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Stephen Lawrence

The allure of business real property in SMSFs

An SMSF can buy business real property and lease it to a member and the laws and processes are clear. The rent paid is classed as income from the investment rather than a contribution from the member.

Catch-up contributions are a tax planning opportunity

Deferring concessional contributions to a year when an individual’s taxable income is higher by making 'catch-up' contributions can create a sizable tax arbitrage between tax paid within the fund and tax paid personally.

Is the super withdrawal and re-contribution strategy over?

The advantages of using re-contributions to minimise taxable components within super will dry up after 1 July 2017, but those in a position to make the most of it now, should consider seeking advice and doing so.

Oh dear, not another glitch with borrowing in SMSFs

Purchasing shares for your SMSF under a highly-leveraged Limited Recourse Borrowing Arrangement should take into account the ATO's 45-day rule, or risk losing the imputation credits.

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SMSF strategies

Meg on SMSFs: The CGT changes don’t impact super but what about Div 296 tax decisions?

New CGT rules could tip the scales in the super vs non-super debate. For those facing the Division 296 tax, the case for withdrawing has gotten more complex. A "comparison rate" tool may help assess decisions.

Planning

Testamentary trusts post-budget: Estate planning, tax reform and the ‘death tax’ debate

Proposed Budget changes to taxation are casting new uncertainty over testamentary trusts, prompting closer scrutiny of estate planning structures and the real implications of reforms still taking shape.

Taxation

Income tax and bracket creep

Examining how five "tax cuts" stack up against bracket creep. Why offsets and incremental changes may do little to ease rising average tax burdens, compared to structural reform through indexation over time.  

Exchange traded products

The limits of a quality investing approach in Australia

Quality strategies shine globally, but Australia's concentrated market tells a different story. Limited diversification and sector dominance can constrain the defensive outcomes investors have seen in broader markets.

Investment strategies

Balancing opportunity and complexity

As private markets expand, investors face a growing mix of structures, a stabilising private equity cycle and uneven AI disruption. Fresh questions are being raised about where the real opportunities now sit.

Investment strategies

Why strong returns matter as much as generosity

As EOFY approaches, structured giving offers a tax-effective way to support charities, while allowing donations to grow over time and play a longer-term role in family wealth and legacy planning outcomes.

Investment strategies

The most important investment decision you’ll ever make

Stock picking often gets the spotlight, but research shows asset allocation explains the vast majority of long‑term returns. Understanding your mix of growth and defensive assets is the real key to investment success.

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