment strategies

The red metal's long game

Copper has had a rough few weeks but investors should not ignore the potential for future price increases as supply increasingly falls behind demand.

Taxation

The lesser-known effects of changed property taxes

The budget’s property tax reforms are being framed as fairness measures, but they risk splitting the housing market, penalising lower‑income investors and introducing distortions that may prove costly.

Latest from Morningstar

Why stocks sometimes fall for no obvious reason

The vast and opaque world of private assets is a powerful gravitational force - and when trouble hits, it's the more liquid public equities that often the feel it first.

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